Contents (7)

EXPEDITION REPORT:

FEMALE CHIEFS OF
VANUATU

THE EXPLORERS CLUB MAMONT SCHOLAR

SOPHIE HOLLINGSWORTH

1

Female Chiefs of Vanuatu

Republic of Vanuatu
August - September 2016
15°08'58.6"S 168°07'19.9"E

Sophie Hollingsworth

University of Sydney
[email protected]
www.thesofialog.com
@sophie__hollingsworth

Expedition Members

Dr. Lew Toulmin, FRGS
Dalsie Baniala
Michael Wyrick
Corey Huber
Daniel Huang
Theresa Menders

Sponsors

All photos and watercolor paintings are by
Sophie Hollingsworth unless stated otherwise.

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TABLE OF

Contents

04 ABSTRACT
05 OBJECTIVE
06 BACKGROUND
08 METHODS
09 RESULTS
24 CHALLENGES
25 DISCUSSION
27 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
28 WORKS CITED

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GLOSSARY OF TERMS

-Aelan - Island
-Ale Tata - Goodbye
-Danis - Dance
-Jif- Male Chief
-Kastom - Used to refer to traditional culture including but not limited to:

religion, economics, art, dance, song, and magic in Melanesia.
-Making Lengwasa - A ritual integral to becoming a Ngwotari
-Malvatumaruri - National Council of Chiefs (NCC) - The formal advisory

body of chiefs recognized by the Constitution of the Republic of Vanuatu
-Mana - A force or power that may be ascribed to a person, spirit, or inanimate

object, may be either good or evil
-Motari - Female chief on Pentecost Island
-Nakamal - Men’s meeting house
-Notarisurahia - Spirit and devil leader of women’s taboo
-Ngwotari - Custom female leader on Maewo Island - Also spelled Notari or

Ngotari
-Ni-Vanuatu - Demonym used to refer to Melanesian ethnicities originating in

Vanuatu
-Rasa - sungwe grade three, the highest grade now held by any living man on

Maewo Island
-Storian - To sit and chat
-Sungwe - Mens hierarchical graded system for chiefdom on Maewo Island
-Tambu - Taboo

4

ABSTRACT

For over 100 years, anthropological literature stated or assumed there were no
female chiefs in Vanuatu (formerly New Hebrides). Fieldwork was conducted to
document the possible existence of female chiefs on Maewo Island (formerly
Aurora Island) and throughout Vanuatu. Interviews and observations conducted in
August-September 2016 revealed the presumed female chiefs on Maewo Island
strongly preferred the term “ngwotari” to “chief”, but there were women
throughout the archipelago that identified and were accepted as female chiefs.
Documenting the commendable social practices in Vanuatu illuminated the unique
culture of Maewo Island and added invaluable knowledge to the extant research in
this branch of anthropology.

5

OBJECTIVE

The key goals of the expedition were to first locate and interview the presumed
female chiefs on Maewo Island. Second, observe and document the female chief’s
practices, powers, jurisdiction, kastom songs and dances. Third, to compile
evidence on whether or not the presumed female chiefs of Maewo could qualify for
membership in the National Council of Chiefs of Vanuatu. Finally, compare the role
of female leaders in Maewo Island to that of female leaders in Tanna Island.

Explorers Club Flag No. 101 at the Banganvanua Arts Festival
with ngwotari (standing) and young girls.
Photo Credit: Lew Toulmin.

6

BACKGROUND

The Republic of Vanuatu consists of a chain of over 80 islands, less than 280,000
residents, and over 100 Melanesian languages spoken (The World Factbook,
2014). Parallel to Vanuatu’s language diversity is a diversity of culture. Unlike many
islands in the South Pacific, Maewo Island in the Republic of Vanuatu was not
entirely plagued by blackbirding, Christianity, or Colonialism. In fact, the island was
even lost for a while (Daily Southern Cross, 1871). All of these factors contributed to
allow Maewo Island to sustain a rich culture that is still very active today. Maewo
Island is matrilineal, the homeland of approximately 3,000 people, and a branch of
human imagination going back to the beginning of time.

Republic of Vanuatu denoted with pinpoint.
Map Credit: Google Earth

7

Maewo Island maintains a graded
society, meaning that the social
structure is determined by an individual
and their family’s ability to climb the
social ladder of kastom: killing sacred
pigs, exchanging and wearing circular
pig tusks, weaving mats, knowledge of
different traditional songs and dances,
and the amount of time spent in the
nakamal or tambu house (gender
specific meeting house) for grade
promotions.

