THE WORLD’S famous Asaro mud men tradition of the Eastern Highlands province has once again come under the spotlight, this time from the genuine ancestors, who claimed the culture has been bastardized by other ethnic groups around the country. A councillor and the only remaining original mud men, Ruipo Okoro from Komunive village in Asaro district argued strongly that certain groups around the country who are not true ancestors of the mud-men are copying and using this tradition for the sake of receiving payment. “These copy-cat group are also staging shows for tourists without approval from the true owners of the culture. We don’t want our tradition to be played around with” Mr Okoro said, with assistance from an interpreter. This most unique cultural attraction can be found at the mud men village at Komunive, 30-minutes by road from Goroka in an area commonly referred to as Mando. Notably, these legendary and mystified beings have intrigued visitors and even at international events for years with their unique enactment of a traditional legend. The Asaro mudmen was first displayed publicly at the inaugural Goroka Show staged in 1957. It was the traditional group that made the most impact on the crowd numbering over 100,000 that year. Spectators were said to have fled, terrified at the sight of the mud-coated bodies and the large grotesque masks. The art of the mudmen’s ritualistic dance was unknown outside their own clans until that moment. Mr Okoro argued in the strongest terms that the culture have continuously being imitated or copied by groups in major centers around the country. “What we want to see is tourists to come to Komunive and see for themselves the place of origin or true environment of the Asaro mudmen,” Okoro said. Okoro also explained to the EU delegate the history the mud-men with its association with tribal warfare in the area in the past. “Ol tumbuna bilong mipela i save haitim pes bilong ol na ol birua long bihain bai ino inap luksave long ol. (Our ancestors fearing retaliation from their tribal enemies hid their faces with the mud figure,” he said. Mr Okoro added that at the moment only ten clan or hauslain in Komunive have right to claiming this unique culture at their very own. He added that act of imitation by certain Eastern Highlands groups and those from the Highlands region around the country needs to stop immediately. Abe Okoro, mudman himself and son of Mr Okoro said many Highlanders living in different part of the country are copying and using the symbolic form of tradition to showcase at festival, cultural shows at schools. These imitations must stop. “We the traditional owners of the Asaro mudmen culture want tourists to come directly to Komunive and see for themselves our unique culture and tradition as well as the environment or the dwelling place of the original mud-men,” Mr Okoro said. Ends……
Posted on: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 14:24:20 +0000