UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII LIBRAR'l - ScholarSpace

LABOR MOBILITY ANO RURAL DEVELOPMENT:

THE USE OF REMITTANCES IN AYUAN ANO AJOA, ORO PROVINCE,

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE DIVISION OF THE

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT

OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF

MASTER OF ARTS

IN GEOGRAPHY

MAY 1984

By

Ann Turner

Thesis Committee:

Murray Chapman, Chairman

Peter N. D. Pirie

Nancy O. Lewis

Al ice G. Dewey

UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII LIBRAR'l

We certify that we have read this thesis and that, in our

opinion, it is satisfactory in scope and quality as a thesis for

the degree of Master of Arts in Geography.

THESIS COMMITTEE

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

In the process of writing this thesis I have incurred many

personal and intellectual debts. I have received encouragement,

kindness and understanding from a wide range of people in Australia,

Hawaii, Papua New Guinea, and New Caledonia.

I have been fortunate in being a student in the Department of

Geography at the University of Hawaii, where the faculty and students

are supportive and original research by all students is encouraged.

Dr. Murray Chapman always gave freely of his time, his fine intellect,

and his friendship. I am also grateful to Dr. John Connell and Dr.

Graeme Hugo who provided advice and encouragement.

The field work for this thesis was funded by grants from the

East-West Population Institute, Honolulu, and from Sigma Phi Inter

national, Chicago. I am grateful to Dr. Louise Morauta, Dr. Andrew

Strathern, and Mr. Ralph Wari for their help and time in arranging

my research visa. Dr. Morauta was also a most rigorous field super

visor and allowed me the freedom to conduct research, when I am sure

she was concerned about my youth and inexperience. Dr. Richard

Jackson gave me affiliation with the Institute for Applied Social

and Economic Research (IASER) and also an introduction to the National

Archives of Papua New Guinea. The staff and students of the Depart

ment of Geography at the University of Papua New Guinea gave valuable

advice and moral support; particularly, Dr. Cros Walsh and Mr. Stephen

Rank. I am also grateful to Mr. Martin Bakker at the National Census

Office for his help and to Archbishop David Hand for permission to

use the Archives of the Anglican Church.

My largest debt, however, is to the people of Ayuan and Ajoa,

who allowed me into their lives and who answered my many questions.

iv

I am most grateful to Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey Gariro, who were my family

in Ayuan, and to Miss Helen Roberts in Wanigela, who gave me her

friendship and the benefit of her many years of experience in Oro

Province and in Papua New Guinea. Mr. John Baker and Bishop Issac

Gadebo were kind enough to provide me with an introduction to the

Miniatia.

In iustralia, I have a supportive family who have paid telephone

bills from all over the Pacific and always met me at airports. My

friends in Australia have come to visit and sent vegemite, while those

in Hawaii and Papua New Guinea have shown me how to live in new

places and accept the ways of others. I am grateful to Mr. Tim

Shepherd, who prepared the maps for this thesis and who gave me his

love and friendship.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

LIST OF TABLES

LIST OF ILLUSTRATION

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

HISTORICAL NOTE . . .

CHAPTER I

CHAPTER II

CHAPTER Ill

CHAPTER IV

THE PROBLEM

Theoretical Background . . . . . . . . .

Studies of Remittances in Papua New Guinea

Research Questions • .

LABOR MOBILITY IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

Labor Flows Before 1945

Movements of Labor 1945-1980 . . .

Movement of Workers from Tuf i District

1900-1980: Formation of a Labor Reserve

AYUAN AND AJOA: THE CASE STUDY

Definitions . . . • • •

Field Procedures . . . .

The Two Study Communities

Population

Social Structure

Economy . .

LABOR MOBILITY AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL,

1925-1982 . . . . .

Returned Labor Migrants

Labor Mobility Profiles for the Resident

Population, 1925-1982

The 1925-1929 Cohort










iii

vii

ix

x

xi

1

6

8

10

12

13

21

34

42

43

47

53

58

68

72

75

76

87

87

88

89

90

92

93

94

96

97

98

CHAPTER V

CHAPTER VI

Current Absentees . . . . . . . . • . .

Miniafia Labor Mobility in Perspective

THE INCIDENCE AND USE OF REMITTANCES

The Incidence of Remittances Remittances Sent and Received Remittances Occurring Through Visits

The Scale of Remittances . . . . . . •

Remittances, Social Structure, Obligation and Status . . . . . . . . . .

Remittances and the Life Cycle of the Village Households . . .

The Use of Cash Remittances from Remittances . . . . . . . .

Use and Rationale of Cash Remittances

LABOR MOBILITY, REMITTANCES AND RURAL

DEVELOPMENT

Overview

Labor Mobility, Remittances, and Rural

Investment in Ayuan and Ajoa . . . .

Theoretical and Policy Implications for

Rural Households in Labor-Reserve Areas.

APPENDIX--FIELD QUESTIONNAIRES AND CHECK LISTS

REFERENCES . . • • • . . • • .

vi

101

104

112

113

114

118

124

127

132

139

143

147

147

151

155

159

166

Table

2. l

2.2

2.3

2.4

2.5

2.6

2.7

2.8

3. l

3.2

3.3

J.4

3.5

3.6

LIST OF TABLES

Labor Recruiting from Papua and New Guinea for the Sugar Plantations of Queensland 1880-1884 . •

Recruited Labor Papua and New Guinea 1923-1939

Indigenous Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1966 Census . . . . . . . . .

Indigenous Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1971 Census . . . . . . .

Citizen Population, By Province of Birth and Province of Enumeration--1980 Census

Provincial Net Migration, 1966-1980 .

Labor Recruiting Licenses Issued from Tufi, 1916-1941 . . . . . . . .

Laborers Engaged under Contract of Service by Occupation, Northern Eastern Division, 1911-1928

Types and Sources of Data Used in Oro Study

Stages of Field Research in Ayuan and Ajoa, 20 November 1982 - 2 February 1983

Historical Calendar for Ayuan and Ajoa, 1899-1980 . . . . .

Total Population of Ayuan and Ajoa

Residents in Ayuan and Ajoa .

Dependency Ratios, Ayuan and Ajoa

J.7 Educational Attainment of the Adult Resident

4.1

4.2

Population, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

Adult Male Resident Population by Migration Status, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982 . . . . .

Adult Male Absentee Population by Movement Category, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982 . . . . .

Page

14

20

24

26

29

31

37

38

44

48

49

61

62

66

67

76

100

Table

4.3

4.4

4.5

Adult Female Absentee Population by Movement Category, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982 . . . . .

Educational Attainment of Current Labor Migrants, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982 . . . . .

Occupation of Current Labor Migrants, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

4.6 A Typology of Labor Mobility from Ayuan and

5. 1

5.2

5.3

5.4

5.5

5.6

5.7

5.8

5.9

5.10

5.11

Ajoa, Oro Province . .

Cash and Goods Sent by Households in Ayuan and Ajoa to Labor Migrants . . . . .

Remittances Sent by, Remittances Received

Cash and Goods Received by Households in Ayuan and Ajoa from Labor Migrants . . . . . .

Cash and Goods Received During Visits of Ayuan and Ajoa Residents to Labor Migrants .

Cash and Goods Exchanged During Visits to Ayuan and Ajoa Households

The Scale of Remittances (in Kina)

Kinship Ties and Remittances Among Miniaf ia

Kinahip Ties and Miniaf ia Visits Between Town and Village . . . . . . . . .

The Source of Cash Income in Thirteen Households of Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-15 January 1983 .

Expenditure in Thirteen Households in Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-15 January 1983 . . . . .

Use of Cash from Remittances by Value

5.12 Use of Cash from Different Sources of Remittances

viii

Page

102

105

106

107

115

116

117

120

122

126

128

129

134

135

140

140

Figure

1.1

1. 2

2. l

3. 1

3.2

4. 1

4.2

4.3

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

Papua New Guinea: Provincial and Territorial

Boundaries and Place Names Mentioned in Text

Oro Province: Tufi District Administrative

Boundaries and the Main Provincial Transport

Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Papua New Guinea: Territorial Boundary, Location

of Gold Fields and Area of Cash Crop Plantations

in 1927 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The Study Area: Major Landscape Features Transport Links . . . .

and

Structure of the Total Population of A yuan

and Ajoa, 1982 . . . .

Movement of Miniafia to Wage Labor, Five-year

.

Cohorts by Occupation, 1925-1982 . . . . . . .

Structure of Miniafia Labor Mobility by Five-

year Cohorts, 1925-1982 . . . . . . . . .

Educational Attainment of Miniafia Returned

Wage Laborers by Five-Year Mobility Cohort,

1925-1982 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

.

4.4 Place of Residence of Current Miniafia Labor Migrants

Page

2

4

15

. . 55

65

77

84

85

103

A.R.P.

P.R.

A.L.X.

LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

Annual Report for the Territory of Papua

Administrative Patrol Report for the Miniafia Villages (Tufi District, Oro Province)

Refers to the referencing system used in the archives of the Anglican Church in Papua New Guinea, located in Port Moresby

HISTORICAL NOTE

In 1975, Papua New Guinea became an independent nation state,

whose current political boundaries are shown on Figure 1.1. Before

then, Papua New Guinea was divided into two separate territories,

Papua and New Guinea ( Figure 2.1). Great Britain annexed Papua in

1884 and administered it until 1906, when Papua became an Australian

territory. Germany annexed New Guinea in 1884 and administered it

until 1919, when it became an Australian trust under the League of

Nations. The two territories were administered separately by

Australia until after World War II. These political changes have

resulted in many boundary changes during this century. To ensure

comparability between chapters in this thesis and to ease comparison,

current names and boundaries are used. The exceptions generally

relate to the case study of Tufi district in Oro Province, whose

boundaries are shown on Figure 1.2.

CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM

The causes of migration cannot be separated from the consequence of unequal development due to 'natural causes' (the natural potentialities of different regions). Migration is an element in unequal development, reproducing the same conditions and contributing in this manner to their aggravation. (Amin, 1974:93).

This thesis attempts an holistic analysis of cash remittances

from migrants in paid employment, within the context of a labor reserve

in Oro Province, Papua New Guinea (Figure 1.1). The basic issue is

the degree to which money sent or brought back to the village by wage

laborers is invested (as in trade stores or cash crops), saved, con-

spicuously consumed (as payment for imported food itmes), or used to

finance further departures from the local community. Are remittances

to rural communities sufficiently large that they can be used: first,

to compensate the origin community for the losses from outward movement

(as the loss of local labor and skills); and secondly, to contribute

to social and economic development in rural areas from which wage

laborers are drawn by, among other things, increasing the availability

of capital?

The broadest and most important question concerns the position

of remittances set within the broader context of population movement

for wage employment and, a little more narrowly, to the historical,

economic, and social situation of particular groups. That is, "

under what conditions do certain patterns of migration produce various

kinds of developmental effects and in combination with what other

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(Source: Matwijiw, 1982:17) N

3

variables?'' (Hayes, 1982:7-8). The aim of this thesis is to understand

a small and defined part of that relationship: the use of cash income

from wage-labor migrants, for what Chapman (1981:85) has called, 'the

elementary particles of society'; the individuals, families, and small

groups which make up communities.

The rural villages selected for study in Papua New Guinea, Ayuan

and Ajoa in Oro Province (Figure 1.2), reflect these basic concerns

in a particular context. In terms of both land area and population,

Papua New Guinea is the most sizable nation in the Pacific; has a

colonial history dating from the late nineteenth century (1884); is

ethnically one of the most diverse countries in the world; has great

physical barriers to internal communication that hinder development

projects; and, most important of all, remains a nation of small village

communities that depend largely on subsistence production despite

rapid urbanization, which has been occurring since the late 1960s.

The Tufi district of Oro Province (Figure 1.2), within which the study

villages are located, has experience of Western contact since 1900.

Labor mobility for both the district and the populations of Ayuan and

Ajoa dates from this early period. Such long experience of labor

mobility throughout the region allows consideration of the size and

use of remittances, together with their contribution to village income

and economy, examined within the context of continued movement from

local communities. Villages throughout Oro Province are also at the

tail end of transition to a cash economy, which has been occurring

in Papua New Guinea since contact, and therefore are of additional

interest.

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BOUNDARIES

Oro Province

North Eastern Division

T1:1fi District

C ollingwood Bay Census Division

Figure 1.2. Oro Province: Tufi District Administrative Boundaries and the Main Provincial Transport Links. (Source: National S tatistical Office, 1981:1 and Townsend, 1982b:73) +-

5

The central argument of this thesis is that, in rural communities

such as Ayuan and Ajoa, patterns of contemporary wage-labor mobility,

remittances, and associated investment and consumption are best under-

stood as a response to two broad influences: the social, political

and economic environment of the country or nation state; and the

economic and social norms and aspirations within particular households

and communities, deriving as they do from the demands of the traditional

sector and local visions of what change is possible. Within all levels

of the community, moreover, the historical articulation of these two

sets of forces predetermines, or at least constrains, both the present

economic situation in rural localities and the range of options avail-

able to particular households.

To explain the use of remittances in rural situations thus requires

an approach that goes beyond the two dominant analytical paradigms

in the field: economic positivism and neo-Marxist structuralism.

This is because both approaches are deterministic at either the macro

or micro scale, fail to consider all relevant variables, and employ

methodologies not allowing for any integration of levels of analysis.

As Chapman (1982:97) argues,

To better comprehend complex reality, investigations and analyses must proceed at several levels: the microlevel (individual, family), mesolevel (community, settlement system, region), and macrolevel (country, continent, world). Such possibilities emphasize the critical importance of measurement and technique and of the need for both crosssec t iona 1 and longitudinal data. Greater attention must also focus upon the social, economic, and political structures that bound and influence all manner of reciprocal flows, without necessarily accepting the assumptions made on these in Marxian analysis.

6

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

The analysis of what in the social science literature is termed

'labor migration' has been dominated by two approaches: the neo

classical and the dualistic ( Standing, 1981:173). The neo-classical,

associated with the Lewis (1954, 1979) model of economic development,

argues that rural to urban movement is the mechanism allowing for the

transfer of labor from the agricultural sector, where labor is surplus

and its marginal physical product is consequently zero, to the modern

izing and more productive urban sector. This increases productivity

per unit in rural areas, since the constraints of surplus labor are

removed, thereby releasing the factors of local production, while rural

income is increased by remittances sent by workers in the urban sector.

Hence the two sectors develop simultaneously through the transfer of

labor. The Todaro (1969) model, based on that of Lewis, explicitly

considers the movement process within the neoclassical paradigm. The

basic premise is that potential members of the labor force decide

whether and where to move by comparing the known monetary advantages

of different locations (Zelinsky, 1978:15). The effect for origin

areas is beneficial, since workers move to higher-income places and

remit surplus income back to the rural areas from which they came.

The dualistic approach to 'labor migration', deriving from

dependency theory, arose from dissatisfaction with neoclassical models

and incorporates the structure of society, as well as economic vari

ables, into the analysis. For example, Amin (1974) argues that 'modern

migrations' represent the movement of labor and not of people per se;

as such, they denote a transfer of value from peripheral to more

7

central regions and lead to economic changes within areas of origin.

The mobility of labor thus incorporates the rural household, along

with its social and economic system, into the national capitalist

economy. Amin rejects conventional economic theory. He argues that

capital is more mobile than labor and that individualist approaches

asking why people move fail to incorporate into the framework of inquiry

the mode of production (subsistence/capitalist), not to say the organi

zation of society. He suggests that to appreciate fully the rule and

impact of the outflow of labor, it is necessary to examine the socio

economic transformations occurring within rural areas as a result of

both their steady incorporation into the capitalist core-regions and

their increasing dependence on the world economic system.

Subsequent research in Black Africa and the Pacific Islands seems

to support this position. For West Africa, for example, Franke (1981)

argues that territorial mobility and population growth are best ex

plained as a response to labor demands inherent in the kind of produc

tion system introduced and sustained by the agricultural policies of

colonial governments and, later on, by the economic programs of

independent states. Rural populations respond to induced changes

manifest in the economic position of the household, which requires

the production of a particular-sized labor force and the deployment

of locally available manpower in a particular manner if the household

economy is to survive. Similarly, for the Pacific, Connell (1982)

and Gibson (1982) largely explain labor movements as a result of in

corporation of island groups and countries into the global world

economy. All these studies, however, employ aggregate data and thus

8

avoid some of the complexity evident at lower levels of analysis.

Essentially, they remove particular groups from their cultural, social,

and physical context, which vary from place to place and which varia

tion in turn may greatly influence the role of labor mobility and of

remittance incomes.

Both neoclassical and structural approaches have been heavily

criticized: the former because they are simplistic, atomistic, and

ahistorical ( Gerold-Scheepers and Van Binsbergen, 1978:21); fail to

consider the organization of society ( Amin, 1974:79); omit non-economic

considerations ( Ward, 1981:70); and neglect the dynamics of socio

economic transition ( Standing, 1982:3). Dualistic models, on the other

hand, fail to consider how far rural communities maintain control over

production decisions taken at the level of the household and village,

and hence cannot explain the traditional resilience of local social

and economic systems ( Brookfield, 1980). Most importantly, the dual

istic approach may explain interrelationships at highly aggregate

natinal or global scales but does not comprehend the connections between

socioeconomic forces found at lower levels of analysis, particularly

of communities and households.

STUDIES OF REMITTANCES IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

For Papua New Guinea, there is a wide range of findings about

the size and regularity of remittance payments but no suggestions that

they contribute to socioeconomic development in the village. In those

areas where remittances are substantial, there seems to result some

level of cash dependence, as in Kukipi village, Gulf Province (Morauta

and Hasu, 1979; Morauta, 1981, 1982), or absolute dependence, such

as Carrier (1981) found in Ponam island, Manus Province (Figure 1.1).

No firm conclusions are possible for Papua New Guinea as a whole, how

ever, because the complex links between labor mobility, remittances,

and income use within labor-exporting areas have been insufficiently

investigated.

Strathern (1972:38-39), when studying wage laborers from Mount

Hagen in the Western Highlands Province (Figure 1.1), found that

migrants eat (spend) most of their money in town on food. Remittances

tended to be small, relative to sources of income in the village, and

most were used to meet social obligations to kin. She argues (1972:

9

38-39): " . • Money is all the migrant has: he has no other currency

in which to express and discharge the myriad social obligations that

absence brings on his head. He stands little chance of being able

to use his money in the approved bisnis-like manner." These conclu

sions gain support from more recent research by Schlitz and Josephides

(1980), on the remittance behavior of plantation workers in the Sugu

Valley of the Southern Highlands Province (Figure 1.1). They found

that incomes and savings were low, that most migrant earnings were

spent on food, and that wage workers were unable to make regular

transfers to their home villages. They also suggest that, on the whole,

going away to work had not resulted in any positive benefits to the

origin communities but rather that the remaining population encountered

difficulty in maintaining their subsistence economy and their bases

of social reproduction. These conclusions parallel those by Boyd

(1975, 1980, 1981) for the Ilikai Awa in the Eastern Highlands (Figure

1.1), where changes in the annual cycle of agricultural production

were found to be related directly to the absence of people in paid

employment. Among households with members absent, Boyd discovered

that production of subsistence food crops was greatly reduced and not

offset by flows of money or gifts in the reverse direction.

By contrast, in more detailed research on remittances per se,

Carrier (1981), Morauta and Hasu (1979), and Morauta (1981, 1982)

document cash transfers to be substantial among the Ponam Islanders

of Manus Province and the Kukipi villagers of Gulf Province. Both

societies could be viewed as remittance dependent, in that current

levels of subsistence production would be inadequate to meet basic

needs of the resident population were it not for the inflow of cash

from absent wage-workers. A situation somewhere between these two

extremes has been reported by Heaney (1982) for the Waghi Valley in

the Western Highlands. There, remittances were initially high, but

declined as coffee cultivation provided an alternative and sizable

source of cash income.

RESEARCH QUESTIONS

LO

These studies raise several basic issues about the size and nature

of remittances from the standpoint of Papua New Guinea. In turn, they

suggest three sets of questions, which this thesis will examine:

1. Do wage-labor migrants send back cash remittances to the home

community: when, how much, and to whom? Do village households trans

mit money to wage-labor migrants: when, how much, and to whom?

2. What is the relationship between movement away for wage labor

and cash remittances, both into and out of the village? Can changes

or a distinct trend in this relationship be detected over time?

11

3. Are cash remittances to the village saved, invested, or con

sumed? Or are they used to finance further departures from the local

community? More generally, in what ways is the use of cash remittances

related to the economic position of the rural household, the stage

of the life cycle reached by particular households, and the nature

or magnitude of the remittance flow?

The next chapter will outline the context of these issues in Papua

New Guinea, the history of labor mobility, and the position of the

study villages with respect to this national pattern. Chapter III

will describe not only the sources of data and field methodology for

this village study but also the community characteristics relevant

to understanding the use of remittances. Both current and past

mobility for the populations of Ayuan and Ajoa is considered in the

fourth chapter, compared with Young's (1977) data from Simbu and New

Ireland provinces (Figure 1.1), and related to the national patterns

outlined in Chapter II. The incidence and use of cash remittances

are described and analyzed in the fifth chapter. The final, and sixth

chapter considers the implications for investment of movement and re

mittance patterns in Ayuan and Ajoa, along with broader issues of

economic development and ramifications for local planning.

CHAPTER II

LABOR MOBILITY IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA

As is evident, on account of the climate, that the natural resources of New Guinea can only be developed by means of coloured labor, the distribution of the natives, both as to population and disposition, is of paramount importance. (A.R.P., 1886:9).

Missionaries generally do not oppose the working of natives for the white man under the indenture system, for they recognise that by this as well as by other means they learn discipline and responsibility, and often benefit physically as well. (Indenture of Natives: Memo re Penal Sanctions 11 August 1938, ALX, 4/27).

To be understood, the contemporary flow and use of remittances

at the level of the household and village in Papua New Guinea must

be considered within the larger context of labor mobility. Histori-

cally, for the country as a whole, the function of labor movement was to

guarantee supplies of workers to enable the exploitation of natural

resources (Curtain 1980a). At the same time, the movement of labor

frequently was the initial means by which whole communities and par-

ticular households were introduced to the cash economy, creating needs

and aspirations that could only be met by participation in that economy.

Substantial changes occurred in material life and permanent links

established between the subsistence and cash sectors, so that

societies eventually became incorporated into the colonial cash economy.

This process of incorporation in Papua has been described by Baxter

(1973, 1977) for the Orokaiva of Oro province, Boyd (1975, 1980, 1981)

for the Ilakia Awa of the Eastern Highlands province, and Townsend

(1980) for the Hube area of Morobe province (Figure 1.1). This chapter

13

briefly outlines the main features of labor flows for the country as

a whole (macro scale) and documents them in more detail for Tufi

district in Oro Province (meso scale), noting in particular the degree

of articulation between these two levels. In turn, this provides con

text for considering labor mobility at the level of the community and

household (micro scale) in Chapter IV.

LABOR FLOWS BEFORE 1945

The mobility of wage labor in Papua New Guinea dates from Western

contact, specifically the 1870s, when German planters around East and

West New Britain (Figure 1.1) required workers for their coconut

plantations (Brookfield with Hart, 1971:264). The first large-scale

movements, however, were associated with the Queensland labor and with

blackbirding--a practice whereby villagers were more or less lured

aboard recruiting vessels with promises of goods such as axes and

knives, to go to the sugar plantations of Northern Australia. From

the 1880s, recruiting vessels began to call regularly to the shores

of East and West New Britain, New Ireland, Bougainville, the islands

of Milne Bay province, and to the north-east coast of Papua (Figure

1.1). During 1880-83, the main years of recruiting from Papua New

Guinea, this practice grew rapidly once it had become established

(Table 2.1), which further suggests that had it been permitted to con

tinue, then large numbers of Papua New Guineans would have been re

located to sugar plantations in Queensland (see Docker, 1970; Corris,

1968; and Price, 1976 for details).

Year

l880

1881

1882

1883

Source:

Table 2.1

Labor Recruiting from Papua New Guinea for the Sugar Plantations of Queensland

1880-1883

Number of Number of Number of

Recruiters Voyagers Recruits

12 22 1,995

14 31 1,643

18 34 3,139

26 58 5,273

Docker (1970:180)

The laissez faire era of labor movement in Papua New Guinea came

to a close in 1884, when Papua was formally annexed by Great Britain

and New Guinea by Germany (Figure 2.1). In Papua, the flow of wage

workers was quickly institutionalized and regulated by law, beginning

14

with the Native Labor Ordinance of 1892 that prescribed terms and con-

ditions of employment (see Baker, 1971). This ordinance ensured two

somewhat contradictory objectives: the survival of village society

and the continuity of labor supply. Although in New Guinea the legal

structure evolved more slowly, in both cases the principles and terms

of wage work were similar; and the labor system remained in place

throughout the colonial period.

Essentially, a system of indentured labor was established in Papua

and New Guinea to ensure continuity in the supply of workers to the

main industries and areas of commercial development. It was based

NEW GUINEA

I

I

k

I -..........

I /

I

'-..

I I

I

I

(ill) • .

--

"·�

......

........

.ct.

l 75000 45000:J: 30000�

� 60000

..... 15000� 7508C: N 3 75

-

�

BOUNDARY <:::;>

• GOLDFIELDS �c:::.

.10••--

Figure 2.1. Papua New Guinea: Territorial Boundary, Location of Gold Fields and Area of Cash Crop Plantations in 1927.

(Source: Nelson, 1976:32; Curtain, 1980a:45; Matwijiw, 1982:17)

....... V1

16

on the assumption that wage laborers were freely-contracting parties,

bound by a contract that protected both worker and employer. In

reality, laborers often were recruited from recently-contacted areas,

had very limited knowledge of the terms of agreement, and saw the kiap

(administrative officer) as aligned with the interests of the employer.

