A WARDER FROM THE ISLANDS WHO FOUND LOVE IN THE HIGHLANDS

 

ToUrauma Sailas, the Tolai, with Piai, his beloved wife from Kerowagi, Chimbu Province, in a final photo prior to his flight to Goroka.

THE STORY of SAILAS

By JOEL SILAS

SOME people were born in a locality and spend their entire lives there, whether on an island or in a mountain valley. 

Others were born to raise their sights to the horizon and not just scale what they see, but actually venture out and explore the lands beyond the seas, or valleys beyond the distant mountain ranges.

The second group of people could find treasures of all sorts beyond the horizon, including finding a suitable life partner who could also blessed them with beautiful children who would also go on to add value to their family, people as well as the nation.

Such is the story of a young man from the New Guinea Islands who joined the PNG Correctional Services and clocked 22 years of dedicated service in that force before exiting in 1987.

Assistant Correctional Officer, ToUrauma Sailas, who was posted to the Central Highlands of Papua New Guinea, Kerowagi rural lockup in the late 1960s, married a local Bengadugu lass from Paglau tribe (pronounced Pakau), namely Piai nee Agua from Kerowagi, Chimbu district. 

Theirs was a journey together based on undivided love and united two cultures – Tolai and Chimbu – as the move towards a united Papua and New Guinea was the theme prior to self-government and Independence.

ToUrauma was born to IaFida and ToParau Sailas of Bitatita Village, Kokopo district of East New Britain, on April 2, 1934. He was the ninth child in a family of 10.

His early years saw him learning fishing, diving, hunting and gardening from his parents and contemporaries.

When he was eight years old, World War II reached the New Guinea Islands region. 

After midnight of January 23, 1942, the Japanese Army South Sea Detachment 144th Infantry, landed in several places around Rabaul, including the area between Raluana and Karavia Points.

Sailas’ seaside village of Bitatita, located between Raluana and Karavia points on the southwestern end of the Simpson Harbour, Blanche Bay, was a hotspot for occasional day and night high altitude bombing raids and low-level firing against the shipping and aerial mining mission by the allied forces.

The disruptions and innocent civilian casualties caused by the war meant the family had to relocate inland to their mother’s village. 

While the war was in progress, the young Sailas with the other village children began informal classes in Japanese, as was the case in other parts of the country.

From that early age until he was 30, Sailas tried to improve himself in gaining education and looking for other opportunities, including unloading cargo from shops at Toboi, Malaguna, and spending time in New Ireland and working as a mail delivery boy.  

At the age of 32, his duty call came when he heard that the disciplinary forces were recruiting and he applied in Kokopo to join the Correctional Services. He was recruited by the CS (formerly Corrective Institution Services) to serve as a prison warder.

In June 1965 his ENB cohort reported to Kerevat jail. A few weeks there saw them introduced to marching drills. 

The ENB team joined the rest from other parts of the territory of Papua and New Guinea in July that year at Bomana Corrective Institution Staff Training College.

After three months of basic prison supervisory training, he was posted, way out of his comfort zone to Goroka, Eastern Highlands District. 

Bihute, the current jail, was not established yet.

From there, along with two other coastal men, he was posted to Kerowagi, which was then a sub district of Eastern Highlands District. 

ToUrauma Sailas, the Tolai who became a warder and found love in the Highlands of PNG.

A West New Briton from Talasea and two Tolais – one Joel Dukduk from Lungalunga and him from Kokopo – were part of the team that arrived in Kerowagi and beefed up manpower on the ground.
Their duties at Kerowagi involved supervision of prisoners in road and airstrip constructions,  and transfers of prisoners within Chimbu’s rural lockups by foot.
He met his wife, Piai Agua from the local Bengadugu, Paglau tribe, and they began a 53-year life journey until his demise ended the partnership. 
They had a traditional Chimbu marriage in his wife’s Kerekungo village in 1968 and he was initiated into the wife’s Paglau tribe.
In the ensuing years from 1969 to 1973, he served in Chimbu Province. Their first child was born in June 1969. 
When his recreational leave was due in 1970, he with his Chimbu wife and their six-month old son journeyed to his Bitatita village where the family was initiated into the Tolai culture. 
In April of 1971, their second child was born in the village where their traditional marriage took place. Since the colonial government’s tenure in administering PNG was approaching the end, a few changes occurred. 
A notable one was closing up all rural lockups and prisoners were moved to the district’s main jail.
During his time as a CS warder, Sailas also served at Barawagi, Baisu, Kerevat and also at Bereina, in Central Province. 
The Tolai man retired in 1987s at the age of 53 while he was at Baisu in Western Highlands Province. He decided to settle with his inlaws at Kerowagi and integrated  into the Simbu way of life.
In 1998, he decided to move to Port Moresby, to where his grown-up children were residing. 
In 2005, when one of his children with his family was living in Hamilton, New Zealand, the traveller Sailas this time went beyond the big land of New Guinea to Aotearoa. 
The reason for that journey: He had to be there for the christening of a grandchild of his as his namesake. It was an enjoyable trip, to say the least.
Sailas became a believer in the Lord and made his confession in a baptism on 25 October, 1998 and joined the Revival Centres of PNG Fellowship.     
Patriarch Sailas has many good memories of his times however that may have to be shared in another way for those who are interested.
On 26 October, 2021 the Tolai man shared scriptures and prayed with Brother Martin and grandson Beremao. 
He drank a few glasses of water afterwards and went to his bedroom to retire. About 20 minutes later, he gave a shout as if responding to another call.
Upon hearing the shout, Beremao went to check on him and the patriarch reached his hand out to give a last handshake and he was gone.
His funeral service was conducted by his church folks at 9 Mile in Port Moresby. 
But the colour of the CS days was added with Corporal Justin Kimama of the SC Pipes and Drums band led the procession with the memorable tunes that Patriarch Sailas loved to hear from when he first joined the disciplinary force.
The family of Sailas appreciate the help that people, whether friends or relatives or former CS personnel, gave during their time of his passing last year.