The carnival of custom: land dives, millenarian parades and other spectacular ritualizations in Vanuatu.

The carnival of custom: land dives, millenarian parades and other spectacular ritualizations in Vanuatu. INTRODUCTION Independent since 1980, the Republic of Vanuatu (the formerAnglo-French condominium of the New Hebrides New Hebrides(hĕb`rĭdēz), Fr. Nouvelles Hébrides: see Vanuatu. ) is a parliamentarydemocracy parliamentary democracyDemocratic form of government in which the party (or a coalition of parties) with the greatest representation in the parliament (legislature) forms the government, its leader becoming prime minister or chancellor. , whose constitution claims to represent both'Christianity' and 'kastom' (custom in English). TheChurch and Christian values The term Christian values usually refers to the values the speaker feels represent those found in the teachings of Christ as described in parts of the United States.The biblical teachings of Christ include , plausible sources of inspiration for thecreation of aesthetic forms, do not seem to have much influencedcontemporary ni-Vanuatu artists; at least not obviously (Watt 2003),except negatively in occasional allusions recalling themissionaries' excessive zeal against kastom. However, theexaltation of Christianity and the idealization idealization/ide��al��iza��tion/ (i-de?il-i-za��shun) a conscious or unconscious mental mechanism in which the individual overestimates an admired aspect or attribute of another person. of what the Melanesiansdesignate by the term kastom are governed by interdependent processes.For the glorified glo��ri��fy?tr.v. glo��ri��fied, glo��ri��fy��ing, glo��ri��fies1. To give glory, honor, or high praise to; exalt.2. vision of an ancestral tradition untarnished bycolonial alienation, valued as a last bastion against the perverseeffects of globalization globalizationProcess by which the experience of everyday life, marked by the diffusion of commodities and ideas, is becoming standardized around the world. Factors that have contributed to globalization include increasingly sophisticated communications and transportation , corresponds perfectly to the representationsof a Christian humanism Christian humanism is the belief that human freedom and individualism are compatible with the practice of Christianity or intrinsic in its doctrine. It is a philosophical union of Christian and humanist principles. for which, as a last resort, God originallycreated kastom. Nowadays, even though kastom or the Church have becomeopen to criticism, God and Jesus on the other hand remain untouchable untouchableFormer classification of various low-status persons and those outside the Hindu caste system in Indian society. The term Dalit is now used for such people (in preference to Mohandas K. figures. (1) Based essentially in Port Vila Noun 1. Port Vila - capital of Vanuatucapital of Vanuatu, VilaNew Hebrides, Republic of Vanuatu, Vanuatu - a volcanic island republic in Melanesia; independent since 1980 , the capital, the country'sartistic avant-garde, both that of the old and of the new generation, ispresupposed to be Christian. However, there are few modern artists whodo not draw part of their creativity from customary style (Regenvanu1996, 2003). But the fact remains that the creators of'modernist' contemporary forms only occupy a tiny space in thekastom repertoire.Most 'artists' in Vanuatu do not considerthemselves 'artists' but man blong kastom (in Bislama) orcoutumiers (in French). (2) For it is somewhat paradoxical that kastomhas here been raised to the level of art: an art of living in harmony "Living in Harmony" is an episode of the 1967-68 television series The Prisoner. It differs from most other episodes of the series in that it does not begin with the show's standard opening credits sequence. with the values of the past revived in the present. (3) This aestheticization of a 'kastom people', to useBabadzan's term (1988), its transformation into a sublimated imagethrough a deritualization of the ceremonial acts, formerly strictlycult-related, of the groups forming it, simultaneously reveals andconceals the political dimension of the collective identificationaspects subjacent subjacent/sub��ja��cent/ (sub-ja��sent) located beneath. sub��ja��centadj.Below or beneath another part. to this process. This theme of 'theaestheticization of the political' (Benjamin 1971), today part ofthe generalized aestheticization phenomena in which, through itsde-aestheticization, art is reduced to its exchange value, is, as in somany other places in the global village, extremely topical in Vanuatu.Halfway between the classic systems of culturalist propaganda conveyedby ethnonationalist movements and the culture business in the globalizedworld, the valorisation The valorization of capital is a concept created by Karl Marx in his critique of political economy. The German original term is "Verwertung" (specifically Kapitalverwertung at various scales of a national customaryheritage in Vanuatu appears to be a paradox. Situated between politicsand commercialization as a commodity, kastom is seen here both as thetarget and the remedy for the main ills brought by westernization west��ern��ize?tr.v. west��ern��ized, west��ern��iz��ing, west��ern��iz��esTo convert to the customs of Western civilization.west , justas the spirit of Christianity is considered to act as its safeguard. (4)It is certain ambivalences of this aestheticization of kastom that Iwish to clarify in this article. My analysis will concentrateparticularly on the peculiar aspects of the historical transformation ofgreat ritual ceremonies into neo-traditional artistic performances,whose novelty resides in their quality as objective mediums for therepresentation of new collective identities. There is plainly a great deal of disparity in ni-Vanuatucitizens' degree of proximity to or distance from the daily lifestipulated by kastom, that is to say, essentially one with a domesticmode of production (Sahlins, 1976) peculiar to the village socialorganization of the inhabitants of outlying islands Outlying Islands may refer to different things: Outlying Islands, Hong Kong, islands outside mainland New Territories, Kowloon and Hong Kong Island in Hong Kong. Islands District, Hong Kong, a Hong Kong district. or of certain oftheir zones where the rapidly developing money economy still remainssecondary. But none of them is unaware of the aesthetic and spiritualevents with which the quintessence quin��tes��sence?n.1. The pure, highly concentrated essence of a thing.2. The purest or most typical instance: the quintessence of evil.3. of the cultural identities theysymbolize is associated. These customs promoted by different agents tothe rank of cultural symbols are also those repeatedly shown in touristbrochures to encourage visitors to discover the 'real Vanuatu'from its eminently spectacular angles, even though kastom, or ratherkastoms in the plural, cannot be reduced simply to the category of the'performing arts'. The most famous of these regular eventsinclude in particular the Gol land dive in the south of PentecostIsland Pentecost Island is one of the 83 islands that make up the South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies 190 km (118 mi) due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost Island is known as Pentec?te in French. , the Rom dances on Ambrym, the initiatory in��i��ti��a��to��ry?adj.1. Introductory; initial.2. Tending or used to initiate.Adj. 1. initiatory sand drawings in thenorthern central islands, the Nekowiar ceremonies and the cargoistcelebrations of the followers of the John Frum John Frum (or Jon Frum; John From) is a figure associated with cargo cults on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu. He is depicted as an American World War II serviceman, who will bring wealth and prosperity to the people if they follow him. cult on Tanna. Since the1970s the organization of 'festivals of traditional arts',found in all the Pacific States The Pacific States form one of the nine geographic divisions within the United States that are officially recognized by that country's census bureau.There are five states in this division — Alaska, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington — and, as its name , has been added to these. The importance and the diversity of the secular or religious ritualpractices, in an archipelago of 80 inhabited islands in which over ahundred languages are spoken and where dozens of different churcheswhich are the never-ending source of a multitude of syncretisms arepresent, make determining definitive general trends or uniqueconvergences in the realm of ceremonial organization and its politicalor religious justifications uncertain. Hence the interest represented bythe aestheticization of ritual processes for the anthropological studyof the drastic contemporary cultural changes. In the following pages, Ishall reserve the term 'neo-ritualizations' for the bigceremonial carnivals and other folk festivals whose traditional referenthas been replaced by a celebration of the kastom theme itself, as theofficial value of a regional, national, even pan-Melanesian culturalheritage. Expressions of a spiritually powerful material culture, animmaterial heritage of quasi-universal significance, encouraged by thestate and commercially exploited by the tour operators, these highkastom masses are simultaneously represented as autonomous,autochthonous autochthonous/au��toch��tho��nous/ (aw-tok��thah-nus)1. originating in the same area in which it is found.2. denoting a tissue graft to a new site on the same individual. popular arts and traditions. The 'Gol land dive'ceremony or 'Gol dance' on Pentecost Island and the annualceremonies of the John Frum millenarian mil��le��nar��i��an?adj.1. Of or relating to a thousand, especially to a thousand years.2. Of, relating to, or believing in the doctrine of the millennium.n.One who believes the millennium will occur. movement on Tanna will providetwo examples on which to base our analysis. (5) KASTOM AND POST-TRADITIONAL RITUALIZATIONS One could of course include in this category of neo-ritualizationsin Vanuatu public life all kinds of neo-customary events, sometimes evenanti-customary or neo-pagan ones. The innumerable formal aspects of thestaging of kastom on a state level, the collective explosions ofPentecostal fervour during neo-evangelist days in the islands orChristian Crusades in an urban setting, the increase of witchcraftphenomena in Port Vila, the 'custom villages' turned intotheatrical productions for tourism, the sacrificial consumption ofdozens of tons of kava every day, are just so many examples. However,unlike the latter, the former neo-ritualizations are not the occasionfor any fundamental protest. The politics of tradition are always moreoften denounced locally as abuses of kastom for political or economicends. But these political stands against the instrumentalization ofkastom never seem to denigrate den��i��grate?tr.v. den��i��grat��ed, den��i��grat��ing, den��i��grates1. To attack the character or reputation of; speak ill of; defame.2. 'true' kastom, that which itwould be blasphemous blas��phe��mous?adj.Impiously irreverent.