Labor migrants who returned to Ayuan and Ajoa (Oro Province: Figure

1.2) speak of being 'told' to go to work or say that the government

'sent word' that men were needed. Consequently, it is not clear whether

villagers or the men themselves were always aware they did not have

to go away. Men signed contracts, generally called 'signing on' or

'making paper' in pidgin which, in Papua for two years and in New Guinea

for three, prescribed all the terms and conditions of employment.

This included, among other things, their movements to and from the

place employed, daily hours of work, and amount of remuneration-

usually extremely small and consisting of the blanket and lap lap

(oblong piece of cloth used as a wrap around) with which they were

issued upon arrival, plus a small amount of cash, most often spent

in the plantation or government trade store once the workers' term

of employment had concluded. In fact, these contracts defined the

very nature of the laborers' existence, detailing what and how much

they were to eat and when, their style of clothing, and the kind of

housing to be provided for them. They also included legal sanctions

should the contract terms be broken by either party; for the workers

this included flogging, fines, and imprisonment in New Guinea but was

limited to fines and imprisonment for Papua. In situations where the

employer was often the judge, it is doubtful if the law as written

17

in the Labor contract upheld the rights of the employee as often as

it did that of the employer (see Rowley, 1965). At times when the

trinkets of the cash economy provided insufficient motivation to secure

an adequate supply of laborers, or the harshness of employers deterred

recruits, the colonial government employed legal means to ensure the

constinuity of the cash sector. For example, the Native Plantations

Ordinance of L918 (the so-called 'coconut regulation') required all

adult men to plant a specified number of coconuts and to maintain

village groves unless they were away at wage work. Failure to do so

resulted in imprisonment. Rowley (1965:102-103), in his evaluation

of this system of labor indenture, observed:

The long term economics of the situation demanded that the village as the supplier of labor be maintained on a basis of welfare adequate for it to continue the supply. This required careful regulation of the movement and employment of the workers, out from the village to the place of employment, and back again to the village; with maximum limits to the term of service, and a minimum period to be spent in the village between terms; careful setting of minimum standards of payment in cash and kind, so that the incentive to go out to work would be maintained; the fixing of limits to punishment for breaches of labor discipline, for the same reason careful regulation of diet, health and accomodation standards. In fixing such standards the government usually had the support of big firms with long term investments (though not always as the history of labor in New Guinea illustrates). At the best, where such a system operated, the government tried to humanise the situation by according to the worker as far as possible (without wrecking the system) opportunities to protect his interests as a contracting party. Even at worst the principles of good animal husbandry applied to discourage the worst abuses. For when, through poor management, workers died, ran away, or after one term avoided recruiters at all costs, the result was bad for profits and revenue.

This legal structure produced the central features of labor move-

ment throughout Papua New Guinea. It institutionalized its circular

nature--by which village society maintained its basic functions and

18

continued to meet the costs of maintaining and renewing the labor

supply; and firmly established a dual economy of both subsistence and

monetary sectors within village households (Curtain 1980b). Finally,

as Ward ( 197 1:85) notes, it also made possible long-distance movements

from areas of Papua New Guinea that otherwise would not have been in

corporated within the colonial cash economy.

Until about 1930, under this s ystem, the main destinations of

wage workers in both Papua and New Guinea were to areas of plantation

development (mainly coconuts and rubber) and gold exploitation (Figure

2.1). In Papua, an average of 1,000 men s igned contracts every year

between 1888 and 1920 to work as miners. In 1900, this constituted

about half all those indentured in Papua, whereas by 1920 wage

laborers engaged in mining accounted for only about one-tenth of the

total (Nelson, 1976:260). This comparative decline reflected the

replacement of gold by copra and rubber as Papua's most important

exports. In New Guinea, prior to about 1920, almost all men worked

on cash-crop plantations but gradually mining became the most important

source of employment. Whereas in 1931 about 60 percent of all inden

tured workers were on expatriate plantations, by the late 1930s this

figure had been reduced to less than half.

Until the Second World War, labor migrants in Papua came primarily

from the Central, Gulf, and Milne Bay Provinces and the northeast

coast of Oro Province, while those within New Guinea were drawn mainly

from the islands of East and West New Britain, New Ireland, and the

coasts of Sepik and Madang provinces. Their main destinations were

the coconut and rubber plantations in Madang, New Britain, New Ireland,

and Central provinces and the goldfields in Oro and Morobe provinces

(Figure 1.1). Based on the size of these labor flows between 1923

and 1939 (Table 2.2), this process was far more important in the New

Guinea region than in the Papuan. Such differential in turn reflects

the more rapid, earlier, and more successful development of the cash

sector within New Guinea, in particular both the growth of copra as

19

a major industry and the importance of the goldfields in Morobe

province (Figure 2.1). There was also a strong association between

economic climate and demand for indentured labor. Numbers of recruits

peak in the 1920s, before the onset of the depression, and again in

the years preceding the Second World War. Movement was mainly between

rural areas: from villages to expatriate-owned plantations was by

definition short-term for the length of contracts (two years in Papua

and three in New Guinea; and continued to be circular in form, given

no lessening of its highly institutionalized nature. Workers were

almost all male and primarily employed at unskilled jobs, except for

a few working in the police force or as house servants who perhaps

also remained away from their rural communities for longer periods.

During the war (1942-45), even higher demands were placed on the

village as suppliers of labor. In most contracted areas, at some time

during the war, every adult male was enlisted as a carrier, a laborer

in a military base, or as member of the Pacific islands battalion.

There resulted unprecedented amounts of movement in both magnitude

and distances travelled and, most importantly, in large-scale exposure

to Western technology and culture. Baxter (1973) notes for example,

among the Orokaiva of Oro Province, how this massive involvement of

Year

1923

1924

1925

1926

1927

1928

1929

1930'

1931

1932

1933

1934

1935

1936

1937

1938

1939

Table 2.2

Recruited Labor Papua and New Guinea 1923-1939

Number of Laborers

New Guinea Papua

25,164 6,083

23,421 6,814

23,569 6,879

27 ,002 9 ,672

28,253 8,315

30,325 8,411

30 ,130 6, 725

27,708 7,274

26,607 6,144

28,242 5,244

30,595 5,059

33,993 5 ,16 7

36 '927 5 ,964

40,259 6,952

41,849 7, 965

41,675 9,648

39,344 9,759

Source: Annual Reports of Papua, specified years and Curtain (1980a:44).

20

Total

31,247

30,235

30,448

36,674

36,568

38,736

36,855

34,982

32,751

33,486

35,654

39,060

42 '891

4 7' 211

49,814

51,323

49, 103

large numbers of men was reflected in subsequent changes, not only

for rural economic and social life but also in village attitudes:

among other things, the feeling of equality and of an ability to

accomplish tasks that previously had been the exclusive domain of the

European. Allen (1981), in a more recent assessment of the northern

coastal area of Oro and Morobe provinces, details among the Orokaiva

21

the wholesale adoption after the war of the cooperative approach to

local development, which he and others such as Crocombe (1964) attribute

to the diffusion of ideas made possible by these unprecedented large

scale flows of labor.

MOVEMENTS OF LABOR 1945-1980

Several changes occurred in the character of labor flow during the

first two decades after World War II. The main source areas of un

skilled altered dramatically, with the highland populations being

brought under administrative control and the subsequent introduction

in 1951 of the Highlands Labor Scheme. Basically, this scheme enabled,

through a system of government control, the transfer of workers from

these densely-populated inland regions--what today are the provinces

of the Eastern, Southern, and Western Highlands, Simbu and Enga

(Figure 1.1)--to the more thinly settled although more cash-oriented

regions of the coast. Yet, for essentially the same reasons as with

the indenture system of the early 1890s. The Highlands Labor Scheme

ensured that the village as an economic and social entity remained

intact.

Subsequently, the recruiting frontier traversed the Highlands from

east to west as the more distant populations were contacted. Curtain

22

(1980a) explains this constantly-shifting frontier as reflecting the

desire of recruiters to keep wage-rates low, although some areas without

alternative sources of cash income tended to retain the characteristics

of labor frontiers. Brookfield (1960) analyzed a 20 percent sample

of all agreements signed by villagers in 1957 and found the major flows

of unskilled laborers to originate from East and West Sepik, Madang,

Morobe, and the Highlands provinces and end at the coastal plantations

of New Ireland, New Britain, and Madang provinces; in the goldfields

of Morobe; and on the rubber plantations of Central province. By

1957, men from the highlands accounted for the bulk of unskilled

recruits whereas in Papua, for example, only the islands of Milne Bay

and the Tufi district of Oro province (Figure 1.2) continued to supply

such workers.

The flows of the unskilled thus remained largely within rural

areas, although there was some movement to the wharfs of Port Moresby,

Lae, and Samarai (Figure 1.1). By contrast, an increasing proportion

of wage workers was going to urban areas, reflecting the greater post

war growth in the administrative and private-service sectors, the con

sequent enlargement of the size of towns (Skeldon, 1982), and the

increase in semi-skilled employment opportunities for Melanesians.

Migrants remained dominantly male and their movements largely circular,

with perhaps an overall rise in the length of time spent away from

the village community and especially for an increasing number who began

careers in town. Initially, town workers were drawn from coastal and

island areas where various missions had provided some kind of formal

education for several decades. By the late 1950s, for example,

Brookfield (1960) had documented the flow of semi-skilled labor from

the Papuan districts, while Morauta and Ryan (1982) note the lengthy

experience in Port Moresby of Malalauas from the Papuan Gulf (Figure

1.1). Finally, the minerals boom in the late 1950s reestablished the

mining industry as an important employer (Connell, 1983a).

23

For the first time in Papua New Guinea, the 1966 census permitted

an analysis of movement for the country as a whole. Such, however,

is confined to examination of life-time migration at the provincial

level, because the census data are derived from questions asked of

individuals about province of birth and of residence. The main

features of this movement and the patterns of its flow (Tables 2.3,

2.4, 2.5 and 2.6), complemented by its selectivity with respect to

age, gender, and education, clearly illustrate the national character

istics of labor mobility. In 1966, the principal provinces of out

migration were Simbu, East and West Sepik, and Morobe (Table 2.3)-

where, however, the outmigration was to some extent balanced by

significant inmigration (cf. Tables 2.3 and 2.6). The main provinces

of inmigration were Central and New Britain, also primary regions of

commercial and cash crop development. Five years later, in 1971, the

main provinces of in- and outmigration remained the same, despite an

increasing volume and a rising trend towards urbanization (Table 2.4).

Connell (1983a:63) notes that whereas, in 1966, 47 percent of all out

migration was to the rural nonvillage sector--settlements like planta

tions and community schools located in rural areas but not villages--by

1971 more than 46 percent occurred to urban areas.

Table 2.3. Indigenous p..,pulJtlon--Province of Rc.sldence and Province of Birch, 1966 Census.

Pro\•ince o f NorLIH-�rn Southern w�stcrn r.t.tmhu

rc.•:-ilch•1u·1.-. l·h•:--t ,•rn <:111 f C"•11tr.1 I lit''"' ll.1y (ll1·,,) fl1Ah1.11ubi llighlanJ> (Slmbu)

Western 60, 5 1 6 158 2 1 8 67 65 38 32 14

Gulf 24 7 5!,699 1,064 105 64 197 96 37

Central 160 715 l J0, 185 2, 144 1 ,892 1, 721 886 1 ,845

Milne Bay 161 ll2 833 96,894 632 34 31 38

Northern (Oro) 49 149 568 881 54 ,802 1 0 1 59 I 73

Southern Highlands llO Ill 112 49 65 179,071 3,018 297

Western Highlands 29 1 6 7 188 124 1 0 6 l. 732 280,045 4 '391

Chimbu (S imb11) 46 19 64 31 34 121 397 164,907

Eastern Highlands 40 248 380 187 1 7 1 99 36 l 4' 158

Mo robe 49 453 1,623 426 604 145 4 22 887

Madang 2 1 171 2 1 8 193 176 388 523 328

E.1sl S<!plk 39 154 180 98 83 27 96 110

West S<!pik l.4 59 54 1 2 3 3 1 6 30 64

Hanus 0 4 1 60 32 1 6 1 2 8

New IrelJnd 22 41 59 55 10 338 260 801

\..'est NcY Britain 9 16 24 45 1 1 6 225 155 163

Easl New Britain 30 295 336 389 89 1,460 885 421

North Solomons � 51 59 34 11 149 138 696

Total 63,000 62, 1 1 1 1 1,225 191, 774 58,996 185,868 287,446 179,333

Eastern 11 lgh!ands Ho robe

1 6 5 5 127 263

2,208 2 ,413

103 136 227 607

135 157

814 550 532 281

194 ,092 917

1,070 194. 313 271 1. 792

78 5 1 6 46 169 1 4 287

566 9 1 1

107 360 698 2,984

507 689

201,617 207, 370

HadJng

22 19

488

26 85

13 7

526 265

548

I ,697 142,63�

4 1 0 266 157 348

98 l, 1 0 1

237

149 ,069

N �

Table 2.3 (continued) Lndigc1hHIS Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1966 Census

Province of ELt,t West Nt!W Wc�t New East New North

residence Scpik Sepik Manus Ireland Britain Britain Solomons

�'csccrn 28 21 20 9 I 32 IL

Gulf 21 15 6 9 5 21 34

CentrJI 354 169 238 203 162 544 175

Hi Inc Bay 24 8 16 9 15 30 4

N"rthern (Oro) 53 15 2 7 II 39 62 14

Southern Highlands 76 46 38 40 JO 79 37

\,'t:stern lll!;hlands 211 87 67 40 29 135 34

Chimbu (Simbu) 41 13 39 22 I 7 60 29

E::J.stern lll(\h I ands I 71 55 86 26 I 74 19 201 ,853

M.:>rnbe I • 332 295 194 130 I 79 353 92

Hadang I, 289 I ,006 210 192 54 350 149. 893

t::asc Sep lk 151, 134 2. 345 187 219 108 461 106

llesc Sepik 737 96 ,961 14 7 125 32 224 22

Hanus 546 365 18. 249 119 109 I 7 7 68

r\cw Irla:ld 1, 141 l ,092 410 41, 778 214 l ,405 160

l.:cst Nc\J Britain 166 312 38 60 41.413 456 64

East New Britain 2 ,490 1,073 629 1. 563 2,400 8 7 ,042 776

Nllrlh Solomons 684 639 40 54 353 308 67,324

Total 160,498 104. 517 20 ,611 44,684 44,863 91,618 69,038

Source: Skeldon, 1979:112.

Total

61, 323 55 ,027

l 34. 384 99, ll 6 57,922

183,588

2e9,275 166,918

0 204,274

0 156,351

99,021 20,227 49,3ll 43,827

104,661 71,637

2,148,608

N \Jl

I

Table 2.4. Indigenous Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1971 Census.

Province of Birth Province Northern Southern of Residence Western Gulf Central Milne Bay (Oro) Highlands

Western 68,Sll 313 S27 9S 149 202 Gulf 3S3 S4,9S7 746 73 101 173 Central 2,383 10 ,443 138,414 3,116 2,328 2,103 Milne Bay 167 248 789 105,890 624 199 Northern (Oro) 90 181 809· 1, 103 61, S42 1S3 Southern Highlands 234 118 241 86 9S 188,766 Western Highlands 76 246 370 191 203 4,202 Chimbu (Simbu) SS 78 183 79 82 114 Eastern Highlands 106 2S8 6S7 307 208 196 Morobe 128 8S4 2,431 899 1, 141 283 Madang 40 196 SS4 198 184 492 East Sepik S69 224 294 13S 122 110 West Sepik so S2 108 3S 48 78 Manus 2 2S 63 62 18 24 New Ireland 27 6S 113 93 4 491 West New Britain 44 111 172 104 192 253 East New Britain 66 3S3 6S2 383 203 2,070 North Solomons 64 34S 663 201 130 777

Total 72, 965 69,069 147,836 113 ,oso 67,374 200,686

Western Highlands

86 91

2,33S 68

14S l,OS9

324 ,441 682 663 661 969 291

S9 61

268 4Sl 918

1,027

334,2S6

N

"'

Table 2.4 (continued) Indigenous Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1971 Census.

Province of Birth

Province Chim bu Eastern East West of Residence (Simbu) Highlands Moro be _ Mada_!!g_____�pik Sepj_k ___

Western 9 488 77 50 63 38

Gulf 46 124 1,415 28 38 9

Central 2,068 3, 715 3,887 866 772 266

Milne Bay 14 35 118 75 41 29

Northern (Oro) 152 252 841 237 76 26

Southern Highlands 348 253 253 180 119 57

Western Highlands 8,634 1,352 916 1,235 444 429

Chimbu (Simbu) 156,744 772 336 257 85 30

Eastern Highlands 5,049 225,660 1,175 1,169 432 81

Mo robe 2,254 2,299 222,534 2,681 2,665 417

Madang 551 574 2,164 157,745 2 ,614 815

East Sepik 196 241 693 841 173,667 1,444

West Sepik 35 63 224 389 768 91,050

Manus 10 44 538 320 679 212

New Ireland 428 736 947 481 1,530 1,371

West New Britain 1,161 192 1,205 250 2,588 382

East New Britain 357 977 2 ,911 1,571 3,677 910

North Solomons 1,217 795 1,405 658 1,214 602

Total 179,273 238, 132 241,439 169,033 191,472 98,168

IV

-..J

Table 2.4 (continued) Indigenous Population--Province of Residence and Province of Birth, 1971 Census

Province of Birth

Province New West New East New North of Residence Manus Ireland Britain Britain Solomons Total

Western 15 16 5 34 13 70,251

Gulf 6 28 4 34 26 58,252

Central 414 462 286 1,008 405 175,221

Milne Bay 35 22 19 107 28 108,508

Northern (Oro) 37 30 77 77 27 65,855

Southern Highlands 47 27 14 82 64 192 ,023

Western Highlands 95 115 19 200 50 543, 218

Chimbu (Simbu) 30 31 31 102 26 159,717

Eastern Highlands 177 127 56 278 93 236,692

Moro be 331 187 169 713 174 240,871

Madang 369 149 78 345 107 168, 144

East Sepik 292 343 121 464 82 180,219

West Sepik 198 86 27 134 37 93,441

Manus 21,808 197 176 174 51 24,264

New Ireland 599 49,622 276 1,221 212 58,485

West New Britain 107 275 50,199 2,973 115 60, 774

East New Britain 842 1,946 3,380 85,827 1,014 108 ,059

North Solomons 187 202 190 948 79,507 90, 132

Total 25,589 53,865 55,077 94, 721 82,031 2,434,036

Source: Skeldon, 1979:114.

N

00

f.\hlt• .!.'>. Citiz.('n p,1p11l.1ll11u, Uy Provlnct.• of Birth .Hld ProvJncc of Enumeration; 1980 Census

Province of

Birth

Papu�l New Cuinc.l WcsLcrn

Prov lncc of Enumeration

N�1t Iona}

Capital Gulf Central District

Hllne Bay

Northern (Oro)

Southern H ighlands Enga

Western Highlands

��--��

All birthplaces 2,978,057

Western Bl ,861

Culf 76,5J7

CL•ntr.11 12R,51>6

Natlonal Capital Dlstricl 55,99J

Miln� Bay 134,852

Northern (Uco) 77,891

5outhern Highlands 25J ,809

Enga 174,)21

Western Highlands 237,291

Chimbu (Sirubu) 204,174

Eastern Highlands 281,600

Horobe 297,978

Hadang 211,842

East Sepik 237,851

West Scplk 118,390

Hanus 29,lJ9

New Ireland 63,420

East New Britain 125,498

West New Britain 73,746

North Solomons 112, I 72

Other countries 1,126

78,JJ7 63,843 116,361

76. 529 26 7 4 19

294 61,034 l ,400

156 42� 106 ,408

419 911 2, JJ8

91 137 831

94 89 530

122 169 1,390

23 25 199

29 78 200

47 46 455

51 105 579

100 204 687

32 66 172

101 102 224

42 18 64

14 19 72

18 22 57

39 86 161

12 18 48

23 15 90

101 3 37

112 ,429

2,830

10,331

15,914

46. 248

3. 766

2. 54 7

1,969

I, 135

I ,340

3, 710

6,286

6 ,383

1, 52J

2 ,074

443

l,215

856

2,290

566

749

254

127, 725 77,097

79 14 7

l 77 2JJ

403 650

422 540

125,085 1,027

590 70,659

88 191

35 60

86 153

39 305

98 459

185 1,563

84 323

90 270

23 l 53

20 52

33 35

107 121

31 106

28 43

22 15

215,390 164,270 264,129

199 4 7 143

108 57 228

109 35 241

150 43 267

124 83 245

56 34 206

232,044 371 10,940

585 162,277 6,321

528 366 229,437

353 219 9,964

181 141 I, 716

277 156 1,217

208 132 1,159

145 121 746

67 22 525

50 JS 123

61 27 128

124 56 304

27 27 107

41 20 98

J l 12

Chimbu (Simbu)

178,013

37

106

73

58

51

88

28 7

1)9

716

174 ,44)

755

407

430

171

23

46

36

108

17

20

N '°

Table 2.5 (continued) Citizen Pupu)Jtlon, By Province of Birth and Province of Enumeration; 1980 Census

Province of enumeration Province

of Eastern E.ist Wc:;c New East West North Birth Highlands M.>robe H.1 dang Seplk Seplk Hanus Ireland New Britain New Brlta!n Solomons

All birthplaces 274,608·

West�rn 175

Cu If 2 77

Central 450

National Center District 386

Milne Bay 305

Northern 248

Southern Highlands 391

Enga 402

Western Highlands 725

Chlmbu 5,611

Eastern Highlands 260,836

Horobe l,600

Hadang L,159

East Sepik 602

West Sepik 126

Hanus 275

New Ireland 299

East New Britain 437

West New Britain 120

North Solomons 151

Other countries 3 3

305,356

243

I ,007

l,075

I ,809

I, 384

1,641

614

604

I ,231

4, 114

4,988

273 ,422

3, 974

4,294

SIS

683

468

I, 557

446

457

97

209,656

122

2 JO

362

375

4ZS

250

4 76

329

566

780

875

I, 216

196,173

3 ,867

946

434

224

524

162

161

79

220 ,827

120

190

239

388

162

201

178

135

256

266

416

768

960

212,858

l,952

430

362

604

176

131

35

113,849

109

29

55

83

44

31

40

33

51

62

53

203

3))

I, I 32

110,862

182

82

103

22

36

303

25 ,859

19

28

45

148

70

24

28

3 4

5 2

72

278

155

556

113

23,690

133

223

108

62

14

65,657

30

73

81

146

98

45

758

l 97

180

136

444

700

837

1,291

572

363

57 ,63S

l,621

280

154

16

Source: 1980 National Population Census, Pre-release: Summary of final figures: 25-26.

130. 730

134

313

409

557

44 7

213

I, 553

210

432

354

I, 382

2,628

I, 965

3,274

806

837

2 ,077

109. 56 7

2,568

952

52

88 ,415

48

14 7

176

1)9

162

1)6

715

403

309

2,392

906

3,212

688

4. 578

682

l )l

371

4,464

68 ,496

21 s

125,506

164

295

624

566

315

209

I ,485

1,2 I 2

573

726

I ,257

1,1n

1,469

1,355

431

428

496

3,002

409

108. 726

42

w 0

a

b

Table 2.6. Provincial Net Migration, 1966-1980

Province

Western Gulf

Central Milne Bay Northern (Oro) Southern Highlands Western Highlands Chimbu Eastern Highlands Moro be Madang East Sepik West Sepik Manus New Ireland West New Britain East New Britain North Solomons N.C.D Enga

Skeldon (1979:113)

Skeldon (1979:115)

a Net Migration

1966

-·1,677

-7,084

+18,159 -2,658

-1,044

-2,280

+1,829

-12,415

+236

-3 ,096

+824

-4,147

-5,496

-384

+4,627

-1,036

+13 ,043

+2,599

Net Migrationb

1971

-2, 714

-10,817

+27,385

-4, 524

-1,519

-8,663

+8, 962

-19,556

-1,440

-568

-889

-11, 343

-4. 727

-1,325

+4 ,620

+5,697

+13' 338

+8, 101

cPNG National Populat ion Census, Quarterly News, April-June 1982:16.

Net In/Out Migrationc

1980

-3,524

-12,694

-12,205

-7,127

-794

-81,419

+26,838

-26,161

-6,992

+7,378

-2,186

-17,024

-4,541

-3,280

+2,237

+5,232

+14,669

+13,334

+56 ,436

-10,051

w

......

32

Preliminary results from the 1980 census document that these

patterns have hardly changed, with two modifications: the flow to the

North Solomons province has become more pronounced, as has those to

urban centers, notably to the National Capital District that incor

porates Port Moresby (cf. Tables 2.5 and 2.6). Thus the basic nature

of movement streams observed by Brookfield (1960) has persisted over

twenty-three years: from highland regions to coastal towns, especially

to Port Moresby and Lae, and to plantations located primarily in the

outer island provinces of East, West New Britain, and New Ireland.

However, the major flows have also become longer and more attenuated,

extending from some of the remoter highlands regions (for example

Enga) to the farthest of the island provinces (New Britain and the

North Solomons).

In general, these movement streams continue to be dominated by

males in the working ages, as shown by high masculinity and low

dependency ratios. Skeldon (1976, 1977, 1979), when analyzing data

from the 1966 and 1971 censuses, documents the sex ratios of the

inmigrant flow to Port Moresby to be 400 in 1966 and 274 in 1971,

while those to New Ireland registered sex ratios of 868 in 1966 and

682 in 1971. Skeldon's overall analysis, as well as these examples,

illustrates that movement is becoming less emphatically male. The

age structure of migrants has changed less. Whereas in 1966, 43.6

percent of men moving were aged between twenty and thirty years, in

1971 they accounted for a still high 38.2 percent.

