Kokoda
| Kokoda (station) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Coordinates | 8 ° 53 ′ S , 147 ° 44 ′ E | ||
| Basic data | |||
| Country | Papua New Guinea | ||
| Oro | |||
| ISO 3166-2 | PG-NPP | ||
| height | 370 m | ||
| Residents | 658 | ||
| Location: 55 km WSW from Popondetta | |||
The place Kokoda ( English also Kokoda Station or Kodoka ) is the capital of the Sohe District in the province of Oro , Papua New Guinea . It lies at the northern end of the Kokoda Track . A two-hour drive over a bumpy road connects Kokoda with Popondetta , the capital of the province. The Kokoda Memorial Hospital , built in 1995, has 30 beds.
In August 2009, the Papua New Guinea-4684 flight crashed while approaching Kokoda Airport . All 13 people on board died, including nine Australian passengers attempting to walk the Kokoda Track, a Japanese passenger and three Papuan New Guineans, including the two pilots.
During World War II, Kokoda was the site of the Kokoda Track Campaign . Since the place had the only airfield along the Kokoda Track, it gained considerable strategic importance.
Foundation of the station
Before British colonization in the late 19th century, the area around Kokoda belonged exclusively to the Orokaiva people . In 1899 the British explorer Henry Stuart-Russell looked for a connection from Port Moresby to the north coast of New Guinea . At the headwaters of the Kumusi and Mambare rivers , he met the Orokaiva, who resisted his presence. His troops then shot and killed numerous people who believed that their shields could repel bullets. Stuart-Russell also found traces of gold in the area which encouraged British and Anglo-Australian miners to enter the area. The invasion of these miners led to further conflicts and deaths on both sides. In order to enforce colonial rule, the British paramilitary force in New Guinea, known as the Papua Native Constabulary ( PNC ), was ordered into the area. William Armit , resident magistrate , appeared with his soldiers and killed 17 people in a village and another 24 people on subsequent patrols. His aim was to prevent survivors from returning to their villages for two years. He is also said to have abused crucified prisoners for target practice. Previously, Armit had served as an officer in the Australian Native Police in Queensland , which was known for its brutality. Shortly after the punitive missions, he died of a fever.
After Armit's death, Alexander Elliot led additional patrols with the PNC in 1901 . In punishment for killing two white miners, Elliot and his soldiers shot and killed forty orokaiva and left 17 broken legs. His supervisor cautioned Elliot that sports language was not appropriate for killing natives, but otherwise Elliot's actions were not frowned upon. The officers Allen Walsh , Archibald Walker and Richard de Moleyns carried out further punitive expeditions , with about 50 natives being killed with the newly issued Martini-Herny rifles .
Station Kokoda was established in 1904 when the British decided that the PNC needed a base to enforce colonial control and subjugate the region. Government official Henry Griffin forced local residents to work on the regional construction of buildings and roads. If they refused, Griffin would order his soldiers to shoot their pigs and steal their taro plants. From Kokoda , British and Anglo-Australian troops subjugated the Orokaiva and neighboring tribes.
Second World War
An amphibious landing by Japanese forces to conquer Port Moresby was thwarted by the Japanese defeat in the Battle of the Coral Sea in May 1942 and postponed indefinitely after the Battle of Midway . The Japanese command believed that a road through the Owen Stanley Mountains led from Kokoda to the south coast. From July 21, 1942, an invading force landed on the north coast near Buna and Gona . During the early stages of the Kokoda Track campaign , two battles were fought in and around Kokoda . After the Japanese withdrew to the north coast, Kokoda was reoccupied by Australian forces on November 2, 1942.
Web links
- Kokoda in Pacific Wrecks
- Feature film Kokoda - the 39th Battalion
Individual evidence
- ^ Rotary District 9650 Achievements. In: tareerotary.org.au. August 28, 2007, accessed August 17, 2018 .
- ↑ 'No survivors' at PNG crash site . In: BBC News , August 12, 2009.
- ↑ Hank Nelson: Black, White and Gold . ANU Press, Canberra 1976.
- ^ Japanese army operations in the South Pacific Area: New Britain and Papua campaigns, 1942-1943. In: Australia – Japan Research Project. Pp. 57-61 , accessed August 17, 2018 (English, Translated from Japanese by Steven Bullard. | ISBN 978-0-9751904-8-7 .).
- ^ David Horner: Defending Australia in 1942. In: Tailor & Francis Online. Pp. 1–20 , accessed on August 17, 2018 (English, ISSN 0729-2473).
- ↑ Nicholas Anderson: To Kokoda (= Australian Army Campaigns Series - 14). Big Sky Publishing, Sydney, New South Wales 2014, ISBN 978-1-922132-95-6 .