[Middle English blasfemous, from Late Latin blasph to manipulate. For, in Vanuatu, with thepersistence of interregional in��ter��re��gion��al?adj.Of, involving, or connecting two or more regions: interregional migration; interregional banking.tensions and the massive emergence of amiddle-class and an underclass in urban areas, kastom is more than everseen as the ultimate factor of unity, in contrast to the divisionspolitics are thought to provoke. Some of the big celebrations of customary art in Vanuatu are basedon complex preexisting ceremonials, other have been created morerecently. But in both cases, their rediscovery or reinvention can behistorically dated with accuracy. The craze for this type ofneo-ritualization has remained strong since they were first officiallypromoted for purposes of national construction in the context of theprocess of accession to independence which began in the 1970s. Becausethey are meant to unite the Vanuatu people despite their culturaldiversity, these spectacular ritual expressions are seen as beneficialto the spirit of Melanesian values for which the big ceremonial eventsare thought to be the main vector. It is generally acknowledged thatthese neo-ritualizations should be preserved for they represent theessence of a kastom increasingly threatened by acculturation acculturation,culture changes resulting from contact among various societies over time. Contact may have distinct results, such as the borrowing of certain traits by one culture from another, or the relative fusion of separate cultures. pressures,commercialization and all kinds of attempts at political manipulation.Another significant characteristic is that their preservation is alsolinked to the technical aspects of their reproducibility anddistribution for the peculiarity of this tip of the kastom iceberg isits visual quality. It is therefore a matter of a tangibleessentialization for, since the renewal of interest in them, theseritualizations have been continuously filmed, photographed and sketched;these revived ceremonies could neither have received huge media coveragenor have been valorised without this picturesque dimension or theirfilmic film��ic?adj.Of, relating to, or characteristic of movies; cinematic.filmi��cal��ly adv. interest. On the southern island of Tanna, on the other hand, festivities fes��tiv��i��ty?n. pl. fes��tiv��i��ties1. A joyous feast, holiday, or celebration; a festival.2. The pleasure, joy, and gaiety of a festival or celebration.3. ofanother kind have been going on without interruption since 1957. Theannual commemoration on the 15 February of John Frum for the followersof this supernatural figure is also related to the preservation ofkastom. Yet these celebrations, just like the cult surrounding them, donot appear to have any traditional aspect (traditional in the sense ofpre-colonial): hoisting the American flag, military parades, bushtheatre or hip-hop kind dancing are at the centre of the show.Nevertheless, the history of these ceremonies is presented by thefollowers of this millenarian movement as being at the very origin ofthe 'saving of kastom' undertaken by John Frum. Initiallyconceived of as an act of resistance against colonialism, then, afterindependence, as a sign of opposition to the sovereign state SOVEREIGN STATE. One which governs itself independently of any foreign power. , thesefestivities have been the victim of attempts, by the country'sauthorities or other official representatives of the cultural sector, todisempower dis��em��pow��er?tr.v. dis��em��pow��ered, dis��em��pow��er��ing, dis��em��pow��ersTo deprive of power or influence.dis them through a process of folklorization. Nonetheless, sincethe year 2000 these endeavours at institutionalization InstitutionalizationThe gradual domination of financial markets by institutional investors, as opposed to individual investors. This process has occurred throughout the industrialized world. have failed. Theanalysis of these celebrations' recent history highlights theoriginality of these ceremonial forms. By incorporating various externalinfluences to which they are opposed, they accompany the constantintensification of acculturation pressures, by introducing aritualization Ritualization is a behavior that occurs typically in the member of a given species in a highly stereotyped fashion and independent of any direct physiological significance.Ritualization is also associated with the work of the religious studies scholar Catherine Bell. of the insurmountable cultural contradictions provoked bythe same changes. But should one for all that make a distinction between these twotypes of ceremonial events? Assimilate the first to a folk caricature ofits traditional or pre-colonial version and the second to an aberrantform of ritualization of modernity or at least of those of itsinfluences which prove to be of insurmountable alterity Al`ter´i`tyn. 1. The state or quality of being other; a being otherwise.For outness is but the feeling of otherness (alterity) rendered intuitive, or alterityvisually represented. ? Is it pertinentto consider certain big neo-ritual performances as imported techniques,state commissions motivated by political imperatives and encouraged bythe financial greed of tourism companies, international firms andmedias, in order to contrast them with others said to be spontaneous orpart of purely local collective identifications, aimed at appropriatingforeign power, with the indigenization In anthropological terms, to "indigenize" means to transform things to fit the local culture. Most changes in original culture occur when western corporations impose their products on other economies, Westernizing. of the cultural contradictionscreated by acculturation pressures (Sahlins 1992)? In short, are thefirst products of ideological mystifications while the second arespontaneous and authentic and express a spiritual fervour invariably in��var��i��a��ble?adj.Not changing or subject to change; constant.in��vari��a��bil shared in the present as in the past? This kind of 'variable geometry' interpretation seemsdifficult to apply for two reasons. The same actors can be found in bothtypes of performances. The media interest in and coverage of certainneo-rituals formerly considered as 'pathological', becausethey served as vehicles for political dissidence dis��si��dence?n.Disagreement, as of opinion or belief; dissent.Noun 1. dissidence - disagreement; especially disagreement with the governmentdisagreement - the speech act of disagreeing or arguing or disputing , is growing. Theinstrumentalization or the abuse of these neo-rituals is similarlydisparaged in the different cases: religious expressions stemming froman established common cultural heritage, they would seem to be used forthe sole profit of outside speculators. The participants do not seethese ceremonies as false rituals but as rituals which have beendiverted from their former reason for being. Their original motivationhas disappeared behind the decontextualized performance, theessentialized identities they present. These neo-ritualizations make theparticipants themselves, their culture as an essence, the subject of theproduction. There is therefore no longer any religious referent otherthan the simple ritual staging of the officiants by the participants(locals or visitors) and vice versa VICE VERSA. On the contrary; on opposite sides. : the rite is celebrated as theobject of a collective subject itself transformed into a thing throughthis effect of mirror inversion. By taking famous ethnographic examplesfrom the regional traditions of the islands of Pentecost and Tanna, Ishall try to go into these different points. PENTECOST KASTOM REVISITED: THE NAGOL LAND DIVE IN COLONIAL TIMES The Nagol is a very colourful ritual performance. On the Melanesianscale, it appears just as emblematic as the ASARO Mudmen The Asarao Mudmen come from just outside the town of Goroka in the Eastern Highlands Province of Papua New Guinea.The legend that surrounds the reason the mudmen appear the way they are is that they were defeated by an opposing tribe and forced to flee into the Asaro River. of the EasternHighlands Eastern Highlands,c.2,400 mi (3,860 km) long, general name for the mountains and plateaus roughly paralleling the east and southeast coasts of Australia (including Tasmania) and forming the Continental Divide (see Great Dividing Range); rises to Mt. , Papua New Guinea Papua New Guinea(păp`ə, –y or the Laulasi shark-callers in the SolomonIslands Solomon Islands,independent Commonwealth nation (2005 est. pop. 538,000), c.15,500 sq mi (40,150 sq km), SW Pacific, E of New Guinea. The islands that constitute the nation of the Solomon Islands—Guadalcanal, Malaita, New Georgia, the Santa Cruz Islands, . The authors of the travel guide 100 Things to Do Before YouDie: Travel Events You Just Can't Miss (Teplica & Freeman,1999) have no hesitation in listing this 'spesol (special)kastom' among the hundred most spectacular attractions in theworld. Both an agrarian and an initiation ritual, the Nagol (Gol,N'Gol or Nangol) means the 'body' in the Sa language ofPentecost. On this occasion, the men of Pentecost Island defy death byjumping into empty space, from a tower (nagol) thirty metres high, withvines tied to their ankles to break their fall. An origin myth illustrating the theme of relations between thegenders corresponds to this ritual associated with yam cultivation.Though, originally, a woman was the first to dive, the prohibitionsregarding her female descendants concern both the stages of thetower's construction and the dive. The Nagol's sexualconnotations are explicit: the anthropomorphism anthropomorphism(ăn'thrəpōmôr`fĭzəm)[Gr.,=having human form], in religion, conception of divinity as being in human form or having human characteristics. with which the tower isendowed evokes a bisexual human body; the different varieties of yams,whose growth the Nagol encourages, are related only to the male body.This emblematic splitting into two phallic phallic/phal��lic/ (-ik) pertaining to or resembling a phallus. phal��licadj.1. Of, relating to, or resembling a phallus.2. symbols, the tower and theyam (the male tuber par excellence) also lends an initiatory dimensionto the performance of the dive for the youngest divers and exalts themature power of the warriors. Though the ritual's origin dates backto a pre-colonial period, the construction of a tower, however, is amore recent creation. Despite its stone-age, vegetable Eiffel Tower Eiffel Tower,structure designed by A. G. Eiffel and erected in the Champ-de-Mars for the Paris exposition of 1889. The tower is 984 ft (300 m) high and consists of an iron framework supported on four masonry piers, from which rise four columns uniting to form one appearance, it would seem to have been first built when white peopledistributed machetes, (6) a fact which in no way detracts from thetechnical skill represented by the building and the stability of suchstructures. The Nagol has been a somewhat marginal subject of study forethnologists. An omission all the more surprising as this ritual seemsto be almost unique of its kind. Bonnemaison (1996: 136) claims thatformerly it also existed in the south of Malekula and on Ambrym butwithout producing any evidence. Very little is known about itspre-colonial origins apart from vague memories conveyed by mythology andoral tradition. It is very likely that with the arrival of Christianitythis practice was gradually limited to a few villages, which hadremained heathen, in the south-east of the island. Nonetheless, even ifthere was an interruption or a considerable decrease in the practice ofthis traditional activity, the construction techniques and theceremonial practices were handed down. After Tattevin's firstdescriptions (1927), there are no other written observations availablebefore the 1950s (Anthonioz, 1953, 1954; Johnson & Johnson, 1955;Rousillon, 1956; Simpson, 1955). Our aim is not to fill in theseethnographic gaps but to examine the Nagol as a form of revivalism revivalismReawakening of Christian values and commitment. The spiritual fervour of revival-style preaching, typically performed by itinerant, charismatic preachers before large gatherings, is thought to have a restorative effect on those who have been led away from the ,whose contemporary history cannot be separated from the political, legaland economic stakes of today. The first shots of a Nagol go back to the early 1950s. Thehistorical context of colonial rediscovery follows on from therepression of pagan minority groups on the pretence they had beenorganizing anti-missionary and anti-white activities. Described by thecolonial administration as a Cargo cult cargo cult,native religious movement found in Melanesia and New Guinea, holding that at the millennium the spirits of the dead will return and bring with them cargoes of modern goods for distribution among its adherents. The cult had its beginnings in the 19th cent. , this unrest seems in fact tocoincide with the organization of a Warsangul initiatory ceremony (7)during which very large quantities of goods are ostentatiously os��ten��ta��tious?adj.Characterized by or given to ostentation; pretentious. See Synonyms at showy.os accumulated. These events were nonetheless forcibly repressed. Thealleged leaders were arrested and imprisoned on other islands. In 1952,a proposition was made to the ringleaders: in exchange for theirfreedom, the French Resident Commissioner, Pierre Anthonioz, suggestedthat they organize a Nagol ceremony on land belonging to Thevenin, acolonist who had settled on Pentecost. According to according toprep.1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians.2. In keeping with: according to instructions.3. Jolly, 'Theland dives in the colonial period Colonial Period may generally refer to any period in a country's history when it was subject to administration by a colonial power. Korea under Japanese rule Colonial America See alsoColonialism ... are important in constituting theland dive as a tourist spectacle in the postcolonial period'(Jolly, 1994a: 116) or more widely as a 'kastom converted intocolonial spectacle' (Jolly, 1994b: 47). While Thevenin was the first to transpose trans��posev.To transfer one tissue, organ, or part to the place of another. the Nagol into images,the atmosphere of this ritual show was rapidly exploited byprofessionals. In 1954, the Johnson couple would produce no less than1600 photos of it (O'Reilly, 1958: 56). However, the Johnson coupleare themselves only mere precursors of much broader and more intensemedia, then tourist, exploitation. It is, therefore, not only thetourist history of this neo-ritualization which commences in the 1950s,but without any doubt a process of culturalist mediatisation which willsee many new developments. The Nagol's filmic qualities willencourage its commercial use and the