Women spend most of their time tending the
gardens, cooking, weaving, looking after children,
washing, and storian. Men spend most of their time
tending the gardens, cutting copra, cutting firewood,
drinking kava, and storian. Men will frequently take care of
children if their wives are occupied with other tasks.

Maewo Island’s subsistence economy is based almost entirely on
slash and burn agriculture, with the staple crop being taro. Since
almost everyone engages in subsistence farming, Maewo is predominantly
a barter economy. Over eighty percent of the entire archipelago uses traditional
money (Huffman, 2005). There are traditional money banks in the archipelago that
store wealth based in pig tusks, red mats, and stringed shells.

Map Credit: Getty Images

8

METHODS

Methods of data collection include interviews, participant observation, field
sketches, paintings, and immersion in Ni-Vanuatu life. Interviews were conducted
with ngwotari, self-identifying female chiefs, residents of Vanuatu, members of the
National Council of Chiefs, and female officials in the Ni-Vanuatu government.
Interviews were recorded via note taking and recording with interviewee
permission on Maewo Island and Efate Island. Observations were made at the
Banganvanua Mini Arts Festival which focused on traditional dances, song, oral
tradition, and rituals. The festival was located in the Kérembéi village on
the central west coast of Maewo in August 2016. Further participant observations
and immersion were conducted in the following villages in September 2016:
Kérembéi, Nagoro, Naone, Narovorovo, and Navenvene.

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RESULTS

Interviews and observations conducted in August-September 2016 revealed the
presumed female chiefs on Maewo Island strongly preferred the term ‘ngwotari’ to
‘chief’; but there were women throughout the archipelago that identified and were
accepted as female chiefs. With no exact translation, the vernacular term ‘ngwotari’
loosely translates to ‘female custom leader’ or ‘chief’.

Dalsie Baniala, currently the most senior women in the Ni-Vanuatu government and
native of Maewo Island, stated that there is a bit of confusion in the connotation
between chief and ngwotari. This is due to the fact that key components and
powers associated with the title ngwotari are lost in translation when ngwotari is
simplified to chief. In English, there is no exact translation, chief is a reasonable and
appropriate translation for the word ngwotari. Furthermore, ngwotari on Maewo will
not publicly state that they are chiefs for fear of offending the rasas. In private
amongst themselves, the ngwotari will use the term chief.

As the team’s research to locate the rumored female chiefs expanded beyond
Maewo Island, four self-identifying and community accepted female chiefs were
located and interviewed in depth.

10

In an interview with Motarilavoa Hilda Lini, chief of the Turaga Nation of Pentecost
Island and the first female elected to Parliament in Vanuatu, Motarilavova stated in
Pentecost and Ambae the women’s chiefly system is the same or similar to the
men’s chiefly system. Hilda Lini holds eleven chiefly titles, is a member of the
women's chiefly system, and in all likelihood the highest ranking female chief in the
Vanuatu. She has earned the rights for extensive chiefly insignia including sacred
circular pig tusks, feathers, killed 25 pigs in 15 pig killing ceremonies, and is
recognized as a chief by both men and women. In traditional systems, female chiefs
were included in different levels of meetings and were the ones who kept the
knowledge of land history, clans, tribes, dances, the yam harvest, and ceremonies.
Without the female chiefs’ knowledge, no ceremonies could be conducted.

In modern times, on Maewo and Pentecost Islands there is a shyness about using
the term chief. Today many women obtain chiefly titles but do not show their
chiefly status (through the wearing of tusks, feathers, etc.) or undertake their chiefly
role. There seems to be a generation gap where some of the younger women are
reluctant to carry on the chiefly role. The title chief is used because that is the term
the English brought for leader. Furthermore, the title chief is complicated by the
fact that in translations from aelan languages, “chief” does not translate exactly to
the role of female leaders in the women’s chiefly system. Hence, there is some
hesitancy in women calling themselves chiefs (Lini, 2016).

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On Pele Island north of Efate, Phoebe John held the highest grade (grade 10) and
rank of chief for four years in the Piliura village. Upon her husband's (chief of the
island) death, she took over the title, rights and responsibilities. The system of
women undertaking the title and responsibilities of chief is common. Phoebe John
estimates that on the islands of Pele, Nguna, and Efate there are approximately five
to ten women currently holding the full title of “chief” (John, 2016).

