Who are the Kamoro?
The Jakarta Post
Saturday, October 18, 2008
The Kamoro are an ethno-linguistic group of more than 18,000 people spread throughout 40 villages along the South Central coast of Papua on the Arafura Sea.”10,000 years ago they could have walked the land bridge to Australia,”says Kamoro cultural consultant, Kal Muller.
More than 70 percent of Kamoro still live traditional lives fishing, hunting and gathering with fish their main protein source and sago their main carbohydrate. Kamoro lands take in mangrove forests, sea-shores and up to the rainforest edge.
Today more and more Kamoro are leaving their traditional lives and moving to the large town of Timika. The town offers better access to education and health, according to Muller, however this is at the risk of further loss of Kamoro culture and traditions.
“My program (with Freeport) is all about protecting and maintaining traditional culture. That is one of the reasons the Kamoro artists come to Bali. They can that they don’t have to
lose their traditional culture to take advantage of modernity,”said Muller. — JP/Trisha Sertori
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