SECURE A FUTURE Student Sponsorship for Vanuatu. IT S ON! Ambrym Soccer Challenge ANTONIA Saving Torres Strait Pearls

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Shon Gibbs
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1 SUMMER 2011 SECURE A FUTURE Student Sponsorship for Vanuatu IT S ON! Ambrym Soccer Challenge 2012 ANTONIA Saving Torres Strait Pearls BEFORE TIME Slavers & Pirates, Kidnappers & Murderers

Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Samoa and Peru TWENTY-TWELVE

2 Blackbird helps to reunite descendants of South Pacific Islanders sent to plantations and farms in Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, New Caledonia, Samoa and Peru TWENTY-TWELVE The year for FINDING FAMILY FIND YOUR FAMILY TODAY!

HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED what it would really feel like the moment you realise you ve been kidnapped into an unknown world? I try every day.

be able to truly begin to feel, smell, see or hear the fear and uncertainty that my ancestors would have had. WELKAM to the summer edition of Blackbird s Storian Blong Yumi.

In 2013, many people will be commemorating the 150 th anniversary of the first South Sea Islander brought to Australia by Robert Towns in 1863.

3 HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED what it would really feel like the moment you realise you ve been kidnapped into an unknown world? I try every day. However, despite all the stories I ve been told, had passed down from my elders or had told to me in a remote village on a little island in the South Seas over the years, I don t believe I will ever be able to truly begin to feel, smell, see or hear the fear and uncertainty that my ancestors would have had. WELKAM to the summer edition of Blackbird s Storian Blong Yumi. What a year it has been and what a few good years we have coming up. In 2013, many people will be commemorating the 150 th anniversary of the first South Sea Islander brought to Australia by Robert Towns in Others may think of 2013 as being 166 years since Captain Boyd brought three ships compliments into Sydney in 1847 from the Loyalties and New Hebrides. Others may go even further before them and the history of South Sea Islanders in the Torres Straits, Pacific Islanders in Tasmania or Aboriginal people blackbirded in North Western Australia. The history of Blackbirding is long. No matter what your view is, the next few years are going to be some of the most important years for the history, culture and family reconnection for the Indigenous peoples of the South Seas. So much so, the team at Blackbird International is calling 2012 the YEAR FOR FINDING FAMILY. Blackbird s FINDING FAMILY BLONG YUMI program is the largest family reconnection program in Australia and the South Pacific working with the descendants of the labour recruiting, blackbirding and trading era between the mid 1800 s to the early 1900 s. Our new affiliation with ANCESTRY.COM will make life easier for some of you looking for information about your ancestors and their history in Australia. Whilst we are expanding, we are also urging other individuals, organisations and families to consider their involvement either with Blackbird or through the development of their own local programs that can partner with organisations such as ourselves to assist in finding families. There are so many families, the more people looking and assisting, the better success we will all have. Blackbird will be delivering a range of workshops to help you in your search for family; help you record your stories for your family & community to share and identify and celebrate outstanding achievers in our community, past, present and future. We ask that you take any and all opportunities to sit down and talk as a family, as a community and share your stories to reconnect and celebrate your family, our community and Finding family Blong Yumi in 2012 In this edition, learn more about our projects, local events in your area and what is happening throughout the South Seas. BLACKBIRD STUDENT SPONSORSHIP secures a future for the students in Vanuatu where the average school fees are equivalent to 3 months salary of the Ni-Vans. You can sponsor a child for as little as $2 per day. Blackbird s TROPICAL GOLF CHALLENGE in Central Queensland in September was a great hit raising funds for our FINDING FAMILY program and other activities throughout the South Pacific. It s started something though, so look out for a Blackbird Tropical Golf Challenge, not just in Australia but also Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Fiji. The challenge is on from the 6 th and 10 th of February 2012 on the magical island of Ambyrm in Vanuatu s north when the BLACKBIRD SOCCER CHALLENGE raises money for the West Ambrym community. SAVING TORRES STRAIT PEARLS sees the restoration of Blackbird s historic Torres Strait Island pearling lugger ANTONIA to her former glory and why the Torres Straits is still important for South Sea Islanders. We, like many of the communities we work in, can always use an extra pair of hands. We had the pleasure of helping plant trees for the newly built South Sea Islander Hall in Rockhampton last month and provided a donation of $250 towards the construction of their new fence. Each year we lose our elders, uncles, aunts, cousins, friends, husband, wife, children our loved ones. It is now time to do something about ensuring our stories and our history is recorded and preserved for the future. Our elders are the custodians of our history, the rest of us have the responsibility to learn, record, remember and share that history, the stories that link us as a community and as families to our past, to where we came from and who we are. Please consider your involvement and support in our work, the work of your local organisation and in projects throughout the South Pacific. Blackbird would like to acknowledge all those who came before us, those who struggled for us to get our recognition. We acknowledge those who continue to represent us so passionately, who work hard in our communities, and keep our communities and families strong. For all of us who have lost a loved one this year our thoughts, prayers and blessings are with you all. Thankyou Tumas, Big Esso and Siba den Sonia Minniecon-Smith Chair and Co-Founder