Doreen Leona and her mother Motari Doreen Leona, female chief of Pentecost
Lolowei Musero Leona, stated they Island, in kastom attire signifying her rank as a
are both female custom chiefs on motari grade chief. Photo Credit: Lew Toulmin
Pentecost Island where they hold
the title motari. Both killed pigs in a
graded system to earn the second
chiefly rank. The pair estimates
about 25 percent or more of the
women in northern Pentecost
Island hold a chiefly rank. While this
rank does not entitle female chiefs
to any jurisdiction over civil,
criminal, or land disputes, there is
jurisdiction in kastom matters and
the women are recognized as
chiefs by men (Leona, 2016).

Ngwotari of Maewo Island walking to the Banganvanua Festival

In August 2016, the ngwotari of Maewo Island held the multi-day Banganvanua Arts
Festival to celebrate traditional island culture. The team was invited to attend the
festivities and observed the ngwotari engage in sand drawing, water music, bird
calling, constellation naming, and days of kastom song and dance.

Following the festival, I had the opportunity to live with and study the everyday life
of multiple ngwotari and the paramount male chief in the villages of Naone,
Narovorovo, Navenevene, and Nagoro. The expedition team’s work in
documenting the commendable social practices in Vanuatu illuminates the unique
culture of Maewo Island and adds invaluable knowledge to the extant research in
this branch of anthropology. Not only that, but the expedition inspired the next
generation of ngwotari by giving this socially positive kastom practice the
recognition it deserves.

The following illustrate key ethnographic observations of ngwotari in Maewo
Island:

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HOW TO BECOME A

ngwotari

There are six grades of ngwotari on Maewo Island: only three grades are currently
in use because knowledge of the three highest grades was lost. To gain the
ngwotari title a woman must possess knowledge of the following: island history,
values of the tribe, traditional recipes, woven mat designs, preparation of kastom
wedding and death ceremonies, traditional signs, rituals, song, dance, healing
plants, water music, and relevant magic.

To become a first grade ngwotari, women must undertake the Lengwasa ritual in
which young girls and women are confined in a tambu house for 10 days,
culminating in the killing of a sacred pig. Pig killing is often a key part of male
chiefdom and grade promotions in Vanuatu.

Lengwasa is usually performed when girls are old enough to start learning
traditional practices, when the family can financially support the ritual, or when a
women from a different tribe marries a man on Maewo. A tambu house is
constructed that the Lengwasa maker must stay inside for ten days. During these
ten days she can only eat certain foods, she must not wash, and she may not move.
She may be carried outside only to urinate and defecate. Her face is painted on the
first day of Lengwasa with the Lengwasa mark, and fresh paint is applied every day
for the whole ten days. This face painting must not be conducted outside
of the Lengwasa ritual. Each day during the ten day Lengwasa ritual is different.

14

Becoming a ngwotari protects women from the Notarisurahia spirit. The women
believe the Notarisurahia spirit is the devil leader of women’s tambu who will kill any
woman who has not completed the Lengwasa ritual. The Notarisurahia can appear
in human form and disappear at will. During the ritual, Lengwasa makers can hear
Notarisurahia moving inside and outside the tambu house. If a woman does not
become a tambu woman through Lengwasa, Notarisurahia will kill her by sticking a
bamboo knife into her body. Notarisurahia lives in Naviso, Eastern Maewo, in a pool
near the sea. Tambu women can swim in the pool but women who have not made
Lengwasa will be killed by Notarisurahia should they swim there. One must always
be careful about saying her name out loud, as she can hear when her name is
spoken (Hume, 1985).

Future ngwotari of Maewo Island

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KASTOM DANCE

WOTA MUSIC

The practice of water music originally called vus lamlam in the Mwerlap language
has been handed down from generation to generation (Dick, 2014). Women
engage in the practice of water music by making sounds with the water through
splashing, scooping, and slapping the water. Water music can be performed in the
ocean, a river, or natural spring. Water music is exclusively a women’s practice but
is not ritualized. Although water music was a keystone of the Banganvanua Festival,
water music is not associated with any formal ritual or ceremony, and not
considered a sacred or taboo practice. Water music was observed and practiced
almost daily during water collection and bath time. The fact that water music is not
associated with any particular ritual, taboo, or Lengwasa ritual makes it more
accessible than many other cultural expressions in Vanuatu.