Other shifts occurring between 1966 and 1980 in national patterns

of population movement reflect changes in the institutional structure

that surrounds the flow of labor. These include the end, in 1972,

33

of the agreement system and the growth of what Ward (1971) has termed

'independent migration', together with an increase in skilled and semi

skilled occupations available to Melanesians that parallel the in

creasing complexity of the national economy. Finally, there has been

significant growth between 1966 and 1971 in the volume of movement

by independent females and families, together with increasingly long

periods spent in town. Both these characteristics suggest that labor

mobility throughout Papua New Guinea is resulting in greater and greater

amounts of time being spent outside the natal village.

Results from the Urban Household Survey (Garnaut, Wright and

Curtain, 1977) undertaken in 1974-75, plus several micro studies,

support these broad conclusions. Morauta and Ryan (1982) note that,

in the last fifteen years, movement from Gulf province seems to have

led to more permanent residence in urban places, most especially in

Port Moresby. It is also likely that, for less well-established and

unskilled persons, movement over the life cycle remains dominantly

circular when defined as a return to one's village of origin for a

period of at least six months' residence. Young (1977) found in her

study of Simbu and New Ireland that four-fifths of all migration was

circular, while Conroy and Curtain (1983:46) note that circuits made

over the life cycle of the individual are likely to remain the dominant

form of mobility throughout Papua New Guinea. Moreover, Skeldon (1976)

argues, on the basis of a study of Goroka (Figure 1.1), that circula

tion underpins the large floating populations found in both towns and

district centers.

34

MOVEMENT OF WORKERS FROM TUFI DISTRICT 1900-1980:

FORMATION OF A LABOR RESERVE

During the process of proletarianization, Amin (1974:94) notes,

three types of rural areas have emerged in West Africa: II . those

organized for large scale export production which have already entered

the capitalist phase; those formed as a result of colonial economic

policies which have continued to be followed after independence, serving

as reserves, which supply this salaried labor; and finally those which

are not as yet part of the system, and serve only as auxiliary reserves."

Rural areas of Papua New Guinea may also be distinguished on this basis.

Both Brookfield (1960) and Curtain (1980a) note how economic policies

and the consequent institutional structure of labor movement have com

plemented each other to produce 'emerging employment areas character

ized by capitalist development', labor supply areas, and labor

frontiers.

When considered in detail, the flows of labor from Tufi District

in Oro Province (Figure 2.1), the homeland of Ayuan and Ajoa, relate

not only to the national patterns already outlined but also to the

broad process of proletarianization, where the mobility of workers

was the main mechanism to incorporate the traditional mode of production

within the emergent capitalist mode. Labor mobility from the stand

point of Tufi district exemplifies the success of a battery of mechan

isms, the subtle nature of which Standing (1982:3) has specified as

including: II (i) techniques to erode traditional social relations

of production and distribution; (ii) techniques of direct coercion

in the labor process; (iii) the manipulation of forms of worker

35

remuneration; (iv) manipulation of the social and detailed division

of labor; (v) the generation of a relative surplus population (unemploy

ment, etc.); (vi) the destruction or erosion--or as some social

scientists would put it, the disarticulation--of social and kinship

support mechanisms among direct producers; (vii) the use of paternal

istic labor relations; (viii) the inculcation of appropriate attitudes

to productive labor by means of schooling and related institutions;

(ix) ideological and legal 'superstructural' support, including

religious dogma and civil law."

In 1900, both a patrol post and a resident magistrate's head

quarters were established at a place known as Tufi (Figure 1.2; P.R.

10 April 1900). The year before the Anglican church had founded a

mission station and school at Wanigela (Chignell, 1911). At this time,

expatriate development in Papua focused on the gold mines of Oro pro

vince and on the copra and rubber plantations of Central and Milne

Bay provinces (Figure 1.1). The economic policy of the administration

was to redistribute the indigenous population to exploit these resources,

as indicated by the first extract that opens this chapter. Around

the turn of this century, the main contribution of Tufi district was

to provide laborers to help exploit gold, copra and rubber, since,

apart from a trade store run by a resident labor recruiter, few or

no cash outlets occurred within the district itself. Partly this

reflected the geographical isolation from the main areas of expatriate

plantation development within Papua and partly the fact that the

district was perceived as having limited agricultural potential. This

image remained dominant well into the 1950s; for example, a patrol

report in 1954 stated, " . . . The future of these people does not

lie in their land as is the general rule, but in obtaining positions

in the outside world. To this end children are to be encouraged to

take every advantage of schooling" (P.R., 6/53-54:8).

36

In the first three deaces of this century, as a result, the dis

trict was heavily recruited, notably the coastal areas which experienced

European contact at an earlier date--as against interior parts that

were not contacted until 1933 and in some cases not brought under

administrative control until the 1950s. By the 1920s, the proportion

of adult males away from the coast was so great that the resident

magistrate noted all eligible men to be 'signed on' (A.P.R., 1920:52)

and a food shortage to have developed. Archival records that detail

recruiting licenses issued from Tufi between January 1916 and July

1941 also reveal the consistency of signing on labor, despite missing

records for the decade 1918-1928 (Table 2.7). The demand from employers

was such that it became a full-time occupation for several and one

recruiter (W. S. Wells) dominated the scene for more than twenty years.

Until 1930 at least, the coastal region of Tufi district, then

the only contacted part, supplied about one-tenth of all contract

laborers in Papua (Table 2.8). Consistently, most were employed on

agricultural plantations with much smaller numbers recruited to be

general laborers and household servants, thus illustrating the dominance

of unskilled work. Overall, recruiting declined in the years leading

up to the depression and rose in the boom before the 1920s. These

patterns further support the notion of a link between labor demand

and economic activity in the cash sector, on the one hand, with village

Table 2. 7

Labor Recruiting Licenses Issued from Tufi District

1916-1941

Recruiter Date License Issued

D. M. Prosser 24 January 1916

G. Walter 16 May 1916

v. E. Vieusseux 26 September 1916

s. N. Prooser 29 January 1917

G. s. Walter 13 April 1917

v. E. Vieusseux 28 August 1917

P. Bonde son 30 September 1917

G. S. Hooper 21 November 1917


G. S. Hooper 21 November 1918


w. s. Wells 2 January 1918

w. s. Wells 2 January 1929

D. L. Lullen 24 December 1929

w. s. Wells 12 March 1934







A. E. Cridland 1 July 1941

Source: National Archives of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, Box 7941.

37

T.ible 2.8. Laborers Engaged un<l"r Contract of Servlce by Occup11tl0n, Northern Eastern Dlvlsion, 1911-1928

OCCUPATIONS

Household General % Papuan

Year A5r !cu 1 cure ntn ing S.!.1m.1n Servan cs Sturebo:r:s Labor t"lshing Carriers Other Total Total

191 l 233 13 1 12 259

1912 2 51 36 1 3 20 321

1913 366 1 2 15 16 400 5. 73

1914 488 137 12 72 5 714 9.3

1915 545 10 3 20 60 3 641 9 .4 7

1916 216 24 6 11 29 25 3 314 4. 7

19L7 31 l 20 7 3 58 2 6 349

1918 229 9 8 3 336 1 2 310 •

1919 6 71 66 3 20 3 42 l 5 1105

1920 132 1 5 JO I 125 l l 3 195

1921 205 12 1 24 I 62 2 8 378 5.04

1922 47 4 3 26 I 141 2 148 3.22

1923 71 l I 18 141 8 240 4.39

1924 12 18 5 23 3 442 l 504 10. 2

1925 26 1 15 29 4 382 5 l 462 9.9

1916 23 8 12 33 1 151 21 2 4 254 8.1

1927 1 10 15 37 8 254 16 8 349 6.3

1928 12 18 6 27 6 334 9 406

-----------·----

Source: Annual Reports of Papua, specified years.

'''Figures not available.

w

CX>

households on the other having no control over their access to wage

labor but which was now a necessary part of their local economy.

39

Laborers were almost entirely young adult males, whose participa

tion in this labor system was ensured by coercion, head taxes, and

the desire for Western material goods. The diary of Nellie Hullet,

the first European missionary at Naniu (Figure 1.2) who has been

described by Wetherill (1977:91), records many instances of villagers

being jailed for either failing to meet requirements of the Native

Plantations Ordinance or for not paying taxes. For example, her diary

entry for Wednesday, 16 December 1925: II David and Thusus gone

to Tufi for six weeks for not cultivating coconuts!! David has been

signed on for two years and has only lately returned, Thusus has been

working on the station for over a year!!" (A.L.X. Box 25). It is

important to note that Thusus went to jail although he was employed

within the district at the mission station and, moreover, that the

regulation would not have applied had he been 'signed on'! In addition,

regular administrative patrols often attempted to recruit workers

and it is likely that villagers associated these attempts with some

degree of legal coercion. Overall, mobility was circular and absence

for the length of the labor contract; as noted previously, thereby

ensuring the establishment of a dual economy within the households

of communities from which workers were drawn. Specifically, rural

households had to pay their taxes in cash and required it to purchase

steel tools to continue meeting their subsistence needs and thus off

set the large loss of labor through recruiting. Such tools were

additionally desirable for their association with the high status con

ferred by items from Western material culture.

Since labor movement was entirely to plantations and mines, it

was confined to the rural areas. Alternative sources of cash in the

Northeastern division and in Tuf i district itself were very limited,

40

if available, being restricted to income from village copra plantations.

These had been established under the Native Plantations Ordinance,

which required every adult male not employed beyond the local community

to plant and maintain a specified number of palms. To pay the annual

head tax, adult males were forced to sell their labor and to travel

to places of expatriate commercial development (see excerpts from patrol

reports that introduce Chapter V). In addition, the reduced workforce

in rural areas increased the difficulty of establishing an alter-

native source of cash income for villagers and in the case of the

Northeastern Division, which was heavily recruited, contributed to

the increasing dependence of Tufi district on the external economic

system.

During World War II, demand for able-bodied males was very heavy

due to the district's proximity to two of the main fighting zones,

Buna and Kokoda, and to the establishment of allied bases at Tufi and

Wanigela (Figure 1.2). After the war and until the 1950s, flows of

labor occurred mainly under contract, at which time independent move

ment to places of wage employment became the norm. As occurred

throughout Papua New Guinea, the main destinations were the wharfs

of Samarai and Port Moresby (Figure 1.1).

By the decade of the sixties, Tufi migrants were increasingly

skilled, many held longer-term administrative posts in the main urban

areas, and an increasing amount of time was spent beyond their rural

villages, thus further decreasing the chances for socioeconomic

development within Tufi itself. These trends reflected the area's

long exposure to formal education first initiated in 1900 by the

Anglican missionaries at Wanigela. Currently, censuses divisions in

Tufi district have the highest rates of outmigration in Oro Province

and among the highest in Papua New Guinea, with up to 60 percent of

41

all adult males absent from some divisions (Rural Community Register,

1981:58-68). At the same time, capital improvements in the area are

confined to Utan copra plantation (Figure 1.2), a few small-scale

tourist ventures in the villages at Tufi, minor trade stores in rural

communities, a government-operated fisheries project, and several small

out-board motorboats owned and operated by villagers.

In short, all the mechanisms listed by Standing (1982:3) have

been employed to varying degree within the Tufi area of Oro Province.

Specifically, villagers have been coerced into selling their labor

by persuasion, legal sanctions, and the promotion of a paternalistic

work ethic that simultaneously fulfilled a legitimizing function for

the agreement system; the nature and methods of the subsistence sector

have been undermined by the withdrawal of local labor and its replace

ment by steel tools that can only be obtained with cash, with the

paradoxical outcome of producing a labor surplus in the traditional

sector and creating a pool of 'unemployed' villagers; and finally,

formal education has helped promote the wage-labor system and employ

ment for cash. The result is that the Tufi district has evolved to

be a labor reserve because of colonial economic policies and is likely

to remain so within an independent Papua New Guinea.

CHAPTER III

AYUAN AND AJOA: THE CASE STUDY

The areal facts of population are so closely orchestrated

with the totality of geographic reality that the only prudent approach to their study presupposes a scholarly methodology taking this into account. Since the active agent here--in

process, in space, in time--is the society itself, we must begin by understanding it thoroughly, first its essential

nature--the interior, peculiar, private world of its culture--and secondly, its outward dealings with the earth--the livelihood pattern, the social machinery, the interplay

with the physical milieu, all the strands of thought, action,

and substance that weave this society into the lives of people both near and far. (Zelinsky, 1966:127-128)

Analysis of the use and impact of cash remittances from wage

employment is based primarily on field data collected in two small

village communities on the northeast coast of Oro province over a three

month period: 20 November 1982 to 2 February 1983. Ayuan and Ajoa,

the communities chosen, may be unique and not be typical of similar

ones in Papua New Guinea but their selection reflects both criteria

defined by the main academic issues to be examined and some more

practical concerns of the country's National Planning Office. Being

located within the labor reserve of Tufi district in Oro Province,

the people of Ayuan and Ajoa have eighty years' experience of labor

mobility. This fact allows consideration of the use and impact of

remittances in the context of continued outmovement--while also compre-

hending the consequences for labor-supplying areas, which is a major

practical concern for the National Planning Office.

The objective of this community study was not to generate patterns

applicable to a larger area, to other social groups, or to other

43

populations, but rather to understand the intricate processes of one

focused aspect of mobility behavior: the use and impact of remittances.

Corner (1981:117) has noted that the main advantage of the community

study method, employed when examining remittances to Malaysian rice

villages, was the ability to examine closely the local social and

political context. Both Hugo (198la) and Simmons (1981) similarly

argue that analysis at the level of the individual and the household

is basic to understanding the role and impact of mobility behavior.

Deliberately, Ayuan and Ajoa were chosen because they belong to the

same language group, share the same social structure, and have experi

enced a parallel history since contact in 1901, hence there is no

reason to expect any important differences between them. Two village

communities were studied to increase the size of the study population

and the number of cases for comparison, so that neither one should

be viewed as a control or basis of comparison against the other.

Additional information was obtained from archives, air photographs,

and the National Census Office (Table 3.1).

DEFINITIONS

The study population was defined de jure as those persons usually

resident who felt they belonged to either community. This included

those who had been physically resident for at least six months or who

had not been continuously absent for six months. Following Carroll

(1975:495), this population is termed the 'resident population'.

Persons who had been absent for any reason (labor, schooling) for more

than six months but who were said to be Miniafia and would otherwise

live in either Ayaun or Ajoa were enumerated and termed the 'absentee

Table 3.1. Types and Sources of Data Used in Oro Study, 1982-83

��-�--��

Data

Primary data (for details see

Table 3.2)

Air Photographs

Maps

National census data

Archival

Key Items

De jure census Remittance survey Labor histories Unstructured interviews Cash diary Ob se rva t ion Mapping

Vertical, black and white. Scale 1:15,000 (28 June 1981)

Tufi 1:100,000 Sheet 1980 census maps

Census schedules for Miniafia, from 1980 census Migration tables for 1980 census

Territory of Papua Annual reports Annual reports for Papua and New Guinea, Administrative patrol reports Village books Mission diary for Naniu, 1923-1944.

Collection Level

Household Household Labor migrants Visiting labor migrants Household Village Village

Village

Household

Province

Village & Division (1885-19ll) Division (1949-72)

Village Language group

Source

Field site

G.S. and R. N. Valassau, Forestry Department Univ. of Technology, Lae, Papua New Guinea (PNG) Dept. of Nat. Mapping,PNG Census Office PNG

Census Office, PNG

National Archives of Papua New Guinea

Provincial Government Anglican Archives

.p.. .p..

45

population'. Adult males whose parents were deceased but were said

to belong to either community were attributed to the household of their

nearest male relative, since the society is patrilineal. Inclusion

into or exclusion from the absentee population was determined by

marriage rules, except where particular instances were generally

acknowledged exceptions to the general rule. On marriage, couples

usually live with the husband's father (patrivirlocality), so all women

who had married men of other villages were excluded from the absentee

population. The 'resident' plus the 'absentee' populations thus com

prise what may be considered the total de jure population of Ayuan

and Ajoa.

In the case of both communities, these definitions exclude some

persons who have important socially-defined relationships with the

de jure population and who may therefore be part of the 'potentially

remitting population'. Such individuals include women married to wage

workers absent from their natal village or a woman born in Ayuan or

Ajoa who is not only away earning money but also whose husband belongs

to another community. In both instances, remittances may continue

to flow to the woman's family in Ayuan or Ajoa and perhaps represent

their only source of money. In a study examining the use of cash from

those in paid employment, it is desirable to include remittances from

these women and their households. This slightly larger, potentially

remitting population is the point of reference in Chapter V.

In the social science literature, remittances generally refer

to the flows of cash and goods between households in areas of origin

and absent migrants (e.g., Connell et al., 1976:90-120). This

46

definition has been expanded by Hugo (1978), when studying remittances

to fourteen villages in Java, Indonesia, and also by Morauta and Hasu

(1979) in their research on remittance flows to Kukipi village in Gulf

province, include among other things:

a. cash and goods sent to and from the village, but not physically

accompanied by the donor;

b. cash and goods transmitted between members of village house-

holds and absent wage-labor migrants during periodic visits;

c. hospitality, that is: the cost of maintenance during such

visits; and

d. savings brought back by migrants on return from wage

employment.

This broader definition was adopted in this study of Ayuan and Ajoa.

Even so, the total value of the net transfers that occur between origin

and destination populations is not captured. As Connell (1981:231)

has noted:

Financial flows do not necessarily represent the total gains or benefits to migration; thus gains may be made through the acquisition of skills, status and experience that may subsequently be beneficial following return migration to the rural area. The transmission of skills (technical, economic or political) and ideas may be continuous but unquantifiable. Losses too maybe unquantifiable; migration may remove economic and political leaders and therefore worsen the bargaining power of rural communities, and result in some kinds of social disruption (such as the decline of co-operative work groups) whilst return migration may precipitate other forms of social disruption.

In this research the collection of longitudinal data represented an

attempt to consider some of these elusive costs and to reveal the full

extent of community involvement in labor mobility, while the adoption

of an holistic approach aimed to incorporate variables other than the

purely economic.

FIELD PROCEDURES

47

De jure population data were collected by means of a field census

(Table 3.2). Based on the experience of anthropologists like Elizabeth

Colson (1967), who have worked in African societies, this field census

was updated continuously with information obtained from villagers and

by observation. All answers about age were checked with baptism

records and an historical calendar compiled of important local events

to help with dating (Table 3.3); even so, these should not be viewed

as exact but rather a best approximation. Conversation with villagers

and visiting residents in town, complemented by personal observation,

yielded the most valuable information by providing explanatory context

for survey data as well as highlighting and correcting previous in

accuracies in formally-collected details.

Longitudinal information on indivivual experience of labor movement

was collected by modifying the usual approach to life/residence

histories. "A residence history records where a person has lived during

his or her lifetime and the timing of movement between places" (Rowland,

1979:17), whereas a life history includes additional social and

demographic variables, such as marital and fertility history (cf.

Pryor, 1979; E. Young, 1979; M. Young, 1982). In Ayuan and Ajoa, heads

of household were asked who, in their household, had worked for money

outside the village for longer than six months--the definition of a

returned labor migrant. Each such returnee was interviewed, usually

at the time of the census, and questioned about each departure for

Table 3.2. Stages of Field Research in Ayuan and Ajoa, 20 November 1982 - 2 February 1983

Instrument

Field censusa

20 Nov. - 22 Dec. 1982

Remittince survey 20 Nov. - 22 Dec. 1982

Wage labor historiesc

20 Nov- 22 Dec. 1982

Cash diary 1-30 Jan. 1983

Unstructured interviews 20 Dec. 1982-15 Jan. 1983

Observation 20 Nov. 1982 - 2 Feb. 1983

Respondents

Household heads (56)

Household heads

Wage laborersd

(53)

Selected households (16)

Visiting laborers (9)

Village and selected informants

Information

Basic characteristics of household. Information collected: Name, relationship to household head, gender, place of birth, marital status, religion, languages spoken, assets, economic activities, past and p�esent employment status.

Data collected about the last remittance, defined as: (a) last time any household member received cash and/or goods from a labor migrant; (b) last time any household member sent cash and/or goods to a labor migrant; (c) cash and/or goods received and given during the last visit of any household member to a Labor migrant; (d) cash and/or goods received and given during the last visit of a labor migrant co village household. For each last remittance: Usual residence of migrant, relation to household, date of remittance, use of cash, if sent: how.

For each movement: place of residence prior to employment, method of recruitment, reason for move, duration of absence, place and type of employment, age, marital status and children living at time of employment, remuneration, remittances at end of employment.

Cash income and expenditure on a daily basis.

Basic information collected: age, gender, marital status, living children, place of residence, remittances sent to village, land status, possibility of future investment in the village.

Characteristics of kinship and social structure, economic system; attitudes to schooling; labor migration and remittances; history of village investment.

Notes: a

The de Jure population was defined as usual members of a household who were either present or who had been away less than six months.

bthe remittance survey excluded traditional exchange between relatives or residents in nearby villages.

cSome labor histories were collected beyond this period.

d A labor migrant was defined as any member of the de jure population who had worked outside the village for mote than six months. T\lo labor migrants were excluded from the survey due to illness.

+:-00

49

Table 3.3

Historical Calendar for Ayuan and Ajoa, 1899-1980

1899 Wanigela Mission established

1900 Patrol post established at Tuf i

1912 Visit of Father Fisher to Miniafia villages

1913 Mission station established at Naniu by William

1923 Nellie Hullet arrives at Naniu Mission

1929 Evelyn arrives at Naniu Mission

1936 Earnest and Maithias teachers at Naniu Mission

1937 Death of Nellie Hullet

1942-1945 World War II

1940 Naniu Mission reopens after Nellie Hullet's death

1942 Missionaries from Wanigela cross Owen Stanley ranges to escape from the Japanese

1947 Sister Helen arrives at Wanigela

1948 Martyrs High School established near Popondetta

1951 Mt. Lamington eruption

1951 Wanigela Mission re-sited from the beach to its present location near Wanigela Airstrip

1953 Martyrs school reestablished after Mt. Lamington eruption.

1969 Death of Father Lidbetter

1971 Death of Father Copeland

1971 Tufi cyclone

1975 Indpendence of Papua New Guinea

1977 Death of Mr. Cridland

1980 Arend and Mary arrive at Wanigela

Source: Compiled from the Anglican Archives of Papua New Guinea,

Port Moresby and by personal interview with Sister Helen Rogers at Wanigela Mission, November 1982.

50

wage work (Appendix). The aim was to link periods of paid employment

with other life-cycle events, such as different levels of educational

attainment, marital status, and birth of children. A formal life

history matrix, which links such information both cross-sectionally

and longitudinally for each year of an individual's lifetime, was pre

tested but proved to be too specific, subject to considerable

inaccuracies, and too time consuming. Nair (1978:5) had similar

problems with an urban study in Fiji when attempting to implement the

life-history matrix in a very short period.

Data on remittances were obtained using two instruments: a house

hold questionnaire that focused on the last remittance event, and a

cash diary compiled over thirty days for a random sample of sixteen

households (Table 3.2). The items collected about remittances were

largely those contained in the schedule designed by Standing (1982):

for example, relationship of donors to recipients, date of occurrence,

use of remittances and methods of transfer. However, the entire

schedule was not used because of its length, the amount of detail it

attempted to capture, and the difficulty villagers had in focusing

on a specific period of time like one year. The remittance survey

was administered along with the field census and inquired of the 'last

remittance event' to the household. This was defined as the last time

any member of the village household either received cash or goods from

or sent them to another household whose head was in wage employment;

or visited the household of a labor migrant or vice versa (Appendix).

The central idea of 'last remittance event' was suggested by Dr. Louise

51

Morauta ( pers. comm., 1982). Details were collected about the relation

ship of senders and recipients, their location, and the date of last

remittance.

The cash diary was used in an attempt to measure the relative

contribution of remittances to village households. All cash income

and expenditure was noted for sixteen households over thirty days,

four of which had received remittances and four of which had not.

A member of each household, usually a youth with six years of primary

schooling and therefore the only one literate in English, was given

a schedule and asked to record every day all cash spent and received.

Every forty-eight hours I also visited each household to follow the

progress of the cash diaries and to ask the household head for the

same or similar information to cross-check that all items of income

and expenditure were being captured.

Doubt is often expressed about the validity of remittance data,

because in many societies income is a sensitive topic. Inevitably

there is a problem recalling details about events that occur frequently

or over extended periods, while the fact that many remittances may

be in the form of goods make them difficult to quantify. In Ayuan

and Aj oa, there was some sensitivity to remittance questions. Villagers

did not like to admit having received none from absent kin, feeling

that this reflected poorly on them. On the other hand, should a rel

ative have remitted regularly in the past but not done so for some

months, then people were likely to reply they had never received any.

The first awkwardness was discovered immediately, because the remittance

survey was being done along with the census which asked about absent

children, many of whom were living in town and in wage employment.

Villagers being interviewed were reassured when it was explained that

any details given remained confidential, that I realized life in town

was expensive and even when kin might want to send remittances, this

might not always be possible. The second problem became clear around

Christmas, when visitors were making gifts to some households that

52

had reported never receiving any. In all cases, these transfers were

small presents, like a twist of black-stick tobacco or at most a packet

of sugar, made by more distant relatives staying in the community with

parents or mother's brothers. Since such small gifts maynot have

occurred for some time in the particular household, it was felt

unnecessary to reinterview any of the household heads.

