Vanuatu
Vanuatu is one of the root countries in the Melanesian Indigenous Land Defence Alliance. Following the creation of MILDA in Madang in 2009, Vanuatu hosted the next meeting in Mele Village, in Port Vila, Efate Island from 14 -19 June, 2010.
We came from Papua New Guinea, Bougainville, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji and Australia, and were privileged to have traditional chiefs with us. We came to share experiences, stories and skills, and strategize a regional response to the persistent pressure for registration and leasing of customary land. At this meeting, the members created the Mele Declaration..
Numalin Mahana speaks on land in Vanuatu
posted 16 September 2011
Numalin Mahana speaks on land in Vanuatu (Mele village, Efate island, Vanuatu, June 2010)
From 10-14 March, 2014, at Natapao Village, Lelepa Island, Vanuatu hosted MILDA once again. This year the theme was “Inseparable – The Land, Food, and People of Melanesia.” A preparatory meeting to discuss the Slow Food movement with the organization Terra Madre and food security.
During 25 -29 November, 2019, Takara Village, Shefa Province, Vanuatu hosted MILDA’s 10 year anniversary. The Takara Declaration asserted, that Melanesian definitions of land are inclusive of the ocean, and that we have been the custodians of our land and ocean since time immemorial. In all of our Melanesian traditions, the relationship that we have with our land and ocean is special and unique, and cannot be replaced by foreign value systems without putting our well-being, our communities, our languages, our ways of life and our continued existence on the planet in danger of extinction.
Celebrating Vanuatu Independence