4 6 th to 10 th February 2012 Craig Cove Soccer Field WEST AMBRYM

Blackbird presents the 2012 Blackbird Soccer Challenge on the beautiful island of Ambrym to assist with raising funds to support the West Ambrym community in education, health, sports, culture, small

5 Blackbird presents the 2012 Blackbird Soccer Challenge on the beautiful island of Ambrym to assist with raising funds to support the West Ambrym community in education, health, sports, culture, small business and most importantly, finding family blong yumi. Up to 15 men s & 11 women s teams will be playing the five day challenge for a share in more than 100,000 Vatu ($1,000) in cash & prizes. Teams are now coming from Melekula, North Ambrym and West Ambrym. Sponsorships are available for individuals and businesses to assist with the running of the challenge. Sponsorships are available for many of the items that are required during the event in the form of cash, equipment and in-kind support. Dig out your old soccer boots and shin pads and send them to us. From kids to adults, we can use all the boots you can find. Blackbird is also designing match quality soccer balls specifically designed for the Ambrym Soccer Challenge. You can purchase these match quality balls for a team or one for yourself from $30. Put your order in by Christmas. WISH LIST If you can help with any of the following please let us know by 15 th January Soccer boots, shin pads, shorts Referee s Jerseys Corner and Sideline Posts Goal nets, Line Marker Drink Bottles Whistles IF YOU CAN SUPPORT US PLEASE CONTACT US TODAY! Telephone 1300 CRUZIN ( ) info@blackbird.vu OR VIA POST TO PO BOX 3110, NORTH MACKAY, QLD 4740

6 What is needed? Whilst Vanuatu is the happiest place on earth and one of the most beautiful places to live, today in 2011 there is still no running water, electricity, sewerage or infrastructure, no dole and no jobs on many of the Islands and villages in Vanuatu. Even in Vanuatu s capital of Port Vila you will see thatched huts opposite 5 star hotels without the basic needs of life. Education is not free in Vanuatu. For families who can t afford to send all their children to school, the choice can be unbearable. Many villages do not have secondary schools and in some cases students need to travel to other parts of the Island or in the majority of cases having to attend boarding school on another Island away from their families and community. Those lucky enough to have a job are more than likely on the national minimum wage of 25,000 Vatu per month the equivalent of about $250AUD per month. School fees range from between 50,000VT ($500AUD) to 90,000VT ($900AUD) per year. Equivalent of between 2 to 5 months wages for a parent for one child s education for an entire year. What does child sponsorship provide? A solid education and a secure future A new friendship with family blong yumi Annual school fees School pack of Books, pencils, rubbers etc Income relief for parents & the village What will you receive? A new friendship Welcome pack Regular letters and communication Annual progress report Opportunity to assist in other ways FROM JUST $2 PER DAY!

South Sea Islanders & The Torres Straits South Sea Islanders have played an important role historically, traditionally and culturally in the Torres Straits for more than 150 years long before

A COMMON MISCONCEPTION is that South Sea Islanders came to the Torres Straits when they were landed there after 1901 as the recruiting and labour trading was coming to an end in Queensland.