instrumentalization of the image ofthe ritual officiants and their communities. With the parallel increasein nationalist demands in the 1970s, then with independence, thequestion of the representation of the performers' collectiveidentity and the politico-economic justifications underpinning it,gradually raised the Nagol to the rank of a state symbol, an emblem ofthe state's measures in favour of the promotion and protection ofMelanesian values. But before this point was reached, it was necessaryto correct the Nagol spectacle, adjust the image of the performers in acolonial show, promote a collective indigenous identity and its culturalexpressions from a sensational angle by linking their origin to the dawnof time. David Attenborough Sir David Frederick Attenborough, OM, CH, CVO, CBE, FRS (born on May 8, 1926 in London, England) is one of the world's best known broadcasters and naturalists. Widely considered one of the pioneers of the nature documentary, his career as the respected face and voice of British , a trained naturalist, later a documentary makerfor the BBC BBCin full British Broadcasting Corp.Publicly financed broadcasting system in Britain. A private company at its founding in 1922, it was replaced by a public corporation under royal charter in 1927. , is in a way the British equivalent of the French JacquesCousteau: a kind of modern hero of media ecology, knighted by the Queenfor his decisive contributions to the invention of the environmentalist environmentalista person with an interest and knowledge about the interaction of humans and animals with the environment. film. One of his first productions concerned the islands of the Pacific.In the series 'People of Paradise', Attenborough (1959)reversed the dominant pre-war trend, continued, for example, in theJohnson couple's documentaries on the inhabitants of the mysteriousislands of Melanesia. Where the latter's productions focus on aworld of cannibals and head-hunters, Attenborough from then onidentified this region of the Pacific as a world endowed with anunspoilt natural environment where societies preserved from the whiteshadows hanging over the South Seas South Seas,name given by early explorers to the whole of the Pacific Ocean. In recent times the name has been used to mean only the central Pacific, the S Pacific, and the SW Pacific. for more than a century continue toexist. The series' third episode, devoted to the 'Goldance' on Pentecost Island, immortalizes this swing towardsidentifying the 'natives' of Melanesia and their cultures withtheir paradise-like environment: a pure world, inhabited by indigenouspeoples uncontaminated by the ills of civilization. Exit blackbirding, forgotten colonial rule and the Christianizationof peoples formerly in decline after contact with white men.Attenborough was thus the first advertising man to promote what is todaythe Vanuatu tourist office's main slogan: 'The untouchedParadise'. With regard to the Nagol in particular, this film, asJean Rouch points out, 'which has no ethnographic pretensions, is avery valuable document on an authentic ceremony. This sequence should betaken and edited separately with an ethnographic commentary by aspecialist'. A vain hope for henceforth such authenticity willbecome the affair of film specialists, specialists of images used tomediatise social relations between men and constituting the subject of auniversal, visual memory for which the 'real' and the'authentic' are obvious filmic facts, just as 'theaesthetics of forms' among the same peoples will become theprerogative of collectors then of museum curators. As announced by GuyDebord's premonitory pre��mo��ni��tion?n.1. A presentiment of the future; a foreboding.2. A warning in advance; a forewarning.[Late Latin praemoniti visions: 'The whole life of societies inwhich modern conditions of production reign, promises to be an immenseaccumulation of spectacles. Everything that used to be directly livedhas retreated into a representation' (Debord, 1967: thesis 1). Another series of major transformations would affect the Nagol withthe arrival on Pentecost of Kal Muller in the 1970s. Before acting as anethnologist eth��nol��o��gy?n.1. The science that analyzes and compares human cultures, as in social structure, language, religion, and technology; cultural anthropology.2. , this photojournalist under contract to the NationalGeographic magazine Geographic magazine may refer to: Africa Geographic Australian Geographic Canadian Geographic G��ographica Geographical Magazine, from the United Kingdom Icelandic Geographic was looking for 'civilizations scarcely touchedby civilization' (Muller, 1970; 1971). For personal and commercialreasons, he was fascinated by the Nagol for this exceptional practicewas seen to combine both an 'authentic' ritual and 'purespectacle' (Muller, 1975: 111). After several months on the island,Muller made friends with the chief of Bunlap, the only village not yetconverted to Christianity. He took many photographs and shot a lot offilm, with the population's approval. One of Muller's businesspartners stated that at the time: 'In Bunlap, the people know verywell that their traditional way of life will not last much longer andthey appreciate one of Kal's fundamental principles: that the filmsare a way of preserving, for the performers, their children andgrandchildren, as well as for potential audiences who are interested,customs which otherwise are destined to be forgotten' (Gourguechon,1974: 310). 'Kal is for kastom and against the entry of the NewHebrides into the European system' (ibid: 311). To reinforce thetraditional side of the Nagol, he excluded from his film everythingreminiscent of European influences. The traditionalist make-up favouredby Muller would be scrupulously applied, then kept, thus inaugurating a'cosmetic recreation of kastom for tourist spectacle' (Jolly,1994a: 144). (8) Muller's adventures on Pentecost did not end there. During hisstay, he took chief Bong of Bunlap on an excursion to the Big-Nambas ofMalekula, with the intention of introducing him to other groups who hadretained their traditional practices. He codified cod��i��fy?tr.v. cod��i��fied, cod��i��fy��ing, cod��i��fies1. To reduce to a code: codify laws.2. To arrange or systematize. the Sa language ofsouth Pentecost and opened a school for the children of Bunlap in theirnative language. But, at the chief's request, he also opened acooperative because the villagers wanted to be able to buy consumergoods consumer goodsAny tangible commodity purchased by households to satisfy their wants and needs. Consumer goods may be durable or nondurable. Durable goods (e.g., autos, furniture, and appliances) have a significant life span, often defined as three years or more, and . With Bong he set up another company to exploit the film rights onthe Nagol. So when Jolly arrived in the field for the first time, shewas suspected of wanting to shoot her own film in order to compete withthe association between the chief of Bunlap and Muller (Jolly, 1994b:9). Finally, to prove his attachment to kastom before leaving, Kalhimself made a dive, thus enacting a Hollywood fantasy worthy of theTarzan films. THE EXPLOITATION OF KASTOM: COMMERCIALIZATION AND PROTECTION OF THENAGOL But things went too far. A few months after Muller'sdeparture, Bong began to organize 'traditional activities' inhis village for tourists, building for the first time on Pentecost a hutfor them (Gourguechon, 1974:312; Jolly, 1994a: 140). At the verybeginning of the 1970s, impressed by the Bunlap pagans' success incommercializing kastom, the Christian villages in the south of theisland were tempted by the power of kastom revival: 'Many reckonedit was a good thing to be able to get money by following kastom byturning this rite [of the Nagol] into a profitable spectacle fortourists' (Jolly, 1994a: 138). Finally, the church itself came torecognize the beneficial aspects of revealing traditional practices inorder to create emblems of a specific cultural identity. Henceforth, theNagol was no longer only worthwhile on a commercial level, but also on apolitical one. Thus, on the occasion of Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, or Elizabeth, may refer to: Living peopleElizabeth II, Queen regnant of the Commonwealth Realms Deceased peopleBohemia II's tourof the New Hebrides, the inhabitants of the Anglican andEnglish-speaking village of Point Cross, were persuaded to organize aNagol in their village, in her honour, in February 1972. Tragically forthem, this historic visit took a dramatic turn: that day, a young diverfrom the village lost his life, when the vines broke as he neared theground. The calendar of kastom had not been respected: in February thevines fixed to the divers' ankles are still too damp for the diveto be safe. This accident has had a considerable impact on the subsequenthistory of the Nagol. The period of the archipelago's demands forpolitical sovereignty up until today has been marked by a drasticincrease of the monetary economy's influence and a rise in theamount of consumer goods available even in zones still remote. The mainconsequence of this performance which went wrong was the start, onPentecost but also over the whole country, of a phase of protest againstthe mercenary or politically illegitimate exploitation of kastom. Atleast three types or levels can be distinguished in this protest--local,national and international--each very different from the other but alldrawing on the same ideological heritage for their claims. The use ofkastom for commercial purposes can be a good thing, but only if itsprinciples are respected by recognizing the customary owners'rights over their land as in their various indigenous culturalactivities, productions and expressions. On the other hand, whenforeigners misappropriate mis��ap��pro��pri��ate?tr.v. mis��ap��pro��pri��at��ed, mis��ap��pro��pri��at��ing, mis��ap��pro��pri��ates1. a. To appropriate wrongly: misappropriating the theories of social science. , for their exclusive profit, the gainsobtained by exploiting a cultural heritage defined as an ancestrallegacy, condemnation is immediate. The ensuing protests tend more andmore to focus on appeals to courts, the promulgation PROMULGATION. The order given to cause a law to be executed, and to make it public it differs from publication. (q.v.) 1 Bl. Com. 45; Stat. 6 H. VI., c. 4. 2. of laws, theapplication of regulations, the implementing of identity policies andthe constitution of economic interest groups. All legal measures areused both imported and those inherited from the colonial system. Locally, then, the Point Cross accident brought older lines ofconflict to the surface once more; but new ones too, about the evils ofcertain ways of instrumentalizing kastom. The pagan kastom people ofBunlap put the blame on those who reinvent kastom locally while nolonger respecting it, that is to say Christians and members of politicalparties who play with kastom without applying its rules. In other groupswho have more recently begun to practise the Nagol again, conflictsarise from an unequal division of the profits. For example, peoplerealize that not all the men get the same amount and that women get less(Jolly, 1994a: 144). The year following the accident the tensionssurrounding these sensitive questions lead to the first legalproceedings All actions that are authorized or sanctioned by law and instituted in a court or a tribunal for the acquisition of rights or the enforcement of remedies. . Their conclusions are particularly enlightening as theNagol ritual is legally recognized as 'work' and the'tribal' group is authorized to claim the exclusive rights ona collective production, as long as it can prove the reality of thecultural identity shared by the group managing its own creations, inaccordance with the laws of the country. All considerations arehenceforth centred on the assertion of the group's identity and theprotection of its image. (9) On a national level, with regard to the ideological repercussions repercussionsnpl → r��percussions fplrepercussionsnpl → Auswirkungen plof promoting Melanesian values in the post-colonial context and forpurposes of national edification ed��i��fi��ca��tion?n.Intellectual, moral, or spiritual improvement; enlightenment.Noun 1. edification - uplifting enlightenmentsophistication , defending kastom against uncontrolledexploitation of the Nagol encourages new political stands. It is notonly the Nagol's technological mediatisation which is contested,but also the ceremonial organization itself. The monetary value of aritual which has been transformed into an economic venture tends todominate its cultural interest and heritage value as a vector ofidentity and spirituality. (10) As chief Telkon Watas of Bunlap pointsout: 'When the Nagol was still a real kastom, it had value. Butsince becoming a business, it no longer has any. People have takenadvantage of this sport. And I have to say that we, the ni-Vanuatu, haveonly ourselves to blame for having once again let kastom go under'(Tiona, 1995). The official institutions of a henceforth sovereign country willthus have to moralize mor��al��ize?v. mor��al��ized, mor��al��iz��ing, mor��al��iz��esv.intr.To think about or express moral judgments or reflections.v.tr.1. To interpret or explain the moral meaning of. and specify the limits of the Nagol'scommercial exploitation inside the nation-state's borders. A firstdecision was taken in 1990 by the Pentecost Island Council of Chiefs.During a Nagol performed in Port-Vila for an Australian fiction film theCouncil opposed this relocation. In 1992, the court settled an attemptby some Pentecost chiefs to organize the Nagol on the island of Santo.In 1998, when a new attempt was made to perform land dives on a regularbasis in Vila, the chief of Bunlap declared: 'As one of theNagol's customary owners, I do not want our identity to be soldelsewhere. If the Nagol is sold on Pentecost, I no longer wish to haveanything to do with it, but if they want to perform it on Vate, theseproblems will grow and will not be simple to resolve' (Tiona,1998). Although the 'reasons adduced' in the 1992 hearing(decision of the Port Vila Court's civil division, 10 July 1992 inthe Re the Nagol Jump, Assal & Vatu v. The Council of Chiefs ofSanto case) had been clear on the substance, the customary andconstitutional principles on which the exclusivity of intellectualproperty over the Nagol is based for the inhabitants of Pentecost (evenfor those in the north of the island where traditionally it is notpractised), the decision's conclusions were much more circumspect cir��cum��spect?adj.Heedful of circumstances and potential consequences; prudent.