The data about last remittance presented in this thesis is accurate

for cash flows to all households examined and for any significant

transfer of goods between them. The many small transfers, as of

tobacco, that occur every day in these two villages were not always

recorded in the remittance survey although they were accurately cap

tured by the cash diaries. This discrepancy is not important, since

this thesis attempts to estimate the amount of cash from remittances

that is potentially available for local investment. Information on

the flows of goods provides some idea of the number of households

engaged in active exchange with labor migrants, but this is supple

mentary and of theoretical and qualitative rather than quantitative

importance. The cash survey is accurate for thirteen of sixteen house

holds and for only the first fifteen days for most of these. In many

households, it was interrupted by travel associated with the return

of children to school. In Ayuan and A j oa, details could be obtained

with reasonable accuracy about transfers occurring the previous day

but tended to be unreliable for any time earlier because the detailed

recording of events that happen very frequently and to which people

attach little importance must be done very close to their occurrence.

THE TWO STUDY COMMUNITIES

Ayuan and A j oa are two small, rural villages located in the

Collingwood Bay census division of Oro province ( Figure 1.2). The

people refer to themselves as Miniafia ( sometimes called Winiafia ) ,

the dialect of Arifamu-Miniafia which they speak, and distinguish

between themselves and other Arifamu-Miniafia who belong to the other

three dialect groupings. The language group numbers about 2,000 and

the Miniafia account for about half this total ( Wakefield, 1975:1).

First contact with Europeans was probably in 1901 when Monckton, the

original resident magistrate of the Northeastern Division, entered

the villages to establish the government's presence.

Arrived at Winiafia about sunset natives as usual all fled,

captured a villager and explained that I wished to 'make

friends' with the people, sent the native away to the chiefs.

Chiefs and about 100 followers came at 9 pm. Later on canoes

arrived also full of men brought much food and got the chief

to promise to bring a number of his people to the station

with building materials. (P.R. 1901:2)

53

In 1911, the Anglican mission had established a school on Naniu island

( Figure 1.2) and by 1920 the Miniafia were participating in the main

elements of the emergent and colonial cash economy. They were heavily

engaged in labor mobility associated with wage employment either in

gold mines or on agricultural plantations--had large copra holdings

because of enforced plantings made in response to the 'coconut regula-

tion', and had been exposed to a broad range of other cash crops--mainly

rice, peanuts, and coffee. From the decade of the twenties, the com

mercial development of the Miniafia communities followed that already

outlined for the Tufi region in general.

Villages are sited on a coastal plain backed by the rugged vol

canic landscape of several ranges, of which Mount Victory is the most

dominant peak (Figure 1.2). To the south, the most westerly peaks

54

of the Owen Stanley ranges border the coastal plain. The physiography

of the coast lands is characterized by extremely low relief, with

a gentle increase in elevation towards the mountains in the west.

The coastal fringe comprises low beach ridges and swales (elongated

depressions), which often contain freshwater swamps where� palms,

an important local building material, dominate. Some, but not all

streams in the study area terminate in these swamps (Figure 3.1).

Others, such as Ajova Creek, seasonally breach the black sand of the

low outer ridge and discharge into Collingwood Bay. Where sheltered

habitats occur mangrove communities, dominated by Ceriops, occupy

extensive areas.

There is a marked wet season, from November to April, when the

northeast and northwest monsoons are dominant and monthly rainfall

exceeds 100 mm. The dry season, May to October, is one of south

easterly trade winds and a time of food scarcity. Temperatures,

unlike rainfall, do not vary because they are largely determined by

latitudinal position (9° 20'S) and for most of the year the maxima

are in the low thirties (centrigrade). Extremes of temperature are

greater at the inland village of Ajoa.

Both Ayuan and Ajoa are isolated from the main road connections

in Oro province, which concentrate in the Popodetta area between Oro

• School

•Church

•Aid Poat

-Wolklng Trock

� Secondary Fore at

Kunol Groulond Fre1hwater Swamp

Mai:i11rove1

leach

l N

o I -

Figure 3.1. The Study Area: Major Landscape Features and Transport Links. (Source: P. R. 4/1970-71; Field Mapping)

Vl

Vl

,

56

Bay and Kokoda (Figure 1.2). The nearest port to the villages is

Tufi, more of a fishing community and a district administrative center

than a commercial outlet. The department of primary industry has

an office at Tufi and will buy village copra, but the people of Ayuan

and Joa have difficulty in transporting any large amount because it

takes at least twenty-four hours by small canoe and no one has an

outboard motor. Owners of village trade stores have a similar

problem with securing supplies, most of which are brought from the

large store at Utan plantation (Figure 1.2) and require considerable

effort to transship. The only vehicle available at Wanigela, a small

tractor, cannot reach either community because several rivers are

not forded and after heavy rain in the wet season these cannot be

crossed by people carrying heavy loads. Ayuan and Ajoa are linked

most efficiently by air to the rest of Papua New Guinea from Wanigela.

A one-way ticket to Port Moresby, the capital, costs three times the

minimum weekly wage of Kina 15 ($US 20) for rural areas, yet in seasons

of much travel (like Christmas) people may walk to the airstrip two

or three times before obtaining a seat on an aircraft that seats 16-20

persons.

The coastal village of Ayuan is built on the beach adjacent to

Kepple Point (Figure 3. 1) . Houses are constructed on stilts about

a meter from the ground, have walls of � palm, and roofs of woven

coconut fronds. Many are small and not in good repair. In almost

complete contrast, some villagers have erected large new houses and

used some corrogated iron in their construction. During the dry

months the river mouth, which divides the beach, is a stagnant pool

but becomes a barrier to communication between households in the wet

57

season. The settlement itself is divided into small hamlets of people

grouped in terms of patrilineal clans. These dot the beach adjacent

to Kepple Point, as well as for about a kilometer along the track

to Ajoa. In the wet season the track becomes muddy and overgrown

with kunai grass a meter in height; in the dry months this grass acts

as a wind barrier and makes walking during the day hot and unpleasant.

Ajoa is a bush (inland) village located on the north bank of

a river of the same name, some seven kilometers inland from Ayuan

(Figure 3.1). The houses, clustered by clan groups, are built around

a circle of kunai and connected by a series of paths leading from

what remains of the dirt road to Ajoa. In the middle of the community

is the 'station', consisting of the local elementary school, aid post,

and youth club buildings, which the people consider a separate entity.

Outside the Christmas holiday season, when many parents and

families return from town and school children for annual vacation,

daily life is characterized by many small events. Each day, children

from Ayuan walk to Ajoa to school and the girls return carrying large

pots full of water. Women go to their food gardens, usually taking

smaller children along, perhaps asleep in a string bag slung across

their forehead and hanging down their back. The men may also walk

to the gardens or may fish or hunt. Sometimes there is a canoe to

be pulled from the bush or a house to help build, which results in

much singing followed by a small gathering to eat food and exchange

gossip. In the daytime, each village is more or less deserted apart

from a few men who have stayed behind and sit on shady verandahs in

small groups, talking endlessly and chewing betel nut while half

watching a small child.

Whenever a local market is held in Ajoa or the airplane comes

from Port Moresby and Popondetta to Wanigela, some women will leave

Ayuan early in the morning to walk the seven kilometers to market

58

or link up with Ajoa women and trek yet another nine kilometers to

the airstrip. They will return the same afternoon with some betel

nut, which like other goods is less expensive in Wanigela, perhaps

buscuits and flour, or a packet of tea or rice purchased at the Utan

plantation store. People go to both markets not only to sell surplus

subsistence produce but also to socialize and gossip. Journeys to

Wanigela are also made to attend health clinic or see who arrives

on the airplane. All households in Ayuan and most in Ajoa have access

to at least one canoe, but it is rare for them to be used to go to

Wanigela because the direction of currents makes return in the after

noon difficult.

Population

The people of Ayuan and Ajoa are descendants of the Arifamu

Miniafia, who originally occupied the two villages of Meneo and

Phanari on the slopes of Mount Victory, an active volcano about ten

kilometers north of Ayuan (Figure 1.2). When this mountain erupted

in the 1880s, half the language group perished and the survivors

shifted from the slopes to establish small, clan-based hamlets on

the Tufi 'fiords'. In 1966, most people moved yet again to the land

near Keppel Point and formed the present communities of Ayuan and

Ajoa. This relocation was stimulated by the desire to establish small

holder plantations of coconuts on the coastal plain adjacent to this

point. It was encouraged by the then village councillor, who obtained

59

rural resettlement funds to build a road from Kepple Point, where

a wharf was planned, to the airstrip at Wanigela. The route for the

road was cleared but it was never completed, the bags of cement meant

for the wharf lay ruined on the beach, and the capital supporting

the relocation was all used. The essential problems facing cash-

crop development in the area remained unchanged: lack of transport

facilities, a marketing structure,and efficient management. The only

difference is that people are now even more skeptical of the possible

success of local investment, whether in human, physical, or capital

resources.

The population appears to have settled at Ayuan and Ajoa, although

there is much visiting between the newer and former villages around

Tufi. People are likely to remain because of better land, the

accessibility of Wanigela airstrip and market, and the transfer from

Naniu Island to Ajoa in 1966 of the community school and aid post.

The most important change in the area is that a small amount of crown

land and some under traditional tenure has been subdivided and con

verted into freehold, with titles being registered in the name of

single individuals. There is also support for other holdings to be

converted out of traditional tenure, where land passes from father

to son and men show their children the location of plots just as they

are told clan stories to be aware of relatives, rights, and respon

sibilities.

It is apparently possible for people to both lose and gain land.

An important reason for continued visits to the Tufi villages by resi

dents of Ayua and Ajoa is to maintain land rights; someone might

plant a tree on their land, which in turn would give them effective

ownership for the life of the tree. Migrants maintain land rights

through the continued presence in the village of patrilineal kin,

who are important recipients of remittances (Chapter V). There is

some expectation of smallholder development on 'blocks' converted

60

to freehold with the institutional support of the provincial government.

This, however, is unlikely to occur in the near future, because invest

ment in such projects is concentrated around the provincial capital

of Poponetta (Figure 1.2) where there already exists transport,

management, and marketing facilities.

The total de jure population of Ayuan is 326, of which 203 are

resident; and of Ajoa 260 of whom 176 are resident (Tables 3.4 and

3.5). About one-third of the total population of both villages is

absent (37.73% in Ayuan and 32.31% in Ajoa), which amounts to more

than half the males aged between fifteen and forty-nine. Even so,

absentees are almost certainly underestimated. Data on them were

obtained mainly from current residents through household reconstitution

and they are more likely to remember absentees within their own

families and perhaps forget instances where an entire household moved,

especially if this was some years previously. Secondly, village

residents might be unsure of the marital status of a migrant or the

size of his family. There was some difficulty, thirdly, attributing

migrants to natal villages because of the relocation in 1966 to

Ajoa. In such cases, place of residence for the absentee was con

sidered the same as the nearest male relative. Comparison of records

for 1978 and 1980 in the village book, that document the annual census

of village populations taken in Papua New Guinea until 1980, suggests

61

Table 3.4

Total De Jure Population of Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

A YUAN

Age Resident Absent Total

Group Male Female Male Female

0-4 12 14 11 9 46

5-9 24 14 13 14 65

10-14 12 20 4 5 41

15-19 3 10 12 6 31

20-24 10 12 6 5 33

25-29 3 3 10 6 22

30-34 7 6 7 8 28

35-39 4 3 6 1 14

40-44 2 6 8

45-49 6 7 13

50-54 5 4 9

55+ 11 5 16

Total 99 104 69 54 326

AJOA

Age Resident Absent Total Group Male Female Male Female

0-4 18 14 4 4 40

5-9 10 11 3 5 29

10-14 15 15 5 3 38

15-19 8 9 6 5 28

20-24 10 10 9 6 35

25-29 3 1 9 5 18

30-34 3 5 1 9

35-39 3 2 8 3 16

40-44 3 3 3 9

45-49 9 12 21

50-54 1 1 2

55+ 7 8 15

Total 87 89 52 32 260

Source: Field census, 1982

Table 3.5. Residents in Ayuan and Ajoa , 1982.

AYUAN RESIDENTS

Age Males Females

Group No. % % cum. No. %

0-4 12 12.12 12.12 14 13.46

5-9 24 24.24 36.36 14 13.46

10-14 12 12.12 48.48 20 19.23

15-19 3 3 .03 51. 51 10 9.62

20-24 10 10 .10 61.61 12 11.54

25-29 3 3.03 64.64 3 2.88

30-34 7 7 .07 71. 71 6 5. 77

35-39 4 4.04 75.75 3 2.88

40-44 2 2.02 77. 77 6 5. 77

45-49 6 6.06 83.83 7 6.73

50-54 5 5.05 88.88 4 3.85

55+ 11 11.11 99.99 5 4.81

Total 99 99.99 104 100

% cum. No.

13.46 26

26.92 38

46.15 32

55. 77 13

6 7 .31 22

70.19 6

75.96 13

78.84 7

84.61 8

91.34 13

95.19 9

100.00 16

203

Total

%

12.81

18. 72

15.76

6.40

10.84

2.96

6.40

3.45

3.94

6.40

4.43

7.88

99.99

% cum.

12.81

31.53

47.29

53.69

64.63

67 .49

73.89

77.34

81. 28

87 .68

92.11

99.99

0-

N

Table 3.5 (continued) Residents in Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982.

AJOA RESIDENTS

Age Males Females Total

Group No. % % cum. No. % % cum. No. % % cum.

0-4 18 20 .69 20 .69 14 15.73 15.73 32 18.18 18.18

5-9 10 11.49 32.18 11 12.36 28.09 21 11.93 30.11

10-14 1 5 17.24 49.42 1 5 1 6 .85 44.94 30 17.10 47.21

15-19 8 9.20 58.62 9 10.11 5 5.05 17 9.66 56.87

20-24 10 11.49 70 .11 10 11.24 66.29 20 11.36 68.23

25-29 3 3.44 73.55 1 1.12 67 .41 4 2.27 70. 50

30-34 - - 73.55 3 3.37 70. 78 3 1. 7 72.20

35-39 3 3.44 76.99 2 2.25 73.03 5 2.84 75.04

40-44 3 3.44 80.43 3 3.37 76.40 6 3.41 78.45

45-49 9 10 .34 90. 77 12 13.48 89.88 21 11.93 90.38

50-54 1 1.45 92.22 1 1.12 9.1 2 1.14 91.52

55+ 7 8.05 100. 27 8 8.99 99.99 15 8.52 100.04

Total 87 100 .27 89 99.99 176 100.04

Source: Field Census, 1982

""

w

64

that this underestimation is small (less than 5 percent) and occurred

mainly in instances where whole households had relocated and the

parents of a migrant were no longer alive.

In both the resident and absentee populations, there is an excess

of males over females for almost all age groups (Figure 3.2). As

suggested by Lea and Lewis (1975), this could be due to under-reporting

of females, adoption which is sex selective, higher female mortality

at all ages (which is unlikely), or higher female mortality in the

first year of life. If there is adoption of children to other com

munities, then the discrepancy could be corrected by including the

old Miniafia communities in the analysis since villagers are most

unlikely to let children be adopted beyond the wider social group.

This problem requires further analysis that is beyond the scope of

this study.

The resident populations of both Ayuan and Ajoa appear to be

aging and the structure of the total de jure population is not nearly

as dominantly youthful as usual in Papua New Guinea, where the birth

rate is high (Figure 3.2). In turn, this characteristic is related

to the underenumeration already noted of absentees in the 0-9 age

range. The dependency ratios for the resident population (Table 3.6)

are quite high, due partly to the considerable level of outmovement.

The resident populations of the 44-55 plus cohort in both villages

is large compared with the size of other five-year groupings, which

may reflect the fact that it was the young to middle-aged heads of

household who relocated to Ayuan and Ajoa, combined with the effect

of current outmovement. In addition, the large number of males aged

from five to nine who were enumerated in Ajoa may reflect an error

D Absentee Population

�Resident

Males N:zl68

Females N= 158

12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 AJOA 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12"

N:139 N=121

l 2 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 I 2"

Figure 3.2. Structure of the Total Population of Ayuan and Ajoa 1982

(Source of data: Tables 3.4 and 3.5) O'

\Jl

,

Table 3.6

Dependency Ratios of Resident Population, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

Resident Population A yuan Ajoa

% 0-14 47.29 47.21

% 15-44 33.99 31.24

% 45+ 18.71 21.59

Youth Dependency Ratio 1.39 1.51

Old Age Dependency Ratio .55 .69

Total Dependency Ratio 1.94 2.20

Source of data: Table 3.4.

in data collection. If, for example, the children of migrants were

staying in the community, they would most likely have been boys be-

cause of the patrilineal clan structure and may therefore have been

66

double counted. For a population with substantial outmovement, there

is also a large proportion of people aged fifteen to twenty-five,

mostly the children of parents in the 45-55+ cohort who are not married

and have remained in the village.

Most people in Ayuan and Ajoa have had some experience of formal

schooling (Table 3.7). For those aged more than forty, this is limited

to some mission education, usually two years, in either the vernacular

or Wedaun--a Papuan language used as a lingua franca by the Anglican

Church until about 1960. A few older men who became mission teachers

and medical assistants have had some further education, perhaps four

to six years of primary schooling and a year of medical or teacher

Table 3. 7

Educational Attainment of the Adult Resident Population,

Ayuan and Ajoa 1982

A yuan Ajoa

67

Males Females Males Females

Level No. % No. % No. % No. %

None 4 7.84 9 16.07 2 4.55 13 26.53

Years 1-3 25 49.02 25 44.64 21 4 7. 73 13 26.53

Years 4-6 10 19.61 19 33.97 11 25.00 19 38. 78

Vocational 4 7.84 1 1. 79 7 15.91

Years 7-9 1 1.96 1 2.27 3 6.12

Years 10 1 1. 79 1 2.27

Medical/ 3 5.88 1 2.27

Teachers/ Agr ic ult ur al Training

University

Priest 1 1.96

Unknown 2 3.92 1 1. 79 1 2.04

Still at 1 1.96

school

Total 51 99.99 56 100 44 100 49 100

Source: Field Census, 1982.

68

training. For people less than thirty-five years of age, many have

completed six years of primary education ( standard 6), while others

have completed four years of high school to the tenth standard . . This

educational profile is unusual for Papua New Guinea, since the years

of formal schooling received by villagers dates from the start of

the colonial era, in this case from 1911. It reflects the presence

in the area of the Anglican Mission since 1899, while the absence

of further high school graduates illustrates the selective nature

of labor mobility.

Social Structure

The people of Ayuan and Aj oa have the same origin myth as the

rest of the Miniafia dialect grou�. They believe they came from a

hole in Mount Victory and were the original occupants of its foothills.

This myth is similar to that described by Malinowski (1961:63) for

the Trobriand islanders ( Figure 1.1). The Wanigelans share the same

origin myth and also claim to be the original settlers of the foothills.

Society is organized into lineage groups, which are best through

of as New Guinea-type 'patrilineal' clans or, more precisely, groups

with cumulative patrilinaalation into which it is possible to absorb

the children of sisters. While Miniafia clans are patrilineal, it

is possible for the woman's husband to move into the group, in which

case he is treated as a brother and the children become members of

the woman's clan. In both Ayuan and A j oa as well as the Miniafia

as a whole, there are four main clans: Abugawa, Gadebo, Safitoa,

and Waguaa. The lineage groups which, following common usage, will

be termed subclans, have names and totems usually of birds and

69

animals. Traditionally, status was ascribed, at least within clans,

but nowadays is both ascribed and achieved. A man may be noted a

traditional leader, but others who have achieved status beyond the

village in wage employment or have succeeded within the village as

small bisnis-men also receive recognition. Clans were also said to

have a 'friend' clan; that is, further group into pairs (moieties),

with Abugawa and Gadebo constituting one moiety and Safitoa and Waguaa

the other. It seems traditionally it was common practice to marry

into the other moiety, although exceptions occurred, and to have the

first born initiated by that larger group.

Traditionally, each clan had a number one (most important) man

with a certain amount of ceremonial power. He decided when the

gardens of the clan could sustain the holding of a feast and his per

mission was necessary before anyone could speak at a gathering. It

is not clear how much power these number one men exercised but, given

the strong ethic of equality both within and between clans regarding

access to goods, it seems unlikely that these positions resulted in

unequal access to resources. Rather, it is more likely that they

were of ceremonial importance and hence had status as opposed to

material wealth.

This type of social structure is quite unusual for Papua New

Guinea, although one has been described by Malinowski (1961:71) for

the Trobirand Islands. He notes the existence of chiefs as being

a peculiar characteristic of some groups in what he terms the Northern

Massim area, in which the Miniafia are located (Malinowski, 1961:31).

Certainly the Miniafia were in contact with the Trobriands through

70

extensive and long-distance networks of trade, from which they

obtained shell money and which Malinowski termed the Kula. The

Miniafia were also involved in local and short-distance trade, ex

changing canoes with the Wanigelans for clay pots and with the Maisin

of Uaiku for tapa cloth.

Ideally, residence following marriage is with the husband's father

(patrivirilocal), although the granting of usufructary rights to

the daughter's husband is common. Clans tend to be residentially

concentrated and, traditionally, most communities were probably

occupied by a subclan, with the clan and then the moiety being the

next closest inhabitants. Clans were competitive and apparently wary

of each other's size, for there is a strong ethic of equality between

social groups. Each man will tell his children the clan history and

social practice so that they know their relatives, obligations, and

land rights. Within the clan, there is a significant degree of merging.

A father's brother is considered a father and called 'daddy', while

the son or daughter of a father's brother is thought a sibling and

termed 'cousin sister' or 'cousin brother'. A mother's relatives

seem to be given much less importance. Certain obligations are due

affinal relations and are especially important to the wife's father

and brothers. Traditionally, as nowadays, one has important obliga

tions to parents, siblings, uncles, 'cousin-brothers' and 'cousin

sisters', and parents-in-law (see Chapter V). Adoption beyond the

social group is common, but may be restricted to moieties.

Exchange beyond traditionally-prescribed relationships is strictly

reciprocal and, if not reciprocated, will lapse. Status is ascribed

71

but may be enhanced by making gifts. The ability to muster resources

for distribution, as for a bride-price ceremony, is to some extent

a measure of worth; in the case of bride price, not only of the groom

but also his lineage and clan. Such a ceremony that took place in

Ajoa in January 1983 illustrates the subtle links underpinning exchange

relations and social obligations. The couple, both urban residents

of Port Moresby, had returned to the village for this purpose, as

had a number of the husband's relatives who were also contributors.

The traditional but still obligatory items--pigs, tapa cloth, clay

pots, garden produce, shall money--came from father's brothers and

'cousin-brothers'. The husband made a cash payment of kina 2,720

($US 3,000), the largest in the history of this language group and

the subject of impressive speeches by clan representatives. The

speaker for the husband's group emphasized the size of the gift, asked

the wife's family to remember it and to contribute a similar among

when the first child was initiated. The speaker for the wife's clan

responded that when the time came for initiation they would give what

they could. Both speakers emphasized that the bride price should

be equitably distributed and following these speeches, the wife's

relatives retreated to divide the bride-price according to the blood

relationship of each male to the wife.

The cash for this bride price came from contributions of kina

100 from ten 'cousin-brothers' of the groom, kina 200 from a sister

of the groom, and kina 800 raised by the husband-to-be. Miniafia

in town have an informal club of 'cousin-brothers' to help each pay

the other's bride price by contributing a fixed sum of kina 100.

In this particular case, village residents paid the remainder, almost

72

certainly from previous remittances. The manner of raising this bride

price illustrates not only the importance of pooling arrangements

but also the continuity of ties and relationships among members of

a patrician. It also documents the maintenance of an ethic of obliga

tion and proper behavior, as well as pointing to the use of social

pressure to ensure their survival. Finally, it demonstrates that

status accrues from the making of gifts and that failure or inability

to do so causes shame.

Economy

Every household in both Ayuan and Ajoa depends mainly on sub

sistence production. The staple food is taro--both real taro

(Colocasia) and Hong Kong taro (Xanthosoma)--heavily supplemented

by yams (Dioscorea) and sweet potatoes (Ipomoea) in the dry season,

which is also a time of scarcity. Cassava (Minihot), bananas, corn,

beans, pineapples, mangoes, and cabbage are also growth. Sago <!!1£�)

is the main food consumed during the dry months if gardens are not

yielding sweet potato. Pigs are raised by most households, but are

not eaten on a regular basis and therefore do not contribute sub

stantially to daily protein intake, being more important as exchange

commodities to fulfill socioeconomic obligations and recognize

important social and clan relationships. A few households have

chickens, whose contribution to protein intake also is small, since

they are raised in ad-hoc fashion and both pigs and dogs often eat

more of the eggs and chickens than do family members. For both com

munities, the main source of protein is fish, feral and native animals,

such as wild pigs, birds, and bats.

73

The subsistence agricultural system involves an annual slash-and

burn with a fallow period lasting about five years. There is a clear

division of labor; men are responsible for clearing the land and women

for planting and harvesting. Men mostly build and maintain houses

and canoes, hunt and fish, while women are responsible for such house

hold tasks as cooking, cleaning, and carrying drinking water. Normally

the household group is the unit of subsistence production, but a man

may be helped in clearing garden land by his sons should they reside

nearby. For larger tasks, such as canoe building, a man will draw

on his clan for help and repay them with a small party.

