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The tropical islands of Vanuatu, voted the Happiest Country on Earth in 2006, has a crisis in the far north of the nation. Parents and their cargo of coconut crabs are left high-and-dry as the only airline which services the Torres Island area, refuses to carry the live crabs.
Making several trips to the airstrip over the past month, to meet the once-a-week flight, the villagers have had their hopes dashed time and again. Each time they have been told there is no space available for the crabs to be air lifted to the capital of Vanuatu, Port Vila.
“The villagers urgently need the crabs to be sold so they have the cash to pay their school fees", Michael Rahurou told us. “Each time the villagers make the unsuccessful journey and the airline agent sends the villagers home again, some more crabs die and have to be replaced". The villagers have put together enough money to pay for the freight, but the airline is adamant in their refusal to come to the rescue of the local people.
When Air Vanuatu was approached a spokesman for the airline said: “We cannot carry the live coconut crabs because they are not in contained a suitable container for airfreight. Just as coconut crabs have the ability to break open the ultra hard skin of a coconut, so they are quite capable of biting off a finger, or whatever they can get their claws on. It is therefore important they are properly packaged".
When the villagers secure the coconut crabs for sale they are tightly tied up by coconut palm leaf strips. It would be virtually impossible for a coconut crab to free itself from these strapping. The crabs are then securely packaged into a traditional woven coconut leaf basket.
The real problem is that while these crabs are highly prized by the tourist serving-restaurants in Vila, they are on the endangered list in some areas of Vanuatu. This restriction does not apply to the Torres Islands area.
Air Vanuatu was faced with this same complaint from the villagers several years ago. It is well known that the domestic side of the airline is the most profitable portion of their entire operation. Surely Air Vanuatu is able to supply a suitable container to the villagers, to airfreight their live coconut crabs? Containers that could be purchased for around $Au20 each and could be recycled. It is not uncommon for airlines to supply containers for other things like transporting food, or pets etc on international flights.
With no free education in Vanuatu and parents unable to raise the money to pay school fees, children go without education. These parents subsist on less than $1 per day.
Dr Wendy Stenberg-Tendys and her husband are CEO’s of YouMe Support Foundation Child Trust Fund, (http://youmesupport.org). The provide high school education grants to children from areas where the parents are unable to raise funds for their children education. You can assist in this vital and exciting project. Take a few minutes to check out this once in lifetime Blue Moon Opportunity, at Win a Resort, (http://winaresort.com ). It will change the lives of these children, and it could change your life as well.
Photo:
http://www.prlog.org/
