By the mid-1960s, the students who met around tins of corned beef were no longer content to argue only among themselves. They had grown confident, disciplined, and impatient. Their grievances — crowded dormitories, unequal pay, everyday racism — were real, but they now framed them as political issues, not just personal struggles.
This was the turning point. The Bully Beef Club moved from being a circle of friends into an embryonic political movement. Its members began to test the colonial system itself.
Pull Quote: “We thought, you know, with one voice you could be heard much more than as an ordinary individual.” — Michael Somare
An Oath of Secrecy and Solidarity
The students understood the risks. They were still employees of the colonial state — teachers, clerks, patrol officers in training. Openly challenging authority could mean dismissal or blacklisting.
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As Michael Somare later recalled in his memoir Sana, the group swore an oath of secrecy. They pledged to protect one another, keep their debates private, and present a united voice when dealing with administrators or the Special Branch. For Somare, it was both a survival tactic and a declaration of seriousness.
Pull Quote: “We promised ourselves that no one would betray the other … that we would stand together.” — Michael Somare, Sana
The oath gave the Bully Beef Club an identity beyond friendship. It bound them together in solidarity, a rehearsal for the discipline of party politics that would follow. It was not about espionage, but about trust. They promised to keep their debates private, to defend one another if targeted, and to present a united front when dealing with administrators. The oath was a shield against the colonial system — and a rehearsal for the discipline of party politics.
Somare later explained that secrecy was crucial. It allowed them to “speak as one” and to avoid being picked off as individuals. For young leaders, secrecy was both a survival tactic and a declaration of seriousness.
The First Confrontations
The Club’s first bold move was a deputation to the Public Service Commissioner. Outraged by discriminatory pay scales, they demanded an explanation in writing. For students, this was a daring act. It forced the Administration to acknowledge their grievances and revealed the determination of a new generation.
The deputation was part of a broader pattern. Students organised petitions, wrote letters to the editor in Memorabilia and the South Pacific Post, and pressed the Administration over food, housing, and sanitation. Each action chipped away at the fiction that young Papua New Guineans were passive recipients of colonial policy.
Meetings with Politicians
At the same time, the students sought out the wisdom of older leaders. John Guise, the first Speaker of the House of Assembly, spoke to them about parliamentary procedure and the art of persuasion. Barry Holloway, an Australian-born member of the House, explained the compromises and alliances required in politics.
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For the students, these meetings were a revelation. They realised that politics was not just protest but also strategy: speeches, votes, committees, and the ability to work across factions.
Somare later admitted that watching Guise in parliament convinced him that his own future lay in politics, not in journalism or administration.
Tos Barnett on Pangu Pati and Local Courts
Source: Barnett NLA 2
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Description
This segment captures Barnett’s reflections on the late 1960s, when the Pangu Pati was emerging at the Administrative College. Several of its future leaders, including Michael Somare, Albert Maori Kiki, and Bill Warren, were his students. While his wife supported Pangu’s campaigning, Barnett’s own focus remained on establishing village-level courts. He believed that whatever political upheavals occurred in Port Moresby, communities would need a stable system of dispute settlement to endure change.
John Yocklunn on Joining Pangu and Coordinating the 1972 Campaign
Source: NLA Yocklunn
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Description
Yocklunn recounts how his path to Papua New Guinea was shaped by connections with Tony Voutas and David Chenoweth, leading him to join the Administrative College as Chief Librarian in 1967. Within weeks he was introduced to Albert Maori Kiki and became one of Pangu’s earliest members. He recalls Pangu’s modest beginnings: no parliamentary presence in 1967, only a few elected members in 1968, and an early decision to refuse ministerial posts to preserve unity. By 1972, however, Yocklunn was entrusted with coordinating the party’s national campaign, while Kiki stepped aside temporarily. The result was a breakthrough—around 25 seats—and Pangu’s central role in forming a National Coalition Government with Somare, Julius Chan, John Guise, and others, setting the stage for independence.
Transcript
Self-Government as the First Step
The debates soon turned from grievances to visions of the future. Should Papua New Guinea push immediately for independence? Or first demand internal self-government?
Albert Maori Kiki urged patience, but also urgency:
Pull Quote: “I don’t mind if independence does not come now … but internal self-government must come now, rather than having a target date of independence.” — Albert Maori Kiki
Kiki’s pragmatism showed how far the students had come. They were no longer just reacting to unfairness; they were beginning to map out the road to sovereignty.