Every household also grows a wide variety of cash crops, most

commonly copra, coffee, spices and peanuts--a practice that is not

only a relic of colonial policy to promote smallholder production

but also represents the continuing desire of villagers to establish

local sources of income. In 1982-83, no household received much money

from cash crops, although a few derived small incomes from the sale

of coconuts and peanuts in the local market. A collaborative rice

project, established by villagers in 1979, was successful for a time

but disintegrated in 1981 because of problems with marketing and

management. Early in 1983, a few households were beginning to replant

rice but without major organizational changes the problems of two

years previously are likely to recur. One man in Ayuan runs cattle,

a manifestation of promotion by the Department of Primary Industry

for smallholders to raise beasts for local consumption. These 'cattle

projects', involving about ten animals per farmer, were financed by

loans from the Development Bank of Papua New Guinea. However, the

Miniafia smallholder has been unable to market his cattle because

of poor transport facilities and consequently has obtained no income

from the project. Within Ayuan and Ajoa themselves there are six

'canteens' (small stores); five are owned by individual households

and one run by the local youth club.

74

Excluding money received from remittances, households obtain

their most regular incomes from the sale of subsistence produce (fish,

sweet potatoes, corn) at local markets. The most important of these

is at Tufi (Figure 3.2) which is especially lucrative during the

Christmas period, from mid-December until the end of January. Pre

vailing prices are higher at this market than for the ones at either

Ajoa or Wanigela.

The Miniafia economy is a complex mix of subsistence and cash

activities. Household production of food crops provides the basic

staples and, for some, also a cash income from market sales with which

to purchase tools and simple equipment. Such are essential to sub

sistence production, primarily because few villagers know any longer

how to fashion tools; they also compensate if the availability of

local labor fluctuates, which in turn reflects the incorporation of

these communities into the cash economy. The clay pots and tapa cloth

formerly obtained through trade networks must now be purchased with

money, as must also the fishing nets once woven locally. Canoes are

being replaced with outboard motor boats and are no longer always

an acceptable medium of exchange. Households in Ayuan and Ajoa thus

require some cash to satisfy subsistence needs, which provides a con

text for and a basis for evaluating their importance against other

sources of income.

CHAPTER IV

LABOR MOBILITY AT THE COMMUNITY LEVEL, 1925-1983

Once upon a time we understood--or thought we did--the causes of migration, the uniformities and patterns of migratory movements, and the social and personal consequences of geographic mobility both for the movers and the units into which they moved. Whether described in terms of a mathematical "gravity flow" model on the geographic level, in terms of a "push-pull" model on the economic level, or in terms of psychic cost "adaptation" model on the sociopsychological level, the resulting picture was reassuringly simple. Human beings, like iron filings, were impelled by forces beyond their conscious control and, like atoms stripped of their cultural and temporal diversity, were denied the creative capacity to innovate and shape the worlds from which and into which they moved. (Abu-Lughod, 1975:201)

This chapter examines moves to paid employment of the total popu-

lation of Ayuan and Ajoa and the importance of labor mobility in

accounting for the current size of the absentee population detailed

in Chapter III. Trends in the flow of labor and in the associated

patterns of remittances and local investment patterns are outlined,

using cohort analysis to allow some measure of how previous mobility

has contributed to economic development in rural communities of origin.

A typology of wage-labor movement is constructed from the experience

of both the resident and absentee populations. This is compared with

a parallel typology developed by Young (1977) for mobility patterns

in Simbu and New Ireland. The final concern is with the implications

of such experience for future trends in both labor mobility and

remittances.

RETURNED LABOR MIGRANTS

More than 55 percent of adult men currently resident in Ayuan

and Ajoa have at one time been labor migrants (Table 4.1). In con-

trast, no female resident has had any such experience, although two

older women in Ajoa went with their husbands (who were wage workers)

Village

A yuan

Ajoa

Total

Source:

Table 4.1

Adult Male Resident Population by Migration Status, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

Never Labor Migrant Returned Labor Migrant Total No. % No. % No. %

27 52.94 24 47.06 51 100

15 34.09 29 65.91 44 100

42 44.21 53 55.79 95 100

Field Census, 1982

to the mission station on Naniu Island (Figure 1.2), where they were

subsequently employed as helpers and paid two Australian shillings

a month (US 20 cents). Men who have not gone away for wage labor

76

tend to be either young (less than JO), to have missed the recruiting

era (in the Tufi district from about 1900 to 1960), or to have in-

sufficient formal education to gain desirable jobs in the increasingly

competitive and selective labor market of Papua New Guinea. As one

young man told me: "Only well educated people can get jobs in town

now and that is why high school and grade six drop outs are in the

village. You could get a no good (low status) job in town, like

PROFESSIONAL

CLERICAL

MI SSION

POLICE /ARMY

SKILLED

SEMI SKILLED

UNSKILLED

PL ANTATION

UNEMPLOYED

PROFESSIONAL

ClERICAl

MISSION

POLICE I ARMY

SKILLED

SEMI SKILLED

UNSKILLED

PLANTATION

UNEMPLOYED

PROFESSIONAL

CLERICAL

MISSION

POLICE I ARMY

SKILLED

SEMI SKILLED

UNS KILLED

PLANTATION

UNEMPLOYED

19 25-29 2 4 6 8

1950-54 2 4 6 8

1970-74 2 4 6 8

1935-39 2 4 6 8

1975-79 2 4 6 8

1940-44 2 4 6 8

1960-64 2 4 6 8

1980-8 2 2 4 6 8

1945-49 2 4 6 8

1965-69 2 4 6 8

Figure 4.1. Movement of Miniafia to Wage Labor, Five-Year Cohorts by Occupation, 1925-1982.

(Source: Labor Histories, 1982-83)

......

......

garbage (rubbish) collecting, but village people will laugh at you

so it is better if you stay in the village." This statement only

refers to the current positions as the range of mobility experience

within the resident population will shortly illustrate. Returned

78

labor migrants range from the very old to the quite young; from Samson,

who is 74 and was recruited to work in 1929 on a copra plantation

in Milne Bay; to Jeffrey, who is middle-aged and a retired school

teacher; through to Phanuel--young and single, who worked as a mechanic

following two years' training at a vocational school.

The oldest returnees in Ayuan and Ajoa were employed as contract

laborers (Figure 4.1), on the copra plantations of Milne Bay Province

and the rubber estates of Central Province (Figure 1.1). Until the

1950s, they went to expatriate plantations and mines in rural places-

what in national censuses are termed rural nonvillage areas: Figure

4.2. Men who joined the police force, were household servants or

sailors, were the exception to this general pattern. Older labor

migrants participated in the agreement system and tended to 'sign

on' for only a second time, if at all. They went as single persons,

or, if married, inevitably left behind their families in the village

since employers provided no accommodation or food rations for the

dependents of labor migrants. Generally these men had little formal

education (Figure 4.J) and were without knowledge of either lingua

franca: Motu or Pidgin. Transportation, housing, and food rations

were provided as specified by law, as was the monetary payment which

was very small (usually 12 Australian pounds for a two-year contract)

and given out at the end of the employment period (compare Chapter II).

79

Remittances from older migrants consequently occurred only on

completion of the labor contract and tended to be in the form of goods

rather than cash. Most mentioned bringing back axes, knives, tinned

food, cloth, and a small amount of cash, all of which was distributed

to close relatives. Until about 1940, Miniafia bride price continued

to consist only of traditional goods (clay pots, tapa cloth, shell

money, pigs, vegetables) and cash did become an expected part

after World War II. Today, these oldest of returned labor migrants

do not own village businesses, have not done so at any time in the

past, and tend to be dependent on remittances from young male relatives

to buy the small luxuries with which to enjoy their old age: black

stick tobacco, sugar and tea. There is little indication that they

have been innovators within Ayuan or Ajoa; many in fact continue to

wear tapa loin cloths and to live very traditionally.

Wage-labor movement associated with the Second World War was

confined to the Oro and Central Province. Most men were carriers

for allied soldiers at either Buna or Kokoda (Figure 1.2) and, de

pending on their age, were away from 1942 until 1945. Two of the

nine migrants who were carriers had previously worked on plantations,

one of whom subsequently 'signed on' again after the war. Of the

total, four did not participate again in labor mobility and as a group

tended to be older (born 1915-1922) when the war began or were

disabled.

Once the war was over, two types of movement were made by this

group who first left the village between 1940 and 1944. Some men

went under contract to plantations in Central and Milne Bay Provinces,

later moving as both contract, and subsequently as independent

80

migrants to the wharfs of Samarai and Port Moresby, where they

obtained jobs as unskilled laborers shifting cargo. These were well

established destinations for Miniafia men even before independent

movement began, after which time they still tended to go in groups

and to include at least one older man with previous experience.

Absences remained short, one to three years, even for independent

workers whose mobility was not controlled by terms of contract, and

families continued to remain in their local communities. From the

1950s, individual histories of labor movement become increasingly

complex as men circulate into and out of Ayuan and Ajoa to gain

employment and earn a cash income. In the words of one returned

migrant: "I must have some money and if I stay in the village I

can't get some money." All these men have at least some formal educa

tion, usually in the vernacular or Wedaun and also a little in

English; many speak both Motu and Pidgin, while some also understand

English.

Remittances remained small and, in the case of independent move

ment to find work, were offset by travel costs and initial maintenance

until the migrant obtained employment. In most cases, travel was

financed from income from local copra production or by remittances

from previous employment, by either the migrant himself or close

relatives. Maintenance was met by wantoks (people who speak the same

language) already resident at the place of destination. Remittances

occurred only when the period of employment ended and upon return

to the village, usually in the form of goods rather than cash. Any

money brought back was distributed to relatives. Exceptions to this

pattern are men who, through repeated absences and a more persistent

81

form of labor mobility ultimately came back much later than their

age-group and usually with some savings. Such men did not begin a

bisnis (business) of any type in either Ayuan or Ajoa; one is estab

lishing a canteen (small store), but this reflects more recent

remittances from his son. All postwar migrants have engaged in cash

cropping and their failure to earn an income from these efforts

reflects more the lack of services, especially transport and marketing

facilities, than an absence of enthusiasm.

By the 1950s, the volume of independent movement to urban places

was far more important than to plantation employment. As before,

young men went in groups to centers with resident wantoks, and until

the late 1960s predominantly to Samarai and Port Moresby, where they

continued to find work on the wharves as unskilled laborers. Late

in the 1950s another type of labor migrant emerged: those who were

relatively well educated and held such professional positions as

teachers, priests, agricultural extension officers, and medical

assistants. Absent from Ayuan and Ajoa for a number of years, except

for short holidays, these absentees not only move further and to a

wider range of destinations but also take their families with them.

Essentially, such movement is permanent for the length of the migrant's

professional or vocational career. It may also be similar to that

increasingly observed in macro and micro studies that employ only

cross-sectional and time specific data, and therefore mistake long

absence from rural communities for permament residence in the cities

and towns of Papua New Guinea. Such a pattern emerged earlier for

the Miniafia, because of their longer period of contact and exposure

to mission education from an equally early period (cf. Young 1977,

1978; Curtain and Conroy, 1978).

82

This pattern of long absence among the most skilled occurs only

in the 1955-59 cohort, except for a few scattered, less successful,

and hence shorter-term migrants for whom the pattern is less clear,

probably because other and potential returnees have not yet come back

to the village on retirement (see next section). Some people

identified Miniafia in town who had not been to Ayuan and Ajoa for

some years and were committed to urban residence, but this group

appeared a minority. The field data do not suggest that the early

professional and longer-term absentees had become permanently resident

in town, rather that career movers have returned to the community

and seem to behave i� accordance with Salisbury and Salisbury's

(1972:72) 'rural oriented strategy of urban adaptation'. Thus all

professional and better-educated migrants returning to the village

have been instrumental in establishing local investment projects-

cooperative trade store, rice scheme, cattle, and a youth club. Such

a strategy may reflect a lack of financial security in urban areas

once the period of employment ends, especially of assured access to

housing and some regular source of income. This conclusion is sup

ported by interviews with current absentees, which identified yet

another possibility. Given the failure of village projects attempted

by previous returnees, those Miniafia now away would rather go to

a smallholder's 'block' in another area. This was mainly because

they attributed the failure of local schemes to a range of social

pressures within village society and also to a lack of facilities

83

and infrastructure in the Collingwood Bay region (Figure 1.2). They

argued, moreover, that such impediments were not found in other parts

of the country where 'blocks' were available.

Remittances deriving from the 1955-1965 cohorts of migrants are

basically of two kinds. Those contributed by unskilled and independent

workers tend to be small, as much of their income had been 'eaten'

(spent on food) in town and used to buy goods which were brought back

to the village. Only two of these men established any form of local

bisnis, in both cases a small canteen. Some returned with a small

amount in passbooks (savings), but most cash was distributed as gifts

to relatives. In at least four instances, by contrast, some savings

were able to be accumulated by the longer-term and better-educated

migrants. Only one has used these to invest in village projects and

will continue to do so, whereas the others have received loans for

their local efforts from the Development Bank of Papua New Guinea.

In the 1970s, another type of migrant emerges. After some formal

schooling, young single males spend some period--usually two to five

years--working in towns or district centers like Popondetta, Port

Moresby, Lae (Figure 1.1), or Tufi (Figure 1.2) before subsequently

returning to marry. Although such men did not attend high school,

they received some further training and while away from Ayuan and

Ajoa held such skilled and semi-skilled positions as shop assistants,

mechanics, and clerks. Most (six out of eight) also have older

brothers, who have more formal education, are currently absent, and

in full-time employment. Perhaps even more important, seven of these

eight have some male relative who sends occasional remittances (see

Chapter V). Although these young villagers sent small sums at

Town Other RNV1 •

Plantation · /\ Vllla9e Orl9in I \ 192 5-29

:\;rant

2 3

'//\/', 1935-39 two m19rant1

1 2 3 4 5 6 Town · ,..-·\ /I 2

1 2 3 4 5 : A A /\ " : /\ I A\ I;.\ I \ I \ IV�· � v \ 1940- 4 4

1 2 3 4 5 6 : //; 7\ \ \

84

Other RNV· 1/\ /\\Mf\ Plantation · fl . · j \ VI 1_1a

.ge J v 'v M ·t \ fl: . �· � \ \

Origin \ 1945-49 1950-54 e19ht mrgranu

two migrants

Town . �/\2 J Other RNV· . •

Plantation· II\\ / \_ VIiiage /" : \

1 2 3 A • A . i\ \ -J\ff\/\

j v \; \

\ \ 1955-59 n1�e m 9rant1

1 1 1

A f\ . f\

I\ :/\ Ori9ln 1960-64 1965 -69 1970-74 1975-79 1980-8 2 LEGEND

fo"r migrant•

for.' m grant1

thie• m grantl

- ONE LABOR MIGRANT(S) -+-+- FIVE LABOR MIGRANTS

---- TWO II

- - - THREE II

-·-•-FOUR II

-- · -- SIX

SEVEN

"

"

fhc• m19rant1

Figure 4.2. Structure of Miniafia Labor Mobility, by Five-Year Cohorts, 1925-1982. (Source: Labor Histories, 1982-83)

No's 61 1925-1929 of

1935 -1939 1940-1944

Migrants 5

4

3

2

NONI 81•3 84·6 ¥0C OJ•t 010 M.f.,Ae. NONI Ot-1 04·• voe 07·• 010 M.f.,Ae. NONI 01-1 •4-• voe 01-• 010 M.f.,A ..

Educational Attainment

No's 61 1945-1949

of 1950- 1954 1955-1959

Migrants 5

4

3

2

1

NONI •n- 3 84-6 •oc ··-· 010 "l.f.,A •• NONI 01-3 ··-· voe 07-t GIO M.f.,A •• NONI r.1•3 84·6 ¥0( 87•9 810 M.f.,Ae.


Figure 4.3. Educational Attainment of Miniafia Returned Wage Laborers, by Five Year Mobility

Cohorts, 1925-1982.

(Source: Labor Histories, 1982-83) C» \Jl

,

No's of 5 Migrants

4

3

1960-1964 1965-1969 1970-1974

MOHi 01-a o•-• voe 01- t 010 •.1.,.11 •. NONI 01-J o•-• voe 07-t 010 •. , ...... HOHi 01- > o•-• voe 01-t 010 •·'·""·

No's

of

M igrants

6

5

4

3

2


1975-1979 1980-1982

NONI 0 1 - a o•-• voe 01- t 010 •.Y.,Ae. NONI Ol•J o•-• voe 07-t 010 •. , ......


Figure 4.3 (continued) CX> CJ'

,

87 intervals while away, most income was probably used to support their

style in town (cf. Strathern, 1975; 1977). The example of this cohort,

all of whom first left the community between 1975 and 1982, suggests

the frequent circulation of wage labor to still occur in Papua New

Guinea, although it may be of less significance in explaining current

absence in the aggregate than those away for longer periods and engaged

in a quasi-permanent career.

LABOR MOBILITY PROFILES FOR THE RESIDENT POPULATION, 1925-1982

This section will examine more thoroughly the participation of

the resident population in the flow of labor through the example of

individual histories of movement. It is based on analysis of five

year cohorts of labor mobility constructed in terms of date of first

departure from Ayuan and Ajoa for wage work (Figure 4.2).

The 1925-1929 Labor Mobility Cohort

The fact that there is only one wage worker in this cohort

reflects the effect of subsequent mortality rather than lack of re

cruiting (Figure 4.2). In turn, this points to a persistent difficulty

when longitudinal movement data are collected retrospectively, for

no real indication of volume is possible. Samson was recruited for

a two-year period in 1929 by Mr. Wells, a copra trader and labor

recruiter who resided in the Tufi district from about 1920 to the

late 1930s, to work on a copra plantation in Milne Bay. Samson was

married at the time but had no children. On completing his contract

as a laborer, he was paid off on his return to Tufi and received

twelve Australian pounds, with most of which he bought trade goods.

These he distributed among his relatives. Samson did not leave again,

88

because he considered this hard work which he did not like. This

fact may also reflect a lack of opportunities associated with the

fall in produce prices during the depression years of the 1930s.

According to the Naniu mission diary of Nellie Hullet (ALX, Box 25),

Mr. Wells recruited large numbers of young men from the Miniafia

villages in the 1920s and 1930s to work as laborers on the planta

tions of Milne Bay. Most were single, unskilled, and had little formal

schooling; all returned at the end of their contracts.


The first moves to wage work of the two men in this cohort are

similar to that of Samson. Both were recruited on a two-year contract

with a rubber plantation in Central Province (Figure 4.2), were young

(less than 20) and single, and had some limited mission education

in Wedauan--a Papuan language used as a lingua franca by the Anglican

Church until 1950. Later both were carriers during the war: one

was conscripted directly from the rubber plantation and assigned to

the Kokoda Trail (Figure 1.2); the other had returned to his village

several years previously and became a carrier at Buna. Once the war

was over, the younger of the two worked outside the village, having

been recruited for a further eighteen months as laborer on the same

rubber plantation in Central province. At the end of their periods

of employment these men were paid, bought some goods, and returned

to Miniafia with a small amount of cash that was distributed among

relatives. Neither ever established a bisnis and, now much older,

their sources of cash are limited to remittances from young relatives

and small amounts obtained from the sale of market produce.


The seven migrants in this cohort, born between 1924 and 1928,

all had their initial experience of wage labor as carriers during

the war (Figure 4.2). Three experienced paid employment no more.

89

Of the other four, three were contracted for plantation work in either

Milne Bay or Central province; while the remaining person was

recruited by a large commercial store for a job at Samarai. Subse

quent moves by men in this cohort were made independently and work

found on the wharves at Samarai and Port Moresby. All were single

at the time of their first move; later all went away as married men

and left their families behind in the village. Absences were for

period of eighteen months to two years, depending on the kind of con

tract. All had some mission education, speak Motu and Pidgin, and

were employed as unskilled laborers--apart from one who worked for

two years as plumber with the Public Works Department.

This cohort indicates three changes in the character of labor

mobility within Papua New Guinea. First is the transition to rural

urban movement from the strictly rural-rural pattern of prewar decades.

Second, some employment is found outside the agreement system but

its influence continues to be felt, especially on places of destination

which seem more or less determined by the previous shape of mobility

behavior. The third change is the increase in the number of moves

made beyond the rural community by individuals searching for wage

work.

90

Sebastian was born in 1924 and lives in Ayuan with his wife,

youngest son, and grandson. His eldest son is married to a

woman from Milne Bay, where he lives, and is a storekeeper; his

daughter is married to a plumber and also lives in Milne Bay.

Sebastian, like most men his age, was recruited from his village

during the war and worked as a carrier at Buna. He was single

at the time. He was not paid until after the war and then

received twelve Australian pounds which probably was a compen

sation payment rather than actual wages. This money he gave

to his relatives to 'make them feel happy because they were sad

when I was away in the war'. Sebastian returned to the village

where he remained until 1951, when recruited by a commercial

company to work as laborer on the wharves at Samarai. By this

time he was married and had one son. He was paid fifteen

shillings a month, which was used to buy tins (canned goods)

from the store. He returned to Ayuan but in 1955 went back to

Samarai independently along with a group of younger men. He

said: 'I was still young and wanted to go and do some work in

town and get money'. This time Sebastian saved some money and

returned to the village with a passbook (savings). He never

went away to work again and has never had a local bisnis.


The two migrants in this cohort have unusual experiences for

this population in that both were engaged by Europeans who lived

and worked for years in the area. Subsequently they remained in wage

employment for more than fifteen years, which for Ayuan and Ajoa

amounts to quasi-permanent absence from the local community.

Stephen was born in 1928 and now lives in Ajoa with his wife

and four of his sons, one of whom he recalled from wage employ

ment to help with village work. He speaks Pidgin and Motu and

is literate in the vernacular (Miniafia). His two daughters

91

are married to labor migrants, one a teacher and the other an

engineer, and both live in Milne Bay. His eldest son is a

factory worker in Lae (Figure 1.2). From 1946 to 1948, Stephen

worked as a laborer at Uwe for Mr. Cridland, a European who lived

in the Tufi district and ran a variety of small businesses from

the war years until he died in 1977. Stephen was given housing

and food rations and paid one pound ten shillings a month. In

1948 he returned to the village and worked as a mission teacher

at Naniu, for which he received two shillings a month. He left

the station in 1951 and went to live in the village for about

two years when he again left to work for Mr. Cridland, this time

as a storekeeper at Kewanansap (Figure 1.2). He was provided

a house, which enabled him to take his family, since he had

married in 1950; he also received food rations and one pound

ten shillings a month. Stephen returned to his village in 1955,

but left within a year in the company of some other men to find

work at Semarai. This time his family remained behind. He

worked on the wharves for Steamships Company, a large trading

firm, for which he earned one pound ten shillings a month. In

1959 he went to work for a year as storekeeper on a peanut

plantation near Oro Bay (Figure 1.2), where he was provided with

a house and so could take along his family. He went back to

the local community in 1960, leaving soon after for Samarai,

where he found employment in Steamships' grocery department.

92

He remained for two years, receiving housing and rations and

some cash payment. He returned to Ajoa and never left for wage

work again. Stephen used his earnings to buy things, such as

canned goods and clothes from the trade store, and to support

his family. He has never owned a bisnis.

Stephen's work history illustrates that family movement is related

to the provision of adequate housing at places of employment and does

not necessarily result in permanent relocation. In fact, the circu

lation of labor may be associated with relatively long absences from

the village, a pattern that may still dominate amongst the Miniafia.


Eight men born between 1924 and 1935 comprise this cohort. In

general, most moved once or twice to either Port Moresby or Samarai

to work as unskilled laborers on the wharves or in factories. Only

one departure involved plantation work (Figure 4.2). The two changes

which occurred during this period, the rise of independent movement

to employment and the increasing importance of urban places as destin

ations, are both related. Absences were for short periods (eighteen

to twenty-four months) and if the wage worker was married, his family

remained in the village. Two out of eight migrants were in the army

for about five years, after which neither had any experience of paid

employment. Both men now live in the local community but have children

who work in town.

93

Joseph was born in 1933, received a small amount of mission

education, speaks Pidgin and Motu, and now resides in Ayuan with

his wife and five children. He has an older son employed in

Port Moresby, a daughter who is a community school teacher in

Lae, and a son at high school. In 1951, along with many other

Miniafia men, Joseph was recruited for work on a rubber plantation

in Central Province. He stayed eighteen months and received

housing, food rations, and a small amount of money to spend on

the plantation, but most of his earnings (eighteen Australian

pounds) were given him at the end of his period of employment.

These he used to buy things from the store. Joseph returned

to Ayuan, married, but left again with others in 1955 to find

work on the Samarai wharves. He remained there eighteen months,

was given food rations and housing, earning also fifteen shillings

each month. He went back to his village and never left for wage

work again.


The nine mingrants in this cohort, born between 1932 and 1944,

consist of two different groups: unskilled young males who went

independently for short periods of work and the relatively well

educated who were professionally employed and remained away from the

village for longer periods. The former took up jobs for a short time,

usually not more than two years, always left behind their families

in the village, and on average have made two moves away for wage

employment during their lifetime. Generally, they found work on the

wharves at Samarai, which by this time was a well-established

destination for Miniafia men, or if they went within the agreement

system it was to Port Moresby. The latter group of migrants left

more often, went to a wider range of destinations, and always took

their families. The histories of Douglas and Jeffrey illustrate the

main differences between these two types of experience.

94

Douglas was born in 1936, has had three years of mission educa

tion, and now lives in Ayuan with his wife, son, and son's family.

In 1955 he went with Sebastian (1940-44 cohort ) to Samarai, where

he worked on the wharves for eighteen months. He received

rations, housing, and one Australian pound a month. Although

married, his wife remained in the village. After this, Douglas

stayed in the village until 1959, when he was recruited along

with some other Miniafia, again to work on the wharves--this

time at Port Moresby. He received one Australian pound a month,

housing, and rations. Both times he used his earnings to buy

things from the trade store, which he took to the village and

distributed to relatives. After this, he 'had enough of working

in town' and decided to 'grow coconuts' as a way of acquiring

money.

