The role of religion in development communication in Madang, Papua New Guinea

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1 Media Asia ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: The role of religion in development communication in Madang, Papua New Guinea Robert Plews Laka To cite this article: Robert Plews Laka (2015) The role of religion in development communication in Madang, Papua New Guinea, Media Asia, 42:1-2, , DOI: / To link to this article: Published online: 01 Dec Submit your article to this journal Article views: 649 View related articles View Crossmark data Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at

2 MEDIA ASIA, 2015 Vol. 42, Nos. 1 2, , RESEARCH The role of religion in development communication in Madang, Papua New Guinea ROBERT PLEWS LAKA Having gained independence from Australia in 1975, Papua New Guinea (PNG) is home to more than 7 million inhabitants with more than 800 different languages and diverse cultures. It is one of the richest island countries in the South Pacific in terms of mineral resources. Following a shift from village-based pagan worship to more organized worship in a country unified under Christianity, the locals in Madang, PNG, have experienced development taking place through the initiative of the Christian churches. Christian churches have provided basic services to the people of Madang in the form of health, education as well as social services. This study is an attempt to see how religion plays a part in development in a country where Christianity is seen as a major force behind social change. Government and business houses have done their part in enhancing people s livelihood. However, it is claimed that Christianity has played a major role in enhancing people s well-being. How people s well-being is enhanced is vague, and might be understood through the concept of development communication. Development communication has been defined as the art and science of human communication linked to a society s planned transformation from a state of poverty to one of dynamic socio-economic growth that makes for greater equality and the larger unfolding of individual potentials. Research participants were interviewed and their narratives were analyzed using thematic analysis. Papua New Guinea (PNG) is a country in Oceania that occupies the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, with Indonesia occupying the western half. Having gained independence from Australia in 1975, the country is home to 7 million plus inhabitants, with more than 800 different languages. She is one of the richest island countries in the South Pacific in terms of mineral resources. As noted in the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (2012), strong growth in the country s mining and resource sector has led to PNG becoming the sixth fastest-growing economy in the world as of The country is made up of 22 provinces. The province of Madang is host to a multimillion-dollar nickel/cobalt mine, operated by a Chinese company, Ramu NiCo Management (MCC) Limited ( Ramu NiCo ) based in PNG and backed by the China Metallurgical Group Corporation. Also in this province is a Divine Word University, Papua New Guinea Deceased. Robert Plews Laka died at the age of 43 in May He was a senior lecturer in the Communication Arts Department of Divine Word University, Madang, Papua New Guinea, while also serving as a pastorally minded priest. We extend our condolences to the many who mourn his passing Estate of Robert Plews Laka. All Rights Reserved. 95 Media Asia

3 multimillion-dollar tuna industry. RD Tuna fishing company has operated there since It catches tuna species within the 12-nautical-mile zone (TNMZ) off Madang Province and produces canned tuna product for local and overseas market. The company employs 3500 to 4000 people, 80% of them locals. Most of these are young people aged years old. In addition, a US$300 million Pacific Marine Industrial Zone is being planned to harvest the area s tuna resources. 1 Canneries, docks, and storage facilities will be built to serve foreign fishing vessels. The project is expected to draw unskilled Asians by the tens of thousands. There is a risk of over-fishing and irreversible depletion of tuna. Many villagers living along the impact areas have expressed grave concerns about their own livelihood. Those living along the coast say that their catches have already depleted dramatically, unlike before where abundance of fish were caught in one night setting. Nowadays, they have to fish for two to three days before they catch enough. Some complain that the fish they catch may have been contaminated, although this has not been proved yet. Those living around the mine sites have also expressed similar concerns. Their forests have been cleared, hunting grounds have gone, and they are to live on store goods, which are expensive to buy. In the town of Madang, the indigenous people are being inundated with foreign industrial development projects mines, logging, and fisheries for which they have not been properly consulted, have not given their informed consent, and from which they are unlikely to meaningfully benefit. 