By FRANK ASAELI
CAN you imagine a bulldozer tearing up the graves at Bomana War Cemetery or 9 Mile Cemetery? There would be a public outcry! Executive officer of Kokoda Track Authority (KTA) Warren Bartlett said.
Kokoda Track is a sacred war grave site as described by Kokoda Track War Historian and author of Field Guide to the Kokoda Track, Bill James and Soc Kienzle (son of the late Kokoda Campaign Angau Officer Bert Kienzle of Mamba Estate in Kokoda).
Both feel that it is improper for a bulldozer to excavate graves without proper procedures being followed.
Over recent weeks and currently, there have been many discussions with individual landowner leaders from Naoro area, and other villagers from along the Track from Kokoda to Owers’ Corner and Sogeri as well as meetings between Government officials to resolve the issue of the renewal of exploration license (EL) 1348 for Frontier Resources copper exploration on Mt Kodu.
The majority of stakeholders believe that the EL should be renewed to Frontier.
In any renewal of a mining or petroleum exploration licence, there is a mandatory 50% reduction in the area of the tenement.
It is therefore suggested that such reduction would allow for Frontier to continue exploration at their Mt Kodu site with access on their present Owers’ Corner to mine-site track and the North West Elo site with access from the Edevu road off the Hiritano Highway.
There should be a 2 to 3 km wide “Exclusion Zone” where the Kokoda Track passes through the Mt Kodu prospect included in the Exploration Licence.
Mt Kodu exploration boundary would be 500 metres east of the Kokoda Track at Ofi Creek.
Mr James has supplied copies of 1942 military maps of the Kokoda Track and parallel tracks between Ioribaiwa, Manari and Kagi which indicate that there were three parallel tracks to the Kokoda Trail in the Ofi Creek and Naoro area.
The commanders during the Kokoda campaign referred to the main wartime route as Kokoda Trail and the others as parallel or secondary tracks which were also used in the campaign.
One of those tracks is the original Port Moresby to Buna route (Bunadala) which was used by Police and Postmen pre-war to get mail and small parcels between Port Moresby, Kokoda, Buna and other outposts in between.
These tracks have been merged in places to form the current Kokoda Track.
The Kokoda Trail “War Zone” or proposed “Exclusion Zone” of suggested 2 to 3 kilometres width (with the Track located within) was the scene of bloody battles where many Papuan carriers including Koiari, Biage, Kanage and Orokaivans together with Japanese and Australian soldiers lost their lives.
Most Australian bodies were recovered and re-interred at Bomana War Cemetery whilst the Japanese and Papuan remains were left buried where they died or often in mass graves.
Some Japanese remains were identified years later by their families and were returned to Japan. Mr Bartlett said there are still World War II bodies located on the Kokoda Track, as was recently revealed by Kokoda Spirit Managing Director, Wayne Wetherall, who last week located the full skeletal remains of a Japanese soldier including his dog-tag.
The Naoro landowners suggest that with mining exploration continuing, a parallel track some 400 metres to the west of the existing Kokoda Track at Ofi Creek be used by trekkers.
There is also the other option of trekkers commencing or completing their trek to or from Kokoda by access from the Edevu Road off the Hiritano Highway.
This road passes through the Edevu sawmill and logging access roads to Matilogo village and can be traversed by 4WD vehicle quite safely.
These roads have recently been graded by the logging Company who is selectively logging the area west of the Kokoda Track.
From Matilogo Village across the ravine can be seen the Kokoda Track villages of Efogi and Kagi. It is a 5 hour walk from Matilogo to Manari village on the Kokoda Track.
Last week the Edevu landowner leaders were approached on the possibility of accessing Kokoda
Track via their territory and they are keen for such to happen as they wish to participate in sustainable tourism developments, including Mount Victoria, which landowners and local tour operators with overseas clients are embarking on this year.
They have vehicle transport, guides and carriers also available for hire to trekking groups.

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