Ngwotari stand waist deep in the Coral Sea while slapping and swirling
the water's surface to create a rhythmic tapestry of aquatic percussion

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KASTOM DANCE

TAITAI DUNG

In a river east of the Kérembéi community grounds, a natural pool was created and
all surrounding trees were adorned with flowers and woven art in the shape of
hearts. Approximately ten older ngwotari descended into the river, divided in half,
and stood in line facing one another. The women engaged in gradually ascending
water music and splashing ferocity. This dance simulated a fight between two
groups, one group wanted it to rain while the other group did not. The disharmony
between the two groups ended up causing more rain to fall than either group
wanted - illustrated by large splashes of water. The moral of the dance was,
disharmony creates negative outcomes for all involved parties.

Photo Credit: Michael Wyrick

17

SUGAR CANE DANCE

KASTOM DANIS NGOTA

The ngwotari began about 500 feet north of the Kérembéi community grounds and
danced towards the community grounds in an S shaped pattern. In route to the
community grounds, one of the women handed out sugar cane to the onlookers. At
the Kérembéi community grounds the ngwotari came together in the shape of a
square and continued to sing and dance. The woman who was giving out sugar
cane became tired from the journey and asked for water. One of the other ngwotari in
the dance became irritated and in a fury, forced a rig of bamboo full of water onto
the sugar cane giver. The irritated ngwotari forced the sugar cane giver to drink all of
the water from the rig of bamboo, threatening to kill her if she failed to finish the
water. The sugar cane giver was knocked down to the floor. This dance is intended
to demonstrate the importance of reciprocal sharing within the community. The
moral of the dance: there would have been no animosity between
the sugar cane giver and the water beholder had the sugar cane
giver been met with equal gifts of food and water in her journey.

18

SAND DRAWING

Sand drawings are not merely
beautiful pictures but rather a
sacred compilation of stories,
knowledge, and songs. The
tradition of sand drawing in
Vanuatu developed as a
method of communication
between tribes in a country
with approximately 100
language groups.

Drawings are made on the
ground in either sand, volcanic ash or clay. The
artist uses one finger to trace a continuous line on
an imaginary grid, producing an intricate and whimsical pattern.

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IMPORTANCE OF

WEAVING

Weaving of mats plays a fundamental role in Ni-Vanuatu culture and economy. The
wife of the paramount Rasa of Maewo Island, Lee Ann, stated “Without our mats
and pig tusks we are nothing” (Lee Ann Wilson, 2016). The essential message
behind mat weaving is that time, patience, and concentration all come from love.

Woven Blouses Sophie Hollingsworth conducting fieldwork in
a blouse that reads "she can grate taro"

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The mat industry increases the womens economic and social position. A plain mat
(ngwana) costs around 400 vatu ($4), while a stencilled mat (ngwanserseri) is more
valuable and cosets around 1000 vatu ($10). Many ceremonies (marriages,
funerals, grade-taking) involve the exchange of mats, and the numerous dances
performed at inter village feasts necessitate the wearing of mats. Mats are rarely
sold for cash, usually the barter takes the form of reciprocal obligations (Hume,
1985).

Pandanus trees provide material for weaving mats,
houses, clothing, textiles and bags. Pandanus
grows naturally throughout Vanuatu but Pandanus
are additionally cultivated near villages for ease of
picking. Pandanus are picked sparingly to allow the
plant to naturally regenerate. Green Pandanus
leaves are picked and placed on the fire and then
put in sun to dry until they turn a tan-ish white. The
handle of a knife is later used to flatten the leaves.

There are hundreds of different “designs” that can
be woven into mats. To the untrained eye the
weave looks like a beautiful design, but it is actually
a woven story. Narratives can be woven into mats
and clothing. Such narratives are passed down
during the Lengwasa ritual. No component of the
mat weaving practice is written down, neither are
the narratives, everything is to be passed down
orally during Lengwasa (Lee Ann Wilson, 2016).

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MAGIC

One of the most intriguing observations was the role of magic in Ni-Vanuatu
society. It is commonly held that the highest ranking ngwotari have black and white
magic powers. Magic is used to explain the death of children, an unexpected
sickness, the ability to bring water atop mountains, even instant disappearing acts.