2 There are no signs of good hospitals for the sick and schools for the children living in these impact areas. There is only one rural health center catering for all the patients living around the tuna cannery. School children living along the RD Tuna cannery and proposed PIMZ attend schools built by missionaries. There is not even a rural electrification program initiated by these multimillion-dollar companies to give people access to electricity. It is the presence of missionaries among them that has changed their way of life by building hospitals, schools, and even care centers now. As people are being swamped by short-term benefits, in terms of jobs with long hours and little pay, they are starting to ask about the authenticity and sustainability of the development that their province is experiencing. If at all sustainable development is to take place, there has to be communication taking place between the different stakeholders involved communication in terms of dissemination of information that would engage the local indigenous people meaningfully to participate in the whole process of development. Madang is one of the provinces in PNG that saw the first arrival of the Divine Word Missionary priests in the 1900s. They put up the first mission station in Sek, called Alexishafen by the German missionaries who settled there. This is where the RD Tuna company had moored their fleet of ship for fishing. The missionaries built schools and carpentry and mechanical workshops. Some even raised cattle, which supplied meat to the locals and the missionaries, while locals were trained to be butchers. Next to Alexishafen is another place called Vidar, where they planted coconut. This became a plantation where hundreds of locals were employed. The income from the plantation was used for more infrastructure development. Most of the remote areas in Madang were reached by missionaries who built churches, schools and health centers. Today, there are more than 100 primary and high schools run by the mission in the province. The missionaries have been labeled as explorers, developers as well as evangelizers. 3 In 1942, the Pacific war destroyed the well-established mission station in Alexishafen. The missionaries had to rebuild from scrambles and what had been build still stands till today. Some of these buildings were renovated while others were torn down to make way for new buildings that would cater for pastoral work and technical schools. The primary objective of these missionaries was to evangelize to the pagans living in Madang area. By the end of 1930s, all the people were baptized (Morauta, 1972). Since then, however, most missions have lost ground to a cultic practice called cargo cult, a name that derives from a belief that various ritualistic acts will lead to a bestowing of material wealth or cargo (Lindstrom, 1993). Cargo cults often develop during a combination of crises, noted Burridge (1993). He 96 R.P. Laka

4 also indicated that under conditions of social stress, such movements may form under the leadership of a charismatic figure. This leader may have a vision (or myth-dream ) of the future, often linked to an ancestral power that could be recovered by returning to traditional morality, as in the case of Yali in Madang. Lawrence (1964) described the story of a young policeman called Yali, son of a village chief in the Rai Coast area of Madang. Yali never had high school training but worked as a waiter in a hotel before becoming a policeman. He had access to some informal conversations with the colonial masters. His trip to Hollandia (Jayapura) and Brisbane had been an eye-opener. He comes back home to Madang and tells his people about the material goods being kept away by the missionaries and colonial masters from the locals. His alleged knowledge about the hidden goods made him become an instant leader of a revolt against the authorities to gain access to the cargos coming from Whiteman s land. The seduction of these goods made people forget going to church. The 2000 PNG census showed a dramatic decline in churchgoing. Most people believe in some sort of deity but to worship in communal setting like the churches does not resonate with them. Even if some go, it is to meet people as part of a social gatherings and not religious worship. Many people have lost interest in the spiritual goods preached by the missionaries; their focus has turned to temporal goods. When big industries arrived in Madang, there was a paradigm shift, as locals saw working as laborers as their way to earn for the goods they had been waiting for. The two places where RD Tuna and Ramu NiCo operate are the very places were the practice of cargo cult was prominent. 1. Methodology I wanted to find out people s understanding of the presence of religion, especially Christianity, and the business corporations in their communities. Most expressed dissatisfaction about the mining, logging, and fishing companies. Some people s opinion is that Christianity hides many things from them while others express the opinion that religion was good that they brought some insights into their way of life Interviews Two focus group interviews were conducted with five members in each group. A focus group interview is a dyadic interaction with the researcher and the interviewees (Lindlof & Taylor, 2002). In this dyadic interaction, I wanted a free flow dialog with the students where I was more of a listener and a facilitator in that interaction with my respondents. The purpose of my focus group interview was for a lively interaction where different opinions or world views are brought forth and enables