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Port of Call |
LAST UPDATE April 25, 2008
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| April 3, 2008 |
Papeete, Tahiti: Fighting the Effects of Nuclear Colonization to Restore Indigenous Maohi Values |
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| The lush rainforest of rural Tahiti |
A tropical paradise of fabled legend, the Tahiti of today struggles against French colonial oppression and modernization to retain aspects of its cultural identity. Once a prosperous and self-sufficient island community, over 40 years of nuclear colonization have ravaged Tahiti and reduced its economy to one reliant on tourism, imports and aid from its colonial oppressor. However, Maohi indigenous leader Dr Gabriel Tetiarahi, who has spent over half of his life fighting to restore traditional culture and sustainable lifestyles in Tahiti, led a group of Peace Boat participants to meet Tahitians working to create a brighter future for the island, free of colonial chains and reconnected with traditional values. |
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| Gray-bearded Gabi sharing Maohi wisdom with tour participants |
As the tour left the port, Gabi (as he prefers to be called) pointed out the different French nuclear testing offices that litter Papeete and its outskirts. While nuclear testing in Tahiti ended in 1996, the environmental damage to land and sea, and the physical and spiritual damage to people, continues to ravage Tahiti today. People may have lost their traditional way of life, but Gabi fights to restore people’s sense of Maohi identity and traditional values. In Gabi’s younger years, students were forbidden to use the Maohi language in school, where the language of instruction was French. Yet now Gabi hopes to increase the use of the Maohi language, saying that in Maohi he can communicate with indigenous people all across the South Pacific. |
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Participants enjoyed planting banana trees at the Maison Familiale Rurale, saying that it felt good to touch the earth again after nearly three full months at sea |
On the tour, Gabi first took participants to the Maison Familiale Rurale, an agricultural boarding school that supports Gabi’s ideal of traditional value restoration. In addition to regular subjects like mathematics, students learn traditional farming techniques, and perform spiritual ceremonies at the nearby marae (a stone shrine dedicated to a local deity). After a lunch of local fruits, taro, sweet potatoes and fresh tuna, Peace Boat participants walked through the school grounds, visited the marae, and took their turn planting taro and banana trees together with the students. Many participants commented on the seeming simplicity of this agricultural lifestyle with a touch of envy, recalling the hectic lifestyles waiting for them back home. Gabi, who would like to see more Tahitians embrace a simpler, more traditional agricultural lifestyle, alluded to the satisfaction that this lifestyle provides, saying “when I am hungry, I walk out to my garden and pick something to eat.” |
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| Planting taro, a perennial plant cultivated in tropical regions for its edible starchy tubers |
Hiti Tau, the nongovernmental organization that Gabi founded in 1992, functions as a gathering space for the indigenous Maohi people to embrace their heritage, and works to increase economic independence on a local level by encouraging a return to traditional values and agricultural lifestyles. However, Hiti Tau’s work extends beyond just Tahiti, and includes activities to reunite the greater South Pacific island community. Through support from Gabi and Hiti Tau, just last year farmers in nearby Samoa were able to produce and market the world’s first organically grown vanilla bean. Ideally, Hiti Tau hopes to see the South Pacific nations find increased economic independence through environmentally sustainable agriculture. |
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| Preparation for the welcome ceremony at the Hiti Tau marae |
Gabi invited participants to add a stone to the Hiti Tau marae, a welcome ritual extended to all Hiti Tau guests. By participating in this ritual, he indicated that Peace Boat participants were now members of the Hiti Tau community, and always welcome. During the night’s events, including a delicious meal of locally produced and prepared dishes and lively Tahitian music, participants were touched by the intimate and positive atmosphere of Hiti Tau. In closing, Gabi reminded participants that “This is a community,” a sentiment that filled people with a sense of warmth for the journey back to the ship. |
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