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| Karkum children dancing to entertain invited guests, visitors, and Karkum villagers at the renewal of their Community Managed Marine Area using Conservation Deed on Wednesday, May 29, 2024. Picture by Aihi Ken. |
A COLOURFUL and spectacular event
with a unique cultural significance was staged on Wednesday, May 29th
on a beautiful gray sandy beach at Karkum village in Sumgilbar local level
government area in Sumkar district, Madang province.
The occasion was the launching of
a renewal of the Karkum Community Managed Marine Area using Conversation Deed
(CD) which underscores the community’s dedication to protecting the endangered
Leatherback Turtle (Dermochelys coriacea) habitat and nesting beaches.
A segment of the program also
witnessed a rare traditional ritual that described the local villagers slaughter a
live pig and spilling its blood on the beach as a form of reconciliation between
them and the leatherback sea turtles.
Conservation Deed is best descried
as a flexible community-based, owned, driven, managed and sustained natural
resource management area process using Contract law.
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| Acting Provincial Fisheries Director Greg Serar wearing a blue cap on the second from left and his officers making a pledge with Karkum Ward Member Hon. Adolf Lilai, far left, and Wenceslaus Magun, far right to build a Inshore Fish Aggregation Device (IFAD) at Karkum. Picture by Aihi Ken. |
In the process, communities are
given increased awareness opportunities to use their traditional conservation
practices in establishing their natural resources management rules and
penalties.
Moreover, the community made
rules and penalties based on social, traditional, and cultural practices that
are user-friendly, and applicable in their community context.
These laws and penalties bind the
parties to their promises and can be enforced in the National Court of Justice
in PNG once all the parties countersign the Conservation Deed.
It is a voluntary and flexible
legal contract that binds the parties who sign the contract for a set
time-frame. The Conservation Deed is reviewed and renewed every three to five
years using the most understood, used and spoken language or languages. This
allows full participation by clan members in the community or communities.
Karkum village ward six member,
Adolf Lilai spared time to explain that the ultimate goal of this community
project is to protect, restore, increase and sustain populations of the most
critically endangered Western Pacific leatherback sea turtles.
The grey sandy beaches of Karkum
village and other coastal communities in Madang province are nesting beaches
and support the remaining Western Pacific leatherback sea turtle population
which currently is at the verge of extinction.
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| A leatherback coming to nest at Karkum beach. Picture by Dr. Lily Sar and UOG film crew. Film on Karkum by University of Goroka |
According to councilor Lilai, due
to wide-ranging threats to the survival of this leatherback turtle species more
conservation measures must be taken, and as such one local non-governmental
organization (NGO), Mas Kagin Tapani (MAKATA) has taken on the challenge
head-on since 2006 to assist the Karkum village community to protect the
species.
The 2024 CD renewal is built on
the Karkum-Mirap CD established in 2008, and has been made possible through the
USAID Lukautim Graun Program. The local NGO Mas Kagin Tapani (MAKATA), grant
recipient is collaborating with Karkum and Mirap communities to establish their
CDs.
Leatherback sea turtles are
globally and regionally important shared species as indicated by satellite
tracking data showing migration to their feeding grounds around New Zealand,
New Caledonia, the northern tip of Australia, Gulf of Mexico and the United
States.
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| Karkum singsing group welcome invited guests to Karkum village for the renewal of their Community Managed Marine Area signing using Conservation Deed. Picture by Wenceslaus Magun |
The event at Karkum last week began colorfully with the traditional singsing group who were nicely attired in their beautiful decorations welcoming the guests onto the ceremony. Women from Gorkom clan were nicely attired with PNG-coloured blouses and shared fresh coconut with straws in a typical Pacific islands treat to welcome the guests onto the podium.
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| Representatives of Ugerken, Nivap-Kirkur, Gorkom, and Nineng clans of Karkum village counter-signed and renewed their conservation deed on Wednesday, May 29, 2024. Picture by Aihi Ken. |
Four representatives from each of
the four clans in Karkum village namely, Ugerken, Nineng, Nivap-Kirkur, and
Gorkom together with their beach rangers counter-signed the deed following encouraging
speeches by the invited guests. A key witness and chairman of Tokain-Sarang
Village Court Magistrate, Martin Wanam, counter-signed the Conservation Deed
and stamped it with the official Village Court seal making it officially legal.
The CD would be later counter-signed by the Sumgilbar LLG president George
Magi, who was not present at the occasion.
Karkum villagers would review the
CD in three years’ time and renew it after five years.
They first established this
project in mid-2006 under the Turtle Island Restoration Network, a United
States-based not-for-profit nongovernmental organization and signed their first
CD on 17th November 2008. When funding ceased in December 2008,
Magun shouldered the tasks wholeheartedly in forming an organization called Mas
Kagin Tapani Association (MAKATA) and sustained this project.
Guests who attended the CD
counter-signing were from the Madang Provincial Fisheries and Marine Division,
Provincial Disaster Office, Sumkar District Development Authority, USAID PNG
Lukautim Graun Program, National Forest Authority, and two ward members from
Basken and Sarang villages respectively.
They were joined by officers from
WWF, USAID Lukautim Graun Program, NBC Madang journalists and a student
journalist from the Divine Word University.
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| Pr. Moses Mayang counter-signs the conservation deed on Wednesday May 29, 2024. Picture by Aihi Ken |
Chairman of Karkum Nambis Na Solwara Conservation Project, Pastor Moses Mayang acknowledged and gave special thanks and appreciation to the Executive Director of local NGO Mas Kagin Tapani (MAKATA), Wenceslaus Magun for sacrificing his time and effort in assisting the four major clans of Karkum to unite and agree in counter-signing the Conservation Deed.
Acting Fisheries Director, Greg
Serar in acknowledging the achievement of the outcome of the CD pledged to
build an Inshore Fish Aggregation Devise (IFAD) for Karkum village. The
announcement was well received with applause.
The event was celebrated with
traditional singsing, bamboo band music led by Larry ‘Galpang’ Joe, flag
raising, and dance by children from Karkum Christian Academy elementary school.
Karkum villagers in appreciation
of the efforts put in by MAKATA to support and sustain the Karkum Sea Turtles
Restoration Project, gifted Magun with a live pig, fresh garden food, bilums
and related gifts.
Guests to the occasion were
presented bilums in acknowledgment for witnessing the significant event.
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| A clan leader Joe Mutindep slaughters a live pig to reconcile with the leatherback turtles. Picture by James Kila |
Acting District Administrator for
Sumkar, Charles Katu acknowledged the effort of the Karkum community and
emphasized the importance of partnership and collaboration in protecting
natural resources.
Magun remarked that the occasion
marks a step in the right direction for Karkum villagers in managing and
sustainably using their marine resources as well as their biodiversity in ways
that would also contribute towards meeting their social and economic needs.
JAMES KILA is a freelance journalist based in Madang
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