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OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
PRESS RELEASE
(for immediate release – Monday, March 31, 2008)
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Governor Togiola welcomes Council of Pacific Arts
(UTULEI) – Governor Togiola Tulafono today welcomed the Council of Pacific Arts to the Territory as they convened its quadrennial meeting that includes review of American Samoa’s preparations for the upcoming Festival of Pacific Arts in July.
In a welcoming ceremony at H. Rex Lee Auditorium (Fale Laumei) in Utulei, which included an ‘ava ceremony, Governor Togiola told Council President – the Honorable Kuresa Nasau of Tokelau and the 27 council representatives of member island nations that American Samoa is “ready, willing and able to host the 10th Festival of Pacific Arts.” (See full text of the Governor’s remarks below)
The Council’s visit will include inspections of festival venues and facilities including accommodation. They will also discuss the exhibition of various art forms and logistical issues such as visa and quarantine regulations, catering and transport.
The Council meeting was organized jointly by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community’s Human Development Programme and the American Samoa Government, and will conclude this Wednesday, April 2nd.
WELCOME REMARKS
COUNCIL OF PACIFIC ARTS MEETING
March 31, 2008
Togiola T.A. Tulafono
Governor of American Samoa
It gives me great pride and pleasure to welcome you all to American Samoa, and to this 20th meeting of the Council of Pacific Arts. On behalf of the people and the government of American Samoa, I welcome all the member countries and territories delegations to American Samoa. Talofa! I hope your travel had been pleasant and that you have rested well since you arrived.
We have welcomed you to our shores through our traditional ‘ava ceremony – the highest degree of welcome that is offered to special visitors. We have all drunk from the same cup as a symbol of sharing a drink of peace and harmony among our Pacific people. Welcome to American Samoa.
I am aware that the focal point of your meeting is going to be the hosting of the 10th Festival of Pacific Arts. I am proud to say that we are ready and prepared to host you all in July, and we are looking forward to welcoming your countries and territories to American Samoa.
[I have a sort of side bar to that statement. And that is: while our committee is prepared to host and accommodate all of your delegations, some of our villages and churches have requested the opportunity to host country delegations in the village or church setting. If your country would like for us to make such arrangements, we will be pleased to do so. Please let us know as soon as possible.]
We have chosen as a theme for the 10th Festival of Pacific Arts a Samoan phrase: "SU'IGAULA A LE ATU VASA" – or literally, threading the garland of the islands of the ocean. It has been translated as Weaving the Oceanic Ula or Weaving the Garland of Oceania. "Ula" (“Lei” in Hawaiian) is a very important element of culture. As you travel around the islands, you will observe people wearing 'ula as part of their dress. You will observe men wearing the 'ulafala (pandanus [paogo] ula) such as the one I am wearing today. It is indicative of the authority of the person wearing it. For in our culture, the High Chiefs wear the 'ulafala to village formal functions. There will be no mistaking that the person who is wearing the 'ulafala is a High Chief in the village. Our national flower is the "paogo" which is the seed that you see on the 'ulafala.
Around the Pacific, each of us has some sort of an important 'ula of our own indigenous flowers and leaves woven and worn to signify something important in our respective cultures. The Festival of Pacific Arts symbolizes coming together to weave the 'ula of the Pacific (our "traditional cultures") from our important flowers (the arts, crafts, customs, language and practices). As we intertwine and sew together the several Pacific 'ula by the demonstration of dances, crafts, arts, we wear it by the experience of observation and appreciation of our old cultural ways. "Old ways", which constitute our history and our heritage, that must appreciated.
In my review of the history of this Council, I found that the predominant theme of its stated philosophy and goals is "cultural development" and "preservation of our respective "Pacific Island heritage for future generations."
In his remarks to open the very first meeting of this council held outside of New Caledonia., Sir Robert Rex, then Premier of Niue, suggested to this council that:
". . . you must seriously consider recommending to the next South Pacific Conference the notion of establishing a Research Project aimed at the collection and production of a history of the Pacific People."
In your last meeting four years ago in Palau, President Tommy Remengesau reminded you that:
“Appreciation of the traditional culture must be nurtured, in order to regenerate an interest in the old ways. The old ways are simply at the root of our being. "
The declaration from these Pacific leaders epitomizes, in my opinion, the significance of the symbolic 'ula in our respective cultures. Our history is about our "old ways" which are at the root of our being. This is the heritage that we inherited, and it is our duty to preserve, nurture, develop and pass them on to the next generation of our respective countries.
Our roots constitute our history. Our history constitutes the forces which helped shape our lives and thus the respective cultures we live under. And knowing that what we do today will shape the lives of our children and grandchildren in the future, it is imperative that we know and understand the history - the "old ways" that shaped our lives and serve as the roots by which we are anchored in our societies.
"Development of culture" necessarily takes into consideration the fact that we live in a changing world and the culture must necessarily evolve with such a world. But I should caution here, that as we speak of developing culture, we must first recognize that without Ianguage, it is not possible to nurture or develop a culture. For without the language, what we will be developing is a different culture. It will be the culture of the language that we speak. I have said before that Language is the oil that keeps the wheels of culture turning. Language is the medium of interaction in our societies.
This council is committed to promoting our respective traditional languages. Promoting our languages must necessarily include the protection of that language from outside influences.
As I warned the "Fale'ula o Fatua'iupu," [Samoan Language Commission] on June 20, 2005 during their conference here in American Samoa, that we must be aware of the influences which are taking over our Samoan language. We can accept change and evolution because it is necessary to do so in order to keep pace with changes in our environment. But we must be committed also to keeping the "old ways", rooted in our history, in order to keep our customs and culture alive and relevant. In any living culture, change is inevitable. It is our duty to make the change consistent and relevant to our way of life and our indigenous culture.
It is necessary to educate our children in the history of our cultures in order for them to appreciate the transition and transformation. The worst thing we can leave behind is a generation of "historically illiterate" children. It is our duty to keep this from happening to the Pacific children. If it happens, we will have failed in our duty as parents, leaders, and people. It means, another culture will take over our people. Don't let it happen. This council can be the vehicle to drive this development in the Pacific.
Have a good meeting, and again, welcome to American Samoa. We look forward to seeing you and the people of your island home in July.
---americansamoa.gov---
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