cultilvation

Australian South Sea Islanders hoeing a cane field in the Herbert River region, Queensland, 1902

from State Library of Queensland

• Vesna Verencevic said:

  Today’s Australian South Sea Islanders have a special place in Queensland’s cultural diversity and history. They are the descendants of South Sea Islanders brought to Queensland from 1863 to 1904 from 80 Melanesian islands to work the State’s cotton and sugar plantations. The 62,000 men, women and children were considered a cheap source of labour, with many being kidnapped, tricked or blackbirded. By 1908, many had been deported under the “White Australia” policy and those who remained suffered harsh treatment and discrimination. Today, Australian South Sea Islanders have a unique identity in Queensland, which is embedded in a rich heritage and vibrant culture. Source: www.slq.qld.gov.au/discover/exhibitions/australian-south-...

• Vesna Verencevic said:

  It is estimated that between 1863 and 1904 up to 62,500 Pacific Islanders, mainly men and boys, were brought to Qld or northern New South Wales. Initially around 10,500 were recruited illegally, many kidnapped. Later many Islanders volunteered, understanding indentured conditions better and having the protection of legislation. They came from 80 western Pacific islands, the majority from the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu) and the Solomons. Many Pacific Islanders working in the cane fields suffered severe exploitation as their living and working conditions in Qld varied according to the consideration of 'masters' and overseers. Their masters had unlimited control over them: wages were meagre, occupations were limited and menial, allotted duties could not be refused and were arduous, and service was fixed under one master. As bonded workers they had few rights. Death rates were high. The cane field where these women are shown working was probably under the direct or indirect control of one of the large wealthy corporations that dominated the northern sugar industry. A boom in cane cultivation in coastal northern Qld from the mid-1880s attracted southern capital and advanced technology, and the Victorian Colonial Sugar Refining Company established three large mills in northern Qld, the largest being the Victoria on the Herbert River. Source: fusecontent.education.vic.gov.au/cbf1f43f-62b2-4e36-9780-...