An open letter to Sue Fitcher – Getaway Trekking

by Charlie | Jun 23, 2019 | Uncategorized

Dear Sue,

Your comments regarding a person you did not have the courage to name at the KTA Trek Operators Forum in Port Moresby have been forwarded to me,

I believe you addressed the forum in your capacity as President of the Kokoda Tour Operators Association (KTOA) which was established to look after the interests of a small but vocal group of Australian based eco-tour operators.

According to the minutes of the forum you stated – some said it was more of a shriek – but I can’t comment because I wasn’t present:

^{‘It is time to call out those who would choose to damage and destroy the industry for whatever warped vested interests they have – who would know. We have talked about some of the claims and accusations that have been made earlier; it is interesting to note that are rarely if ever, are they made in person, but through others or from the safety of sitting behind a computer and ranting through social media. It does appear to confirm the adage that bullies are always cowards.}

^{‘It would be easy to dismiss the negative comments and accusations thrown around as the bitter ramblings of someone, struggling with their declining relevance.  However, that would be to ignore the damage and destruction being caused to our businesses, our industry and the country we love.’}

^{This is obviously an unfair smear against the 22 trek operators licensed by the PNG Kokoda Track Authority who do not belong to your small association which has just 8 active members.}

^{I was somewhat relieved to think that you could not have possibly been talking about me because I put my name to everything I publish as you well know – a check of our Adventure Kokoda blog; a review of the articles I have written; and the numerous papers I have submitted will verify this.}

^{However I do acknowledge that some of my blogs have been critical of your association because of the level of exploitation you tolerate in regard to the PNG guides and carriers you engage – and the fake research you use to justify it. I appreciate that there is a remote possibility that you could have been referring to me so I hope this blog post will clarify my concerns.}

An open Letter to Wayne Fitcher – Getaway Trekking

by Charlie | Jun 9, 2019 | Uncategorized

Dear Wayne,

I’ve been told that you recently accused Adventure Kokoda of trekking into a village at night as part of your submission to the KTA Trek Operators Forum in Port Moresby – apparently you believe this was a ‘crossing of the line’.

You’re probably right Wayne.

As you know Adventure Kokoda specialises in the military history of the Kokoda campaign – it’s all we do. Our feedback indicates that trekkers join us because of our specialist knowledge in strategy, tactics, phases of war and the principles applicable to each phase.

In the mid-60s some of our trek leaders were trained as young officers by veterans who fought in the Kokoda campaign in 1942. They were aware of the old adage that ‘the jungle can be your best friend or your worst enemy’ and trained us accordingly.

Among our trek leaders is a Sword of Honour recipient from the Royal Military College, Duntroon. Another commanded two Royal Australian Navy battleships – they were both judged ‘Ship of the Year’ under his command. Two others have served in recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. This breadth of experience allows us to apply our collective knowledge to our presentations at significant battle-sites along the way and this inevitably leads to lengthy discussion amongst our trekkers which extends the amount of time we spend at some sites.

There are often times when eco-trekking groups such as your company, Getaway Trekking, pass by these sites with little more than a pause while their guide reads a chapter from a book. They then press on to ensure they reach their campsite early in the afternoon. (more…)

Help Reverse the KTA Death Sentence for 14 Year Old Kokoda Schoolgirl

by Charlie | May 8, 2019 | Uncategorized

‘Our daughter’s health is our priority and the further delay of her operation has been a concern for us which is becoming desperate, thereby resulting in our plea for your assistance’ wrote Mrs Doreen Dumu, a nurse at the Kokoda Hospital on 29 January 2019.

Her 14 year-old daughter, Freda, has a serious heart condition – Tetralogy Fallot which is a serious congenital heart defect. The surgery she requires is not available in PNG and the cost of the operation and rehabilitation in Australia is in excess of $100,000.

I first approached our friends in the Children’s First Foundation who did their best to assist but the cost of the operation was beyond their resources in view of their current commitments.

I then tried Rotary Oceana Medical Aid for Children (ROMAC). They were also keen to assist but there seems to be an issue with Children’s Hospitals in NSW accepting patients from the Pacific.

I wrote to the Minister for Health to see if he could check it out on our behalf but did not receive a response.

I then contacted the Kokoda Track Authority (KTA) and suggested that they require every trek operator to submit the name and contact details of each of the trekkers they would be leading across the trail during the Anzac period on an Exel Sheet – a practice that should have been put in place a decade ago to capture the contact details of the 45,000 Australians who have trekked Kokoda over the past decade.

This would have allowed the KTA to contact each of the 600 Australians who trekked Kokoda during the Anzac period to seek donations for Freda’s operation.

For reasons known only to the KTA they did not respond. (more…)

150 Kokoda Porters jobs lost over Anzac period

by Charlie | Apr 12, 2019 | Uncategorized

Up to 600 trekkers will be on the Kokoda Trail during the Anzac period over the next fortnight.

