Fogarty Park in Cairns city was transformed into a lively celebration of Papua New Guinea's 48th Independence Day.
The local Papua New Guinean community gathered to honour their homeland's rich history, culture and heritage.
People flocked to the park, eager to experience a slice of Papua New Guinea.
The atmosphere at Fogarty Park was a tantalizing aroma of traditional food like Pariwa, creamy coconut chicken, and various fish dishes.
Colourful and vibrant stalls showcased an array of meri blouses, bilums, and exquisite artwork.
Cairns Mayor, Bob Manning, delivered a poignant speech, acknowledging the significant Papua New Guinean population residing in Cairns. He emphasized the enrichment of the local community through this diversity and celebrated Papua New Guinea's remarkable journey to self-government in 1975. Manning praised the nation's linguistic diversity with 839 known languages, as well as its predominantly rural character.
Mayor Manning expressed Cairns' commitment to strengthening its partnership with Papua New Guinea, stating, "There’s so much on offer for PNG you know, and we want to be a part of that with you. In 50 years’ time, we want to still be here and talking this way that we are partners and we’ve been partners for a long time."
The festivities continued with mesmerizing traditional dances performed by cultural groups representing Manus, Tubusereia, Morobe, Kairuku, Aroma, Tolai, Kavieng, and the Autonomous Region of Bougainville. A captivating narrated performance by the renowned Siale Dance Troupe captivated the audience.
Maureen Semei, President of the PNG and Wantoks Association in Cairns, emphasized the importance of events like the PNG Independence Day celebration in strengthening ties between communities. She highlighted the support provided to Papua New Guinea's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through the event, underlining the symbiotic relationship between Cairns and its Papua New Guinean population.
Semei expressed, "For our country back home, they also play an important role in what we have here in Cairns. A lot of things you go around and look at are actually produced in PNG; they are not locally made in Cairns. I know SMEs is quite big in PNG, and if you see most or all of our stalls here, they are in one way or another supporting SMEs back in PNG. I think the message is that we are also supporting our people back home, but they are also supporting us by showing us that we are interested in our culture."