[Middle English, from Latin circumspectus, past participle of circumspicere, to take heed : .(11) On the international level, in today's context when Pacificsocieties are very involved in matters of indigenous property rights, aneo-ritualization such as the Nagol is directly part of the preservationof a national heritage and interests programmes for the protection ofhumanity's world heritage responsible for implementingUNESCO's international convention (Paris, 16/11/1972)/the UNESCO UNESCO:see United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization. UNESCOin full United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization World Heritage Convention. The Nagol serves the state's interestsand, in return, the state protects the performance and image of theNagol as an inalienable Not subject to sale or transfer; inseparable.That which is inalienable cannot be bought, sold, or transferred from one individual to another. The personal rights to life and liberty guaranteed by the Constitution of the United States are inalienable. cultural resource. After having become a sourceof work locally, then a business on a national scale, the Nagol remainsan indispensable pretext for denouncing the abusive commercial use ofneo-customary spectacles and defending the intellectual property ofTKEC, Traditional Knowledge and Expressions of Culture, against thegreed of foreign firms. The Nagol's legitimacy as a Vanuatuexclusivity relies henceforth partly on the bureaucratic procedureswhich control its practice and promote its image. The agents responsiblefor organizing, promoting and commercializing the neo-ritualizations, aswith everything concerning kastom, are, under Vanuatu law, legallydivided into three categories: the customary owners who exploit theirTKEC in accordance with kastom, the non-customary authorities whomanage, in agreement with the latter, the intellectual property of theTKEC (State ministries or agencies, cultural centres and associations,etc.) and the non-customary operators who exploit the TKEC in anon-customary manner, legally or not (bio-pirates, ethno-pirates, andother ethnophagic profiteers). Without going into the details of recent evolutions in the matterof the right to intellectual property (controlled by the WorldIntellectual Property Organization, one of the United Nations'specialized institutions) of indigenous peoples, (12) let us justemphasize the fact that TKEC is a recent legal and political creationwhich is not recognized by the World Trade Organization'sinternational treaties. (13) The expression was used for the first timeat the World Forum on the Protection of Folklore (organized by WIPO WIPO World Intellectual Property OrganizationWIPO World Intellectual Piracy Organization (satire website)WIPO Write in Poll OptionWIPO Wing Information Protection Office (USAF)andUNESCO at Phuket in April 1997). At the close of this congress, theexpression Traditional Knowledge (TK) was preferred 'to that offolklore', (14) in order to be able to extend this category toother expressions of indigenous culture: naturalist knowledge aboutplants, fauna, medical treatments, food and other domains coming underthe category of 'biogenetic'. [TK] is variously defined as innovations and practices in thecontext of conservation and equitable use of biological use;'heritage of indigenous peoples'; traditional medicinalknowledge in the realm of health policy; expressions of folklore withina framework of intellectual property protection; folklore or traditionaland popular culture within a construction meant to protect culture;'intangible cultural heritage'; and indigenous intellectualproperty (Torsen, in Mahara, 2004). TK was completed by the reference to TCE TCEtrichloroethylene.TCEEnvironment A volatile chlorinated hydrocarbon that boils at 88ºC and is highly soluble–1000 ppm in water, with various industrial uses Toxicity Peripheral neuropathy, carcinogenic. (Traditional CulturalExpressions), during the Traditional Knowledge and Expressions ofIndigenous Cultures in the Pacific Islands Symposium (SPC/PIFS/UNESCO,Noumea, 15-19 February 1999). The first joint mention of TK and TCE wasin the Draft Model Law for the Protection of Traditional Knowledge andExpressions of Culture 2002, officially signed at the Conference ofMinisters of Culture of the Pacific Region (SPC 1. (business) SPC - Statistical Process Control. Something to do with quality management.2. (body) SPC - Software Productivity Centre.3. (company) SPC - Software Publishing Corporation.4. , Noumea, 2002), a legalcharter which encourages the countries of the Pacific to adapt TKEC totheir national laws and regulations. TK's area of application isthus enlarged to cover both 'biogenetics and tribal wisdom',with the aim of protecting the Pacific peoples 'from the increasein the demand for these resources which is threatening both indigenouspeoples' bio-cultural property and their spiritual and culturalvalues' (Mahara, 2004). The Vanuatu authorities have been particularly receptive to theTKEC rhetoric as 'a foundation for the identity and community lifeof a large majority of the country's inhabitants' (Regenvanu,2006). They generally brandish bran��dish?tr.v. bran��dished, bran��dish��ing, bran��dish��es1. To wave or flourish (a weapon, for example) menacingly.2. To display ostentatiously. See Synonyms at flourish.n. the Nagol as the symbol par excellence ofTKEC. It must be said that the world industry of games, trends andleisure has had its influence in the person of Alan Jack Hackett, theinventor of bungee jumping, who has never made a secret of the fact thathe was inspired by the Nagol. However, after his first rudimentaryjumps, Hackett quickly registered technical exploitation andintellectual property patents and transformed bungee jumping into alucrative business estimated today at 80 million dollars. Thedevelopments of the bungee jumping business lead the Vanuatuauthorities, in October 1995, to issue an official protest voiced by thePrime Minister. Afterwards the matter was lengthily debated inparliament. In 1996, it precipitated Vanuatu's membership of WIPO.Though no financial compensation was obtained, this provided thegovernment of Vanuatu with a marvellous forum for its demands as theywere widely reported in the international press and among culturalexperts. To complete this brief chronology of the Nagol in the era of theexploitation of the world's cultures by multinational firms, itremains for us to mention two of its latest developments. In the 1990s,the interest of commercial film crews, production companies and travelagents for the Nagol grew. The disruption caused among the inhabitantsof Pentecost by an inflow of money and by the misappropriation misappropriationn. the intentional, illegal use of the property or funds of another person for one's own use or other unauthorized purpose, particularly by a public official, a trustee of a trust, an executor or administrator of a dead person's estate, or by any involvedin its distribution increased. In 1995, the Vanuatu governmentthreatened to ban the Nagol. For, to the extent that the tradition hadbeen turned into a commercial attraction, its cultural significance wasbeing lost while the image of the Nagol, of the inhabitants of Pentecostand of the Vanuatu people in general was being deformed. Finally, withthe aim of controlling this situation, the Vanuatu Kaljoral Senta (VKS VKS Virtual Knowledge StudioVKS Virtual Key System )decided in January 2006 to establish a 'moratorium' on themaking of commercial films and audiovisual production activitiesorganized by foreign firms on Pentecost and concerning the Nagol. Thus,by taking the initiative of this moratorium, the VKS was attempting toconvince all the parties involved to join it in 'the elaboration ofa coordinated plan for managing the Nagol ceremony in order to preserveits cultural meaning and guarantee the transmission of traditionalknowledge to younger generations; [...] to ensure that the considerablecash revenues generated by the commercial activities related to theNagol were properly channelled into sustainable development Sustainable development is a socio-ecological process characterized by the fulfilment of human needs while maintaining the quality of the natural environment indefinitely. The linkage between environment and development was globally recognized in 1980, when the International Union appropriateto the needs of the communities of this region'(Moratorium--ban--on commercial filming of Nagol, VKS, 1 January 2006).(15) THE JOHN FRUM MOVEMENT'S ANNUAL CELEBRATIONS ON TANNA ON THE15 FEBRUARY If, from the point of view of colonial history, the fate ofdifferent islands was commemorated in the same way as the individualdestinies of missionaries are sanctified sanc��ti��fy?tr.v. sanc��ti��fied, sanc��ti��fy��ing, sanc��ti��fies1. To set apart for sacred use; consecrate.2. To make holy; purify.3. , one would have to reserve thename of 'martyred island' for Tanna. Christianization therewas particularly authoritarian and repressive. At the end of the 19thcentury, the Presbyterians established Tanna law, a theocratic the��o��crat?n.1. A ruler of a theocracy.2. A believer in theocracy.the regimethey used to encourage the systematic eradication of all the beliefs,institutions, dances, rituals and ceremonies inherited from the'days of darkness'. In fact, at the turn of the 1930s, theyhad almost achieved their aim. This historical reality is, however, insharp contrast to the contemporary image of Tannese society and of manTanna's identity. From the capital Port Vila, Tanna is oftenrepresented as a 'sanctuary of kastom', a refuge for preservedancestral traditions. (16) Tourist brochures peddle this destination asthe 'Last island'. With its Yasur volcano, wild horses Wild Horses may refer to: The Wild Horse (Equus ferus) that roamed Asia and Europe. Mustang (horse) the wild or feral horse of the Western United States. Feral horses, free-roaming descendants of domesticated horses. , tribalzones where penis wrappers and fibre skirts are still worn and secretcults, Tanna is presented by travel agents as an invitation to plungeinto virgin nature, to leap into a total bio-cultural adventurenevertheless accessible to the great majority of people. Lastly, for afew relatively well-informed visitors or tourists, Tanna is above allthe homeland of the John Frum cult, a Mecca of the Cargo cult and ofstrange beliefs in American gods who provide jeeps and refrigerators forthe faithful. At the end of the 1930s, in a deserted region south-west of Tanna,at Green Point, John Frum's spirit took on the appearance of a manfor the first time, that of a person of mixed race dressed as a Europeanbut, nonetheless, speaking the local language. He began his activitieswith a series of millenarian prophecies: the missionaries and Europeanswould be driven out of the island, this would transform the world andJohn Frum's return would establish permanent abundance andprosperity. He advocated the destruction of former customs and therejection of all goods which came from white men. With theEuropeans' departure, man Tanna would return to 'true'kastom, that recommended by John. The most spectacular consequence ofthese visions was that, in 1941, all the faithful abandoned thePresbyterian church and proclaimed themselves followers of their newhero's message. This politico-religious movement owes a large partof its success to one