First published in 1976,
Papua New Guinea
was the first book to interpret the key events that led to the nation’s independence in 1975. In the book, journalist Don Woolford, a correspondent for the Australian Associated Press in Papua New Guinea, describes the ferment and excitement of the 1960s and 1970s, chronicling the former Australian territory’s political development from the first general election for a representative House of Assembly in 1964 through independence. Key figures in the transition, including Michael Somare, John Guise, Albert Maori Kiki, and Josephine Abaijah, make an appearance and their contributions are analyzed adroitly. Woolford’s access to these and other important individuals, as well as to literature produced for a moment that is no longer available, make this an inimitable and invaluable record of the remarkable years that led to the creation of the nation of Papua New Guinea.