August 27, 2011

Divine Word University students pulled off yet another successful Cultural Day, attracting hundreds of national and overseas visitors to the annual show at the Madang campus last Saturday.

Crowd pleasers, Milne Bay students into the swing of the famous “Tapioka Dance”.	New Ireland students do their bit for the public

With Madang having no annual cultural show like other provincial capitals such as Lae, Mt Hagen, Goroka and Wabag, the DWU (Diwai) students’ event has been a must-see for the large expatriate community and visitors in the tourism hub in recent years.

Saturday’s show was no exception where many expatriates and locals had their cameras clicking or filming away for this once-awhile festival.

Students from all 22 provinces including the new Jiwaka and Hela provinces took part. Several international groups from Solomon Islands, West Papua and China also took part in the two-day ceremony themed “Lukim PNG, Diwai Style”.

Chairman of the show committee Elvis Balg said the event began on Friday evening with a parade of all cultural groups at the SVD Memorial Auditorium and the main singing and dancing was held throughout Saturday ending with the usual upper Highlands Waipa dance.

Balg said the 2011 Cultural Day was sponsored by PNG Ports Corporation and he thanked the company for its support.

He said the event this year was organized differently where groups had to perform throughout the day at their provincial or group stalls instead of performing at the grandstand and then moving out.

Balg said this changed proved beneficial to the public as they had to walk around and see the groups perform instead of crowding around the grandstand. The event was trouble free with DWU Rangers, police and students providing security for all to enjoy PNG’s range of unique cultural heritage.

Engan students in an earth-shaking dance	students from the Autonomous Regional of Bougainville (AROB) sway to the famous multiple-bamboo band music
Female students from Mt Hagen central in one of their dances	Students and members of the West Papua community in Madang adding international touch to the DWU Cultural Day