Solomon Islands – Laudato Si’

FROM WAGINA, SOLOMON ISLANDS 

Solomon Islands are responding to the Encyclical letter of the Holy Father Francis – Laudato Si’  On Care for Our Common Home?

Besides our Catholic women, we have a bigger women’s group involving people from our three main islands – Isabel, Wagina and Choiseul Island. The name of it is KAWAKI NETWORK

Imagine, different denominations (Anglican, Seven Day Adventists, SDA, United and Catholic), races, languages and cultures.  The aim of the group is ‘We Unite To Celebrate Our Community, Conservation & Culture.’

The very first meeting was held for 5 days. Over sixty or seventy women were present.  One of the programs was to give awareness on conservation to village communities if the villages had an urgent problem.  For example, once the women jumped in when a company came wanting to clear the ground and make paths to go up to the place where the phosphate is. So the women spread the message around.  They filled the canoe engines with fuel so that the men could go and stop the clearing.  It worked.  The company had to leave straight away.  There were consequences, but the men took over and faced them.  Once last year a Chinese man came to negotiate with the villages and communities about logging.  Straight away the women of KAWAKA prepared a demonstration.  They included the primary school students and the teachers.  When they were ready the marching started from the school to where the men and elders were holding their meeting.  The marching to the meeting place was powerful.  The women were all there, marching around the meeting place, shouting we do not want logging, no negotiation, we don’t want the money and so on.  Some men were angry and couldn’t understand why the women involved children in this.  The women said that the children have the right to speak for themselves, to stand up for their future, for their land.

At another time the women walked around in the villages and saw small turtles lying in one of the family areas.  Because they were too small, undersize, they took the turtles to the sea and threw them back.  The men were so angry, but it’s a rule.  The women had the courage to put the turtles back into the sea.

What the Pope wrote was true.  He asked us to recognize that our natural environment has been gravely damaged by our own irresponsible behaviour.  We people are challenged to try to do all we can to stop spoiling our earth and its environment. Our social environment has also suffered damage.

We need to ask questions – what are some activities we can do to keep our natural world free from danger?