of its predictions: the announcement of war in thePacific and the Americans' arrival, more than a year before theallied troops landed in the New Hebrides. For many Tannese people thishistorical episode confirmed the idea of a mythical alliance linkingthem to all-powerful America. This connection was considered thepreliminary step in a return to the sources of their new identity. JohnFrum thus became the symbol of this rebirth of the power of kastom. Thiscult also presents an edifying example of a 'return topaganism': former influential members of the Presbyterian missionplayed the role of architects in the adapting of their Christianheritage Christian Heritage can refer to: The Christian Heritage Party of Canada, a political party. Christian Heritage New Zealand, a defunct New Zealand political party. Christian Heritage School, the name of several different private schools in the United States. to a 'neo-pagan' inspired path. The reference to John Frum's American identity began in thevillage of Sulphur Bay Sulphur Bay is a bay on the northwest side of Tanna island in Vanuatu. Nearby is Mount Yasur, called the world's most accessible volcano, and the area is the center of the John Frum cargo cult, a movement that believes their savior, an American World War II GI, resides within Yasur. , in the east of the island. Sulphur Bay, orIpekel, became the headquarters of one of the main branches of thiscultic movement. John Frum, a friend of Rusefel (Roosevelt), is supposedto have landed nearby, in a wooden plane, and left his children there,spirits called 'kaoboe' (cowboy). These sons of John Frumexist in all the villages affiliated to the movement. The kaoboe, intheir visible form, always appear dressed in uniforms; and onecommunicates with them using flowers as telephones and aerials connectedby vines. The kaoboe are tutelary spirits which became a central elementin the John Frum doctrine of Sulphur Bay. They were at the top of thenew social order and the ceremonial innovations it introduced. Amerikalo, or kaoboe law, which protects kastom, was to take over from TannaLaw and its regime based on Christ's commandments. This new orderprecedes the awaited return of John Frum, an event which is 'tochange the world' (Tabani, 2008). Whatever representations man Tanna may have had of America before1942, the real Americanophile turning-point of John Frum'sfollowers had its main origins in Sulphur Bay and the neighbouringvillages after the return of the voluntary workers from Port Vila wherethey had been employed on U.S. military bases. Over and above thetechnological power and the material abundance they had discovered andthe presence of many 'whites with black skin' in the ranks ofthis army and their generosity, man Tanna learned from the Americans newforms of organization and discipline. These were a crucial source ofinspiration for the John Frum movement. Under the kaoboes' tutelarysupervision, each John Frum village has to form, from among its men andwomen, a team (tim) made up of a dozen or even several dozen members.The biggest teams are sometimes divided into several subgroups. They areresponsible for various community tasks and for forming a choir to danceand sing John Frum hymns at Sulphur Bay every Friday night. Each team isled by a bos (boss) or kapten (captain) who receives his visions fromthe kaoboe. Each team also has gad (guards) or polis (police). There aretwo or three of them to a team in charge of making sure festivities andceremonies run smoothly. The most valiant men of each team have thehonour of taking on the role of ami (army) and participating in theTanna Army's annual parade on the 15 February every year. There aretwenty-six teams. Their participation in the weekly Friday ceremonies isseen as a symbol of the 'unity' (uniti) of John Frum'speople. In the new symbolic order This article or section may be confusing or unclear for some readers.Please [improve the article]or discuss this issue on the talk page. inspired by the kaoboe, everythingAmerican, and more specifically anything reminiscent of the U.S. Army,is considered as particularly efficient and legitimate. This infatuationtakes on its full significance on the 15 February, the day of the TannaArmy's parade. This is by far the most important public event onTanna. (17) The annual 15 February ceremonies (or lafet blong 15febuari) have taken place without interruption since 1957 and withoutany major modifications since 2000. The framework remains the same eachtime with its big ritual moments, its banquet and its extensivefestivities marked by dances, singing and pantomime performances. Butover the decades, lafet has become much more sophisticated andsuccessfully adapted itself to the times. The brief description I givehere corresponds to the observations I made in February 1999 and 2000.The 2006 and 2008 versions, in which I also took part, were verydifferent. The star attraction star attractionn → atracci��n f principalstar attractionn → grande attractionstar attractionstar n → of the show during the 15 February celebrationsis provided by the military ceremonies. They begin early in the morningafter a John Frum mass. They are inaugurated by the raising of the flagin front of the John Frum headquarters which everyone attends in fulldress. According to their importance in the movement, like Sovietgenerals, they wear all sorts of bogus medals (badges of politicalparties, of Green Peace, medals from New Caledonian Adj. 1. New Caledonian - of or relating to New Caledonia agricultural shows,etc.) and U.S. insignia. Concentrating hard on their honorary role, theyattend all the rites and festivities in total silence. Dressed in khakiuniforms with little black 'U.S Army' headbands, they stand infront of a first detachment which comes to salute the flags. Like thatof the following detachments, their drill is perfectly synchronized. Theflags are carefully unfolded, then slowly raised. Thousands ofspectators attend the scene in total silence. After saluting, thedetachment reforms before leaving and dispersing. A big crowd then stirs when the imminent arrival of the TannaArmy's main detachment is announced. The gat Gat:see Ghat, Libya. GAT - Generalized Algebraic Translator. Improved version of IT. On IBM 650 RAMAC.[Sammet 1969, p. 142]. (guards) restore orderin the spectators' to-ing and fro-ing. They too wear uniforms andthreaten spoilsports and children making too much noise with theirsticks. The Tanna Army is late. It begins its march at the foot of Yasurvolcano, on the banks of Lake Siwi, less than two kilometres from thevillage square. The troop advances in quick time. The march isinterrupted a few times for the formation to re-align perfectly. Twoabreast, the men are led by a kapten, wearing a Texan hat, who shoutsorders to them in an esoteric language with a military sound to it. Whenthe triumphant troop finally enters the village, it is before anastounded audience that it parades beneath the flags to go and take itsplace in formation in front of the VIP stand. Wonder can be seen on allfaces. The men parading concentrate hard on executing a complex andcarefully codified choreography. Their faces are tense, their eyesstaring straight ahead. Bare-chested, the acronym USA is painted in redon their chests and backs. Barefoot, all wearing the same jeans, theycarry on their shoulders pointed bamboo poles, with red-daubed tips,which they beat in rhythm and that give the impression of being realrifles. Their feet hit the ground heavily which makes their march,punctuated by the bos's orders, extremely noisy. This march of the Tanna Army's Ipekel detachment seems to havechanged very little since its first appearance. In 1978 Bonnemaison(1996) also observed the presence of a cavalry. The most sensationalinnovation was without doubt, in 2000, the addition of a military bandcomprised of twenty men from Ipekel, playing bamboo flutes, beatingsaucepan-drums and led by a bandleader in uniform with a red beret The Red Beret, as opposed to the Maroon beret is worn by many military police, paramilitary, and commando forces around the world. Military policeRed berets are wore by the military police of NATO members and many Commonwealth of Nations militaries. and astaff to encourage the musicians. They added an extraordinary musicaltouch to the parade. Nothing on this occasion is fixed; any creativeinventiveness which respects the predefined symbolic framework can findits place. Once these high points are over, the festivities become morerelaxed and convivial con��viv��i��al?adj.1. Fond of feasting, drinking, and good company; sociable. See Synonyms at social.2. Merry; festive: a convivial atmosphere at the reunion. . After a few galvanizing speeches made by themovement's leaders or their spokesmen, the ball is opened with aseries of traditional ceremonial dances (nupu). Uniforms have beenreplaced by pandanus skirts and the chiefly families'multi-coloured feathers, with make-up and, as headdresses, plastictinsel tin��sel?n.1. Very thin sheets, strips, or threads of a glittering material used as a decoration.2. Something sparkling or showy but basically valueless: the tinsel of parties and promotional events. garlands. These inaugural dances are followed by a series ofceremonial gifts (kava roots, mats and tubers) left on the dancing placeby the chiefs invited. These gifts are meant as a reminder of theirattachment to the John Frum movement and/or to the spirit of kastom. After the midday meal, the kastom dances give way, in theafternoon, to other kinds of shows. Folk troupes composed of men, womenand children from all over the island take it in turn to act a longseries of short scenes and perform choreographies, a bit like videoswhich are sometimes modernist sometimes traditionalist and usuallyamusing. Some performances are very simple: a row of women perform a fewdance steps while singing Christian tunes and swinging their arms to theaccompaniment of a guitar. Others are performed at a furious rhythm bygroups of young people dressed in pandanus skirts with feathers in theirhair, backed up by a ghetto blaster playing reggae rhythms Reggae Rhythms is a Reggae radio station on Sirius Satellite Radio channel 97 and Dish Network channel 6097. Reggae Rhythms moved from channel 32 to its current location on February 14, 2007. . Certainshows are big productions (with dozen of actors participating, a largevariety of costumes and scenic elements). Their allegorical content isusually based on historical (the arrival of the first white men,Americans during the war) or evangelical (the Apostles' lives andteaching, Satan's evil deeds) themes. They mix acting, sermons,songs and dances, a bit like a musical comedy. The festivities finish atthe end of the day with a flag-lowering ceremony and a closing dance,identical to those which open the afternoon events. JOHN FRUM'S SPIRIT IS NOT FOR SALE: KASTOM VERSUS MONEY. The 15 February ritual ceremonies arose from the end of therepression of the John Frum movement in 1957. During the tension andconfrontations which accompanied the gaining of independence in 1980,the Tanna Army momentarily abandoned its role as a caricature army tobecome the breakaway groups' militia. In this period, the 15February celebrations were organized in support of the millenarianfervour underlying the beliefs in John Frum but also as an act ofpolitical resistance. The flag, first red then American, was a symbolused to differentiate themselves from the Christian villages' belland the colonial administration's flags, just as the French flagwas raised by John Frum's followers in opposition to that ofindependent Vanuatu. The colonial administrations' position withregard to the John Frum movement during and after the 17 years of fiercerepression was to treat it as a cult of cranks, dangerous neverthelessbecause of its micro-nationalist overtones. Under the leadership ofWalter Lini Father Walter Hadye Lini (1942-February 21 1999) was an Anglican priest and the founding prime minister of Vanuatu. He was born on Pentecost Island. During the era when Vanuatu was a condominium ruled by the United Kingdom and France, Lini formed the Vanua'aku Pati, which was , the country's post-colonial authorities stressed thetheme of a cultural disease among remote populations who show problemsadapting to the contemporary world and, what is more, are manipulated bycolonial powers. In short, John Frum's followers were not to betaken seriously or were not people one can associate with and thelegitimacy they use their folklore to claim is mentally dubious (Tabani,2000; 2002). In colonial times, journalists like Attenborough or Mulleralso went to Tanna but the picture's magic did not work there as itdid on Pentecost. John Frum's followers are manipulators, they lacksincerity. It all smells of deception. (18) The evolution in the perception of a collective identity of theJohn Frum groups, by themselves and by their Vanuatu co-citizens,accompanied the political institutionalization of this movement and itssocial normalization In relational database