Stones have particular significance in Vanuatu; many are believed to be imbued
with mana and others house the spirits of dead men. Most of the large stones and
rocks in the sea on Maewo are said to be from spirits which have turned into
stones.

22

MEN'S KASTOM

ON MAEWO ISLAND

Women’s kastom is different from Two of the three rasas of Maewo
men’s kastom and the two categories Island at the Banganvanua Festival.
are closed off to each other. Hence,
as a female researcher little Photo Credit: Michael Wyrick.
information was gleaned. The men’s
sungwe is a hierarchically graded
system based on the acquisition of
titles through the performance of
rituals, the sacrifice and payment of
pigs (and mats), feasting, different
regalia for each successive grade,
and the acquisition of more powerful
mana as one reaches the higher
grades (Hume, 1986). Although
several old men stated that they
remembered men of their father’s
generation who had attained the
higher grades, the highest grade
now held by any living man on
Maewo is grade three, rasa. Much of
the knowledge pertaining to the
highest grades up to grade 10 is now
lost, as the old men who knew about
such kastom passed away.

23

ENDANGERED

CULTURE

Honorable Ian Wilson Toakalana, Member of Parliament for Maewo Island,
estimated that 60 percent of Maewo’s original culture has been lost (Toakalana,
2016). Only 40 percent of kastom remains and expressed the importance of
preserving the remaining 40 percent. This is a particularly challenging task
because the youth are drawn to Westernization and the older community members
believe that kastom is oral tradition and once kastom is written down it is dead. The
situation is further complicated by the belief that what is gone will one day be
born again. For example, up until twenty years ago residents sang songs
composed at the time when Noah got off the ark. Maewo residents believe a man
was born between 1970-1980 with the ability to compose contemporary kastom
songs. This created a bit of a kastom revival because it is now possible to sing
kastom songs about each other, not just the ancestors (Rasa Freddy Wilson, 2016).
Additional evidence can be found in the fact that the rasa practice was dead for 28
years. Recently, another man was found with rasa grade structure knowledge. The
knowledge was bought by the current rasas as to continue the rasa tradition. There
is a custom of buying knowledge throughout Maewo Island.

Many of the chief’s previous sources of power are no longer workable: the Ni-
Vanuatu government has a monopoly on the use of force; chiefs are no longer
revered for their supernatural powers, and they often no longer have control over
community land. Consequently chiefs today rely entirely on one fragile source of
power: respect. The concept of respect in Vanuatu is extremely important. It
involves living harmoniously and peacefully with others, looking after community,
family members, and the environment, and observing social norms (Forsyth, 2009).

24

CHALLENGES

The greatest challenge in conducting fieldwork on Maewo Island was the role of
secrecy in Ni-Vanuatu culture. Traditional knowledge in Maewo is held in high
regard and individuals must earn the rights to knowledge through certain
ceremonies. For women traditional knowledge is earned during the Lengwasa
ritual. Those who have not undertaken the Lengwasa ritual, such as this researcher,
were not privy to the certain aspects of traditional knowledge. By observing some
rituals and participating in daily activities, I was able earn a certain measure of trust
within the ngwotari community and was made privy to parts of the culture not
formally revealed.

In order to fulfill research goal number four, I originally intended to continue
research on Tanna Island, home of the Prince Philip Tribe. It was reported there was
a young Tannese girl selected to marry Prince Philip when he is reincarnated and
returns to Tanna as a healthy Melanesian man. I intended to spend time with her
and other tribal members to compare her role in a male dominant society to the role
of women in matrilineal Maewo. It turned out that there was no Tannese girl to
interview because she existed solely as a spirit in a rock. Furthermore, there was a
dramatic spike in violence against women. As a result, I decided to divert my
research energies to conduct further studies on the ngwotari in Maewo Island.

25

DISCUSSION

This pioneering field research has led to significant discoveries that advance
understanding of the role of gender norms, female chiefs, and ngwotari in Ni-
Vanuatu society. The team met, observed, and interviewed the ngwotari of Maewo
Island and female chiefs throughout Vanuatu. The major limitation of the
expedition was the ritual knowledge barrier. Although I gained some measure of
trust and was privy to certain rituals and kastoms, I had not gone through Lengwasa
and was not privy to many aspects of ngwotari practices and powers. Should
further research be conducted, I must first undertake the Lengwasa ritual to then
gain deeper insight.