Jeffrey was born the same year as Douglas and is a resident of

Ayuan, along with his wife, two adopted sons, and an adopted

daughter. He has another adopted son undergoing medical train

ing and a daughter in high school. Jeffrey is the community

leader who was instrumental in establishing the rice pro j ect

and before that a cooperative trade store. Previously he was

a community school teacher who completed primary schooling,

followed by two years of training at Dogura Teachers College

(Figure 1.1). Between 1959 and 1973 he worked in community

schools throughout Papua New Guinea, remaining for periods of

95

from six months to two years. His mobility was basically directed,

initially by the Anglican mission (his first employer) and then

by the national Department of Education. He was always provided

with housing, for which he paid a nominal rent, and his family

inevitably accompanied him. Jeffrey managed to save some money,

with which helped set up the trade store. Thus far his village

ventures have met with little success, probably due to a combin

ation of mismanagement, lack of infrastructure in the Collingwood

bay area, and social pressures operating within the community.


The seven migrants in this cohort were born between 1924 and

1947, all of whom have had little formal education and have worked for

short periods (6-18 months) in either unskilled or plantation jobs

in Samarai or Port Moresby. The great amount of plantation employment

in this cohort is an anomally, reflective of a plantation owner in

Milne Bay recruiting once in 1961 from the local area. Again, the

migrants' families remained behind.

Titus, who has the most extensive employment history of this

age group, was born about 1940 and lives in Ajoa with his wife,

family, and some older clanswomen. He has an adopted son, a

community school teacher in Popondetta. Titus owns a trade

96

store, which this son helped him establish, as well as large

coffee plantings. He has had little formal education, but speaks

Motu and some Pidgin in addition to the vernacular. In 1963,

he and his brother were recruited by a company from Port Moresby

and went to work in its factory for one year. He was given

rations, provided with housing, paid five shillings a month,

and made a lump sum payment of twelve Australian pounds at the

end of his employment period. Titus returned to the village

with 'food from the store' and money that was given to his

parents. A year later he went independently to Port Moresby

and found work as a haus boi (household servant) for two European

men. He stayed for one year before going back to Ajoa. Some

time, probably about 1974, he returned to Port Moresby when his

brother-in-law told him about an available job as gardener.

Again he remained for one year before returning to the village.

This time he brought a coffee processor and plans to sell his

coffee at Tufi, where the department of primary industry has

an office.


These four migrants, born between 1944 and 1953, speak English

and have more formal education than most previous ones but it was

not sufficient to obtain professional employment. All are now village

residents and younger married men with small children. All but one

moved independently to urban destinations for short periods of time

(between one and three years); the sole exception remained away for

seven years.

97

Jackarias, born in 1953, now lives in Ajoa with his wife, small

children, and younger brother. He has completed six years of

primary school and speaks fluent English. In 1968, he went by

himself to Samarai and secured employment with Steamships' Com

pany, staying until 1972. That year he left for Port Moresby

and found a job in a dairy factory, where he remained for four

years. He returned to the village and married, staying until

1978 when a wantok found him work in Popondetta as a mission

carpenter. The job ended after two years and Jackarias went

back to Ajoa. On this occasion his family accompanied him since

the mission provided a house. He would enjoy going again to

town with his family, but realizes the difficulty of finding

employment and will not leave without a certain job. Jackarias

was not able to save any money, saying: 'We ate it in town.'


There are four migrants in this cohort and all except one were

born between 1947 and 1949. All made independent moves to urban areas

for short periods of time, most often securing semi-skilled or skilled

work. One migrant had professional employment but for various reasons

chose to return to the local community at a relatively young age.

Most received a primary education, with some further vocational

training, and are fluent in English, Motu, and Pidgin. They are now

young married men who live in the village.

Edrick was born in 1948. He resides in Ajoa, with his wife and

two children, where he runs the village youth club. Edrick,

98

apart from completing six years of elementary education has been

to vocational school in Port Moresby and was trained as a nurse

at Dogura, where he worked for five and a half years from 1972.

He then went back to Ajoa because he had difficulty 'living off

money' and prefers the freedom of village life. Edrick did not

return with any cash.

John was born in 1943, attended Wanigela school for three years,

understands English, and speaks fluent Pidgin. In 1970 he left

for Lae, where he has wantoks and found a job with a welding

company. Single at the time, he later married a Miniafia woman,

who subsequently moved to Lae when the company gave John a house.

He worked there for five years, then became ill with tuberculosis,

spent some years in hospital, and finally returned to the village.

He had saved money while working in town but that was all used

during his illness.

The movement histories for both Edrick and John illustrate how rural

society offers security for the migrant in times of environmental,

social, or economic difficulty--a factor that is little considered

when estimating the real value of connections between village com

munities and towns.


The seven migrants in this combined cohort were born between

1957 and 1966. All have completed six years of primary school and

been to vocational school for at least another two years. In general,

99

having completed their course of training, they found employment at

either the vocational school or some other place in the town where

they had studied. Destinations were either urban areas or district

centers. Three have brothers in town and were recalled to the village

by their parents. Now they are either recently married men, perhaps

with very small children, or single and with little voice in village

affairs.

The trends apparent in these descriptions of Miniafia labor

mobility can be related to the national pattern outlined in the second

chapter. At both levels of analysis the circularity of moves, which

prior to the Second World War were usually over short distance and

to rural non-village places, involved the separation of families and

necessarily contributed to the evolution within village households

of dual economy based on both subsistence and cash-based activities.

During the war the departure of large numbers of individuals, often

all men in a five-year cohort, is apparent. Later, beginning with

the 1950s, movement occurred without reference to the contract system,

although in most cases continued to destinations already established

as likely to provide wage work (cf. Young, 1977).

Secondly, at both the national and the community level it becomes

increasingly common for absence outside the village to be for longer

periods and associated to some extent with career employment. For

rural communities within the Tufi district it is clear that men and

later women moved primarily to obtain cash with which to secure the

commercial goods introduced by the colonial culture. In this manner,

labor mobility was at least one of the major mechanisms whereby

100

village adults were introduced to, and enmeshed within, the system

of cash economy. The stress that such outmovement placed on labor

availability within villages (cf. Boyd, 1975), the related need to

purchase steel tools to make subsistence gardens (cf. Salisbury, 1962),

the subsequent loss of knowing how to fashion tools, and the weakening

of customary social and political practice through the greater incur-

sion of cash (cf. Lacey, 1979) all led to the incorporation of local

communities within the colonial economy. For the Miniafia villages,

in the absence of alternative means of gaining monoey, this cumulative

experience entailed at least some degree of dependence on participation

in labor mobility.

Table 4.2

Adult Male Absentee Population by Movement Category, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

Labor Migrant At School Unemployed Other Total

Village No. % No. % No. % No. i'o No. of.

A yuan 25 60.98 12 29.27 4 9.78 41 100.03

Ajoa 34 85.00 4 10 1 2.5 1 2.5 40 100

Total 59 72.84 16 19.75 1 1. 24 5 6.7 81 100

Source: Field Census, 1982.

101

CURRENT ABSENTEES

Going away to wage labor in Ayuan and Ajoa accounts for more

than 72 percent of males currently absent and that associated with

schooling for most of the rest (Table 4.2). For women, in contrast,

being away for paid employment is unimportant and at the time of the

field census involved only five individuals. Absence of females from

the village is mainly associated with marriage, 67 percent of whom

are the wives of labor migrants and live in urban areas. This illus-

trates the shift from the flow of labor being dominated by adult males

moving independent as was the case until the late 1960s, to that

involving whole families. It further suggests that the appearance

or existence of a dual economy within rural households is no longer

a necessary outcome of labor mobility in Papua New Guinea. Among

current absentees in Ayuan and Ajoa, there is only one instance in

each community of a male going away to work and leaving his wife

behind. A few young, single women have left to join the households

of brothers who are labor migrants in town, where they will help with

housework and minding children. At any point in time, such individuals

account for only a small proportion of all females who are absent;

nevertheless their independent movement represents a significant change

from previous patterns of local behavior. Finally, some females are

away at school (Table 4.3). Mobility associated with wage employment

thus accounts for most males and females who are currently absent

from either Ayuan or Ajoa.

The spatial distribution of current labor migrants (Figure 4.4)

is similar to that of previous decades. Wage workers concentrate

Table 4. 3 Adult Female Absentee Population by Movement Category, Ayuan and Ajoa, 1982

Labor Married Otherwise Sister of At

Village Migrant Labor Migrant Married Labor Migrant School

No. % No. % No. % No. % No. %

A yuan 2 7.69 18 69.25 2 7.69 1 3.85 3 11.54

Ajoa 3 15.00 13 68.00 0 0 1 5.00 3 15.00

Total 5 10.87 31 67.39 2 4.35 2 4.35 6 13.04


Total

No.

26

20

46

%

100

100

100

t-' 0 N

... , 1011[

,,. j IAlf H•Ul

,, '

/ MAeANe c ;. - ·r ' · - - - ' Vir. ............ ; . � ... � w •oti t.M · , . \ INeA 1wu�. Z \, • ... """ /HleH ' ' 0 I ' . . .

• --, 0 ..., · ... . _r... r 1 - - i:::: I I . ''1!'• .. •1 j . � IOWfllllN . .,. ,, I I ..... ! I I ....... ANH (. • '- ....... ! .

- -··-·'-� I L.1--·-· ' ,, I....

I &

... ,. .... .

"',

• · • •• ·TIUITOllAl IOUNDAIT

- · - PROVINCIAL IOUNDAIY r . .. HO a••••· N

�

c;:::::;> MANI.It 0

C)

\)

\::)

C;:::>

30 ;?" --� 20 QJO If � '° )> Z 2 't\I >' -4 VI

a

�

... � ,' IOl;l)

/

�a.

Figure 4.4. Place of Residence of Current Miniafia Labor Migrants. (Source: Field Census, 1982.)

,_ 0 l..J

,

104

in Central Province, mainly Port Moresby, and in Oro Province, mainly

Popondetta, with others scattered throughout the rest of the country.

Compared with the resident population, absentees have received more

formal education (cf. Table 4.4 and Table 3.3) and hold professional,

clerical, or skilled positions (Table 4.5). These characteristics

are similar to those found in the most recent cohorts of returned

migrants, especially that for 1955-59 where some men had held lesser

professional jobs for some years. In turn, this suggests that those

currently absent will remain away for the length of a career. Such

a pattern is not necessarily indicative of permanent residence in

town, for a migrant's stay may be cut short by illness or social

problems--as described previously for well-educated returnees who

held skilled jobs but now live in Ayuan and Ajoa. Even so, the current

flow of labor to urban places has none of the brief recurrent character

of earlier decades that was associated with plantation employment

and when workers were hired on agreement.

MINIAFIA LABOR MOBILITY IN PERSPECTIVE

This analysis of both current and previous labor mobilito/ for

the people of Ayuan and Ajoa makes it possible to construct a typology

comparison to that presented by Young (1977) for Simbu and New Ireland

(Table 4.6). There are two basic differences between Young's typology

and the one for the Miniafia. First, for Young, movement refers to

any absence of six or more months from the rural village whereas

that for Miniafia is concerned only with labor mobility. Secondly,

the latter typology considers patterns of flows for both remittances

105

Table 4.4

Educational Attainment of Current Labor Migrants, Ayuan and Ajoa 1982

A yuan Ajoa Male Female Male Female

Level No. % No. % No. % No. %

None

Years 1-3

Years 4-6 5 20

Vocational 1 4 5 14.71

Years 7-9 3 8.82

Year 10 6 24 8 23.53 1 33.33

Medical/ Teachers/ 5 20 2 100 5 14.71 2 66.66

Agricultural Training

University 3 12 2 5.88

Priest 1 4 1 2.94

Unknown 4 16 10 29.41

Total 25 100 2 100 34 100 3 99.99


Table 4.5

Occupation of Current Labor Migrants, Ayuan and Ajoa 1982

A yuan Ajoa

106

Male Female Male Female

Occupation No. % No. % No. % No. %

Professional 10 40 2 100 8 22.86 2 66.66

Clerical 1 4 3 8.57 1 33.33

Priest/ Mission. 1 4 2 5. 71

Police I Army 2 5. 71

Skilled 6 17.14

Semiskilled 3 12 1 2.86

Unskilled 3 8.57

Plantation 3 12

Unemployed 1 2.86

Unknown 7 28 9 25. 71

Total 25 100 2 100 35 99.99 3 99.99


LEVEL OF EDUCATION

AGE AND GENDER

AMOUNT OF CONTROL

TYPE OF MOVEMENT

REMITTANCES

DESTINATION

MIGRANT, NOT FOR WA]E LABOR

Little or no

education

I Usually under :;:T of

Tribal control

Rural village

Table 4.6

A Typology of Labor Mobility from Ayuan and Ajoa, Oro Province

RETUR�RANT ' ' ' 1.,,;;:;::. � Little or no Little or no Well educated educat rn

At lest 40

of •g• f "'

years male

Dlrrted

Circulation for length of con

tact. Not accompanied by" dependints

Few reml ttances at end of contract. Mainly goods; little cash I Rural non-vi I !age I Town

education I 30-45 years

of T .. , ....

Not directed Chain movement

In �roups

ClrcLlar and repetitive. Not accompanied by "'T .... Remittances at

end of

employment

Town

or �

Under 30 years Over 30 years of ••• 1"' o•l• of ••• ood ••I•

No• T""' Circular and

Dlrrcted

Circular, but once only. Single semi-permanent

for length of

career. Accom

Few, Irregular remittances ohllo T'"' Town or district

center

panledlby family

lrregu ar rem It tances while away. Innovators

upon rf turn

Rural non-vi I !age, district center, town

aModeled on Young's (1977:451)

Typology of Slmbu and New Ireland movement.

CURRENT AB,ENTEE

lnd�endent

I Well educated or !killed

20-45 years f age

� ""r' No • j"""" Appears Perhaps permanent. circular and Accompanied by seml:permanent family for length of

career. Accom-

panied by family

Regular, but small

Rura"l non-

v ll lage, district center, town

"" ["'" ...-0 ......

•

108

and people. The result illustrates clearly the emergence since 1925

of three main types of labor migrants. First are those who went under

contract and mostly before the Second World War (1925-1945), remitted

a large proportion of total earnings, but the overall value was com

paratively small. The second kind are males who left independently,

between 1950 and 1970, also remitted a high proportion of earnings

that were surplus to living expenses, but in total amount not

especially large. From about 1960, this group also includes persons

with more formal education who stayed away longer, returned with their

savings at the end of a career, and used some of these to establish

small village businesses. Current absentees, thirdly, are a different

group in that they move independently to seek employment, are well

educated, go mainly to urban areas, and transfer both money and goods

while still absent from the village.

This typology for Ayuan and Ajoa also reveals major trends in

labor mobility. On the one hand, movement is declining in circularity

since not all young males leave for short periods of wage employment;

on the other, the impact on the village is no less visible because

the length of time away has increased. Secondly, there has been a

clear trend over the past forty years toward urban destinations, so

that contemporary absentees among the Miniafia are found almost

entirely in the national capital (Port Moresby) and other provincial

centers. Exceptions are lower-level professionals like elementary

teachers and medical assistants, who move to rural nonvillage areas

where schools and health clinics are located. In general, thirdly,

Miniafia depart with their wives and children and a young man rarely

leaves his family behind. Yet there is little evidence to suggest

109

that this pattern necessarily indicates or will lead to permanent

relocation. Those with access to housing and other facilities have

been shifting around with their families for some time and their

mobility histories continue to display a high degree of circularity.

Fourthly, as for the country as a whole, Miniafia migrants have been

away from the village for increasing lengths of time, perhaps due

to the changing nature of paid employment and to the span of a career

cycle. This pattern is not new; it first became evident in the move

ment histories of the 1955-59 cohort. It is still too early to deter

mine, however, whether increased periods away amount to permanent

urban residence, since many migrants who secured higher-status

employment in the late 1950s and early 1960s have not yet reached

the point of retirement or where they might reasonably be expected

to decide to return to Ayuan and Ajoa. It is possible, but not

inevitable that they may follow the life cycle of becoming permanent

urban residents that Morauta and Ryan (1982:51) describe for the

Malalaua.

All these results closely parallel the four main trends

deciphered from the sequence of national censuses taken since 1966

(Chapter II), but appear earlier in Ayuan and Ajoa because of the

very long history of labor mobility from Tufi district. Thus for

Papua New Guinea, as for the Miniafia, the flow of labor is more and

more urban in its destination, increasing in volume, involves people

spending longer periods away from the rural village, is far less male

dominant, and contains a rising proportion of entire families. These

findings essentially parallel those of Baxter (1973) for the Orokaiva,

another group in Oro Province. He noted that their long history of

movement for wage-labor began in the early 1900s to the gold fields

110

of Oro Province, followed by contract work on the plantations of Milne

Bay and Central Province. Once the Second World War ended, the

Orokaiva became increasingly independent in moves made to such urban

destinations as Port Moresby, Lae, and Madang. Baxter argues that

this does not necessarily mean villagers are going to places they

prefer; rather that, in the Orokaiva case, the network of kinship

linkages within which the individual is enmeshed was a major influence

in determining the kind of information available about possible

destinations (cf. Ward, 1980). This conclusion was later reinforced

by Young's (1977) study of Simbu and New Ireland. She noted the

importance of linked movement and the relatively minor role of such

economic variables as wage differentials, that are so emphasized in

economic models of people's movement.

On one important dimension, the results for the Orokaiva, Simbu,

and New Ireland differ from those for the Miniafia. Neither Baxter

nor Young report the coexistence in wage-labor movement of both

circularity and relatively long absence; on the other hand, Baxter

did suggest that such a conclusion was possible from an analysis of

the aspirations of urban residents. The social pressure in Ayuan

and Ajoa to move only for a well-paying job, as well as the emphasis

on local investment upon return, support the assessment of Salisbury

and Salisbury (1972) that urban adaptation represents a rural-oriented

strategy. Among the Miniafia, there was some feeling that this prac

tice may not endure because of repeated failures with local investment

projects. The spatial and social charcter of Miniafia labor mobility

111

differs markedly from that reported by Morauta and Ryan (1982) for

migrants from the Gulf of Papua. In their case, their important

position in Port Moresby, easy access to traditional land, and rela

tively long time spent in town means they are like permanent residents.

Given previous patterns of movement among the Miniafia, those

currently away are likely to remit cash to fulfill social obligations

but the gradual tendency towards greater absence will work counter

to sizable or continued remittances. As more and more labor migrants

leave with their families, the strength of village ties could become

significntly weakened and especially with the death of parents. Yet

if migrants wish to maintain their land rights in Ajoa and Ayuan,

then it will be necesssary to send remittances to their closest male

relative, most likely a brother or mother's brother. Current patterns

of remittances thus reveal to some extent the future options, if not

the intentions, of those now away in paid employment and will be the

focus of the next chapter.

CHAPTER V

THE INCIDENCE AND USE OF REMITTANCES

The coastal natives obtained the wherewithal to pay their

taxes from relatives working under contract of service, and

by the sale of privately owned copra planted under the

Native Regulations. ( A.R.P., 1972:48).

A certain amount of money, as is usual, finds its way into

villages from people working outside the area. ( P.R., 4/69-

70:6)

It would be impossible to estimate the amount of income

earned outside the village which finds its way back into

the village. In some villages this would be considerable.

( P.R., 5/61-62:1)

This chapter examines the context and rationale for the occurrence

and use of remittances in order to address the main questions stated

at the outset of this study. First, what is the incidence and scale

of remittances both from labor migrants to the local community and

from village households to those away at work? Secondly, what are

the connections between the flow of remittances, the economic position

of migrants in town, the notions of obligation and attainment of

status implicit in the local social structure, and the stage of the

life cycle reached by village household? And, third, how are

remittances used, what is the dominant rationale, and what are the

implications for rural investment?

INCIDENCE OF REMITTANCES

Remittances, the transfers of cash and goods, may be sent by

the donor or may occur during visits between village residents and

absent workers. The distinction between these two modes of transfer

follows Morauta and Hasu (1979), who found it useful because the

quality of field data about each mode differs greatly. People have

difficulty remembering the many transfers that may occur during a

visit but usually have a much clearer memory of a remittance sent

by mail, which happens as a single and discrete event. Estimates

of remittances occurring during visits to either one's village or

113

work place should also incorporate the costs of looking after the

visitor. Cash or goods sent to Ayuan and Ajoa were easily remembered

and distinguished but gifts received during visits were far more

difficult for people to isolate with any precision. Visits may extend

as long as four or more weeks, during which many transfers may take

place. Throughout their stay, Minafia labor migrants tend to provide

the luxuries which require cash and, at the end, to present a small

gift of money and whatever goods they brought with them. This last

transfer probably constitutes the one remembered for the survey.

Day-to-day transfers were seen less as gifts and more as usual

behavior for visitors subject only to comment if they failed to occur.

Gifts made by village households to returnees during their visits

are equally difficult to capture--especially when they may include

building a new house for the migrant and family to use during their

stay or provision of special rather than staple foods, such as pig

meat and wild birds.

For these reasons, data on the incidence of remittances are

distinguished according to mode of transfer. Information about

remittances sent to and from the village probably most closely approx

imates what actually happens, whereas that concerning transfers made

during visits underestimates the flow of value in both directions.

114

Nonetheless, if the latter are recalled, that fact provides good

indication of the scale of remittances potentially available for rural

investment because any transfers not remembered have most probably

been 'eaten' (consumed). This is also likely the case for small

transfers sent or received that were not reported.

Remittances Sent and Received

Only six out of 56 households in Ayuan and Ajoa, about 10 percent,

sent remittances to labor migrants (Table 5.1). In all cases these

were goods: usually a bag of sweet potatoes, a box of smoked fish

or cooked pig, or some small local handicraft, particularly mats.

The absence of cash reflects the resources available to village

families. Two-thirds of these remittances were sent to town with

visiting wantoks to show absent relatives that Miniafia households

were 'thinking of them'. This statement implies more than its direct

meaning, for it encompasses some reminder of peoples' obligation as

kin as well as the transmitted feeling that the migrant remains part

of the natal community. In this sense, these goods are akin to a

transfer made during a visit than a cash payment transmitted by mail.

Most of these remittances were sent to Popondetta, Port Moresby, and

Madang, being greatly influenced by the residence place of the return

ing wantok and thus indicating little about the influence of distance

on remittance flows.

All transfers from village households to labor migrants occurred

during the twelve months preceding the survey, which suggests these

constitute part of an ongoing process. A minority of households both

Table 5.1

Cash and Goods Sent by Households in Ayuan and A j oa

to Labor Migrants

INCIDENCE

FORM

Number of households sending

cash or goods to labor

migrants

Number of households not sending

cash or goods to labor migrants

Total

Goods only

MODE OF TRANSFER

Sent by boat

Sent by air

Sent with wantoks

Total

RATE OF RECEIPT

0-6 months before survey

7-12 months before survey

Total

PLACE OF RESIDENCE OF RECIPIENT

Popondetta

Port Moresby

Ma dang

Total

Source: Remittance Survey, 1982.

Frequency

6

50

56

6

l

l

4

6

4

2

6

3 2

1

6

Percent

10.71

89.29

100

100

16.67 16.67 66.67

100.1

66.67 33.33

100

50 33.33 16.67

100

115

116

regularly send and receive remittances (Table 5.2). The low level

of remittances originating from Ayuan and Ajoa does not imply the

severance of links between origin and destination communities. Rather,

this pattern highlights the direction in which villagers feel

remittances ought to flow and also the balance of obligations that

are perceived to exist between those resident and those absent. When

asked about sending cash to town, most people would laugh and say:

'We have no money to send and people who work in town have big money,

so why should we send money to them?'

Table 5.2

Remittances Sent by Remittances Received (excluding transfers during visits)

Household Household sending not sending remittances remittances

No. % No. '·

Household receiving 6 19.35 25 80.65

remittances

Household not receiving 25 100

remittances

Total 6 50


Total

No. %

31 55.36

25 44.64

56

These ideas are supported by the magnitude of remittances flowing

from labor migrants to Ayuan and Ajoa, since this involves 31 house-

holds, more than 55 percent of the total (Table 5.3). Often these

remittances were in response to an earlier request and usually for a

Table 5.3

Cash and Goods Received by Households in Ayuan and Ajoa From Labor Migrants

INCIDENCE

FORM

Number of households receiving cash or goods

Number of households not receiving cash or goods

Total

Goods only Cash only Both cash and goods

Total

MOOE OF TRANSFER

Sent by mail Sent with wantoks

Total

DATE OF RECEIPT

0-6 months before survey 7-12 months before survey


Total

PLACE OF RESIDENCE OF DONOR

Popondetta Port Moresby Madang Milne Bay Gulf of Papua Other

Total

Source: Remittance Survey

Frequency

31

25

56

J 26

2

31

JO l

31

15 13

2 l

31

5 18

1 J 1 J

31

Percent

55.36

44.64

100

9.68 83.87

6.45

100

96. 77 J.23

100

48.39 41.94

6.45 3.23

100.01

16.13 58.07

3.23 9.68 3.23 9.68

99.94

117

118

specific purpose, as to pay school fees or purchase a shot gun.

Although absentees send both cash and goods to local families in most

cases, 26 out of 31, only cash is transferred. Most remittances (28

out of 31) occurred in the year preceding the survey (1981-1982) and

the remainder during the previous two--a clear indication of the con

tinuity of ties between wage workers and their home community. How

ever, the future prospects of three households who had not been sent

anything for twelve months are perhaps lower than for more regular

recipients.