insights into how people theorize their own point of view in work Lindlof & Taylor, 2002, p. 182). My intention was to understand how these people perceive the role of religion in the communities. Besides these focus groups, informal conversational interviews were done with 10 people. An informal conversational interview (Patton, 2002) or a situational interview (Schatzman & Strauss, 1973) requires the researcher to be spontaneous. Informal conversational interviews happen at settings where questions emerge from the immediate context and are asked in the natural course of conversation. This kind of interview engaged the researcher with people in the field, which is more casual and informal but maintains the context in which the interviewer wants to address. Interviews were conducted at different locations that included villages, residential areas, workplaces and church. Research participants consent was sought prior to the interviews being recorded and later transcribed. Each interview lasted 30 min to an hour. The transcribed script was later translated, coded, and clustered according to the themes found. A thematic map was used to analyze all data collected. The interviews and focus group interviews were based on personal experiences and questions asked during preliminary data gathered prior to this paper Thematic analysis The notion of theme is used in various disciplines in the humanities, art, and literary criticism. In the literature, theme refers to an element (motif, formula or device), which occurs frequently in the text. The term theme is often applied to some thesis, doctrine, or message 97 Media Asia

5 that a creative work has been designed to incorporate. Theme analysis refers then to the process of recovering the theme or themes that are embodied and dramatized in the evolving meanings and imagery of the work (Manen, 1993). According to Braun and Clarke (2006, p. 78), thematic analysis is the foundation of analysis in qualitative research and should be considered a method in its own right. It is a method for identifying, analyzing and reporting patterns (themes) within a data (Braun & Clark, 2006, p. 78). Themes are defined as units derived from patterns such as conversation topics, vocabulary, recurring activities, meanings, feelings, or folk sayings and proverbs (Taylor & Bogdan, 1984, p. 131). In qualitative research, themes are identified by bringing together components or fragments of ideas or experiences, which often are meaningless when viewed alone (Leininger, 1985, p. 60). Themes that emerge from the informants stories are pieced together to form a comprehensive picture of their collective experience. The coherence of ideas rests with the analyst who has rigorously studied how different ideas or components fit together in a meaningful way when linked together (Leininger, 1985, p. 60). Constas (1992) reiterates this point and states that the interpretative approach should be considered as a distinct point of origination (p. 258) to the informants stories that were transcribed. The keyness of a theme, as explained by Braun and Clark (2006, p. 82), is not necessarily dependent on quantifiable measures but rather on whether it captures something important in relation to the overall research questions, which follows the researcher s philosophical and theoretical inquiries. 2. Philosophical and theoretical underpinning This paper s inquiry is framed within hermeneutic phenomenology and communicative action theory. Merleau-Ponty (1996) says:hermeneutic phenomenology differs from descriptive phenomenology in significant ways. Descriptive phenomenology emphasizes knowledge of the world through the study of consciousness; it assumes that phenomena have an essential essence which can be intuited through the process of bracketing that allows the phenomena to be studied objectively. Findings are offered through explicit descriptions. Hermeneutic phenomenology seeks to go beyond description in order to discover meanings that are not immediately apparent. This paper is not an attempt of studying the consciousness of the phenomena objectively through the process of bracketing, but rather aims to discover and analyze meanings that are not expressed in a communicative process through hermeneutic interpretation. To understand these unexpressed meanings, this paper applies Jurgen Habermas Theory of Communicative Action. Habermas (1984) perceives communication as the major part of human action in the society. The social world operates through people s interaction through communication. Of the four models presented by Habermas to explain his theory, the model applied in this study is communicative action. Habermas (1984 TCA1, p.95) notes that communicative action takes place when two or more actors establish a relationship and seek to reach an understanding about the action situation and their plans of action in order to coordinate their actions by way of agreement. The central concept of interpretation refers in the first instance to negotiating definitions of the situation, which admit of consensus. In this process of reaching an understanding, meaning is created. These meanings are not immediately apparent, hence an analysis of these meanings in the actors action is the basis of this paper. 3. Common themes Most of the themes that were chosen from the transcribed interviews were centered on communication, development, religion, and well-being. Interpretation and discussion are made on these consistent themes that had emerged Communication With an increasing number of communication scholars defining the field from different perspectives, Craig (2000) notes that there is no fixed concept about communication where a precise and agreeable definition can be arrived at. Communication is rooted deeply in human behavior and structures of societies. 98 R.P. Laka

