The Republic of Vanuatu celebrates the anniversary of its independence every year on July 30. This year it will be 44 years since Vanuatu gained its independence from the joint rule of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and France in 1980. This Tuesday 30 July our team of 25 workers from Vanuatu will mark the day with pride even though they are far from home.

Each year a theme is chosen by the Independence Day Committee for the annual celebrations – this year it is “As one people we build a better Vanuatu”.

Members of our second group of PALM workers from Vanuatu were invited to share why Independence Day is special and some of the things they might do on the day if they were at home. Here is what they shared:

Prior to independence the Ni-Vanuatu people worked for the British and French Governments who owned the land. On 30 July 1980 the land was returned not to the State, but to the customary landowners.

Zilo Bong (who works at Emmaus), in sharing what independence means to the people of Vanautu, says this freedom is cause for great joy and celebration each year because even though some communities don’t have a lot of money, the people can choose what they do and how they live.

“It is a matter of immense pride to our Elders and parents, who were born and raised when the country was not independent, that by achieving independence they would have land and be free. Having land meant they would always be able to feed their families because they could grow what they needed to do that,” says Zilo.

The celebration of Independence Day goes for nearly a week, culminating on 30 July with the flag raising, the national Independence Day speech and community celebrations gatherings.

The main celebration is centred around the capital, Port Vila, where the Prime Minister delivers the speech in Independence Park. This same speech is read out by a community leader, usually the provincial president, at the same time at the celebrations held throughout the country in each of the nation’s six provinces.

Not every community has access to TV, radio or internet so it is done this way, so everyone hears the same message of national celebration at the same time.

The day begins with everyone joining in a parade of music and dance, which makes its way to the community’s celebration space, where at 9am (at the various celebrations across the nation) the flag raising ceremony is held and the National Independence Day speech is read. There is a program for the day featuring cultural performances, dance, and music by various community organisations and groups which are each allocated a time.

In the days and weeks leading up to the 30 July, the event space is set up. On the day there are lots of food stalls, performances (musical and cultural), activities, games and sports played throughout the day.

There is a national songwriting/performance competition which offers a major prize about $1000 which is highly sought after.  It makes an enormous difference to the community that wins.

This video of the 40^th Anniversary celebrations in 2020 gives an idea of how big the Independence Day parade and celebrations are in Vanuatu. It is a day when the entire community comes together for a day of shared celebration.

People spend weeks in the lead up to the day looking for the right fabrics in the colours of the Vanuatu flag to sew their costumes to wear on the day. Whole families and community organisations try to where matching outfits to show their national pride.  The hair and head is decorated with flowers and national flags.

Each province has its own traditions for preparing food. The whole family is usually involved getting everything ready.

National dishes, ‘Bunya’ and ‘Laplap’, are cooked in fire pits with small stones at the bottom, wood and then larger stones on the top. The fire is lit and when it is ready for cooking the big stones are removed and the food, wrapped in banana leaves, is placed in the fire to cook. Coconut milk is used to grease the leaves (like butter on a cake tin) so the food doesn’t stick.

Laplap made from grown crops, such as green bananas, takes about an hour to cook in fire and stone. The vegetables used are usually grated or crushed.

Bunya, a variety of meats (such as fish, beef, chicken) and vegetables (such as casava, taro, sweet potato and pumpkin) are cut into pieces and placed in the fire pit to cook. Bunya takes longer than Laplap to cook, usually about 1½ to 2 hours.

From all at St Agnes’ Catholic Parish to all our friends from Vanuatu – Happy Independence Day!

Special thanks to Pielau Eric and Cleo Hakwa for sharing these photos.