7 South Sea Islanders & The Torres Straits South Sea Islanders have played an important role historically, traditionally and culturally in the Torres Straits for more than 150 years long before blackbirding for sugar even began! A COMMON MISCONCEPTION is that South Sea Islanders came to the Torres Straits when they were landed there after 1901 as the recruiting and labour trading was coming to an end in Queensland. The first South Sea Islanders believed to have come to the Torres Straits arrived in 1860 on the tall ship Julia Percy looking for beche-de-mer. Many of the crew were from the New Hebrides as that was where the vessel came from. Many other South Seas vessels and their South Seas crew came to the Torres Straits during the next 10 years, particularly when pearl shell was found in In fact, in 1872 when the population of the Torres Straits was only 3,500 there were about 500 South Sea Islanders working as crew and divers on the pearling luggers. On the 1 st July 1871, a group from the Loyalty Islands were sent by the London Missionary Society to Erub for what is now known as the Coming of the Light. This involvement of hundreds of South Sea Islanders is completely separate to those that were landed in the Torres Straits from mainland Queensland sugar plantations and farms. However, all South Sea Islanders no matter how they came to Australia were subject to the White Australia Policy. The Pacific Island Labourers Act provided a means for some South Sea Islanders through exemptions that allowed them to stay if they had been in Australia for more than 20 years, married a non- South Sea Islander or due to their age or health. One of the most important South Sea Islander communities to have developed from this is on Mua (Moa) Island in the Torres Straits. Permission was given by the traditional owners of the Mualgal lands to a number of South Sea Islanders to settle at an old village of Wug in In 1908 a reserve was set up for those South Sea Islanders living at Wug. The Government Resident at the time, Hugh Milman, who invited the Bishop of Carpentaria, Gilbert White to set up a Mission on the new reserve, named the reserve St Pauls after the St Pauls Cathedral in London where his uncle worked. Today, many well known Torres Strait Islanders have South Sea Islander heritage. Community leaders, Council leaders, church leaders, sports men and women, artists, musicians and youth leaders share this important heritage from the South Seas. Many of these are working with Blackbird on a number of our projects including the Saving Torres Strait Pearls campaign and the restoration of our historic Torres Strait pearling lugger Antonia A99. To learn more about the Torres Straits or the history of St Pauls, check out the Torres Strait Regional Authority s website Better still, get yourself to the Torres Straits and spend some time visiting the Islands. A 20 minute flight from Horn Island will land you at the Kubin airport on the Southern end of Moa and a drive to the northern end will have you arriving in St Pauls.

Pearling Lugger ANTONIA with her record 22-tonne pearl shell haul coming into the wharf on Thursday Island.

The year is 1956 And the 60ft ANTONIA at her launch at famous boat builders Norman Wright & Sons, still operating in Bulimba, Brisbane.

The romance in the image of pearling luggers cruising tropical seas searching for lustrous pearl shell on the frontiers of the state are long in the dreams of many people.

Today, pearls still remain one of the worlds most sought after jewels. Though traditional pearling has long faded away, a few old luggers still survive.

8 Pearling Lugger ANTONIA with her record 22-tonne pearl shell haul coming into the wharf on Thursday Island. ANTONIA with sister-ship ANNIKI, made famous in the movie Australia taking the children to Mission Island. ANNIKI is also a survivor and now earns her keep with sunset cruises in Darwin. The year is 1956 And the 60ft ANTONIA at her launch at famous boat builders Norman Wright & Sons, still operating in Bulimba, Brisbane. No vessel embodies colour and raw drama in Queensland s history more than the pearling lugger of Thursday Island and the Torres Straits. The romance in the image of pearling luggers cruising tropical seas searching for lustrous pearl shell on the frontiers of the state are long in the dreams of many people. Not only did Torres Strait Islanders work on the luggers, so too did many South Sea Islanders, Aboriginals, Japanese, Malays, Okinawans and Europeans and non- Indigenous Australians. Today, pearls still remain one of the worlds most sought after jewels. Though traditional pearling has long faded away, a few old luggers still survive. Of the estimated 480 Torres Strait pearling luggers to be engaged in the pearling industry, less than 25 are believed to survive today. One of these, the historic pearling lugger Antonia has a very special place in the culture and history of the people of Torres Straits including many South Sea Islanders who worked on her. Blackbird s Saving Torres Strait Pearls initiative involves a number of actions designed to preserve, restore and return this very important part of Australia s history. Antonia is undergoing a full restoration in Townsville and is to return into full commercial survey for cultural, tourism and educational purposes. We need assistance in funding, donations of materials, workers and expertise from traditional boatbuilding, diesel fitting and rigging. It is intended that she would spend up to 6 months per year in Torres Strait and North Queensland waters visiting all Islands and communities and occasionally make it as far south as Brisbane. During each visit Antonia can be used for various activities including youth leadership, sailing, maritime research, history and culture, training, events and other tourism related activities. Antonia will also promote the rich history of South Sea Islanders from their involvement in the Torres Straits pearling industry prior to the Blackbirding days through to and the establishment of St Pauls on Moa. She will also pass on history of Aboriginal involvement and connections with other Indigenous cultures and former trading links with Papua New Guinea. Antonia will help communities promote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures and history including commemorating Coming of the Light. BEFORE TIME Productions will be producing a documentary on the life and history of Antonia and the pearling industry and want to hear from anyone who can contribute stories, songs, photographs and other information about her and any other luggers they or their family have a connection to. A website is being launched in 2012 specifically for recording the pearling history of the Torres Straits.