6 Communication is defined as an ongoing process that symbolically forms and re-forms our personal identities, our social relations, our common world of meaningful objects and events, our ideas and feelings, and our routine ways of expressing these socially constructed realities (Craig, 2000). Generally, communication is defined from these two perspectives, the transmission view and the ritual view as observed by Carey (1985, cited in Eilers, 2009). Carey notes that the transmission view of communication is the commonest and dominates contemporary dictionary entries under the term. It is defined by terms such as imparting, sending, transmitting, or giving information to others. This view is formed from a metaphor of geography or transportation. In the nineteenth century but to a lesser extent today, the movement of goods or people and the movement of information were seen as essentially identical processes and both were described by the common noun communication (Carey, 1985). The center of this idea of communication is the transmission of signals or messages over distance for the purpose of control. It is a view of communication that derives from one of the most ancient of human dreams: the desire to increase the speed and effect of messages as they travel in space. Missionaries as well as development technocrats, aids agencies, and government workers have used the transmission view of communication to transmit their message for a long time. One of my elderly respondents said, I didn t understand what the Whiteman said, all I said was, yes master. At times I did the opposite and I was reprimanded for that. One could say there was a language barrier, hence there was misunderstanding, which is true. Most of the locals during that time didn t understand Pidgin, the national language of PNG, nor English. Some were even told to learn Latin and German, which most of the missionaries spoke in the church and plantations. However communication isn t about language only, but human behavior, the way in which actors act their words. It is not about I am right and you are wrong nor is it about, I know everything and you don t. Grasping what my participants said, one could say there was control during those times where the locals had to do things the way missionaries and early explorers wanted them to do. And this trend continues to happen in the twenty-first century with the arrival of big corporations in Madang. This time, it is not about the locals not knowing Pidgin or English, but the foreigners coming to work in these companies. We cannot understand their language because they speak Chinese or Filipino to us when we speak English or Pidgin to them. Communication is the barrier they have among themselves and the foreign workers, they expressed. They could not express what they feel or think, and from time to time my respondents said they went back to the mentality of yes boss or no boss kind of approach their grandparents took; a submissive approach to the power that is eminent. Communication this time is not about distance as Carey (1985) mentioned but of control; meaning to say, I know this, you don t know so listen and obey me kind of approach the foreign Asians have toward the locals. The mentality of calling an expatriate a boss is not necessary because he or she comes from a different nationality, race or color, and controls a business enterprise but because, he/she has everything which the locals didn t have, as the local expressed. To them, one said, they are the merchants with plenty of the cargos that they have been promised. However, these goods are not to be given free; one has to earn it. This introduces them to the cash economy, whereby a villager is made to work h a day with US$2.00 a day or US$60.00 a month. This is the wage locals received when they work at the tuna factory, or the logging company. This amount is less for those who work 10 h a day at the retail outlets. In all these, there is no information that is informative enough. There is always misunderstanding, they expressed. Communication from this view is to be understood from a perspective of control and not about reaching agreement and meaning sense. Habermas (1984) explained that there would be no consensus if there is no meeting point of coming to an agreement from both parties involved. There has to be a compromise, when both parties agree on the cases made. As noted earlier, com- 99 Media Asia

