Snorkeling, Salsa, Sea Turtles, and Scuba Diving: A Day of Firsts - by Emily Almeida

  In this life, we are presented with countless opportunities to take the world by the reins and try new things. It is our response to those opportunities that can change our lives, that can create memories that will last a lifetime and alter our perspectives forever.

On Sunday, January 7th, our group was faced with this reality, and we came away with countless memories and an appreciation for new hobbies. In the early morning hours, we split into two groups. Andrew and Elise went on a diving excursion and the other six members of our crew in Vanuatu got onto a bus to head towards the dock for our day of sailing and snorkeling.

 While Andrew and Elise explored the depths of the ocean on one side of Vanuatu, the rest of our group was delighted to be sailing with our Captain, who was also the Senior Magistrate Judge in Port Vila, Moses Peter. Moses graduated law school in 2010, and his application to become a judge was accepted a few weeks later. Moses has been working in the magistrate court for the last 13 years and was invested with the Senior Magistrate title in 2015. As a judge he presided over many domestic violence cases and was a council member in the South Pacific Conference on Youth and Children’s Court. He was the perfect captain for our ship of students studying the rights of women and children in Vanuatu.

In between our snorkeling breaks, we asked him questions about his time in law school and his work as a judge. He shared with us that law school in Vanuatu is a four-year process, and that, to become a judge, all that an applicant needs to complete is a paper application stating interest, after which they may be selected. We also learned that the lifecycle of a case in Vanuatu can be incredibly long because of all the filing requirements and the remote nature of the country. For legal issues in Port Vila, cases may move faster, but for issues on more remote islands, the case may be pending for years until the court makes its rounds to that island.

Moses also spoke with us about the plural legal system here in Vanuatu. Vanuatu is unique in that it is one of the only truly plural legal systems, in the sense that there are two distinct recognized conflict management devices. There is kastom, which is the historical method of conflict management that became ratified in the Vanuatu constitution and penal code upon Vanuatu’s independence, gained in July of 1980. Kastom is a legal system handled by the chiefs of every village and is best described as an expectation placed on the members of villages to act a certain way in conjunction with the values of the community. The other legal system is our traditional view of ‘law’, a formal system set up by the State that engages in criminal and civil cases. Though ‘kastom’ has been generally recognized by law and is to be honored in certain aspects of a legal proceeding (for example, in determining damages, the value exchanged under kastom at the direction of the chief must be recognized), there is no one definition of kastom. Kastom changes from village to village, and while there are overarching themes, the legal recognition of all kastom practices creates an avenue for certain actions to be excused as kastom to justify an act that would otherwise be seen as a serious transgression.

An example of kastom is the concept of ‘bride price’, which is the exchange of value from a man to a woman’s father in return for the man taking the daughter as his wife. The value is capped at 80,000 vatu, or just under $700 USD. Though the bride price was originally intended to be given in thanks for the family raising the daughter for the man to marry, it has become distorted over time, and is now used as an excuse for men to do what they like to their wives under the justification of it being permitted under kastom. Moses explained to us how the excuse of kastom in court can complicate legal proceedings, and, if not handled carefully, can lead Ni-Vanuatu to lose faith in the legal system of conflict management, writing it off as an effort to erase kastom, the cultural backbone of Vanuatu.

Our conversations with Moses were incredibly enlightening- we were so lucky to have him as our captain! He agreed to take a picture with us after we finished sailing.

Our boat trip wasn’t just speaking to Moses - we also made stops to snorkel and explore! Our first stop was tranquility island, home of the Tranquility Island Resort Turtle Rookery, which raises Hawksbill turtles from hatchlings to 1 year old, in the hopes of lowering the likelihood of death and giving them a better chance to reach breeding age.

After a brief history of their work at this preservation center, we were given instructions on how to clean our hands and safely handle the turtles, and then we were given the opportunity to interact with sea turtles at different stages of their lifecycle.

It was an outstanding opportunity, and the ethical treatment of these endangered sea turtles made the experience even more meaningful.

After our stop at Tranquility Island, we went snorkeling at three different spots. At the first point, a few of us swam alongside a nursery shark, while others explored the coral reef and various species living just underneath the water. The second stop gave us the opportunity to swim with a school of fish, watch flying fish as they jumped above the water line, feed fish small pieces of bread, and watch some sea turtles in the distance. Our final stop allowed us to look at giant clams and enjoy the water one last time before returning to the shore.

At the end of the day, over a bowl of salsa and with our group reunited, we shared our ‘highs’ for the day, spoke about our different experiences, and realized that we had all tried at least one thing for the first time that day. It was a valuable day of learning and fun, and created memories that will last a lifetime.

Vanuatu Salsa Recipe:

1.     Travel to Top Rock, just north of the Blue Lagoon, and buy two mangoes. Let them sit on the counter for two days to get ripe.

2.     Go to the local deli and purchase one white onion.

3.     At Au Bon Marche, buy a bag of garlic. (It’s not sold by the individual head of garlic, but rather a bag of roughly 15 heads for 450 vatu. You only need four cloves of garlic, but this step is mandatory).

4.     Travel to the Mama Market downtown and buy one medium pineapple, two pounds of tomatoes, a bowl of sweet peppers, and a bowl of small limes, for a grand total of less than 1,000 vatu.

5.     Dice the tomatoes, ¼ of the onion, about a handful of the peppers, and four of the small limes. Cube the mangos and ¼ of the pineapple. Mix together, then add the juice of four of the limes.

6.     Serve alongside whatever tortilla chips you can find to a group of almost-strangers-become-close-friends, preferably with a side of reminiscing over your time exploring Vanuatu, learning about local law, and becoming familiar with a once unfamiliar culture.