Speaker ordered to return artefacts to parliament

PAPUA NEW GUINEA – A Papua New Guinea court has ordered Parliament’s Speaker, Theodore Zurenuoc, to replace, repair and return totems and 19 traditional carvings that he had removed from Parliament House three years ago.

Zurenuoc, a devout Christian, said his actions were aimed at cleansing the building of evil spirits when he oversaw the “evil and ungodly” artefacts’ destruction in December 2013.

But the court found that he acted unconstitutionally and breached the National Cultural Property Act.

Justice David Cannings gave the Speaker six months to reinstall the items, and ordered that the work be paid for out of parliamentary funds.

Former parliamentary speaker Timothy Bonga said the destruction was a blow to Papua New Guinea’s cultural pride.

“The artefacts can be restored, definitely yes. But the manner in which the Speaker has done it has totally destroyed the spirit of pride of our people in terms of their culture,” he said.

As well as a row of carved faces that adorned the front of Parliament before being torn down, carvings in a four-tonne totem pole inside Parliament were removed by workmen.

Zurenuoc had proposed the whole totem pole be replaced by a “Pillar of Unity”, topped by a flame and “The Word of God” written at its base.

One of the plaintiffs who took the matter to court is National Museum and Art Gallery director Dr Andrew Moutu who said that many of the artefacts were beyond repair.

“They were really, really desacralised,” Dr Moutu said in an interview at the time of the artefacts’ removal in 2013.

“The row of carved faces was chopped in three bits using a chainsaw, removed unceremoniously and then dumped.”

The other plaintiff was former PNG prime minister Sir Michael Somare.

Justice Canning said the removal of the images infringed on the rights of individuals as stipulated in section 45 of the constitution.

He said the Speaker attempted to compel his religion upon others, thereby breaching section 45.

He said the section gave the right to all to practice any religion and maintain their beliefs, thus the Speaker’s Act was contrary to that right.

Prominent religious leader Reverend Joseph Walters stood up to support he Speaker’s actions at the time of their removal.

“They’re just from one or two provinces that, as you know, are steeped in things of the dark ages, or dark people,” he said in 2013.

But the president of the PNG Council of Churches, Father Danny Gukatells, said Zurenuoc’s actions went against Christianity, and he had no support for what he had done.

“The Speaker cannot impose his own personal Christian ideas in doing this,” he said.

Museum director Dr Moutu said he would ensure compliance with the national court ruling.

He described the case as being a good test of legislation that hadn’t been exercised in 50 years.

He said it set a good precedent for protecting PNG’s constitution.

“This theologically-inspired view of trying to purify so-called ‘evil’ aspects of the parliament is highly deplorable and questionable.”

Dr Moutu also warned that Christian fundamentalism remains a threat to PNG culture.

He said the removal of the items was the kind of attack on culture that zealots often try to foist on societies.

“It’s based on not anything factual, but completely self-imposed views about what made them evil, or unholy or all those kinds of things. It was grossly misrepresented and taken to stand for something else which is associated with the thinking of the speaker.”

Dr Moutu said he would seek court action if Zurenuoc does not comply with the court ruling within six months. - ABC