Louie Kaman is a sophomore in accounting from Papua New Guinea, where he is the chief son of a tribe called Kwika, which has 10,000 people. "We have 800,000 people [in Papua New Guinea] and we speak 860 languages, but I only speak five," said Kaman. His native language is Kuma; he learned English and Motu in school, and picked up Simbu and New Guinea pidgin socially. "New Guinea Pidgin is useful because you can speak it on the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu," Kaman said. Kaman is the fifth of seven biological and three adopted siblings. Kaman will be taking his dad's place as chief, after his father dies, though Kaman is working with him already. "The first thing you have to do is know 10,000 names. I've known them since my early life, so it’s easy," he said.
Papua New Guinea is north of Australia and is the biggest of all the pacific islands. "I think we are the last frontier, meaning some of our vegetation and culture is still untouched, like our rainforests," said Kaman. 87% of the land is owned by the tribes and 13% is owned by the government. There are eight universities, which are on government land. The population of Papua New Guinea is growing at 2.7% per year. "The majority of the people in the rural areas live in traditional houses like the ones you see at PCC," said Kaman. Internet is a luxury and not used often, though cell phones have recently started being used there in the last few years. "They don’t care about internet, the twin towers or wars. They don't know about it. The outside influence does not get in. It does not affect them so it does not have to be explained to them," said Kaman.
The first LDS missionaries went to Papua New Guinea in the 1960s. The first missionary who went there, Elder Ogden, now works at the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie. "We joined the Church in 2002," said Kaman. When the first missionaries came to their area, they had no place to stay, so the chief said that they could stay with them. He was curious about what they did and how they could be elders when they were so young. The Elders in their Catholic churches were actually elderly. Within four months, the chief read the Book of Mormon and decided to join. Noted Kaman—"My dad told us 'you kids don't know anything' and the next day we all got baptized. Whatever he says, we will do." The seven youngest kids in Kaman's family have all gone on missions, including two who are on missions in Australia currently.
Three quarters of the Kwika tribe have been baptized, which amounts to about 7,000 people. Only about 400 people, accumulated from the other tribes, have joined. "A lot of kids served their missions. They go to the MTC in New Zealand, and when they get back, they tell the people what life is suppose to be like. They say ‘we have to keep the good customs and let go of the bad,' " said Kaman.
Kaman served in the Papua New Guinea Port Moresby mission. A lot of his friends lived in the area where he was serving and teased him about serving a false prophet and throwing his life away on a mission. Kaman said, "I called my mission president and told him that I wanted to go to a different mission. He told me 'you have the truth and they do not, so do your job.' " It turned out his friends thought that a mission was a life choice, rather than just serving for two years. Kaman said of his friends who had been skeptical, "Now they see the blessings and realize how fast the Church grows."
Kaman's plans for when he returns to his tribe include working with the members to grow the church in order to get a temple, organizing a legal system to replace war traditions, educating people about human rights, and getting rid of bridal purchasing and arranged marriages. "Girls have to know their rights. They are not to be traded," said Kaman.
Kaman said, "I am starting a water project. We are looking for a donor here. I talked to my brother back home. He is working on the paper work and he will send it over here. We already worked on the Habitat for Humanity project, which helps build permanent houses for people."
"I really appreciate the opportunity the Church has given to us [developing countries] to come and gain an education here," Kaman said. He and his older brother are the only two people in the tribe who have a college education. "If I come here and go back, I have a leading edge," he said.
--Photo by Ryan Bagley