Trekkers steal Kokoda Track war relics
Trekkers steal Kokoda Track war relics
Below is an article that was published in the Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday.
Wayne Wetherall, Managing Director of Kokoda Spirit comments below on the article.
While it is possible that some of these Kokoda Track war relics have disapeared or have been stolen from the track, no one can be really sure how much or what relics are missing.
It is imperitive that the Australian and PNG government fast track and audit/survey all historical sites along the track. This audit must also include local village museums and displays.
Until a full audit is done, no one can accurately say, if, what and how many relics are on the Kokoda Track. When this audit is complete we can assess what has disapeared from the track.
The majority of trekkers that walk the Kokoda Track are honest fair dinkum Australians that understand the significance of these relics and the history of the Kokoda Track.
It is also interesting to note that it is not only Australians that walk this track, but trekkers from other nations and lots of PNG locals.
It is unfair to accuse or generalise that Australian trekkers are stealing these priceless war artefacts.
Wayne Wetherall went on to say if people have evidence of some Australian trek operators or trekkers encouraging the trade in war memorabilia or stealing then they should come forward and present the evidence to the relevant authorities.
Below is the SMH article
Rachel Olding
Sydney Morning Herald
January 21, 2012
Living, breathing museum … the Kokoda Track.
PRECIOUS war relics from the Kokoda Track are being stolen by Australian trekkers who are risking their lives and defacing a ''living, breathing museum''.
Trek leaders have seen vast amounts of artefacts disappear from the jungle track where Australian forces defeated the Japanese in World War II.
About a third of relics from a museum in Kokoda is missing and up to half from another in Efogi village, said Jim Drapes, the director of Back Track Adventures.
The managing director of Kokoda Spirit, Wayne Wetherall, noticed three rifles missing from a battle site at Eora Creek.
Guns, shell casings, mini mortars and Japanese helmets have been taken from another site. An entire warplane has disappeared from Popondetta, a nearby town.
Mr Drapes said locals would have no use for the relics and that most would end up on the black market or ''on some trekker's wall or up above his bar''.
Tens of thousands of munitions, grenades, helmets and other memorabilia remain in situ along the track, which is considered unregulated compared with other tourist destinations.
It is not only illegal to take artefacts back to Australia but also dangerous, as many grenades and bullets are still live.
''This is priceless stuff. It's a living, breathing museum, and to think people are taking stuff off the track is dishonouring those diggers and not allowing future generations to have the same experience,'' Mr Wetherall said.
There is no protection for the relics and no legislation to support the Kokoda Track Authority, which oversees it and is jointly funded by the Papua New Guinean and Australian governments.
While the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, which shares responsibility for the track, said the onus to protect relics was on Papua New Guinea, it said Australia would support efforts to build barriers around large relics this year.
Charlie Lynn, a former soldier, NSW MP and founder of Adventure Australia, said: ''It's really laissez-faire over there; anybody can do what they want and get away with it.''
He believed some Australian trek operators were encouraging the trade in war memorabilia.
''The ground is very sacred and we should be preserving it much better than we are.'' Rachel Olding travelled courtesy of Back Track Adventures and the Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority.
http://www.kokodaspirit.com/
Below is an article that was published in the Sydney Morning Herald on Saturday.
Wayne Wetherall, Managing Director of Kokoda Spirit comments below on the article.
While it is possible that some of these Kokoda Track war relics have disapeared or have been stolen from the track, no one can be really sure how much or what relics are missing.
It is imperitive that the Australian and PNG government fast track and audit/survey all historical sites along the track. This audit must also include local village museums and displays.
Until a full audit is done, no one can accurately say, if, what and how many relics are on the Kokoda Track. When this audit is complete we can assess what has disapeared from the track.
The majority of trekkers that walk the Kokoda Track are honest fair dinkum Australians that understand the significance of these relics and the history of the Kokoda Track.
It is also interesting to note that it is not only Australians that walk this track, but trekkers from other nations and lots of PNG locals.
It is unfair to accuse or generalise that Australian trekkers are stealing these priceless war artefacts.
Wayne Wetherall went on to say if people have evidence of some Australian trek operators or trekkers encouraging the trade in war memorabilia or stealing then they should come forward and present the evidence to the relevant authorities.
Below is the SMH article
Rachel Olding
Sydney Morning Herald
January 21, 2012
Living, breathing museum … the Kokoda Track.
PRECIOUS war relics from the Kokoda Track are being stolen by Australian trekkers who are risking their lives and defacing a ''living, breathing museum''.
Trek leaders have seen vast amounts of artefacts disappear from the jungle track where Australian forces defeated the Japanese in World War II.
About a third of relics from a museum in Kokoda is missing and up to half from another in Efogi village, said Jim Drapes, the director of Back Track Adventures.
The managing director of Kokoda Spirit, Wayne Wetherall, noticed three rifles missing from a battle site at Eora Creek.
Guns, shell casings, mini mortars and Japanese helmets have been taken from another site. An entire warplane has disappeared from Popondetta, a nearby town.
Mr Drapes said locals would have no use for the relics and that most would end up on the black market or ''on some trekker's wall or up above his bar''.
Tens of thousands of munitions, grenades, helmets and other memorabilia remain in situ along the track, which is considered unregulated compared with other tourist destinations.
It is not only illegal to take artefacts back to Australia but also dangerous, as many grenades and bullets are still live.
''This is priceless stuff. It's a living, breathing museum, and to think people are taking stuff off the track is dishonouring those diggers and not allowing future generations to have the same experience,'' Mr Wetherall said.
There is no protection for the relics and no legislation to support the Kokoda Track Authority, which oversees it and is jointly funded by the Papua New Guinean and Australian governments.
While the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities, which shares responsibility for the track, said the onus to protect relics was on Papua New Guinea, it said Australia would support efforts to build barriers around large relics this year.
Charlie Lynn, a former soldier, NSW MP and founder of Adventure Australia, said: ''It's really laissez-faire over there; anybody can do what they want and get away with it.''
He believed some Australian trek operators were encouraging the trade in war memorabilia.
''The ground is very sacred and we should be preserving it much better than we are.'' Rachel Olding travelled courtesy of Back Track Adventures and the Papua New Guinea Tourism Promotion Authority.
http://www.kokodaspirit.com/
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