management, a process that breaks down data into record groups for efficient processing. There are six stages. By the third stage (third normal form), data are identified only by the key field in their record. during the 1990s. After displaying a legalist le��gal��ism?n.1. Strict, literal adherence to the law or to a particular code, as of religion or morality.2. A legal word, expression, or rule. attitude towards the first changeover government in Vanuatu andbenefiting from a liberalization lib��er��al��ize?v. lib��er��al��ized, lib��er��al��iz��ing, lib��er��al��iz��esv.tr.To make liberal or more liberal: "Our standards of private conduct have been greatly liberalized . . . of tourism, Tanna became one of thecountry's most prized destinations. Henceforth a visit to the Cargovillage would be part of that to Mount Yasur Mount Yasur is an active volcano on Tanna Island, Vanuatu (lat/long 19.52 S, 169.43 E) with a height of 361m(1184ft)above sea level, located on the coast near Sulphur Bay. volcano. International filmcrews jostled with each other to attend the 15 February ceremonies. ButJohn Frum also became, from the state's point of view, culturallyacceptable and accepted. Prime Minister Sope came in person on the 15February 2000 for the inauguration of a memorial. A stele stele(stē`lē), slab of stone or terra-cotta, usually oblong, set up in a vertical position, for votive or memorial purposes. Upon the slabs were carved inscriptions accompanied by ornamental designs or reliefs of particular significance. indicates thatthis monument was erected: 'In memory of our ancestors'struggle to defend the beliefs of the John Broom movement againstcolonial law and the white man. The John Broom movement, in defence ofthe cultural heritage, traditional beliefs and kastom identity of themen of this place'. Sope's official speech was, to say the least, comicalconsidering that in the past he had been the main inquisitor INQUISITOR. A designation of sheriffs, coroners, super visum corporis, and the like, who have power to inquire into certain matters. 2. The name, of an officer, among ecclesiastics, who is authorized to inquire into heresies, and the like, and to punish them. of the JohnFrum movement which he esteemed reactionary and obscure, contrary to hisown Christian, progressive convictions of 'Melanesiansocialism' (see Sope, 1974; 1995). On this occasion, Sope publiclyadopted the suggestions of anthropologists in the 1960s, by developingthe idea that John Frum's followers were quite simply theprecursors of nationalism in Vanuatu. (19) In the space of a fewminutes, a subtle dialectic sidestep side��step?v. side��stepped, side��step��ping, side��stepsv.intr.1. To step aside: sidestepped to make way for the runner.2. on their Prime Minister'sbehalf raised the John Frum peoples to the rank of nationalist heroes.Sope did not have the time to get parliament to vote a John Frum Day asa national public holiday as he had promised. The natural and spiritualforces of 'John-Jesus' would thwart this project. Despite itssimilarities with the former lafet, the 15 February 2000 was verydifferent. These ceremonies were the last to take place in widespreadunity. For many John Frum believers they should have been the lastbefore the 'end of the world'. On the 2 May a cataclysmic event occurred. The waters of Lake Siwi,at the foot of Yasur volcano, had reached such a high level that anatural dam gave way in the middle of the night. In a few hours the lakewas empty, the water flowing towards the village of Sulphur Bay, thecult's headquarters, which was flooded. The repercussions of thiscatastrophe on an island scale had not seen their equivalent since thefirst appearance of John Frum at the end of the 1930s. In the followingdays, hundreds of people from all over Tanna and from other islands setout for the destroyed village. A new 'prophet', by the name ofFred Nasse, had been getting himself talked about of late and, what ismore, before the disaster happened. But in the days after this fatefulevent, his following increased considerably. He ordered people of allorigins and all denominations to remain together and be united on thesite of the disaster because, now that the 3rd millennium had begun, theend of time was near. Everyone was to take part in the founding of a'Noah's Ark', a new village named 'NewJerusalem', on Yenekahi mountain, behind Yasur volcano. Only thosewho took refuge there would escape the divine punishment reserved forall men locked in sin. This last judgement was going to take the form ofan imminent explosion of the volcano which would bring about theisland's total destruction. As the end of the world did not take place, Fred's movementgradually lost its apocalyptic dimension to take on the appearance of'therapeutic prophetism'. The insistence on the ark intendedto take them to paradise gradually died out and was replaced by theimage of a 'pirogue of the year 2000' (iea 2000 niko) and thatof a 'ship of Unity' (sip blong uniti). Behind this symbolismcan be seen an intention to replace the former Tannese social divisionof 'pirogues' (niko) by the introduction of a sole pirogue,the pirogue of Unity, supposed to refer back to the times of origin. Theresults of this symbolic revolution are particularly obvious in theinternal politico-religious organization of the pirogue of Unity and inthe increasing complexity of all the John Frum ceremonies. The splittingup of the Sulphur Bay John Frum movement into three unequal groups firstinfluenced Fred's followers, who no longer sing and dance on Fridaynights but in broad daylight on Wednesdays. The latter have also removedthe saluting of the American flag from their protocol. The mythologicalreferences to America, which had contributed to the cult's glory inits former version, have been discredited since the American imperialistadventure in Iraq. For many Tannese, the Iraqis and other man muslam aremerely legitimately defending their kastom. The biggest repercussion of the break-up of the John Frum movementis the dispersal of its organization's ritual activities. Since2001, the 15 February ceremonies have taken place in three differentplaces and been conducted by three rival groups. It is thus the ritualundertaking itself which has corrected the media overexposure overexposuretoo long an exposure time or too high a milliamperage causing too black a picture, loss of detail and some anomalies of translucency. of JohnFrum's followers. This is an essential point. It is neither toomuch commercial exploitation nor an attempt at political normalizationwhich caused these rifts. It is a real internal change of doctrine whichput an end to the reasonable image of just another kastom movement whichpublic opinion, both in and outside Tanna, had begun to form about theJohn Frum movement. The normalization process of the latter, firstadvocated by its cultic leaders, then accepted by most of the members ofthe political elite in Port Vila, was therefore thwarted by thewidespread determination of people on Tanna to remain the masters oftheir own destiny. The supporters of the various trends of John frumismhave spontaneously continued to do as they please with the ritualsystems and mythological content at the roots of the collectiveidentification mechanisms they have introduced since theirChristianization. Fred's followers were the first to freethemselves from the weight of external representations. The John Frumgroups which have joined them have thus stopped giving the image ofthemselves which other people expected. For man Tanna the spectacle hasbeen transferred to new activities encouraged by Fred: collective fitsof possession, big apocalyptic meetings, the massive slaughtering ofpigs and fowls for purely sacrificial purposes. They are not really folkscenes and all are unknown to tourists and forbidden to foreign filmcrews. The second Coming of John-Jesus will not be televised. True to its image, the official 15 February ceremony continued tobe performed in the village of Lamakara, a kilometre as the crow fliesfrom the movement's former headquarters. Chief Isak Wan'sgroup's organization--he is the heir to the historic John Frumleaders--is the best-known and so appears to be the most legitimate fromthe tourism point of view because it seems more reassuring for theaudience. This commercialization of the movement as a commodity is beingincreasingly condemned locally, even among Isak Wan's followers.But even more so among rival groups who like to recall that in the pastJohn Frum kastom was 'against money' and that one of theirfavourite slogans was 'no tourist, no money, no problem'.These protests increased further when chief Isak took the south-westernJohn Frum groups to court to obtain the exclusive rights to the name of'John Frum'. The criticisms expressed often refer to thenegative example of the Nagol, whose problems are known to many. Buteven more so, it is Tanna's most imposing traditional ceremony, theNekowiar, which is given as the most appalling example of kastom'scommercialization. However anxious the people of Tanna may be about the integrity oftheir principal customary ceremonies, the different John Frum groups,just like those who challenge their doctrine, unanimously agree on thenecessity of preserving the 15 February celebration as a local,national, even universal heritage. The 15 February remains the mostwidely-shared cultural expression of man Tanna's contemporaryidentity. These ceremonies are at the heart of a collective 'raisond'Etre', they provide a medium for the assertion of a sharedculture, a regular plebiscite plebiscite(plĕb`ĭsīt)[Lat.,=popular decree], vote of the people on a question submitted to them, as in a referendum. The term, however, has acquired the more specific meaning of a popular vote concerning changes of sovereignty, as for uniting and continuing to existtogether in the global world, while exercising 'power' in it.When asked if this celebration was in danger of disappearing, a cultdignitary who had gone over to Fred's group, told me this: If lafet stopped, it would really be a very bad thing. If someonedared to stop it, he would be dealing a serious blow to Tanna'sreputation and to that of the whole country. Tanna is a small island buther power extends over the whole country. To abolish the 15 Februarywould even be harmful to France, to Noumea, to Australia and to peoplefrom many other places on earth. Very harmful. Tanna is small butaccording to our myths (stori) it makes the world go round. It is smalllike the head of a match but its power extends over the whole world.Whether it be on earth or below the earth, man Tanna have a power. Ifsomeone wanted to abolish the 15 February celebration, to abolish thememory of our elders and of John Frum, something serious would happen.It has become a religion for us. Why should we abolish it? If it was todisappear, we would become idlers, we would be nothing anymore (TanielSarawe, Fatarepa, February 2004). CONCLUSION The question of the identities conveyed by these neo-ritualizationshas become culturally strategic. If their political dimension escapesthe majority of participants and spectators, their economic stakes areobvious to everyone. Some agents involved in these ceremonies,organizers, local participants or outside observers, are better informedthan others about the institutional vocation of kastom's powers.However, the level of this awareness varies. What is particularly lostsight of among man Tanna or man Pentecost is the objectivization of theassertion of cultural identities conveyed by these mass ceremonialorganizations. Although they have moved away from the Churches, the JohnFrums claim they defend the kastom created by God on the first day.Though customary chiefs of Tanna have sold the kastom of the Nekowiar totourists, they, the followers of John Frum, claim to have saved it withtheir flags and parades. Man Pentecost are fully conscious of the extentto which the practice of the Nagol has been corrupted by money, robbingthem of their image by presenting them as being ready to do anything,including selling their culture, to obtain rice or Toyotas.Nevertheless, in their eyes, even this betrayal cannot affect the truespirit of kastom or the archetypal ar��che��type?n.1. An original model or type after which other similar things are patterned; a prototype: "'Frankenstein' . . . 'Dracula' . . . 