Apart for one instance, where a wantok was involved, all transfers

were made by mail. Most donors, 18 out of 31, live in Port Moresby,

with the rest concentrated throughout the country in both provincial

centers and areas of commercial development. Proximity of absent

workers seems little related to the occurrence of remittances. For

Ayuan and Ajoa, this is probably because the communities can only

be easily reached by air and thus the most important factor is the

high cost of travel. In another situation, where a road provides

relatively cheap access to wage workers, the connection between the

flow and magnitude of remittances with the proximity of potential

donors could be much clearer. In small degree, this relationship

did hold for workers who were at Tufi, Wanigela, or Uaiku (Figure

1.2), all of which are easily reached by canoe or walking track.

Remittances Occurring Through Visits

All visits that members of Ayuan and Ajoa households make to

labor migrants result in the transfer of cash and goods, but such

were reported by fewer than half of all households (23 out of 56;

119

Table 5.4). Most visits (17 out of 23) occurred during the year

preceding the survey and reveal, yet again, the continuing links between

places of origin and destination. Continued visiting, in fact, may

more strongly indicate a sustained relationship because of the high

cost involved, especially of air travel to Port Moresby and to

Popondetta where most Miniafia labor migrants are to be found. In

ten cases, villagers bore some of the travel cost, suggesting that

perhaps the visit was initiated by them or local relatives, especially

if they paid the fare to reach town. Remittances during village

initiated visits tend to be smaller than those occurring at the

migrant's invitation, partly because unexpected visitors must be fed

and entertained, partly because the funds needed for a return ticket

take some time for the wage worker to· accumulate. Most visitors

leave within a month and the rest within two. There is even some

evidence, verified for two cases, to suggest that village-initiated

visits occur when there has been a lapse in remittances from town

and an attempt is being made to reestablish the relationship.

Most village visitors (16 out of 23) took some kind of gift,

usually a bag of sweet potatoes or some smoked fish, and virtually

all (20 out of 23) returned with either cash or goods, including

clothes, fishingnets, pressure lamps, and shotguns. In slightly more

than half the cases, the labor migrant financed the travel cost in

both directions, an action that augments status in two ways: it dis

plays the extent of his resources to villagers and demonstrates

willingness for them to be shared with relatives. The existence of

such remittances indicates a high level of interaction between village

120

Table 5.4

Cash and Goods Received During Visits of Ayuan and Ajoa Residents to Labor Migrants

INCIDENCE

Households visiting labor migrants

Households not visiting labor migrants

Total

PLACE OF RESIDENCE OF THE LABOR MIGRANT

Popondetta

Port Moresby Lae Tuf i

Wanigela

Uiaku

Total

DATE OF LAST VISIT

0-6 months before survey 7-12 before survey


Total

LENGTH OF STAY

1 week 2 weeks 3 weeks 4 weeks

1-2 months

2-3 months

3+ months

Total

TRAVEL FINANCED BY

Frequency

23

33

56

7

11

2

1

1

1

23

9

8

2

4

23

3

3

3

3

6

3

2

23

Village household both wasy 6

Town household both ways 12

Village one way and town one way 4

Village wantok one way and town one way 1

Total 23

Percent

41.07

58.93

100

30.43

47.83

8.7

4.35

4.35

4.35

100.01

39. 13

34. 78

8.7

17.39

100

13.04

13 .04

13.04

13 .04

26.09

13.04

8.7

99.99

26.09

52.17

17 .39

4.35

100

Table 5.4 (continued) Cash and Goods Received during Visits of Ayuan and Ajoa Residents to Labor Migrants

REMITTANCES TO TOWN

FORM

Cash or goods brought to town Cash or goods not brought to town

Total

Goods only

Total

REMITTANCES TO VILLAGE

FORM

Cash or goods brought back to the village

Cash or goods not brought back to the village

Total


Total


Frequency

16

7

23

16

16

20

3

23

4

2

14

20

Percent

69.57

30.43

100

100

100

86. 96

13 .04

100

20

10

70

LOO

121

Table 5.5

Cash and Goods Exchanged During Visits of Labor Migrants

to Ayuan and Ajoa Households

INCIDENCE

Households receiving visits from labor migrants

Households not receiving visits from labor migrants

Total

PLACE OF RESIDENCE OF THE LABOR MIGRANT

Popondetta Port Moresby Lae Tufi Milne Bay Uaiku Kimbe Other

Total

DATE OF LAST VISIT



Total

LENGTH OF STAY

1 week 2 weeks

3 weeks 4 weeks

1-2 months 2-3 months

3+ months unknown

Total

Frequency

28

28

56

5

14

1

1

2

1

2

2

28

10

13

3

2

28

4

5

3

10

2

1

1

2

28

Percent

50

50

100

17.86

50

3.57

3.57

7.14

3.57

7.14

7.14

99.99

35.71

46.43

10. 71

7.41

99.99

14.29

17.86

10.71

35. 71

7.14

3.57

3.57

7.14

99.99

1 2 2

123

Table 5.5 (continued) Cash and Goods Exchanged During Visits

of Labor Migrants to Ayuan and Ajoa Households

REMITTANCES TO VILLAGE

FORM

Labor migrants bringing cash or goods to the village

Labor migrants not bringing cash or goods to the village

Total


Total

REMITTANCES TO MIGRANTS

FORM

Households giving cash or goods to labor migrants

Households not giving cash or goods to labor migrants

Total

Goods only Cash and goods

Total


Frequency

26

2

28

14

2

10

26

24

4

28

23

l

24

Percent

92.86

7.14

100

53.85

7.69

38.46

100

85.71

14.29

100

95.83

4.17

100

and town households and yet further support for a 'rural-oriented

strategy of urban adaptation'.

12.Y.

Half the households of Ayuan and Ajoa said they received visits

from wage-labor migrants, which is slightly more than those reporting

journeys in the opposite direction (cf. Tables 5.4 and 5. 5). This

may reflect the lower cost for and higher gains that accrue to

absentees, especially when being looked after in the village. Most

visits, 23 out of 28, occurred in the twelve months preceding the

survey and migrants tended to come from either Port Moresby or

Popondetta. Most stayed four weeks, the period given for annual leaves,

and almost all brought some goods like pressure lamps and mosquito

nets as well as cash. Although detailed information is not available,

labor migrants probably paid the fares for both themselves and their

families, but some received a little help with their return fares

from local relatives.

THE SCALE OF REMITTANCES

It is clear from the preceding disucssion that the household

survey yielded details about the magnitude and value of both cash

and goods flowing between various destinations and the village. From

this point, only cash transfers will be considered because of problems

with pricing, with determining the cost of maintaining visitors in

both village and migrant households, and with estimating the frequency

and value of other occurrences that involve significant transfers

between migrant and village households--such as building the absent

wage-laborer a new village house. These data also do not include

other reasons for money to flow into Ayuan and Ajoa, most importantly

125

for local ceremonies involving bride price and initiation. The bride

price described in Chapter III resulted in a cash flow of kina 2,000

from town to village, plus many goods such as dishes, clothes, and

cooking pots. Being concerned with estimating the amount of capital

from remittances that might be used for local investment, this analysis

of the scale of remittances deliberately excludes transfers of con

sumption goods and money that is used for travel and maintenance of

visitors.

The remittance survey found the total value of the last cash

transfer made from labor migrants to the village amounted to kina

1237. This is almost twice as much as that cash received during visits

of local kin to town, which in turn is three times greater than that

received by labor migrants when visiting Ayuan and Ajoa (Table 5.6).

The total value from labor migrants, however received, was reported

to be kina 2,216. This represents a significant transfer, since most

money was sent in the preceding twelve months, urban incomes in Papua

New Guinea are not high, in many cases would not exceed fifty kina

a week, and must be compared with the minimum urban wage, which is

kina 33 per week. Throughout the country, in addition, the cost of

urban living is very high as against rural areas, especially in Port

Moresby where most Miniafia migrants live. Whereas a pile of sweet

potato sells at Ajoa market for ten tala, in Port Moresby the same

quantity costs from fifty tala to one kina.

The most sizable remittances are sent directly to the village,

perhaps because no other costs are involved in this transfer. This

is not always the case and the range in the value of amounts received

is very great: from as little as ten kina to as much as kina 150

126

Table 5.6

The Scale of Remittances (in Kina) *

Cash sent by labor migrants to village

Cash received by villagers when visiting town

Cash received from labor migrants when visiting village

Number of households receiving cash

Total cash received

Mean

Standard Deviation

28

1,237

44.18

30.72

Source: Remittance Survey, 1982

*l kina equals 1.3 American dollar

15 12

729 250

48.6 20.83

32.03 15.79

in a single transfer. Such variation reflects the differential ability

of individual labor migrants to make remittances, particularly by

their earning capacity, ability to call on town wantoks for help,

and the size and composition of their urban household. The cash

diaries reveal that some Ayuan and Ajoa households regularly receive

cash transfers from as many as three labor migrants, while for others

they are an isolated event, most often in response to a request to

help with some unusual expenditure like school fees.

This considerable range in the size and regularity of remittance

payments to rural households contributes to socio-economic inequality

within the village at two levels: first, in the differentials in

cash available to and consumer goods owned by households that receive

127

and do not receive remittances; and second, between all households

receiving cash transfers. However, such remittance-induced inequality

maybe offset by local income opportunites that cannot be pursued by

those households both receiving cash and lacking labor for villa ge

based projects if several adult members are away. The total value

of the maintenance of visitors, travel costs, and the transfer of

goods would amount to far more than remittances in cash and the cash

value of goods sent from the town would be far larger than those

originating from the village. In short, those remittances able to

be measured flow positively to Ayuan and Ajoa, but if the local cost

of labor lost through absence for wage labor could be established--a

cost that is not only economic but also social and political--then

this might well not be the case.

REMITTANCES, SOCIAL STRUCTURE, OBLIGATION AND STATUS

The strong association between remittance payments and of

important social and clan relationships recurs throughout the field

data. If remittances flowing between village and town, town and village,

are combined (Tables 5.7 and 5.8), then almost 40 percent are exchanges

between parents and children and another 30 percent between brothers.

Only 14 percent of cash transfers occur outside a patrilineal

relationship (see Chapter III), mainly from one's brother or wife's

brother. This pattern holds for cash transmitted in either direction

and for visits made between village and town households, and vice

versa (cf. Tables 5.7 and 5.8).

The sizable cash transfers from children are easily explained

in terms of Miniafia social structure and notions of obligation

Table 5.7

Kinship Ties and Remittances Among Miniaf ia

Relationship of Donor to Household Head Frequency Percent

Remittances from Village Households to Labor Migrants

Son 1 16.67

Da1..1ghter 2 33.33

Brother 1 16.67

Brother's son 1 16.67

Wife's brother 1 16.67

Total 6 100.01

Remittances from Labor Migrants to Village Households

Son 3 9.68

Daughter 7 22.58

Brother 8 25.81

Classificatory son l 3.23

Brother's son 4 12.90

Wife's brother 3 9.68

Father's brother l 3.23

Mother's brother 1 3.23

Father's brother's son 1 3.23

Father's brother's daughter 1 3.23

Daughter's husband l 3.23

Total 31 100.03

128

Table 5.8

Kinship Ties and Miniafia Visits Between Town and Villa

Relationship of Labor Migrant

to Household Head

VISITS TO TOWN

Son

Daughter

Mother

Brother

Classificatory son

Brother's son

Wife's brother

Mother's brother

Father's brother's son

Father's brother's daughter

Total

VISITS TO VILLAGE

Son

Daughter

Father

Brother

Classificatory son

Brother's son

Wife's brother

Mother's brother

Daughter's husband

Total


Frequency Percent

3 13.04

5 21. 74

l 4.35

6 26.09

1 4.35

3 13 .04

l 4.35

l 4.35

1 4.35

l 4.35

23 100.01

4 14.29

4 14.29

1 3.57

8 28.57

l 3.57

5 17.68

3 10. 71

1 3.57

l 3.57

28 100

129

130

implicit within it. Not only are social obligations being fulfilled

by sending remittances to parents but also the maintenance of their

land and other local rights is being upheld. Residents of Ayuan and

Ajoa explain this by saying: 'I fed them and they grew big. Now

they must lukout (look after) me '. If children had remained in the

village, this help would have taken such forms as house building and

cultivating food gardens, but when in wage employment it is manifest

in the remittance of either cash or goods, or provision of hospitality

to visiting family. Failure to send remittances to one's parents

or the eldest male relative by blood is tantamount to not meeting

a basic social obligation.

At first glance, the large number of remittances from married

daughters seems out of place given a patrilineal social structure.

Miniafia bride price goes mostly to relatives of the bride who, at

that point have no further call on the resources of either her or

her husband. The bride 's father, in contrast, receives comparatively

little from this exchange of bride price but continues to 'benefit '

from his daughter throughout her lifetime. Consequently a daughter

married to a labor migrant may well send cash to her parents, hence

the need to incorporate these women when estimating the size of the

remitting population (see Chapter III).

Transfers by labor migrants to siblings, especially brothers,

and to uncles (father's brothers) in general reflect the need to main

tain sufficiently firm village links to ensure the easy recognition

of land claims on return, as well as being part of one 's obligation

to patrilineal kin. Remittances to a sister from a brother reflects

the incorporation of the sister 's husband into the clan of her father--

the option of cumulative matrifiliation (Chapter III)--so that the

brother is making transfers to a classificatory brother and his

children, their own heirs, rather than to a brother-in-law--which

in this case is a lesser social relationship.

131

Not all village residents with absent children or absent brothers

receive remittances. In fact, 28 percent of households in Ayuan and

Ajoa have at least one member with children away at wage labor who

do not send remittances. This would imply that kinship, by itself,

is not sufficient to explain the presence of cash transfers while,

conversely, remittances received from quite distant relatives who

are labor migrants would imply that lack of close kin does not auto

matically lead to their absence.

Other factors are important and differ considerably for individual

migrants; for Ayuan and Ajoa, these were the security of the migrant's

urban base and the desire for achieving status defined in local terms.

Those holding lesser professional jobs, such as primary teachers,

maintained firm links with the village, would remit to more distant

relatives, and would visit quite regularly, perhaps because housing

away from the local community is limited to their period in employ

ment and thus the likelihood of returning is quite high. Migrants

in higher-level professional positions also send substantial

remittances, but usually to close kin; perhaps they are in the

process of establishing themselves in the urban area and thus village

links are less important. It should be noted however that, given

the high cost of urban residence in Papua New Guinea, labor migrants

send a sizable proportion of their incomes to Ayuan and Ajoa. Finally,

there is the certain social status that accrues from making gifts

of cash as distinct from the visible accumulation of wealth. There

is not the problem in making remittances of a gift being too large,

132

so as to cause embarrassment and to result in adverse social pressure

in that they take place within clan bounds. Yet rural households with

several absentees in town and receiving large amounts of cash from

them are to some extent concerned about implications for rivalry

between clans should they benefit excessively from remittances compared

with other households.

REMITTANCES AND THE LIFE-CYCLE OF VILLAGE HOUSEHOLDS

The demographic structure of households and the stage of their

life cycle also are an important influence on the occurrence and fre

quency of remittances. Cash is received by households with two types

of absent members: children who are either themselves or married

to wage-labor migrants, and brothers who are away at work. In con

trast, households not receiving remittances can be divided into three

groups: first, those whose heads are young and have no absent children

or have brothers whose fathers are still alive, so that most cash

transfers go to the father; second, older males whose household com

position is similar but who, being at a later stage of the life cycle,

are unlikely to receive further remittances; and finally, old people

without children. In all three instances, the position of the house

hold in its life cycle is important.

In the first group, households tend to be at a later stage, with

heads aged more than fifty and with several children often away at

wage employment. The children have skilled or professional positions

(see Chapter IV), send remittances regularly, visit the village

during holidays, and occasionally send airplane tickets for their

father or younger brothers to visit town. Lack of available adult

males has led these households to experience some difficulty with

house building and making gardens, which in turn has been resolved

133

by the youngest son being asked to return. Such households tend not

to supplement incomes by selling surplus subsistence produce in the

local market or by making canoes, but this pattern could be as much

due to lack of need because of past remittances than to limitations

in the availability of family labor. Sources of household income

vary quite widely in Ayuan and Ajoa (Table 5.9) and many receiving

remittances have not pursued the alternative sources of cash available

in Miniafia. They have relatively large expenditures on imported

foods, especially rice, tinned fish and meat, as well as buying some

staples in local markets (Table 5.10). These patterns are also found

in the cash budgets of households where the head has brothers in wage

employment.

In the second group of remittance-receiving households, heads

tend to be quite young, usually aged less than thirty, and themselves

have some experience of wage employment, most often at j obs requiring

few skills and poorly paid. Since the father of the household head

is deceased in every case, the remaining brother represents the family

interests in Miniafia and particularly to ensure access to land in

both the old and new villages. There are some older men who continue

to receive regular remittances and visits from their brothers. In

another instance a sister and her husband another instance a sister

and her husband, who has been adopted into her clan, receive cash

quite often, in contrast to the elder married sister, who lives in

Table 5.9. Source of Cash Income in Thirteen Households of Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-15 January 1983

(all values in K1na)*

Household Number 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Source of Income Value % Value % Value % Value % Value % Value % Value Remittances 11

Market 3.10 100

Transfer within the village

Trade Store Bride Price Total 3.10 100 11

Household Number 8

Remittances 220 100

Market 1.50

Transfers within

the village Trade Store

Bride Price

Total 220 100 1.50

Source: Household Cash Diaries, 1983

*one Kina equals $US 1.3

100

25.3 97.68

.60 2.32

100 25.9 100

9 10

23 84. 72

100

4.15 15.28

100 27.15 100

14 2. 72

1 9.1

8

500 100 500 97.28 10 90.9

500 100 514 100 11 100 8

11 12 13 %

26 100 12 77. 2 100 42. 36

3.20 20.6

.35 2.2

136.06 57.64

26 100 15.55 100 236.06 100

%

100

100

..... w �

Table S.10. Expenditure in Thirteen Households in Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-15 January 1983.

(all values in Kina)

Household Number 1 2 3 4

Expenditure Value % Value % Value % Value %

Item Rice, flour, tinned

meat, fish \

and biscuits .30 2S 2.70 28.88 4.60 S2.87 4.2S S.43

Sugar, tea and coffee .SS S.88

Tobacco .30 3.45 1.58 2.02

Betel nut .50 5.75 1.40 1. 79

Fuel & batteries .so 41.67 s 53.48

Clothing 3 3.83

Qther household items 1.10 11. 76 1 11.49 2.50 3.2

church donations 5 6.39

¥-ishing supplies .40 33.33 2.30 26.44

School fees Bank loans fots and cu.tlery 10.SO 13.42

Shotgun & supplies 50 63.91

Remittances Trade store supplies

Market Total 1.20 100 9.35 100 8.70 100 78.23 99.99

s

Value

49a

1.20

200

2S0.20

%

19.58

.48

79.94

100

......

w Lil

Table S.10 (continued) Expenditures in Thirteen Households in Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-lS January 1983

Household Number 6 7 8 9 10

Expenditure Value % Value % Value % Value % Value

Item Rice, flour, tinned

meat and fish, biscuits 10 89.4S 4.lS 26.9S 8.09 7.04 1 2.93 S.20

Sugar, tea and coffee

Tobacco .38 3.39

Betelnut .80 7.16 1 6.49 S.30 4.61 1.90

Fuel & batteries s 32.47 .SS

Cloth Other household items .2S 1.6 1.60 1.39 1.08 3.17

Church donations Fishing supplies School fees Bank loans 100 86.96

Pots and cutlery Snotgun & supplies s 32.47

Remittances 32 93.9

Trade store supplies 48

Market 2.80

Total 11.18 100 lS.40 99.98 114.99 100 34.08 100 S8.45

%

8.9

3.2S

.94

82.12

4.79

100

....... w

°'

,

Table 5.10 (continued) Expend itures in Thirteen Households in Ayuan and Ajoa, 1-15 January 1983

Household Number 11 12 13

Expenditures Value % Value % Value %

Item Rice, flour tinned

fish and meat 41 75.44

Sugar, tea coffee

Tobacco 2.45 4.51

Betel nut .30 38.46 .70 1. 29 .40 .3

F.uel & batteries 10 18.4

Clothing Other household items .80 10.26 .20 .37

C hurch Fishing supplies School fees Bank loans Pots and cutlery Shotgun supplies Remittances Trade store supplies

Market .40 51.28 33.85 99.70

Total .78 100 54.35 100.01 34.25 100

Source: Household Cash Diaries, 1983.

aThis figure accounts for the first three categories, respondent could not remember amounts for each type of purchase.

I-'

w

......

138

Ajoa and whose marriage followed the more usual practice of her

becoming a member of her husband's clan (see previous section). Both

types of households receiving quite regular infusions of externally

generated cash tend to be better placed than those who do not, because

they have the resources to hire additional labor when necessary--as

for example, by providing food for work done. On the other hand,

they are dependent for this money on remittances sent from town.

The first group of households not receiving cash transfers are

at an early stage of the life cycle and have very young children.

In the future, their prospects for remittances depend on their

children's success at school and their ability to call on more distant

relatives who are also labor migrants to help pay the school fees.

These households are not impoverished, for they have sufficient sub

sistence staples and a range of traditional tools, but there are few

luxuries and little imported food is eaten at mealtimes.

The second group is far more disadvantaged: they are older,

with little or no potential for receiving remittances. Again, these

households appear to have the requisite subsistence foods but do not

consume luxury items (Tables 5.9 and 5.10). Within them there is

a substantial pool of unused family labor, so that if local cash crop

or other projects were to be established, they would be in a better

position to take advantage of such developments than some remittance

receiving households where the supply of able-bodied males is quite

limited.

The final group of households without cash transfers are the

most disadvantaged, since their income is either very small or non

existent. The money needed to buy tobacco and tea is derived from

139

selling some subsistence foods in local markets and these families

also receive some local gifts of sugar and tea. Irrespective of the

group into which they have been categorized, all households without

remittances have less access to goods that require cash and may improve

their standard of living or level of health and nutrition--expecially

rice and tinned protein in the long, dry season or kerosene to light

pressure lamps. All have some difficulty paying the school fees of

their children, which could inhibit their future access to cash incomes.

THE USE OF CASH FROM REMITTANCES

This section deploys data from both the remittance survey and

cash diaries--the first covering every household in Ayuan and Ajoa

and the second a sample of thirteen from both (see Chapter III).

In this discussion, the survey results will be discussed first since

they are supported by those from the cash diaries, whose details were

heavily influenced by the timing of their collection. Many households,

for example, were engaged in holding gatherings to farewell children

returning to high school, thus increasing the proportion of cash spent

on food items, while other families received substantial payments

from bride price that in two cases inflated incomes by 500 kina.

Between two-thirds and four-fifths of the cash mostly recently

received by households in Ayuan and Ajoa was used for immediate con

sumption (Tables 5.11 and 5.12). Most often, spending was on sugar,

tea, coffee, tinned meat and fish, rice, flour, and biscuits. Mode

of transfer was reflected in some differences in expenditure patterns.

For example, all remittances given when labor migrants visited the

village were used for food items, compared with four-fifths of the

--

Table 5.11

Use of Cash from Remittances by Value

(in kina)

Use Value Percent

School fees 510 23

Consumption 1,426 64.35

Investment 100 4.51

Savings 120 5.42

Bride Price 60 2.71

Total 2,216 99.99


Table 5.12

Use of Cash from Different Sources of Remittances

Use

CASH SENT TO VILLAGE HOUSEHOLDS

Consumption School Fees Savings Bride Price

Total

CASH FROM VISITS TO RELATIVES

Consumption School Fees Savings Investment

Total

CASH FROM VISITS BY RELATIVES

Consumption


Frequency

20

6

1

l

28

12

l l

l

15

12

Percent

71. 43

21. 43

3.57

3.57

100

80

6.67

6.67

6.67

100.0l

100

140

141

money associated with the visits of villagers to town, and only 70

percent of the cash that labor migrants sent to Miniafia. In short,

a larger proportion of transfers sent to the village were used either

to pay school fees or for small local enterprises, notably to restock

village canteens (trade stores). Partly this reflects the fact that

remittances to Ayuan and Ajoa have a larger cash content and partly

occur often in response to a specific request, as to pay school fees.

Thus the remittances given during visiting are more likely surplus

to household needs and used for luxury consumption. A very small

proportion of all remittances were saved ('I am keeping it with me'),

but it was unclear how such cash would be used.

A similar pattern emerges from the use of cash remittances in

terms of value. Total transfers to households in Ayuan and Ajoa

amounted to kina 2,216 (Table 5.6), of which about 64 percent (kina

1,426) was spent on food or such small items as mosquito nets, pots,

and dishes. Kina 510, about 23 percent, was used to pay school fees

and the rest (kina 280) either saved, used for bride price, or in

vested. This pattern of expenditure suggests that not much of the

cash remitted to individual households is available for investment.

Such a conclusion is not to imply that cash transfers made by labor

migrants to Miniafia represent a small proportion of their earnings;

on the contrary, they probably account for a substantial part of their

disposable income, which for plantation workers is as low as fifteen

kina a week and for poorly-paid urban workers kina 33. If bride price

payments and the costs of hospitality for village visitors are con

sidered, then disposable incomes are even lower. The implication,

however, is critical. Given the cost of living in urban areas in

142

Papua New Guinea and given the low remuneration for most positions

held by Miniafia migrants, remittances cannot compensate the village

community for the losses resulting from labor mobility.