Photo taken in January 2011 in Fali Village on the West Coast of

It was chosen to be included in an exhibition at the Tenth Session of

May 2011 at United Nations Headquarters, New York.

awareness of the issues surrounding quality water supply, such as on

All New 2012 Blackbird Supporters Gear Blackbird is releasing the

9 Photo taken in January 2011 in Fali Village on the West Coast of Ambrym in Vanuatu. It was chosen to be included in an exhibition at the Tenth Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues from May 2011 at United Nations Headquarters, New York. The exhibition, The Rights to Water and Indigenous Peoples, raised awareness of the issues surrounding quality water supply, such as on Ambrym where lack of rain or volcanic dust cause problems. All New 2012 Blackbird Supporters Gear Blackbird is releasing the 2012 Blackbird Supporters Gear with a range of nambawan products that you can wear with pride. Products include caps, shirts, expedition gear, drink bottles, soccer balls and more All money raised in these sales will go to helping us to find family blong yumi and work with communities across the pacific.

ancestry.com Blackbird is proud to annouce our affilliation with the world's leading family history site Ancestry.com. I use Ancestry.com in my own search for finding family blong mi.

clearly shown me where they were born, if they married, where they lived, where they worked, and where and when they passed away. These amazing records and information I have found through Ancestry.

10 ancestry.com Blackbird is proud to annouce our affilliation with the world's leading family history site Ancestry.com. I use Ancestry.com in my own search for finding family blong mi. Simple records such as Births, Death and Marriage indexes, Australian Electoral Rolls, Census lists and Immigration and Travel indexes have been instrumental in my search for my ancestors and have clearly shown me where they were born, if they married, where they lived, where they worked, and where and when they passed away. These amazing records and information I have found through Ancestry.com has helped put many pieces of my family puzzle together. Like me, millions of people from around the world are discovering their family stories on Ancestry.com. Go to Blackbird.vu, click on the link to Ancestry.com and you ll get great discounts when joining Ancestry.com or purchase Family Tree Maker. Join me on Ancestry.com, in 2012, The Blackbird Year of Finding family, and start looking for family blong yumi. DONATION POINTS Blackbird International s PacificAID program receives a range of donated goods to distribute among communities in the pacific. We are always needing further donations but need a hand to get them to those in need. You can donate clothes, books, toys, water tanks, solar lights, cooking items, bedding, desks, shoes, education stationary, bags, first aid kits, money, building equipment, generators, swimming goggles, spearguns, fishing gear, gardening equipment, towels and much more. If your organistation would like to help out let us know. You or your organization or business can: Be an official donation point Assist with transport and distribution Suggest places, villages and communities which may need some support Be a volunteer, ambassador or expedition leader We thank those individuals and organisations, families and friends who have already donated items. We appreciate your support and so do the communities where these items are going. Contact us if you can help at info@blackbird.vu 2012 is the year of Finding Family, and Blackbird team members will be travelling to all major centres throughout Queensland to host Finding Family Blong Yumi workshops from the Gold Coast to the Torres Straits. Each workshops will give participants tips and tools to help us, to help you Find Family. Watch our future storian blong yumi, website or Facebook page for more information. If your organization is interested in hosting these workshops please contact us at family@blackbird.vu.

Sail on tall ships, trek jungles & volcanoes, dive wreck sites, produce documentaries, learn customs, visit

11 Join Blackbird Adventures in 2012 throughout Australia and the South Pacific and support our work in Finding Family Blong Yumi. Sail on tall ships, trek jungles & volcanoes, dive wreck sites, produce documentaries, learn customs, visit Blackbirding locations, build schools & churches, have fun & help us find families blong yumi. Want to lead your own expedition, got a specific idea, project or location you want us to make happen?

12 Australia Telephone Mobile 1300 CRUZIN ( ) Postal PO Box 3110, North Mackay, Queensland, Australia 4740 Vanuatu Telephone Postal PO Box 755 Luganville, Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu PO Box 11 West Ambrym, Vanuatu Web

Zone 3. New Zealand. Australia Fiji New Zealand Papua New Guinea

Zone 3. New Zealand. Australia Fiji New Zealand Papua New Guinea Zone 3 Australia Fiji Papua New Guinea 78 HIGHLIGHTS COUNTRIES CENTRES/ GROUPS SSIO MEMBERS SSE STUDENTS ISSE SATHYA SAI SCHOOL Australia/ Papua New Guinea 82 3,355 658 1 1 Fiji 10 205 232 1 1 26 1,021