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' . . . image of the Nagol which was its mostspectacular form of expression. In short, what Melanesians usually emphasize is the Christiandimension of an idealized vision of man-before-the-Fall's kastom(Babadzan, 1988). Whether this Fall is situated alternately in abiblical or pre-Western past, it invariably originates in an implicitrefusal to conceive of Verb 1. conceive of - form a mental image of something that is not present or that is not the case; "Can you conceive of him as the president?"envisage, ideate, imagine kastom in Vanuatu as a socio-historicalconstruction by endowing it with a timeless and superior value overwhich no secularization process would seem to have a hold. Thecollective identities of a kastom situated at the roots of Melanesianvalues are part of God's creation. They are an essential part of aproject whose purpose escapes men's control. Only foreigners whounderstand nothing about kastom or non-believers who have renounced Godcan consider them as mere products of colonial confrontations orpost-colonial strategies. I therefore come to the conclusion that it is difficult toradically oppose the 15 February ceremonies and those of the Nagol onthe pretext that the officiants of the former are said to have usedneo-traditional means to present an identity of kastom guerrillas whilethe latter are said to represent the perfect negative example of a'cultural prostitution' venture (Keesing, 1989). There can beno doubt that the people of Vanuatu have retained a certain autonomyover the management and the means of their collective identificationsbut they are nonetheless bound by the representation of the past onwhich the representations of their contemporary identities are based.The past to which kastom refers apparently rejects the contradictionsresulting from the colonial heritages. The context of its expression istoday that of a sovereign state which, while striving to create anational spirit, comes up against the perpetuation of ideologicalelements from before independence. In Condominium days, the missionaries tried to overcome ethnicfrontiers in order to impose the idea of a people of God, whilst theadministration's control relied on the instrumentalization ofterritorial divisions, with the 'indigenous populations'status as the only common identity horizon. At independence, theideological priority for the elite who found themselves in a dominantposition was to conceal their own filiation fil��i��a��tion?n.1. a. The condition or fact of being the child of a certain parent.b. Law Judicial determination of paternity.2. A line of descent; derivation.3. a. with the colonial regimeand, for this, to insist on the positive references to their Christianheritage and the ancestral Melanesian values with which Christ'smessage is supposed to have harmoniously merged. The promotion ofnational identity through the uniformization of the management ofcultural diversities in fact introduces a memory rivalry with thehistoricist constructions left by colonial domination. 'He, whocontrols the past, controls the present; and he who controls the presentcontrols the future', recalled George Orwell. Politicalone-upmanship revolving round strategies of cultural identificationconstitutes, for a country classed among the 'least advanced'economically and financially dependent on its neo-colonial sponsors, oneof the rare opportunities for making its voice heard in the UnitedNations concert. The 15 February ceremonies on Tanna, the Nagol land dive onPentecost and other traditionalist ritualizations in Vanuatu are, as awhole, now only incidentally rituals. They are the products ofrepresentations which, in their pictorially most accomplished form, canbe projected onto giant screens in order to reveal a media reflection ofthe cultural life and the identity of those to whom they belong. Therepresentation of an essentialized identity, in practice part of theexploitation of a reified culture, becomes inseparable from thecapacities of its mechanical reproducibility. Observer and observed,officiant of��fi��ci��ant?n.One who performs a religious rite or presides over a religious service or ceremony.Noun 1. officiant - a clergyman who officiates at a religious ceremony or service and spectator (close or distant), everyone takes part on hisown level in a generalization of the aestheticizing of culturaldiversity in which the ritualization of differences, identity politicsand the commercialization of cultures tend to be superimposed when theyhave not already totally merged. Cultural specificity becomes the iconicmedium for a specialization of identity (Babadzan, 2009) whoseoriginality can be spontaneously captured by the image it diffuses andits exact reproduction. Thus, despite the growing tourist influx towards'tribal zones', only a very small proportion of the thousandsof tourists who crowd the luxury establishments of Port Vila will alsogo to the islands to attend the Nagol or the John Frum ceremonies'live' (Douglas, 1996:194). However, when they see the photosof them in tourist brochures or in clip frames in their hotel lobby,they will know they have come to the country of 'primitive bungeejumping' and the so very burlesque burlesque(bûrlĕsk`)[Ital.,=mockery], form of entertainment differing from comedy or farce in that it achieves its effects through caricature, ridicule, and distortion. It differs from satire in that it is devoid of any ethical element. 'Cargo cults'. If theyforget, entertainment programmes will remind them of it once they havereturned home. (20) To go back to the telling example of the moratorium on the Nagol,let us note that the current situation of customary chiefs greedy forliquid assets Cash, or property immediately convertible to cash, such as Securities, notes, life insurance policies with cash surrender values, U.S. savings bonds, or an account receivable. is the equivalent of a total reversal of thisceremony's film history and of the image of disinterested nativeswho were the precursors of dangerous sports and other refinements of theleisure society. The association of TKEC and biogenetics can, on theother hand, be seen as a return to roots, minus the terminology, to themissionary representations of the 'native soul' or theethnological eth��nol��o��gy?n.1. The science that analyzes and compares human cultures, as in social structure, language, religion, and technology; cultural anthropology.2. ones of the 'primitive thinking' of islandersincapable of distinguishing the human being from his naturalenvironment. Except that today the politically correct politically correctPolitically sensitive adjectiveReferring to language reflecting awareness and sensitivity to another person's physical, mental, cultural, or other disadvantages or deviations from a norm; a person is not mentally retarded, but question ofascertaining how 'indigeneity is conceived' is open topositive discrimination. All kinds of experts have embraced the previousgenerations' old colonial representations, while applying theregulation make-up, filters and ideological travesties. These culturesare so singular (qualified successively as savage, primitive,autochthonous, indigenous, traditional, early) that exploitation oftheir TKEC would now amount to robbery: a stolen identity after arepressed identity under colonization. The neo-ritualizations are indeed part of a colonial heritage, inthe form of an indigenous reaction first conceived by the Melanesiansthemselves as a commercial revenge or as a political challenge to whitemen's hegemony. But it is a fact that today they can also be usedby moralizing ideologies to denounce bad government or in attempts athijacking hijackingCrime of seizing possession or control of a vehicle from another by force or threat of force. Although by the late 20th century hijacking most frequently involved the seizure of an airplane and its forcible diversion to destinations chosen by the air pirates, when kastom to serve the interests of politicians, localbusinessmen or big foreign predators. Henceforth, the commercialoverexploitation of identities appears locally as a factor of politicaldestabilization de��sta��bi��lize?tr.v. de��sta��bi��lized, de��sta��bi��liz��ing, de��sta��bi��liz��es1. To upset the stability or smooth functioning of: . This colonial heritage, positively inverted in apost-colonial context and a post-modern intellectual setting, is whatdistinguishes TKEC from the historical colonialist heritage of thenation-states of old Europe This article is about the term in contemporary politics. For the archaeological meaning, see Old European culture. In January 2003 the term Old Europe surfaced after former U.S. . The French myth of 'our ancestors, theGauls', though it has been intensely used politically in the past,was not directly created for commercial interests (even if, longafterwards, the adventures of Asterix were exploited on an industrialscale). One thing is sure, the cultural identities on which theneo-mythologization of TKEC is based would seem to be very differentfrom such illusions. They are an 'ancestral','ethnic', 'tribal' or, more modestly,'traditional' resource whose sustainable development is farfrom having fulfilled all expectations. REFERENCES AKIN, D. 2004. 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Le Saut du Gaul a Vate: c'est l'argent qui compte?Vanuatu Weekly, 699:1 TORSEN, M. 2006. Anonymous, Untitled, Mixed Media: MixingIntellectual Property Law with Other Legal Philosophies to ProtectTraditional Cultural Expressions. American Journal of Comparative Law54:173-183. WATT, E. 2003. Quand je sculpte. Noumea: Centre Culturel Tjibaou,The University of Queensland. Marc Tabani CNRS CNRS Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (National Center for Scientific Research, France)CNRS Centro Nacional de Referencia Para El Sida (Argentinean National Reference Center for Aids)CREDO--Marseille NOTES (1.) In an article by Bolton on the influence of the Church andwomen on politics of tradition, Ralph Regenvanu, the Director of theNational Cultural Council of Vanuatu underlines the imbalance betweenthe respective weight of the Church and kastom in the country: 'Thesingle biggest issue facing the Cultural Centre is the version ofVanuatu history established by the missionaries, that is of thepre-colonial era as a time of darkness Star Wars: Time of Darkness is a Star Wars based MUD that formerly ran on the Star Wars Reality codebase. The MUD is currently offline undergoing a major revamp, and will be back, as Version 4.0, in the near future, hopefully boasting many new features. ... He sees the churches ashaving extensive influence in Vanuatu which is not balanced by theinfluence of kastom' (Bolton, 1998). Hence the CulturalCentres' deliberate strategy of associating Christian values withthe revival of kastom. Thus the annual meetings of ni-Vanuatu VKSfieldworkers (fieldworkers workshop) invariably begin with a prayer:'The acknowledgement of God through prayers in the fieldworkerworkshops draws Christian belief into the work of the Cultural Centre inthe revival of kastom, affirming the idea that Christianity and kastomare compatible, declaring in fact that the Christian God supports therevival of kastom ... As a strategy, praying for the revival of kastomis a highly effective way of addressing the relationship betweenChristianity and indigenous knowledge and practice' (ibid.). (2.) Alternative expressions for man blong kastom (custom men sinceman indicates both singular and plural in Bislama) are man-pies,man-place, or kastom foloa, 'follower of custom'. The positiveconnotation of these terms co-exists with the unpleasant use of the termman bus bushman--the antonym, during the colonial period, of a'civilized person'. There are, of course, today 'kastomartists' who sign their plastic works but they are always therepresentatives of a group which gives them permission to reproduce theworks; a group which in some circumstances collectively expressescertain of its cultural forms of a potentially aesthetic, and thereforecommercial, nature (dances, rituals, songs, corporal techniques,technical skills). (3.) Among Pacific scholars in anthropology, the kastom issue hasbecome an endless debate. Kastomology, to borrow Babadzan's word(Babadzan, 2004), is now integrated into most theoretical analysis ofculture change in Melanesia. Indeed, it becomes ever more difficult tosurvey exhaustively the anthropological literature on kastom andreinvention of tradition in Melanesia since 1982 (Keesing and Tonkinson1982). Many disagree in speaking about kastom as 'inventedtraditions' because the word would encompass 'traditionaltraditions' and 'traditionalist traditions' (Otto andPedersen 2005). However, nowadays traditionalist ideologies can makepolitical use of any selected kastom, and even reject or deny othertraditions that don't concord with Christianity (Bolton 1998).Traditionalism corresponds with deep transformations of indigenouscultural representations of continuity, links between the past and thepresent, and ideas about 'cultural revivals'. (For a commentedreview of literature up to 2000, see Tabani, 2002). The last main issuesand critics on this debate have been raised by some leading authors, inthe wake of Sahlins' (1999) attempts to replace the concept of'culture' in the center of the anthropological debate, to dealwith 'kastom as culture' (see for example Akin 2004, Robbins2005 and Babadzan, 2004, 2006 and for an extensive case study in theSolomons, see Fraenkel 2004 and in New Caledonia, see Monnerie 2005). (4.) During a political meeting on Tanna in June 2008, EdouardNatapei, then a minister, campaigned on the theme of the necessity ofabandoning kastom when it appeared to be