Three practices emerge from details entered in the cash diaries

(Tables 5.9 and 5.10). First, as mentioned above, households receiving

remittances tend to rely on them as an assured if irregular source

of cash income. Secondly the use of cash differs little between house

holds that get remittances and those that do not. A large portion

of a family's cash income is spent on food items, tobacco and betel

nut, and if children are attending high school then most of the avail

able income goes to their fees. Thirdly, there is some, quite unusual

transfer of cash between village households but this exchange performs

no leveling function, partly because the amounts normally involved

are very small in value and partly because any larger transfers go

to households that also receive remittances. Intravillage transfers

thus conform to the pattern described by Mourata (1981) for Gulf

Province: gifts are either to close kin and expected to be recipro

cated or occur within social relationships of active mutual exchange.

Two other features of interest are documented by Table 5.10.

First, if households do not normally receive remittances but obtain

a sizable amount of cash from bride price, then some of this is used

to purchase staple equipment, even clay pots--a practice not found

within families receiving cash transfers or visits from labor migrants.

This points to another inequality induced by remittance payments,

especially since labor migrants tend to give such items as gifts.

Secondly, even when large amounts of cash are available to village

143

families, as from bride price, this money is not used for rural-based

investment but rather for food and household items and to pay school

fees.

USE AND RATIONALE OF CASH REMITTANCES

Three factors external to households in Ayuan and Ajoa limit

the success of any local investment projects and reduce the likelihood

that families will spend available capital on rural-based investment

projects: lack of transport and marketing facilities in Collingwood

Bay area; high levels of outmovement that draw away the best educated,

most highly skilled, and potentially most politically active; and

the failure of several former investment projects in both these and

several antecedent communities (see Chapter III). This means that

people remain tied to economic strategies with which they are familiar:

trade stores, and investments in future remittances derived from

children and close male relatives.

Expenditures on high school fees are essentially an investment

strategy on the part of both village households and the urban-dwelling

labor migrants whose remittances pay them, because Miniafia families

are attempting to ensure a future flow of cash when the child finds

wage work. This strategy operates on two principles: that children

successful in high school are most likely to find paid employment

and, conversely, are most unlikely to return and live immediately

in Ayuan and Ajoa; and that remittances tend to flow to closely

related and patrilineal kin. Hence the investment of both village

and town households is secured largely by broader forces operating

within the society. Moreover, the rules and risks of such strategy

144

are familiar to local households and additional social pressures can

be exercised to ensure that remittances flow from labor migrants.

Educating children is thus an investment project over which the village

community exercises a large amount of control. The common practice

within Ayuan and Ajoa of redistributing small amounts of cash represents

a similar strategy that is underpinned by strong cultural mechanisms

of delayed reciprocation. That is, by transferring some cash funds

to A in time period one, B has obliged A to transfer back some others

in time period two.

In the short term, local expenditures on education represents

an outflow of cash from both families and linked households of labor

migrants in town, since remittances from the latter pay most of the

school fees of many Miniafia children. As these children become part

of the workforce, they may begin to send remittances to their families

in Ayuan and Ajoa and to help town relatives with social obligations

that are rural-based and stem from the local social structure. In

this situation, the rural household will experience a capital inflow

through both direct cash transfers and payments tied to social

ceremonies. Not every wage workers sends however, so not every village

household will receive a return on its investment.

What will happen in the long term with respect to village

expenditures on children's education is related to broad patterns

of labor mobility (Table 4.6). If the more educated of migrants return

to live in Ayuan and Ajoa, then the rural community may benefit from

their skills, their political and business experience, as well as

any capital which they bring and later invest locally. Such potential

benefits may of course be limited or even negated by the local social

145

and political environment. On the other hand, labor mobility among

the Miniaria displays at least a tendency towards increasing length

of residence in urban areas and places of work (see Chapter IV).

Migrants remain in town, their children are born in an urban environ

ment, and their parents in the village die or perhaps relocate to

be with them. The urban social network of the Miniafia expands some

what in proportion to the decline in rural social links. Whether

more distant ties are activated in Ayuan, Ajoa and other related

communities will be a function of the migrant's financial interest

in them. In such a situation, remittances are likely to decline very

sharply, if not cease altogether.

In the case of Ayuan and Ajoa, the expenditures on formal educa

tion constitute the only rural-oriented investment strategy and under

scores the dependence of rural households on remittance income. Yet

cash from educated or skilled migrants is used largely to purchase

food and only rarely for any self-sustaining projects of rural develop

ment. In the long term such monies may not be forthcoming. This

scenario may not occur should the more skilled of migrants return

to live in Ayuan and Ajoa and, as previous returnees have done, invest

in the local community and promote schemes among the Miniafia. In

this way, rural households could ultimately benefit from their former

expenditure on human capital. On the other hand, the historical

experience of those two villages does not suggest that this is likely

to occur over the long term.

Large expenditures on imported food items also have a dual func

tion. They represent a return on previous investment in the education

of children that includes not only cash spent but also labor foregone,

thereby allowing the elite consumption patterns desired nowadays by

village households. Secondly, the consumption patterns exhibited

by a migrant's family in Ayuan and Ajoa and made possible through

146

his cash transfers also represent the absent wage worker's local

investment in his or her status and those close kin who remain behind.

The use of cash remittances by village households is essentially a

rational response not only to the economic history of the Miniafia

but also to their current and previous experience of both labor migra

tion and remittances. At the same time they consciously utilize

elements of the traditional social and economic system to attempt

to ensure a cash flow to rural families in the absence of alternative

sources of income within the local area itself.

OVERVIEW

CHAPTER VI

LABOR MIGRATION, REMITTANCES AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

We begin to understand why no single region of emigration

has ever developed either in Africa or elsewhere. The

cransfer--which is more than considerable--is virtually a

'gift' from poor source areas to the rich areas which benefit

from it and chis is sufficient in itself co explain the

stagnation of the regions of origin of the migrants. And,

because of their stagnation, the conditions for the repro

duction of the pattern of unequal development are perpet

uated; because inequality in the 'allocation of factors',

far from being 'natural', is produced and reproduced

socially. (Amin, 1974: 106)

This study has analyzed the links between the flows of labor

and of cash remittances for a rural area of Papua New Guinea chat

can be conceived as a labor reserve. In the process, it has become

clear that the institutional structure surrounding movement to work

in Papua New Guinea has both historically and significantly deter-

mined the form, pattern, and volume of labor flows at the national

level; and that colonial economic policy of expatriate plantation

development in commodity cash crops, combined with its encouragement

to exploit natural resources, has basically determined the main

destination areas of wage workers as well as converting some rural

areas into labor reserves. It has been argued that Tufi district

in Oro province constitutes such an area and that, in this particular

instance, labor mobility had been the main means of connecting the

traditional with the cash sectors and that rural households have had

to operate in both sectors in order to survive.

148

In fundamental aspects, patterns of labor mobility at the com

munity level mirror those at the level of the country as a whole and,

even more critically, proceed in response to the same general forces.

When, for example, movement to wage work within Papua was primarily

short-term and circular, involving young single men signing a

contract under a system of indenture, all of whom went to areas of

commercial investment (usually mines or plantations), then these

patterns emerged at the level of both the particular rural household

and the village community in general. From the perspective of the

village, movements to paid employment were essentially conservative,

representing an attempt to maintain, even enhance, local society and

economy and at the same time attempting to use the town for their

own purposes (Brookfield, 1980) in the face of systemic changes

deriving from the introduction of cash and new technology. This is

very much the same reason for the introduction of an indentured labor

policy by the colonial state. The phenomenon of remittances is the

essential element in this system, simultaneously legitimizing for the

state the movement of able-bodied males from rural communities, and

from the perspective of the village household or family! requiring

that it happen.

Patterns of mobility and of remittances are undergoing substan

tial transformation throughout Papua New Guinea. The career migrant

exists and his household operates in town, predominantly in the cash

sector, so that the theoretical construct of the dual household

economy is no longer valid for many, if not all urban households

in Papua New Guinea. It may not longer be appropriate to think, as

Ryan (1968, 1970 and 1978) has done in terms of bi-locality with

149

migrants having two places of residence (urban and rural), with both

of which they have strong social and economic ties so that they remain

in effect part of a divided household. The immediate families of

labor migrants are in the towns or at places of work and it appears

that in many cases these migrants are becoming 'permanent townsmen'

(Morauta and Ryan, 1982). As their children are born, grow up, gain

jobs in town, and move regularly to places of work from this urban

location, they become increasingly removed from village society.

Thus the rural community loses its place in the larger economic system,

as the unit of settlement that ensures the production and reproduction

of the labor supply. This stage has not yet been reached in Ayuan

and Ajoa, but it is the most likely scenario if present trends con

tinue.

Rural families and their kin in local communities are of great

concern to Papua New Guineans, however, and labor migrants continue

to have some regard for personal status through these rural eyes,

as is documented for Ayuan and Ajoa by the direction of remittance

flows, their continued existence, and their considerable scale.

Perhaps this is because the very identity of the Miniafia stems from

the village (cf. Morauta, 1983; Waiko, 1983) and, even more important,

of the access of labor migrants to land, the most basic resource,

in the country at large. The function of village society, as the

source of identity intimately tied to land, can be imitated in town

or at places of work as labor migrants reproduce their social systems

in the locales where they live. Regional associations, for example,

are an increasingly dominant feature of the social structure of towns--

150

the main places of work--(Skeldon, 1982) as they steadily become com

posites of small village societies.

Access to land, however, is not easily obtained beyond the

migrant's natal community, for throughout Papua New Guinea it remains

largely under traditional tenure. The major exception, which provides

some alternative among the Miniafia to retirement in the parent's

village, is the division of small-holder 'blocks' on former government

land, but the possibility that labor migrants will gain access to

such blocks is not high. Hence cash remittances continue to more

distant patrilineal kin and even to brothers on the death of parents.

In the case of Ayuan and Ajoa, such transfers maintained not only

links between town or workplace and rural community but also the

absentee's right of access to local land and protection from its

encroachment by others. Concern about maintenance of land rights

was especially marked among labor migrants for whom urban retirement

was not a possibility (for example, community school teachers) or

where town residence was likely to be short, as in the case of

unskilled workers.

Village households, in what may be thought of as areas of labor

reserve, have not only invested in current migrants but also continue

to invest in the outmovement of family members, not only through formal

education. This is because rural households seem to have few other

economic options, given limited commercial development in the area

and a history of failed cash-crop ventures. As important perhaps,

labor may be the only resource that families have at their disposal

that can 'be converted into the required cash and commercial goods'

151

(Boyd, 1981:75). Rural groups are also familiar with such an invest

ment strategy, for the Miniafia have seen their men go away to paid

employment and send back remittances for decades, the returns to which

can at least partly be controlled through the traditional social

structure.

As Firth (1964:16) notes: 'economic relationships are part of

an overall system of social relationships. The economic system is

therefore to be fully understood only in the context of social,

political, ritual, moral and even aesthetic activities and values

and in turn affects these'.

Most important, flows of labor and of associated remittance

payments should be seen within the broader context of total mobility

(Ward, 1980:127). Traditionally, the Miniafia were involved in long

and short-distance moves to acquire some of the essential items of

their social and economic system. Nowadays they participate in a

complex network of circulation related to the locales and operation

of subsistence food markets, which in many households furnish much

of their needs for cash. Labor mobility may be viewed as yet another

strategy involving movement to obtain basic subsistence and any dis

cussion of the impact of remittances should be viewed in this context.

LABOR MOBILITY, REMITTANCES, AND RURAL INVESTMENT IN AYUAN AND AJOA

Given the evidence presented in the fourth and fifth chapters,

it would be difficult to escape the conclusion that remittances have

not led to self-generating and sustained investment in economic

projects. This failure, however, may not be attributable in part

or whole to the nature of Miniafia labor mobility. It is difficult,

152

if not impossible to distinguish the role of flows of labor from other

relevant factors and when talking of impacts it is perhaps more

realistic to speak in terms of association rather than causation.

Ayuan and Ajoa are located in what can be thought of as a labor

reserve, quite removed from markets, transport links, and extension

services, and this constitutes the social and economic context of

any investment. Historically the population has obtained cash from

remittances from labor migrants, the local marketing of subsistence

foods, and occasional sales of copra. Any kind of capital investment

and attempts to establish marketable cash crops have not enjoyed con

tinued success. Currently, a large proportion of people from both

villages are away at either wage employment or schooling. This is

the contemporary situation in which cash transfers from labor migrants

have failed to generate rural-based investment. If the notion of

the existence of a labor-reserve area is accepted, along with the

nature of its formation then the socioeconomic position of Ayuan and

Ajoa results from the transfer of value from these two communities

to the urban areas, the centers of development, as implicit in the

labor process (Amin, 1974).

Remittances, while they may not lead to sustained investments

in the rural area, fulfill several other functions vital to village

households. They provide at least part of the cash that, due to their

incorporation into the cash economy, is now required to meet the basic

requirements of daily life. Canoes no longer are an acceptable medium

of exchange for clay cooking pots or for the tapa cloth still used

as clothing, and in many cases the former trading partners of the

Miniafia now require cash. The fishing nets which were once woven

153

in the village now must be purchased. European money is an expected

and now necessary part of any bride price, perhaps the most important

social construct. School fees must also be paid in cash. If a house

hold cannot meet the cost of school fees, then it is automatically

disadvantaged in its future access to resources in the form of cash

transfers made by labor migrants. The critical point in assessing

the impact of remittances is to ascertain their contribution to the

total cash income of rural households and village communities.

In this respect, three are possible based on the cash diaries: house

holds without remittances can obtain some income, primarily from the

sale of subsistence foods in local markets; those receiving cash

transfers have a far greater money income; and therefore remittances

lead to at least some inequalities between rural families, that are

clearly apparent in everyday life.

Households not receiving remittances eat one main meal a day,

consisting of sweet potatoes, taro, perhaps some fresh fish, and

occasionally fruit. In the morning they will have a smaller meal

of sweet potato. In the dry season, some such households will eat

only sago or sweet potato. Supplies of betel nut and tobacco are

obtained either as small presents from village kin or from sales of

fish and melons in the local market. In contrast, families in receipt

of cash from labor migrants may drink milk, coffee, or tea with sugar

in the morning along with biscuits spread with margarine. In the

evening their meal will consist of rice, tinned fish, and 'square

meat', as well as local staples, with perhaps some wild meat shot

with the gun given by a labor migrant. They do not eat in the dark,

but have a pressure lantern and the fuel to light it; they will not

154

be bitten by mosquitoes at night but will sleep under nets left by

visitors from 'town'.

In short, remittances in Ayuan and Ajoa do not seem to generate

investment but rather are spent on consumption and these prevailing

patterns of expenditure simply reinforce and maintain the outward

flow of labor. More than this, remittances not only contribute to

substantial inequalities between rural families and their households

but also subvert the local community by focusing its social life on

areas from which it is far removed. At Christmas, in contrast to

the preceding weeks, there were many small parties, first to welcome

back the school children and then the labor migrants. For the youth,

the soccer game between town and village Miniafia was the highlight

of the year. Christmas and New Year is reason enough for small social

gatherings. The examination results of the primary schools are

announced in mid-January and for days before people listen to radios

for the date on which these will be heard. Afterwards, there is much

local excitement as the new high school students are congratulated,

leavened by some disappointment for others who will not attend since

only about 30 percent of all primary school pupils are selected.

For any household, this is the most important event of the year or

perhaps for many a year. In late January, there is much sadness in

the community as people take relatives to the airstrip or by canoe

to Tufi. Others go along to 'shake their hands' as visitors leave.

It is difficult, if not impossible to calculate this social and cul

tural cost to these rural villages, but perhaps it is the highest.

THEORETICAL AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS FOR RURAL HOUSEHOLDS

IN LABOR-RESERVE AREAS

155

This field study suggests three implications for rural households

where the subsistence sector is no longer sufficient to support its

functions of production and reproduction, and espeically in a situation

where labor migrants--the main source of necessary cash--are becoming

increasingly urban in their orientation. First, remittances in cash

and kind can be expected to decline sharply or to cease from second

generation migrants, who in many cases will be born in town, have

parents who are urban oriented, have not been raised in the rural

village with their 'cousin brothers' or 'cousin sisters', and to whom

the traditional songs and manner of dance come with some difficulty.

Probably they will visit more distant kin, but such will constitute

increasingly isolated events in their lives to be fondly remembered,

rather than to generate for the Miniafia village the size and regularity

of remittance payments now received from first-generation migrants.

This question requires further study in Papua New Guinea for it is,

for rural villages located within areas of reserve labor, the most

fundamental.

Secondly, remittances are essential in maintaining the social

and economic continuity of village households given their incorpora

tion within the cash economy. Yet dependence on remittance incomes

is not necessarily an inherent feature of rural households; should

local commercial developments be promoted, supported, and oriented

to the peculiar socioeconomic and political situation of individual

communities, then remittances can be expected to become less important

156

just as other sources of cash increase. This is an issue where appro

priate government action can circumvent the process of cumulative

dependency and ensure that labor-reserve areas do receive an equitable

share of available resources in an independent country. In a

district such as Tufi, where there is potential for agricultural

development and especially the provision of transport facilities suited

to bulk handling by ship and of an efficient management structure would

greatly improve the chance of success of rural-based investment.

Perhaps the office of the Department of Primary Industry located

in Wanigela could be expanded, especially as there is much local

interest in cash cropping.

Thirdly, as long as labor mobility remains a strategy of house

hold investment supported by remittances from absent kin, some cash

will continue to find its way into rural villages. To some extent,

this fact will mitigate against the demise of the dual-household

economy. Yet it will also promote a 'terminal' form of development

(Howlett, 1973), if not inducing a decline in overall standard of

living, since such remittances will be barely sufficient to support

prevailing family requirements for cash. This is especially the case

when cash transfers are being used for consumption rather than invest-

ment.

On a theoretical plane, it is clear that mobility is a complex

phenomenon requiring consideration of more than one level of reality

or analysis and of more than purely economic variables--such as wage

rates, price differentials, and housing costs--if its function and

role in the lives of human beings is to be properly understood.

157

Chapman's (1970) work in the Solomon Islands captured the continuum

of people's mobility behavior in great detail and was able to show

the coexistence of its many varying patterns and forms. This was

latter supported by the findings of Bedford (1971) in Vanuatu and

by Hamnet (1977) in the North Solomons province of Papua New Guinea.

These studies reinforce Ward's (1981) argument that labor mobility

in Papua New Guinea will not be understood in isolation from all other

forms and experiences of people's movement but rather as an inherent

part of this broader context and wider experience. For the Miniafia

of Oro province and for many other groups in Papua New Guinea, human

mobility was an essential element of traditional social and economic

systems. Short- and long-distance trade routes, journeys to food

gardens, travels to the places of distant kin and to a husband's

village provided for much of their social and economic reproduction.

Contemporary flows of wage labor ought to be seen in this light; it

is one strategy to ensure basic survival. Most importantly, it re

quires recognition of the fact that rural households operate in two

different sectors, one subsistence and one cash to provide for their

ongoing needs.

In Ayuan and Ajoa, the importance of social factors in explaining

the flows of both remittances and labor is clear. Mobility links

to destinations where a wantok resides greatly influenced the nature

of subsequent streams once men began to move beyond the contract

system. More importantly, social factors and the essential humanity

of people's feelings largely expiain the existence and continuity

of remittances made to rural households, despite the fact that urban

workers may no longer be operating within the context of a dual

economy. The fact that the contemporary situation of the Miniafia

is due largely to past decisions by individuals and households, to

policies of the colonial state, and to the commodity prices of the

158

world trade system prevailing half a century ago all illustrates the

need for an historical perspective and for information of a longitudinal

kind.

In order to understand the complexity of remittances and their

use in contemporary times by rural households, it is necessary to

transcend the prevailing paradigms of economic positivism and neo

Marist structuralism. There is a need to adopt an holistic perspec

tive, to approach present reality from an understanding of the past,

and to consider individuals as human beings and not as economic men.

In the words of the French anthropologist, Marcel Mauss (1954:74):

'It is only our Western societies that quite recently turned man into

an economic animal'.

APPENDIX--FIELD QUESTIONNAIRES AND CHECK LISTS

ADULTS OVER 15 WHO USUALLY RESIDE IN THIS HOUSEHOLD

DE JURE CENSUS

NAME SEX

AGE DATE OF BIRTH

NAME OF FATHER: PLACE OF BAPTISM:

RELATIONSHIP TO HOUSEHOLD HEAD

MARITAL STATUS

PREVIOUS PLACE OF RESIDENCE

PLACE OF RESIDENCE AT INDEPENDENCE

LEVEL OF SCHOOLING ATTAINED

NAME OF SCHOOL/SCHOOLS

LOCATION OF SCHOOL/S

NAME OF TEACHER

OTHER TRAIN ING

LOCATION OF INSTITUTION

LANGUAGES SPOKEN

ECONOMIC ACTIVITIES:

Trade Store --

Number of Pigs __ Copra Drier __

Other --

CROPS: Coffee __ Copra __

Have you ever owned a business?

Rice --· Other __ _

If yes Where When Type --

HAVE YOU WOR..1<ED OUTSIDE THIS VILLAGE FOR MORE THAN SIX MONTHS?

DO YOU HAVE ADULT CHILDREN (OVER 15) WHO LIVE ELSEWHERE?

-

Marital Status ------------�

Number of Children ------------

Occupation --------------�

HOW LONG HAVE YOU LIVED IN THIS VILLAGE?

NAME

AGE

CHILDREN UNDER 15 WHO USUALLY RESIDE IN THIS HOUSEHOLD

SEX

NAME OF MOTHER

RELATIONSHIP TO HOUSEHOLD HEAD

LEVEL OF SCHOOLING COMPLETED

NAME OF SCHOOL

LOCATION OF SCHOOL /S

OTiiER TRAINING

LOCATION OF INSTITUTION

LANGUAGES SPOKEN

DATE OF BIRTH

PLACE OF BAPTISM

160

REMITTANCES: VISITS TO RELATIVES

(to be asked of the household head)

DO YOU OR ANY MEMBERS OF THIS HOUSEHOLD EVER VISIT RELATIVES WHO LIVE ELSEWHERE?

If�

I would like to know about the last visit. Can.you tell me:

(a) WHO MADE THIS VISIT? (relationship to head of household)

161

(b) WHO DID YOU GO TO VISIT? (relationship to head of household)

(c) WHERE DOES THIS PERSON LIVE?

(d) WHEN WAS THE VISIT?

(e) HOW LONG DID YOU STAY?

(f) DID YOU TAKE CASH OR GOODS TO THIS RELATIVE?

If�

(g) CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT YOU GAVE THEM AND HOW MUCH CASH?

(h) HOW WAS THIS CASH TO BE USED?

(i) DID YOU BRING BACK TO THE VILLAGE CASH OR GOODS?

If�

(j) CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT AND HOW MUCH CASH?

(k) HOW DID YOU USE THIS CASH?

(1) WHO PAID FOR TRAVEL?

REMITTANCES: VISITS FROM RELATIVES


DO YOU HAVE RELATIVES LIVING ELSEWHERE?

DO THEY EVER VISIT THIS VILLAGE?

I would like to know about their last visit to this village. Can you tell me :

(a) WHO CAME TO VISIT? (Relationship to household head).

(b) WHERE DO THESE PEOPLE USUALLY LIVE?

(c) WHEN DID THEY LAST VISIT THIS VILLAGE?

(d) HOW LONG DID THEY STAY?

(e) DID THEY BRING YOU CASH OR GOODS?

(f) CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THEY BROUGHT AND HOW MUCH CASH?

(g) HOW WAS THIS CASH USED?

(h) DID YOU GIVE THEM CASH OR GOODS TO TAKE HOME?

If yes

(i) CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT YOU GAVE THEM AND HOW MUCH CASH YOU GAVE THEM?

(j) HOW WAS THIS CASH TO BE USED?

162

163

REMITTANCES: MONEY AND GOODS SENT


DO YOU, OR ANY MEMBER OF THE HOUSEHOLD SEND CASH OR GOODS TO RELATIVES

WHO LIVE ELSEWHERE?

If�

I would like to know about the last time you sent cash or goods. Can you tell me:

(a) WHO DID YOU LAST SEND CASH OR GOODS TO?

(relationship to head of household)

(b) HOW DID YOU SEND CASH OR GOODS?

(c) WHEN DID YOU LAST SEND CASH OR GOODS?

(d) WHAT DID YOU SEND AND HOW MUCH CASH?

(e) HOW WAS THIS CASH TO BE USED?

REMITTANCES: �.;QNEY AND GOODS RECEIVED


DO YOU, OR ANY MEMBER OF THIS HOUSEHOLD EVER RECEIVE CASH OR

GOODS FROM RELATIVES WHO LIVE ELSEWHERE?

If�

I would like to know about the last time you received cash or goods. Can you tell me:

(a) WHO SENT CASH OR GOODS? (relationship to household head)

(b) HOW WAS THIS CASH/GOODS SENT?

(c) WHEN DID YOU LAST RECEIVE CASH OR GOODS?

(d) WHAT WAS SENT AND HOW MUCH CASH?

(e) HOW WAS THIS CASH USED?

CHECK LIST USED IN THE COLLECTION OF WAGE LABOR HISTORIES

Name

Household Number

Village

Date of Interview

FOR EACH MOVE OR CHANGE IN EMPLOYER

Place of residence prior to move

Marital status

Number of children living

Method of recruitment

Names of people who accompanied the migrant if any

Mode of transport

Employer

Place of employment

Occupation

Remuneration

Length of Employment

Remittances to the village at the end of employment

Use of these remittances

Length of time between moves

Reason for leaving the village

Reason for return

164

VILLAGE

NAME OF HOUSEHOLD HEAD

HOUSEHOLD NUMBER

HOUSEHOLD CASH DIARY

COMMENTS

INCOME

DATE AMOUNT SOURCE

- - - - - - - - - - -

165

EXPENDITURE

AMOUNT SOURCE

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