It seems that a new old word has crept into the PNG national HIV/AIDS response.
That is the Melanesian Way.
That is the Melanesian Way.
It was used recently by one Susan Merrell as part of the criticism of the Papua New Guinea government and society. Please click:
Democracy, custom & the elasticity of the Melanesian Way
Democracy, custom & the elasticity of the Melanesian Way
But comments to the blog PNG Attitude have put a more balanced light on the issue.
The Melanesian Way is based on the welfare of family and clan.
AIDS Holistics has always focused on the importance of family in promoting the Positive living message.
It seems that this is the correct cultural basis to PNG society.
There are other ways in the world. There is the American Way supported by Superman.
We read that in modern America, there is a murder every 10 minutes.
Then there is My Way as Frank Sinatra used to sing. I did it my way.
We also have the Appian Way, the road into Rome along which the Roman legions used to crucify prisoners.
Then we have the Gay and Lesbian Way which involves an ongoing attack on family and fathers with support for rights of women and girls.
And an attack on the Melanesian Way
And an attack on the Melanesian Way
Comments
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"What more do we need to know?" Nothing much, but we do need to see more.
Phil - I wonder if the founding fathers of the American constitution would have been some generous in their largesse by affording their citizens the right to bear arms had they know what firearm technology would later be produced.
In those far off days the capability of firearms was limited to single shot ball and musket not the current fully automatic weapons available which have mass destruction capabilities.
Just a thought?
Posted by: Harry Topham | 24 August 2012 at 03:11 PM
By the same token, how do you define the Australian Way or the American Way?
We all think we know what the phrases mean but their definitions are elusive and usually highly flexible and subjective.
When they do gel it is usually in the negative mode, as in un-Australian or un-American.
The Australian Way is that of the fair go for all - what on earth does that mean?
To be un-Australian is to somehow deny that egalitarian bent.
The American Way seems to have something to do with the rights of individuals to make money and to have the freedom to shoot each other.
To be un-Americam, at least in the way McCarthy defined it, is to be ultra-conservative, reactionary and anti-socialist, something like the credo of an extreme Republican.
Curiously, you don't often hear about the English Way or the Spanish Way or the French Way.
Perhaps it has something to do with a nation's sense of insecurity in defining itself. In that context the Melanesian Way makes sense and maybe avoids the need for a definition.
The Melanesian Way stands for looking after family and clan. What more do we need to know?