Wedding of Carol to Buri Kidu in 1969
By MARY FAIRIO | Women Tok PNG | Edited extracts
PORT MORESBY - Dame Carol Kidu travelled a remarkable journey from her suburban Australian home to Pari village in Port Moresby, and was to break the political glass ceiling to become Papua New Guinea’s first female opposition leader.
Entering politics in 1997, Dame Carol achieved remarkable policy victories especially focused on women, children, disabled people and minority ethnic groups in two consecutive terms as Minister for Community Development.
Born Carol Millwater on 10 October 1948, Carol spent the first 20 years of her life in Shorncliff, Queensland in a lower middle class Australian family. She has described her family as “not poor, but we were not rich, they struggled to get us educated”.
Her parents created an environment of compassion for others and emphasised that everyone was equal. Carol developed an important social consciousness.
In 1969 when Carol was 16 and in Grade 11, she met and fell in love with Buri Kidu, a Papua New Guinean, at Tallebudgera Camp School on the Gold Coast.
Buri was on a scholarship from the government of Papua New Guinea and attending Toowoomba Grammar School. At this time, cross-cultural and interracial relationships were not well accepted, especially between whites and blacks.
Carol has described one such moment:
“As we walked the streets in Brisbane, I was aware that many people were staring. I was so proud to walk with Buri and was surprised when an elderly [white] man walked straight toward me, then spat at me with such hatred, 'You filthy woman’.”
Despite such reactions, Carol and Buri were married in 1969 when she was 20 years old.
She left the comfort of her home and chose to live with Buri and his people in Pari village. It was hard as she struggled mentally and physically through pain and perseverance to slowly adapt to a different culture and lifestyle.
She faced social and cultural obstacles in living in a different culture where values and principles were traditional and men and women’s roles defined differently. But she was able to overcome because her parents, in-laws and husband were understanding and supportive.
Carol was a school teacher in Port Moresby for 20 years and also wrote text books while Buri became a successful lawyer, rising to be the first Chief Justice of Papua New Guinea, being knighted by the Queen in 1980. Carol became Lady Kidu, or Dame Carol, travelling with Buri and meeting important people from all over the world.
They had four children and adopted two others and raised the family according to Buri’s tribal traditions. But Buri died of heart attack in 1994 and Carol was widowed. Her reaction at that time was anger towards the government that had sacked Buri because of his championing of judicial independence.
Despite this, Carol did not go back to Australia but decided to live among Buri’s people. This humility and loyalty to the people won their support for Carol when she entered politics.
Carol Kidu entered politics because she felt the nation had been denied an outstanding person and what Buri Kidu stood for must not die; her husband’s legacy must live on. Moreover, being idealistic, she believed in making a difference and standing for social justice, human rights, marginalised groups and related issues.
When she entered politics in 1997, people - especially the elite - thought she would not win because she was white. But Carol was confident because she was deeply entrenched in her husband’s society and was the widow of a highly respectable man. In fact, Carol easily won as an independent candidate in her constituency, Moresby South, and became the first white woman ever to sit in the PNG parliament.
She won again in 2002 and 2007 before retiring in 2012. Buri was the person who most inspired her to politics, and she still speaks of how his death contributed towards her entering politics.
Her 15 years in parliament saw her serve as Minister for Community Development (2002-2011) under then Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare and as PNG’s first female opposition leader from February to July 2012, after the Supreme Court appointed Opposition Leader Peter O’Neill as Prime Minister.
At a National Council of Women’s reception after her appointment, she said her decision to take up the Opposition Leader’s position was to restore credibility and confidence in the office. The media referred to her as ‘the Iron Lady of PNG politics’.
Significant outcomes under Dame Carol’s leadership included enacting new child protection legislation, community learning and lifelong learning policies, partnerships between the state and NGOs and churches in community development and combatting domestic violence and HIV/AIDS.
People referred to her as the voice of Papua New Guinean women and as an advocate for the poor and unfortunate and through her progressive reputation she built momentum for women’s empowerment in PNG, made more visible by her presence in parliament. The unwavering Dame Carol found a place in the hearts and minds of young people, women, and like-minded citizens through the leadership qualities she demonstrated.
One of the central characteristics of the servant-leader, as demonstrated in the leadership style of Dame Carol, is persistence and personal resolve to maintain one’s core values under trying circumstances.
Two aspects of her leadership reflect this. Firstly, she maintained a consistent personal integrity. Secondly, she kept her mind focused on her mission to emphasise the importance of women’s issues and broader social issues in the country in a male dominated parliament.
She lobbied hard to gain support from parliament for 22 reserved seats for women and got the Equality and Participation Bill passed in 2011. However, it did not receive the two-thirds majority required to amend the Constitution.
Facing gender challenges, she had to tread a fine line in relation to her predominantly male colleagues whilst also mindful of the fact that she is a ‘white woman’ who may be accused of misrepresenting certain sections of the Papua New Guinean community.
Because of her humility and perseverance, she was recognised for her role in politics, and made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in January 2005, the highest of many awards she has received including the US International Award for Courage and Leadership and France’s highest award, the Legion d’Honneur in recognition of her tireless efforts in the fight for human rights.
Dame Carol broke the glass ceiling to be the first female opposition leader in Papua New Guinea. Hers has been a remarkable journey indeed. Retiring from politics at age 64, she described her 15 years in parliament as challenging, frustrating but rewarding. She is truly a role model to many Papua New Guineans, especially women.
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