7 In the early part of the missionary evangelization period, there was neither force nor manipulation of information; missionaries aimed to convert people so that they would know the goodness of the changed way of life. Missionaries had to do what was necessary to convert a community that was pagan, as noted by a local clergy. Missionaries did not overlook the indigenous knowlmunicative action takes place when two or more actors establish a relationship and seek to reach an understanding about the action situation. In my observation, there was no evidence of coordinated actions that would reach an agreement. One of my participants even went further to state,when compared to the missionaries and the companies (the loggers, miners and fishermen), the missionaries gave us what we need. They gave us schools, hospitals and even training centers but nothing of that sort is happing with the fishing and logging companies. True enough, school was free during those times, and there was no fee or charges for locals who went for medical treatment. Even if communication is seen here as control, there was and is some sort of mutual agreement between the two different actors in the community. However communication for the purpose of this paper is not about control rather, meaning making, a view which Carey (1985) would call a ritual view of communication. A ritual view of communication is directed toward the maintenance of society in time, not the act of imparting information but the representation of shared beliefs. The archetypal case under a ritual view is the sacred ceremony that draws persons together in fellowship and commonality (Carey, 1985). The ritual view of communication is best explained as the representation of shared belief (Eilers, 2001). Although rituals are associated with religious practices and have many purposes, this paper views rituals as sets of actions performed to strengthen social bonds and obtain social acceptance. It is held that meanings are not in the words alone but are also in the people in the way people act. Human beings are social actors interpreting their milieu and orienting their actions in a ways that are meaningful to them (Morgan & Smirchich, 1980). Communication from this notion sees rituals as actions that have meaning to the actors. Another elderly research participant expressed: In the highlands you win a person s heart with money, but here you win people s heart with the bunch of beetle-nut. Money can be given anywhere at any time, but in traditional Madang society, people come together, sit on a platform, chew betel nut together, and talk. This act is to be seen as a ritual since, only men do the talking whilst sitting on the platform while women cater for the visitors. Such an approach encourages parties to reach a mutual understanding for any tribal commitment or local business transaction. People choose words carefully and these words are honored. A consensus is reached and a contract is sealed at this level. The gesture of coming together to chew and talk over a bunch of betel nut indicates seriousness of their shared belief. 4. Communication as meaning making Craig (2000) held that even the transmission model of communication acknowledges that words cannot literally transport ideas. As the cliché goes, meanings are in people, not in words. English philosopher John Locke famously articulated this view in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690). According to Locke, words have no natural meanings. The association of words with ideas in the mind is a voluntary act of the individual person (Craig, 2000), based on common ideologies, maxims, and poems people have. Although communication plays a vital role in human history to bridge gaps between people, it is not only the diffusion of information from one person or group to the other and vice versa that can bridge that gap. Communication is a meaning-making process taking place in society among individuals (Saludadez & Garcia, 2001). In this process, messages are shared and meaning is created. People live in societies with constant interaction taking place. Some take for granted the interactions while others live to interpret and make meaning from their interactions. Thus, the essence of exchanging ideas and thoughts in human lives is communication. Communication becomes the essence of meaning making for those who communicate everyday in their lives (Eilers, 2007). 100 R.P. Laka

8 edge people had. Indigenous knowledge and culture were expressed in liturgical practices. This continues to this date. The aptitude of caring the missionaries expressed was a sacred duty that was considered to be the shared belief each had. The missionaries were tough on my great grandparents, but because of them, I am where I am now. I give credit to the missionaries. Although they didn t understand each other but what was done by them was enough to show us, they were here to help us have a good life, another participant said. The schools, hospitals, technical schools, and other training centers put up by the missionaries were an external sign of an inward expression, a desire to serve that people have a better life. Communication viewed as a meaning-making process allows insight into human nature. Interpreting and understanding the insights of these symbols and symbolic actions make one understand the person in his or her totality. Understanding human nature helps us understand people s world views and meanings. 