The expedition culminated in a meeting with the Malvatumaruri who revealed that
in the future it was possible for female chiefs to be admitted into the Malvatumauri,
with all the same jurisdiction and rights as male chiefs. Alcita Vuti, acting head of
the Malvatumaruri, acknowledged in his home of Ambae, the term “female chief” is
appropriate and is used for and by some women (Vuti, 2016). It is not yet clear if any
female chiefs will be brought forward by area councils for the approval by the
national level of the Malvatumaruri - but the dialogue is in place.

26

Local and international media outlets were utilized to highlight the unique and
endangered culture on Maewo Island. By acknowledging women have their own
kastom facilities, public awareness of the importance of women’s contribution to
the bedrock of Vanuatu society was highlighted.

There is a troubling fallacy that pockets of communities practicing traditional
culture unconsumed by technology and globalization are somehow leftovers of a
past era. Nothing could be further from the truth. They are modern men and
women who continue to defend their unique way of life and prove that there are
other ways of interacting with the Earth.

Kastom Dance from Naone Village

27

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This expedition could not have been actualized without the financial support and
sponsorship of The Explorers Club Mamont Scholar Program and WINGS
Worldquest. I express immense gratitude for their support.

The expedition was a success due to the expertise and leadership of Dr. Lew
Toulmin and Dalsie Baniala. Rewards of an expedition come not just from where
you go but who you go with. My gratitude goes to Michael Wyrick and Corey Huber
for sharing their Vanuatu wisdom and our palatial hut. I thank Daniel Huang and
Theresa Menders for masterfully capturing the festival.

I am grateful to all of the following for their floor space, encouragement, support,
cups of coffee, and logistical assistance (and sometimes all at once): Lea Chin,
Sydney Eberwein, Carlos Echeverria, Emma Hollingsworth, Shannon Tomlinso,
Chelon Rieniets, and Derek Steffens. Your enthusiasm gave me confidence to
continue.

A big thank you to Rasa Freddy and the entire Wilson family for opening your home,
nakamal, and sharing your complex culture. Finally my gratitude to the people of
Vanuatu for their generosity and unfailing kindness of spirit: keeping me fed and
sheltered, and sharing insight into the complexities of your ways, experiences, and
knowledge.

Tankiu Tumas!

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WORKS CITED

Dick, Thomas. 2014. “Gender Creativity, and Cultural Heritage: A Case Study of the Vanuatu
Women’s Water Music.” United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.

Daily Southern Cross. 1871. “Disappearance of One of the New Hebrides Islands.” (27): 2.

Forsyth, Miranda. 2009. A Bird that Flies with Two Wings: the Operation of the Kastom System in
Vanuatu Today. Canberra: ANU Press.

Huffman, Kirk. 2005. Traditional Money Banks Vanuatu. Port Vila: Vanuatu National Cultural Council.

Hume, Lynne. 1985. “Making Lengwasa: A Women’s Pig-Killing Ritual on Maewo (Aurora), Vanuatu.”
Oceania 55 (4): 272-287.

Hume, Lynne. 1986. “Church and Custom on Maewo, Vanuatu.” Oceania 56 (4): 304 - 313.

John, Phoebe. Interview by Lew Toulmin and Alfred Baniuri. Personal Interview. Port Vila, Efate. 31
August 2016.

Jolly, Margaret. 1994. Women of the Place: Kastom, Colonialism and Gender in Vanuatu.
Philadelphia: Harwood Academic Press.

Leona, Doreen Mwei Amuna. Interview by Lew Toulmin and Michael Wyrick. Tape Recording. Port
Vila, Efate. 16 August 2016.

Lini, Salvantamana Hilda. Interview by Lew Toulmin and Michael Wyrick. Tape Recording. Port Vila,
Efate. 01 September 2016.

Vuti, Alcita. Interview by Lew Toulmin. Personal Interview. Port Vila, Efate. 29 August 2016.

Toakalana, Ian Wilson. Interview by Sophie Hollingsworth. Personal interview. Maewo Island. 29
August 2016.

Wilson, Lee Ann. Interview by Sophie Hollingsworth. Personal interview. Maewo Island. 26 August 2016.

Wilson, Rasa Freddy. Interview by Sophie Hollingsworth. Personal Interview. Maewo Island. 28
August 2016.

World Factbook 2013-14. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency.
www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/nh.html

ALE TATA.