Albert Maori Kiki on Internal Self-Government and Independence
Source: ABC_FutureOfNewGuinea_proxy_T440292
[VIDEO HERE: Albert Maori Kiki on Internal Self-Government and Independence, ABC]
Description
At 36, patrol officer Albert Maori Kiki was already recognised as one of the Gulf District’s most politically active voices. Speaking just hours after an all-night meeting with other young leaders, he was cautious about declaring a target date for full independence. Instead, he emphasised the immediate need for internal self-government—the capacity to manage domestic affairs without direct Australian control—as the crucial first step. Kiki observed that most Papua New Guineans still wanted Australians present, and believed independence might be decades away, perhaps 20 or 30 years. Yet he insisted that learning to govern must begin at home: handling daily affairs, building institutions, and preparing for eventual sovereignty. His pragmatism balanced grassroots caution with a visionary insistence that independence would only come through active preparation and self-rule.
Transcript
The Committee of Thirteen — The ‘Angry Young Men’
Out of this ferment emerged the Committee of Thirteen. Nicknamed the “Angry Young Men” by critics, the group was composed largely of former Bully Beef Club members and their allies. Their purpose was to present submissions on constitutional development to the House of Assembly.
Somare described their goal clearly:
Pull Quote: “We are seeking home rule. We are not aiming for ultimate independence … we want to start the administrative machinery and from there make our way up to independence.” — Michael Somare
The Committee’s existence unsettled the Administration. Here was a group of young Papua New Guineans, still technically students and junior officers, taking constitutional questions into their own hands. It was an assertion of political agency — a statement that Papua New Guinea’s future would be decided not just in Canberra or Moresby, but by its own rising leaders.
Michael Somare and the Committee of Thirteen
Source: ABC_FutureOfNewGuinea_proxy_T440292
[VIDEO HERE: Michael Somare and the Committee of Thirteen, ABC]
Description
At just 30 years old, Michael Somare was already at the heart of Papua New Guinea’s independence debates. Speaking as a journalist with the Administration Information Services, he described his role in the influential Committee of 13—a group sometimes called the “Angry Men.” While outsiders gave them names ranging from mocking to dismissive, Somare explained that their purpose was serious: to present submissions on constitutional development to the House of Assembly. At this stage, he was not demanding full independence outright, but advocating home rule—the creation of an indigenous administrative machinery that would allow Papua New Guineans to govern their own domestic affairs. From this foundation, he argued, the path to eventual independence would naturally follow. His words capture both the tactical caution and the quiet determination that would later define his leadership of the independence movement.
Transcript
Responsibility, Not Just Slogans
Not every voice struck the same note. Oala Oala-Rarua, one of the most senior Papuan public servants of the time, insisted that independence must be matched by responsibility. In his words:
Pull Quote: “Independence will mean … a great responsibility being passed from Australian hands into the Papua New Guineans.” — Oala Oala-Rarua
Oala’s caution reflected the tension within the movement. Some wanted independence immediately; others stressed preparation and capacity. But together, these voices — urgent, pragmatic, cautious — gave the movement depth.
Oala Oala-Rarua on Responsibility
Source: ABC_NewGuineaElections_proxy_T373893
[AUDIO HERE: Oala Oala-Rarua on Responsibility, ABC interview]
Description
By the mid-1960s, Oala Oala-Rarua had already emerged as one of Papua New Guinea’s most capable public servants and a likely future leader. A former teacher who had travelled widely overseas, he saw independence not simply as a political slogan but as a profound responsibility. In his words, independence meant “a great responsibility being passed from Australian hands into the Papua New Guineans.” His view captured both the optimism and the weight of expectation felt by the emerging nationalist generation—that self-government was not just about freedom, but about proving themselves capable of running the country’s affairs.
Transcript
The Leap to Party Politics
By 1967, the Bully Beef generation had made its decisive leap. Their debates, petitions, and committees crystallised into the founding of the Pangu Pati. Pangu drew directly on the networks of trust built in the dormitories, in the SRC, in Hohola, and in the oath of secrecy.
Somare, Kiki, Rea, Nombri, and Olewale were central to its creation. Pangu gave structure to what had been informal, and gave national reach to what had been local. It was the bridge between the Bully Beef Club and the independent nation.
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Media Coverage and Public Perception
Journalists began to notice. The South Pacific Post covered the rise of the “Angry Young Men,” while the Pacific Islands Monthly warned of radical students stirring trouble. The ABC put young leaders like Somare and Kiki on national broadcasts, amplifying their voices across the Territory.
For the first time, the public could hear directly from the Bully Beef generation. The Club was no longer a rumour whispered about by administrators. It had become a recognised political force, shaping debates about the country’s future.