5. Development communication Development is always associated with a process, a growth, or a change from one stage to the other. It is linked to a physiological formation of human being, the mental formation of a child, change of a physical landscape, etc. When we asked our research participants, most of them referred the term to infrastructural development. Building of bridges, roads, aid posts, schools, and banking system is development, they said. In the village, they didn t have access to clean water and now they have a water supply, which is an indication of development. In other words, development is a change in the way of life. Others said it is a progress from one stage to another, as in the case of the country gaining independence from colonial masters. However, there were some expressions of remorse over the country s independence. People were not too happy with the way the country was progressing since independence. Instead of moving forward we are moving backwards, some said. With a high crime rate, deteriorating roads, and other signs of social breakdown, not many were happy with the way the country is heading. The presence of the big companies in the province was an indication of development, they said. However, their views on these companies were not very good. Landowners expressed sentiments that they were suffering serious pollution from the outfall of waste from the RD Tuna cannery. There is no benefit these people get from the company and they wanted the company to cease operating on their land and sea. One of the employees of the cannery said, There is rotting green waste from the cannery being dumped on our land and it is affecting our crops and even the sea. The mining and logging companies are no different when respondents from those areas expressed their views about development: Polluting our sea and cutting down our trees without replanting them is no good sign of development. The physical evidence of infrastructural development is not an indication of development. They are signs of destruction, environmental degradation, and pollution. The concept of development is about pain and stress. In comparison, what Christianity offered them was tangible and user friendly. The foundation laid by missionaries helped them realize what development is and what is not. In the process of evangelization, Christianity helped the locals develop themselves. The type of development they give is a holistic integral human development with the support of infrastructure. These are real signs of sustainable human development as expressed by Ter Haar and Ellis (2006). Development Communication (DevCom) is an applied science focused on human activity. Drawing from Quebral s (2001) definition, we define development communication as the art and science of systematically applying communication processes, strategies, and principles to facilitate peoples involvement in solving problems to bring about positive change in a given society. DevCom is people centered, not just technology centered (Ongliko & Alexander, 2003, p. 152) people become the center of development rather than focusing on how technology could be used for development. One of the ways of enabling people to participate in any development effort is to unfold a common mechanism that unites people of many cultures. That common mechanism is communication, 101 Media Asia

9 as Habermas had held, which is universal. Good communication strategies engage people to participate in a positive way for their well-being. On the other hand, beyond the functionalist view that tends to focus on DevCom methods and tools, DevCom situates itself in a humanistic approach to understand the meaning of events for the persons being studied through communication processes, strategies, and principles. Any human act communicates something that is meaningful to them. In this humanist view, people decode words in speech that contains traditional sayings, poems, and maxims to make sense of their practices. In any human action, meaning is created and re-created, thus it becomes a communication act. Communication cannot be seen only in a transmission mode but also a ritual mode of co-constructing meanings in people s lives. In these two postures, one sees communication as a mode of transmission and dissemination of information to achieve positive social change, while the other sees communication as a meaning-making process in applied science that would advocate for positive social change. DevCom thus comprises acts of co-constructing the meanings that are found in the rituals of the people as they strive to attain and maintain their well-being. 6. Religion and development communication People often see religion as a very personal thing that needs no discussion. In their religious beliefs, people create certain relational value to a deity and individuals normally say it is a private experience. In such an experience, individuals unite themselves with deity and feel ennobled. People believe that religion assures them a greater reward in the afterlife. Such promising assurances motivate members in a community to continue to play their parts in a community that they live in. Religion plays a vital role in the lives of people in a society for various reasons. Although there are differences in cultures, politics, and governance, religion is deeply rooted in people s lives. It can play a role from a simple influence to complete control of society. The importance may not necessarily be straightforward. In countries where the government holds a large amount of control over the population, an established religion can play a substantially important role, as in the case of the Philippines and the Arab countries. Energized by religious leaders, people have a shared belief and act in ways that are religiously motivated. One may say this is terror, while another says