Ocean Realm

Smearing themselves in pig grease and soot, think about being surrounded by hundreds of Stone Age tribesmen as they brandish their weapons from axes to spears to arrows and howl their war chants in your direction. It might seem rather disturbing. You might be in the audience section in the annual Highlands Show of Papua New Guinea.

Located in between and the equator is Papua New Guinea, it shares a large island with Indonesia where it owns the eastern half and is also comprised of small islands belonging to the Bismarck Archipelago. What happened in 1975 was that it gained independence and nationhood but before that managed Papua and New Guinea separately under various United Nations trust arrangements. In terms of the western way of life, some parts of the country are still unaware.

In the 1930s, white men traveling on foot were the first to explore these rugged Highlands. The white man is still a novelty, and at the Highlands Show the center of attention is often the camera toting tourist as much as the armed and painted warrior. For this two day show almost 60,000 people, mostly Papua New Guineans, come to see them as they are held alternately in the towns of Goroka and Mount Hagen. In order for some of them to participate in the festivities, there are people who walk all the way from Telefomin, Wapenamanda, and Ukarumpa.

Apart from having demonstrations for skills like fire making or house building, agricultural and crafts exhibits are also staged here. Aside from these, the show has light entertainment. With weapons and barefoot, the competitors test their skills in the bicycle races, chasing after a greased pig, and racing up a greased pole with beer and cigarettes dangling from the summit. The tribes displaying their treasured ceremonial attire during the sing sing competition to tourists and locals is the climax of the weekend.

Under the hot sun, people dance and chant accompanied by the deep hollow beat of the kundu drum where pace changes are occasionally done to simulate a battle or to stage a legend from tribal history. Considering the kaleidoscope of color and costume, it is a treat during the Highlands sing. Embellished are the dancers in this case. Used as trimmings for their bodies covered in the darkest soot and faces luminescent in red and blue ochre are feathers, beads, leaves, and even store bought crepe paper. When it comes to their earrings they use safety pins and those with pierced septums do not use the usual pig’s tusk or other bone but resort to ball point pens and even pieces of an automobile engine.

Not only are the village heirlooms unwrapped here but also displayed. They use the fur of the spotted cuscus, a small marsupial, to make the headpieces proudly worn by the children. When it comes to seashells, they are still seen as valuable possessions for they were once a form of currency. The tall swaying plumes of the cassowary and of the national symbol which is the peacock like Raggiana Bird of Paradise can be seen at times.

People may also witness the eerie Asaro mudmen. The grotesque headgear they wear are made from sun baked clay and straw and they cover themselves in white mud too. Slapping leaves off their thighs, they dance their swaying dance. There is a legend that mentions how a tribe after being pursued by their enemies retreated into the Asaro River.

Their enemies retreated when they emerged covered in the white clay because the former thought they were ghouls. In commemoration of this victory, the Asaro mudmen continue covering themselves in the same river mud. After the all the sing sings, cash and cattle prizes are handed out to those who are best in costume not to mention best in their presentations. Then, as the sun sinks into the Highlands, the crowd spectators and performers alike begin the long trek homeward till another year.

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