an obstacle to development. Aproposition which to many present was the equivalent of a scandalouscall to part with Christian values. (5.) The material used to illustrate the case of the Gol land diveis mainly taken from various written sources--books, working documents,newspaper articles--but they have been extensively discussed withVanuatu Kaljoral Senta (VKS) officials, as well as with inhabitants ofPentecost in Port-Vila and on the spot during a short research trip inthe south of this island in 1995. For Tanna, most of the material isfrom my field research that is about 24 months spread over 10 visits,during four of which I took part in the 15 February ceremonies in 1999,2000, 2004, 2008. (6.) In 1927, the Nagol ceremonies described by Tattevin do notinclude building a tower. People dived from the branches of a banyan onwhich dive platforms were made. The rapidity (25 years) with which thebase for the dives developed from the branches of a tree to the buildingof a tower is remarkable (see the history of the Gol tower'smodifications according to pictorial reconstructions suggested by Lipp2008, 225-227 & 234-235). To the extent that one wonders if thesemajor innovations were not subject to other, outside influences. It ishighly likely that among the many Pentecost men who worked on Americanmilitary bases on the neighbouring island of Santo during the SecondWorld War some saw the installations for the training of the AmericanAir Force's third army's parachute battalion. Though highmetal jump towers were not erected on Santo, the presence of controltowers on pillars and of smaller wooden ones used for trainingparachutists seems attested (Lindstrom, personal communication). Thehypothesis is bold but the question is worth raising. Lipp (2008), whodevoted his doctoral thesis to the study of the Gol, does not seem toknow its origin in an unsigned and undated un��dat��ed?adj.1. Not marked with or showing a date: an undated letter; an undated portrait.2. article for the SocieteAllemande allemandeProcessional couple dance with stately flowing steps, fashionable in the 16th century, especially in France. A line of couples extended their paired hands forward and paraded back and forth the length of the ballroom. de Psychohistoire, circulated on the web and entitled'The Primal Jump as a Bungee-Jump'(http://www.phid.de/inhalt/theprimaljummp.htm). Lipp (2008, 395-396)rejects this hypothesis with no justification, attributing it to merejokes made by Australian tourists. (7.) M. Jolly (personal communication). (8.) 'It is also notable that between the 1950s and 1970sthere was a marked shift in the costumes of those performing the landdive--the earlier films often show the men diving in shorts and shirtsand women dancing in Mother Hubbard dresses. The shift to a more purist pur��ist?n.One who practices or urges strict correctness, especially in the use of words.pu��ristic adj. aesthetics of kastom had both indigenous and exogenous sources, but wasclearly marked in the period following the presence of the filmmaker KalMuller in 1970. Many people claimed that he would not allow anydeviations from kastom costume on the screen' (Jolly, 1994a: 144). (9.) 'It is noteworthy that the question of the rights of thegroup has already been addressed by the courts and by French legaldoctrine, essentially during the 'Bunlap Tribe' matters. Theritual ceremonies of a tribe from the island of Pentecost, in Vanuatu,had been filmed and broadcast in Europe without the consent of thepeople concerned. The chief of the tribe took action in France to obtainredress for breach of the right to their image of members of the tribe,and of their intellectual property rights over the ceremony. What alsoneeds to be established is if the tribe is an organised group, in thesense of civil procedure law, able to take action. The Paris Court, in ajudgement dated 12 March 1975, according to a French doctrine familiarwith the co-existence of written and customary law, found that the tribe'is an organised group of individuals of Melanesian race, enjoyingreligious and customary unity, heritage rights and a qualifiedrepresentative in the person of its chief; its members have legalcollective interests that the group is legitimately entitled to defendin the courts'. However, in its decision already referred to dated20 December 1976, the Paris Appeal Court rejected the judgement on thispoint, considering that the tribe would have to prove that according toits customary status, as co-ordinated with the law of the New Hebrides,it could indeed claim to enjoy legal status' (Gautier, 1999: 8). (10.) 'Before independence, a tourist had to pay 3700 Vatus(VT) to attend the Nagol. But today prices have risen to reach 7500 VT.A television crew has to pay 600 000 VT and everyone who wants to filmhas to pay 2 500 VT a camera' (Tiona, 1995). 'The Gaul LandDive has become a business, an opportunity for earning money ... Overthe last few years, the number of dives has increased and the ritual hasbecome a competition ... The members of a council responsible for theNagol activities are said to have embezzled money brought by foreignvisitors whose numbers increase every year ... This practice would havemade money for the community of southern Pentecost if the rights hadbeen paid for ... The spirit of collective work has deteriorated andeach village has decided to take charge of the Nagol and to organize itas it wishes with a sole aim: to make money' (Tiona, 1998). (11.) 'The nangol Jump is an age old and sacred tradition orkastom associated with the island of Pentecost and of a particular partof Pentecost at that, the Southern region [...]. Traditionally and forcenturies, the kastom ceremony of the Nagol Jumps were reserved to andperformed only in those two villages by their kastom owners. Lately itseems that, for reasons more akin to commercial sense, than to customaryvalues, the Nagol jump has been allowed to be performed in other areasof Pentecost more accessible to tourism. But it remains essentially akastom ceremony of the Island of Pentecost. The Nagol jump or 'LandDiving' is the most traditional and spectacular of all the customsof Vanuatu [...] As a result Pentecost itself is known world-wide. It isits main tourist attraction. The kastom is deeply rooted in legendTherefore, I direct, in conformity with kastom, that the Nagol jumpingshould return to Pentecost. I do not go as far as saying that it must beperformed solely in its traditional villages of Pentecost, as that maycause untold hardship to those who do not have access to tourism. [...]I do not order that the kastom shall never leave Pentecost, but what Ido order is that on those rare occasions when it is allowed to leavePentecost that it should only do so: 1. With the majority consent of thekastom owners taken on a vote, on the majority consent of all the localchiefs taken according to kastom. That all the kastom ceremonies andpermission should be obtained and followed and that the final decisionshould rest with the Malvatumauri on a majority decision taken accordingto kastom; 2. That on those rare occasions when it does finally leavePentecost, [...] that all the kastom owners and their clans would sharein an equitable manner the [...] benefits' ... (Extract from thedecision of the civil division of the Port Vila Tribunal, rendered 10July 1992 in the Re the Nagol Jump, Assal & Vatu v The Council ofChiefs of Santo case. [1980-1994] Van LR 545). (12.) See the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly during its 61st session at UN Headquarters in New York City on 13 September 2007. ,adopted by the annual general meeting of the United Nations on 13September 2007. (13.) See Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of IntellectualProperty Rights TRIPS redirects here. For the new microprocessor design, see TRIPS architecture.The Agreement on Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS (TRIPS), Annex IC of the Marrakech AgreementEstablishing the World Trade Organization, 15 April 1994. (14.) 'The term 'folklore' has been criticized forhaving negative connotations and referring to ancient traditionsintended to be recorded INTENDED TO BE RECORDED. This phrase is frequently used in conveyancing, in deeds which recite other deeds which have not been recorded. In Pennsylvania, it has been construed to be a covenant, on the part of the grantor, to procure the deed to be recorded in a reasonable time. 2 Rawle's Rep. 14. or memorized rather than used or celebrated inmodern life' (Torsen, 2006: 175) (15.) Attempts to get round this moratorium have already led to onetragedy. In April 2008, as it did not apply to ni-Vanuatu professionals,the Australian production company Beyond Productions, acting for theNational Geographic Society, is said to have bribed a young cameraman,Hardy Bill Ligo, working for the national television channel, to filmthe ceremonies for them. Too much risk-taking would seem to haveunbalanced the tower which collapsed killing the cameraman instantly(Vanuatu Daily Post 17/04/2008). (16.) An assertion contrary to the constant protests ofPortVila's inhabitants about the young 'rascals' of Tannawho are said to be responsible for most of the delinquency in Tanna andto have no respect for any values. (17.) The first flags, said to have been given by the Americansduring the war, were hoisted for the first time in 1957, on theliberation of Nakomaha, the last of the John Frum leaders still inprison. According to chief Isak Wan, this ceremony marked the gaining ofthe freedom to 'wear marks of adherence to John Frum ... Even thosewho had none would soon be able to raise the American flag above thoseof the colonial powers. The Americans had [warned the Condominiumauthorities] that it was taboo to interfere with kastom, that is thereal meaning of the flags. America forbade the colonial powers toimprison im��pris��on?tr.v. im��pris��oned, im��pris��on��ing, im��pris��onsTo put in or as if in prison; confine.[Middle English emprisonen, from Old French emprisoner : en- man-ples for following the customs of their culture: the kastomand culture of men-places (man-ples) belongs to them alone. Since then,everyone has been able to see that kastom is alive, that kastom is life[...]. The flag ceremony saved our kastom and our culture. If there hadnot been this ceremony, we would have lost our kastom and the governmentwould have won. It is thanks to John Frum's promise telling us thatAmerica would give us flags to stop the colonial powers, that kastom wasrevived. When all the people of Tanna saw the flags flying, theyunderstood that the Condominium authorities could no longer oppose it.That is the history of the 15 February' (Chief Isak Wan, Ipekel,14/02/2000, see Tabani 2008 for further details). (18.) It is therefore a very bad reputation the John Frumists willbe given. Even the museums of the armies of Western countries do notwant their old American jackets patched with Green Peace badges, theirbamboo rifles or their flower telephones. Later, other exogenous voiceswill emphasize the avant-garde character of belief in John Frum(Lindstrom, 1993). It is an inexhaustible source of inspiration for allkinds of artists, aesthetes, writers and poets. More broadly, for allthose who work in the West at fuelling collective imaginaries(journalists, filmmakers, singers, politicians, advertising men), theJohn Frum cult would seem to deliver a message of universal value. Thecontent of this rhetoric has been particularly developed, in a prophetictone, by Edward Rice, a special correspondent from New York. After abrief trip to the island in the 1970s, in his bestseller he echoed thespirit of John Frum. Seeing in this figure the symbol of opposition to'global hegemony', he raises him to the rank of a post-modernicon. John is also said to be a precursor of the alterglobalistmovement: 'John is trying to tell us as westerners to disconnectour minds from the American computer, to turn-off the airconditionednightmare, to float with the mighty currents that sweep through the restof the world, Africa, Asia and the Pacific' (Rice, 1974: 243). (19.) 'The first time I came here, to Sulphur Bay, I was stillat university and writing my book. I came to talk to old Mweles and theother elders of the John Frum movement. At the time, the Vanuaaku Patidid not exist, nor did the NUP n. 1. Same as Nupson. or any of the other parties. None of themexisted. There were only the John Frum and Nagriamel movements. And atthe time, all the elders of these movements had already discussedindependence, the very one we have today ...' (Barak Sope, extractsfrom a speech made at Sulphur Bay, 15/02/2000; for the complete speechsee Tabani, 2008). (20.) Over the last few years there has been a real media hype on'paradise islands' inhabited by 'noble savages' inall sorts of reality shows: one day, after asking me my flightdestination, the clerk at a bank counter in Paris airport where I waschanging foreign currency exclaimed: 'Vanuatu ? The Koh Lantacountry!' (Koh Lanta is the French version of the Survivors TVprogram).