The Australian Tour Operators Association (KTOA) , established to protect the interests of their members, has refused to adopt the WW2 army standard of 18 kg as the maximum weight to be carried by the PNG wartime carriers in 1942. Instead, the KTOA has adopted a weight of 22.5 kg established by an Australian bureaucrat who had never trekked across the trail.

The 4.5 kg difference will lead to the loss of 150 jobs for local Koiari and Orokaiva villagers during the Anzac period (4.5 kg X 600 = 2700 kg ÷ 18 kg = 150).

Porters required to carry 22.5 kg by the KTOA for 138 km over some of the most rugged terrain on the planet will have a limited trekking career due to the heavy physical impact on their backs, hips and knees. Unlike professional footballers who have similar career limitations due to the physical impact on their bodies there is no post-playing career for them for Kokoda porters – just a lifetime dependency on their fellow subsistence villagers for physical assistance.

Shameless exploitation of vulnerable native populations used to be referred to as ‘blackbirding ‘ – a practice that was eventually outlawed in the early part of the 20th Century – it seems the KTOA is shamefully introducing a new strain of this abhorrent practice.

Government apathy towards Kokoda

by Charlie | Mar 21, 2019 | Uncategorized

When we first submitted a proposal for the Kokoda Trail to be proclaimed as a National Memorial Park in 1992 and included some suggestions as to what could be done to develop it is such a way that future trekkers would be able to appreciate the historical significance of the various battlesites we thought it would be readily embraced by the Federal Government.

 Unfortunately we had not reckoned on the limitations of Ministers without leadership or vision or the negative influence of  their departmental bureaucrats.  The following extracts from proposals we have submitted over the decade between the 50th and 60th anniversaries of the Kokoda campaign provides an insight into their indifference towards the Kokoda Trail and everything it represents:

4 November 1992
‘While the proposals you have outlined in your letter of 25 August (1992) to the Prime Minister have undoubted merit, I can give no undertaking that anything of that nature would fall within the scope of the commemorative measures now under consideration’.
The Hon Ben Humphreys MP
Minister for Veterans Affairs

22 February 1995
‘The Government’s philosophy is to commemorate and celebrate the 50^th anniversary of the end of World War 11 with activities here in Australia. The only specific events relating to ‘Australia Remembers’ planned for overseas are three small pilgrimages of Australian veterans.’
The Hon Con Sciacca MP
Minister for Veterans Affairs

24 June 1997
“As a result it is not possible to award the Civilian Service Medal to the ‘Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels’ at this distance in time.’
The Hon David Jull MP
Minister for Administrative Services

10 November 1997
‘Your suggestion to form a small working group has merit.  However, I do not recommend proceeding in this way at this time.’
The Hon Bruce Scott MP
Minister for Veterans Affairs

11 December 2000
‘Your proposal to develop the Trail is unfortunately outside the scope of the Australian aid program.”
Senator Kay Patterson
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs

7 December 2000
‘With these limitations in mind, I regret I am unable to offer any prospect of achieving the all-of-government approach you seek in the time frame you propose.’
The Hon Bruce Scott MP
Minister for Veterans Affairs (more…)

The Kokoda Trail:  Official Naming Rights

by Charlie | Mar 21, 2019 | Uncategorized

Ownership of the naming rights for the Kokoda Trail has been contested in Australia in recent years.

• Do they belong to the nation which retains sovereign ownership of the land between Owers Corner and Kokoda i.e. Papua New Guinea?

• Or to the Papuan Infantry Battalion and the 10 Australian Battalions who were awarded the official battle honour ‘Kokoda Trail’?

• Or to the custodians of political correctness amongst the Australian commentariat who dislike the name ‘trail’ because of its American connotation?

Over the past decade almost 45,000 Australians have trekked across the Kokoda Trail in Papua New Guinea. Most trekkers are motivated by the wartime history of the Kokoda campaign. This this has led to a range of books and television stories on the subject. It has also led to some extensive debate about the official name of the trail.

Contemporary debate over the name evolved after former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating kissed the ground at Kokoda on the 50th anniversary of the campaign in April 1992. This was accompanied by much ‘talkback’ noise about ‘trail’ being an American term and ‘track’ being the language of the Australian bush (ignoring the fact that our bush is criss-crossed with fire-trails).  This suited Keating’s agenda for an Australian republic at the time.

The debate suited those in the Australian commentariat who harboured a strong anti-American bias over their engagement in Iraq around the time of the 60^th anniversary of the Kokoda campaign. As most of the commentariat had never served in the regular armed forces they could be excused for not appreciating the esprit de corps associated with a battle honour. This, however, does not excuse them for ambushing a name that doesn’t reflect their political bias.

‘Kokoda Track’ has since emerged as the politically correct term in Australia in spite of the fact that the battle honour ‘Kokoda Trail’ was awarded to the Papuan Infantry Battalion and the 10 Australian battalions who fought in the Kokoda campaign and the name gazetted by the traditional owners of the land in 1972 i.e. the Government of Papua New Guinea. (more…)