this is people s world view and way of life. Religion can unify people for a common cause. It moves a nation s political leadership to surrender to the demands of the people. Sometimes, these causes are not peaceful and organized, and there is rioting and bloodshed. We cannot say it is because of religious fundamentalism that people act the way they do, rather, it is the way in which people share the common belief that unites them. Before the arrival of Christianity in Madang, people had their own way of worshipping, in which they connected themselves to the spirit world, a world ruled by their dead ancestors. A Melanesian views his/her existence in relation to the world of the spirits. The forces in natural phenomena are accredited to spiritual beings. Their experience is not limited to the visible, physical world, but extends into the visible part of the universe as well. In this human spirit world relationship, worship and sacrifices were eminent. Elders in the society evoked the dead ancestors to maintain peace and harmony. Fear of punishment and death ruled their lives, hence making them live peacefully, caring for widows, sick, and elderly. Communal sharing and reciprocity governed their primitive social structure. Primitive religion in this sense paved way for their social well-being until the arrival of the first missionaries in the 1900s. Some viewed the white missionaries as their dead ancestors returning back to life. That fear changed when missionaries started teaching them civilization. They performed some other services to the indigenous people, like the provision of education, and creating the habit of charity through institutions like hospitals, rest houses, and temples to help the poor. In this approach that the missionaries took, one can say Christianity was at the center of development. Many writers cited in Ter Haar & Ellis 2006) have acknowledged the importance of religion in the development of capitalism in European history. Ter Haar and Ellis (2006, p ) held that:this was not primarily as 102 R.P. Laka

10 a result of direct action by religious institutions, but through the influence of religious ideas on people s thinking concerning the legitimacy of wealth and the moral value of lending, saving or investing money, for example. It is by no means inevitable that other continents will develop along the same lines as Europe did, but recalling Europe s history does have the merit of helping to illustrate the significance of current religious ideas in developing countries in forming people s ideas about wealth. We are not trying to feed the locals with fish, rather, we are trying to teach them how to fish was a view one missionary priest expressed. During the early days of missionary activities in Madang, indigenous people were fed with fish to encourage them to accept and tolerate the presence of the white missionaries in their communities for the purpose of evangelization and to learn the trades and skills the missionaries taught through schools, training centers, and hospitals. People embraced the new way of life. However, most of the time this was in conflict with their pagan religious worships. Although the primary task of the missionaries was to evangelize, infrastructure development and charity work were never ignored. This trend continues today, such that most of the schools and rural health centers in the province are mission agencies. Christianity continues to empower people through the organizations they have set up. These are tangible development that helps people to educate themselves. 7. Conclusion and recommendation We have highlighted some of the large companies operating in one of the peaceful provinces in PNG where the missionaries first settled in mainland New Guinea in the 1900s. We also have made mention of how locals view the presence of the missionaries and the companies with reference to one of their cultic practices, cargo cult, in which people termed development as distribution of goods from their dead ancestors. We have tried to understand how people view what development is for them. In the process, we have also highlighted some negative views expressed in terms of pollution and environmental damage. We tried to make a comparative analysis of how the indigenous people of Madang view the presence of religion, especially Christianity, and the large companies on their land, and how they create relationships through communication. Communication was defined as a process of meaning-making. Human beings were defined as social actors and it is through their symbolic action in their rituals, meaning is created and communicated. This meaning unites them in the common world views. Religion was defined along this understanding; a shared, sacred world view that unites people for a common cause. By way of recommendations, we want to ask, what role religion can play in development communication in the Madang setting? Ter Haar and Ellis (2006) suggest four major categories of religious resources that can be applied to development communication. These are: (1) religious ideas (which people actually believe); (2) religious practices (includes ritual behaviors); (3) religious organization (with reference to how religious communities are formed and function); and (4) religious or spiritual experience (such as subjective experience of inner change or transformation). All these resources produce