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The past days have seen this country prepare for the return of the late King Taufahau Tupou IV and then go thru the traditional process of his funeral and also the succession of the Crown Prince to the throne.

The restrictions placed on the community for this monarch’s death were not overly onerous, but more a matter of respect for the Royal Family. It is traditional for all to wear black, for noise-making activities to be held at a low level (or cease!) particularly nightclubs, bars and cinema. But it is also recognized that businesses must continue, so we have seen a more relaxed approach for this monarch.

Yesterday (Tuesday, 19th Sept) was a day of mourning for the King but essential sevices continued (in our case, waste collection in support of the funeral). We saw dignitaries arriving in the morning. The country came to an almost complete standstill for the 4 to 6 hour period of the funeral- it was eerily quiet. Those that did not go to the funeral were watching it live on TV.

Today (Wednesday, 20th Sept) we are nearly back to normal albeit very busy catching up with a missed days collection and a few other jobs. It’s raining, still warm. For the commoner population we will continue to wear black for another 10 days. The clothing stores have done great business supplying enough black clothes for all along with the kilometers of black and purple cloth that dress buildings and fences. The new King, George Tupou V, is settling into his position with the traditional ceremonies. His coronation will be in 12 months time.

A short story from Lee

I attended the funeral as I was looking after a TV crew from Fuji Television, Japan and Kuala Lumpur, who were here to film the event as the Crown Prince of Japan came to pay his respects.

My day started at 5.30 AM as I got up and prepared sandwiches for my people. I then went to work, picked up the vehicle for them and started with them after 7 AM. They were already out and about, at 6 AM they were at the Palace filming the people who came to pay their last respects. The town was full of people, cars, vans, used food dishes, empty drink cans and much bits of traditional mat fibre. My staff had attempted to clean the street at 4.30 AM but by 7 AM when I arrived it was as dirty as it was at midnight, the previous evening.

My TV crew tried to download their footage but found that the Media Centre internet had ceased working. It was time to negotiate further with TVNZ to use their satellite feed, which they and many others did during the next 16 hours. TV NZ were great in doing this for several crews.

We used 4 mobile phones to communicate with each other, as it was very easy to get separated or not see someone just 12 feet in front. A huge mass of black clothed people in mats was an amazing sight.

The most fascinating sight for me was the carrying of the casket by 1000 hands (500 men) on the huge frame which they use for Royal burials. They steer this like a captain steers his ship. The photo we have chosen is of this, and to be just 1 metre away from the whole thing was for me a moment I will forever remember. I could only be this close because of my Media people.

For those inside the grounds, it was around 6 hours of sitting, no food, no drink, it was warm, no breeze, and the air was charged with the magnificent ceremony that was happening. Tongans are excellent at ceremonies, and this one went very well, I was close to the woman who controlled the activity going into the Burial site.

I did not sit all the time, as I had to get my crew to hotel to edit footage, down to media centre to try and send, back to the site, back to TV NZ tent, and they carried their heavy equipment, as most of this time we could only walk, not drive.

While we were out and about they sneaked a sandwich and juice I had prepared, and called me a lifesaver. I also brought them some water about an hour before whole ceremony finished and we sneaked it into the grounds, as it really wasn’t allowed, but unless the camera man had something to drink, he was not going to be able to film the last bits which included the Japanese Prince taking his wreath to the casket.

The ceremony finished and over 10,000 people and their vehicles had to be moved from close by to out of town. The Police did a fantastic job, there they were all dressed in white uniforms and gloves and directing the traffic.

The grounds were cleaned overnight by a troupe of older people who do this in a traditional manner as the Royal Tombs enclosure demands. Roger and I hope that this gives you a small insight into our Royal burial.

Mrs Lee Miller
September 2006
www.tonganz.com