The Banaban Story
To this day, my parents have the largest private historical collection in the world of the Banaban people. They will continue to educate the world of the Banaban story and spread awareness to one of the longest British High Court civil cases in history.
Banaban Pronounced [bah-na-ban]
Rabi Island Pronounced [ram-bee]
The Banabans are an Oceanic people from a South Pacific island called Banaba or Ocean Island located in the Pacific Ocean. A solitary raised coral island west of the Gilbert Island chain and 298 km east of Nauru.
In the 1900’s Banaba was discovered to be made of pure phosphate. This fateful discovery would see the beginning of eighty years of phosphate mining facilitated by the governments of The United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, which saw the destruction of the Banabans homeland.
During World War II, the Japanese Imperial forces invaded Banaba with the aim of taking over the mining operation. They murdered one-fifth of the Banaban population and removed the remaining Banaban’s to other Pacific islands, where they were forced into labour. After the war was over the surviving Banabans were gathered together by the British Colonial government and told they could not return to their homeland. The Colonial government used Japan’s invasion as an excuse to dispose of the Banabans, who stood in the way of their plans to continue the phosphate mining of their homeland. The Banabans were then relocated to Rabi Island over 3,000 km’s away in the Fiji Group, arriving without supplies and support on December 15, 1945. Any future plans to visit or see their homeland could only occur after obtaining approval from the British Colonial government.
In 1965 the Banabans began legal proceedings against the Colonial government in the British High Court. This expensive and long fought legal battle would become one of the longest civil cases in history, resulting in the judge stating that even though the Banabans had been wronged, he was powerless to award damages against the British government. It was not until 1981 that the Banabans received any type of compensation, however menial. At the same time as the court proceedings, the Banabans further extended their fight for justice, petitioning the British government to grant independence. Once again the British government washed their hands of the Banaban issue and left it up to the Governor of the GEIC and the newly formed Gilbertese Council of Ministers. Again their hopes were dashed as the GEIC Council opposed independence for Banaba, now or in the future.
In November 1979 the last shipment of phosphate left Banaba’s shores and the Banabans found their homeland still under the control of the newly formed Republic of Kiribati, former Gilbert Islands. The majority of the Banaban community was left forgotten and struggling for survival so far away from their homeland in Fiji on Rabi Island, where they still remain today. Banaba will always remain their homeland and each product the Banaban brand distributes will help continue to educate its consumers of their story.
Coconut seedlings ready for replanting BANABAN Circa 1900
The mined out area looking towards Te Aka site. This is the area they tried to mine but all mining ceased after the sudden, unexplained death of the overseer (R.Lampet 1965).
Phosphate operation. BANABA Island 1960’s.
Second front row: - Temate, one of the elders who signed the mining of phosphate on Ocean Island. OCEAN ISLAND 1900
Ken’s Aunty Mere Naburee, BANABA 1939.
Banaban Life Today
The Banaban people like their homeland, have now been left forgotten. The people still suffer greatly from one of the world’s greatest environment and human rights injustices. The phosphate rich deposits of Banaba and the bones of their ancestors are now dust that has been scattered across the farms of Australia, New Zealand and Great Britain. Over the 80 years of mining Banaba, the governments of The United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and many other countries reaped billions of dollars from the farming benefits and the sale of the phosphate soil taken from their homeland, yet the Banabans have been left in an impoverished state.
Rabi and Banaba islands today receive no assistance or proper infrastructure for future development and daily Banaban life is a constant struggle for survival, where the basic human rights of health care and education are considered luxuries. The disinterest in both remote communities has only added further to the forlorn isolation and depression of the Banaban community.
The Banaban’s only real legacy from the destruction of their homeland by phosphate mining are the obstacles left by the governments involved that further ensure the repression and inhibit any further action to seek justice. Today the Banabans face one of their greatest challenges—the very survival of the Banaban people. For them, the struggle for justice is far from over.
A city of rocks and pinnacles after the mining operation, BANABA 1960’s.
The History of the Banaban Brand
Where my family ties into it all…
This is my families’ story from where it all started. In the early 1900’s my great great grandfather, mother and subsequently four generations of my family were involved with the phosphate mining of Banaba (Ocean Island).
Ella Williams (left) the great great grand mother of Brynley King with a friend visiting a Banaban village in early years of mining. (Williams Collection 1901 - 1931)
In late 1989 a photograph and document collection was uncovered by my Australian born mother Stacey King. Through this discovery the wonderful tales told by her mother and grandparents about their lives on Banaba became a reality. In October 1991, nine months after I was born, my mother and grandmother travelled to Rabi Island (Fiji) to meet with the Banabans for the first time. This meeting changed her life and that of our family forever. Because of the extensive research on Banaban history, my mother had great respect and admiration for the Banaban people. These same feelings were also evident in my great great-grandfathers photograph collections. Growing up I was forever surrounded with international guests helping my mother with aid projects and fundraising to help support the Banabans and educate the public on their plight and the injustice they had suffered at the hands of the Colonial phosphate mining.
In 1992, Stacey began writing and publishing the Banaba/Ocean Island News and building a network of other interested people to try and rally worldwide support to assist the Banaban people. At the same time she began preserving and recording Banaban historical material so it could be returned to its rightful owners.
In 1993, my mother formed the Banaban Heritage Society Inc., a non-profit organisation dedicated to the preservation of history and bettering the lives of Banaban people. The first community library on Rabi and a much needed communications and emergency network programmer were just two of the many community-based projects she helped implement through the volunteer services of society members worldwide.
In February 1997 my mother Stacey King embarked on her first trip to Ocean Island (Banaba) and experienced the strong bonds with the island that her family had felt all those year ago. In July 1997, she returned again on the society’s homecoming trip, which took sixty people including Banabans from Rabi on an epic journey back to Banaba. From my mother’s own experiences, she became convinced that the Banabans were part of the very homeland itself, and that the two could never be separated, even if the majority of Banabans were now living on Rabi in Fiji.
At this time my mother met a Banaban - Raobeia Ken Sigrah and they fell in love. From then on at the age of five my life was continuously engaged in the Banaban culture and eventually in 2004 the Banaban brand was formed. Now each and every Banaban product shares the Banaban people’s story. For me this tale is legendary. For five generations our family has helped promote the untold story of the Banaban people. I truly have been blessed to be raised with such values of culture and determination. This is why I believe I have been raised by the most innovative and creative woman I know. For years she helped promote the Banaban story with no intention of receiving recognition.
After years of my mother working with the Banaban community and lobbying at an international level she realised the governments involved were not going to step in and help the Banabans to repair and rebuild their homeland. She became convinced that – a Company had destroyed the Banabans Island and it would be a Company that would rebuild it! Ironically at the time she was totally unaware that her journey and the humble coconut would bring about the answer.
Just like a drifting coconut washed across the vast oceans and firmly taking root on distant island shores, the tree of life for millions of Pacific peoples would also provide the key building block for their future.
From the devastation of Banaba Island through phosphate fertilizer mining, one of the worse environmental disasters of the 20th century, the Banabans have proved their courage and determination and outstanding strength and resilience as a people to overcome such adversity, just like the amazing coconut tree; to survive, flourish and stand tall in the years ahead, to multiply and prosper.