knowledge that, in principle, could be beneficial to a community for development purposes (2006, p. 6). The role of religion in development communication therefore is to conscientize people as noted by Eilers (2009) in one of his lectures at the University of the Philippines. Conscientization is a process of helping people become aware of the potentials they have. People had religious ideas prior to Christianity. Including these religious ideas would help them find a common ground for development. Religious practices that people are familiar with can be inculturated into ways that help the locals find meaning in these rituals. Rituals here must not be seen from worship s perspectives, but the way in which people create meaning in their mundane lives. Rituals are strong cultural elements that bind a society together. Religious organizations as in the case of charity works, on the other hand, have to be encouraged. Melanesian people are generally community-oriented. They live a life of reciprocity where no one lives as a beggar. In practices like this, people would learn to share what they have and religious/spiritual experience would continue to help people live in a peaceful environment rather than taking arms to retaliate against organized companies 103 Media Asia

11 operating on their land. Religion can also represent the voice of the majority to speak up against illegal practices of companies that suppress human rights and cause environmental damage and pollution. People in Madang see religion as a moral authority. In cases were human rights are at stake, religious authority has to stand up against such practices. We maintain that DevCom is an art and science that uses communication strategies, processes, and principles to bring about positive change in society. We believe that knowledge is not only transferred to people, but also recreated in people through sciences. Therefore, DevCom is people centered, not just technology centered. People are the center of development and not infrastructure or technologies. The focus of DevCom is people, where communication is embedded as a process for social change in the lives of people. This is the approach religion has to take in Madang, through what could be called a re- evangelization to conscientize people toward positive change. Disclosure statement No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author. Notes 1. The information was retrieved on 12 May on the following website shared/alerts/send.aspx?id=png_tuna 2. ibid. 3. In my conversation with the late Fr. Josef Fostner, SVD, a Divine Word Missionary priest, he mentioned that the missionaries had to rebuild what was destroyed during the war. After World War II, he was one of the missionaries who came to PNG from Germany. References Braun, V. & Clark, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative research in psychology (Vol. 3, pp ). London: Routledge. Burridge, K. (1993). In V. S. Lockwood, T. G. Harding, & B. J. Wallace (Eds.), Contemporary pacific societies: Studies in development and change (p. 283). Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Carey, J. (1985). Communication as culture: Essays on media and society. Boston, MA: Unwin Hyman. Retrieved from landow/post/poldiscourse/2views.html Constas, M. A. (1992). Qualitative analysis as a public event: The documentation of category development procedures. American Educational Research Journal, 29, Craig, R. (2000). Communication encyclopedia of rhetoric. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Retrieved from Communication.htm Eilers, F. J. (2001). Culture and communication. Unpublished class notes. Tagaytay: Divine Word School of Theology. Eilers, F. J. (2007). Seminar presentation on role of religion in development communication. Los Banos, CA: University of the Philippines. Eilers, F. J. (2009). Communicating in ministry and mission (3rd ed.). Manila: Logo. Habermas, J. (1984). The theory of communicative action, I. Boston, MA: Beacon Press. Lawrence, P. (1964). Road Bilong Cargo. A study of the cargo movement in the southern Madang district. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. Leininger, M. M. (1985). Ethnography and ethnonursing: Models and modes of qualitative data analysis. In M. M. Leininger (Ed.), Qualitative research methods in nursing (pp ). Orlando, FL: Grune & Stratton. Lindlof, T. R., & Taylor, B. C. (2002). Qualitative communication research methods (2nd ed., pp ). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Lindstrom, L. (1993). Cargo cult: Strange stories of desire from Melanesia and beyond. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. Manen, M. V. (1993). Researching lived experience. New York, NY: State University of New York Press. Merleau-Ponty M. (1996). Phenomenology of perception. (C. Smith, Trans.). New York, NY: Routledge. (First published 1962). Morgan, & Smirchich, L. (1980). The case for qualitative research. Academy of management. The Academy of Management Review (pre-1986); Oct 1980; 5, ; ABI/INFORM Global. p Morauta, L. (1972). The politics of cargo cults in the Madang area. Man New Series, 7(3), Ongliko, I. V. C., & Alexander, F. G. (2003). Introduction to development communication. Los Baños: SEAMO SEARCA, University of the Philippines. Patton, M.Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. 104 R.P. Laka

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