Walter Hadye Lin̄i ( ; 1942 – 21 February 1999) was a Raga

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

priest and politician who was the first

Prime Minister of Vanuatu The prime minister of Vanuatu is the head of government of the Vanuatu, Republic of Vanuatu. The office of prime minister was created under the Constitution of Vanuatu upon the country's independence in 1980, with independence campaigner Walt ...

, from independence in 1980 to 1991. He was born at Agatoa village,

Pentecost Island Pentecost is one of the 83 islands that make up the Oceania, South Pacific nation of Vanuatu. It lies due north of capital Port Vila. Pentecost is known as in French language, French and in Bislama. The island was known in its native lan ...

. Lin̄i was a key figure in Vanuatu's struggle for independence. He was a key proponent of

Melanesian socialism The concept of Melanesian socialism was first advocated by Father Walter Lin̄i of the New Hebrides (now Vanuatu), who became the country's first Prime Minister upon its independence from France and the United Kingdom in 1980. Lin̄i's views on ...

Early life

Lin̄i started school at the age of five when he attended the Australian Missionary Sunday School at Lamalanga on North Pentecost.Lini, W. 1980. ''Beyond Pandemonium: From the New Hebrides to Vanuatu.'' Asia Pacific Books and the Institute of Pacific Studies, Wellington and Suva, pp. 7-15 In 1950, he began attending Nazareth School at Agatoa. From there, he attended Vureas School on Aoba. After finishing school, Lin̄i worked in the Anglican Diocesan office at Lolowai, before undertaking theological training at St Peter's College in Siota,

Solomon Islands Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...

and St John's College, Auckland. After returning from his studies in New Zealand, Lin̄i, along with Donald Kalpokas and John Bani, formed the New Hebrides Cultural Association and launched its mouthpiece newspaper, ''New Hebrides Viewpoint''.Lini, W. 1980. ''Beyond Pandemonium: From the New Hebrides to Vanuatu.'' Asia Pacific Books and the Institute of Pacific Studies, Wellington and Suva, pp. 24-27 At that time, New Hebrides was a

condominium A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership regime in which a building (or group of buildings) is divided into multiple units that are either each separately owned, or owned in common with exclusive rights of occupation by individual own ...

ruled by the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Soon after the formation of the New Hebrides Cultural Association, Lin̄i and others formed the New Hebrides National Party (NHNP), with Lin̄i responsible for publishing the newspaper as well as recruiting party members on Aoba, North

Pentecost Pentecost (also called Whit Sunday, Whitsunday or Whitsun) is a Christianity, Christian holiday which takes place on the 49th day (50th day when inclusive counting is used) after Easter Day, Easter. It commemorates the descent of the Holy Spiri ...

and

Maewo Maewo (, in English as and formerly ''Aurora Island'') is an island in Vanuatu in Penama province, 105 km to the east of Espiritu Santo. It is 47 km long, and 6 km wide, with an area of 269 km2. Its highest point is 795 ...

. In 1974, the Party Congress elected Lin̄i as full-time national president of the party, with Fred Timakata vice-president. In May, 1974, Lin̄i addressed the United Nations Committee of 24 on decolonisation, and called for independence for the New Hebrides by 1977.

Political career

Lin̄i was instrumental in the NHNP changing its name to the Vanua'aku Pati (VP). He was elected Chief Minister following the VP's victory in the 1979 New Hebridean general election,Matas-Kele-Kele, K. 1980. Background to 'The Vanuaaku Movement': Political Parties, in Lini, W. ''Beyond Pandemonium: From the New Hebrides to Vanuatu.'' Asia Pacific Books and the Institute of Pacific Studies, Wellington and Suva, pp. 29 and ascended to the position of Prime Minister upon Vanuatu's independence on July 30, 1980. Lin̄i went on to lead the VP to victory in the

1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...

and the

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

general elections. Lini suffered a stroke in 1987 but subsequently remained active in politics. Lin̄i's administration was very controversial in the West because of its ties with the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc (Combloc), the Socialist Bloc, the Workers Bloc, and the Soviet Bloc, was an unofficial coalition of communist states of Central and Eastern Europe, Asia, Africa, and Latin America that were a ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

, and other

socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

countries viewed with disdain by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, and its staunch opposition to

nuclear Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the nucleus of the atom: *Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics * Nuclear space *Nuclear ...

testing in the region. He was the primary advocate of

. Lini was a critic of Western market economies, arguing that they caused poverty in the Third World. Vanuatu was a part of the non-aligned movement. Vanuatu provided support to the Kanak indigenous independence movement in

New Caledonia New Caledonia ( ; ) is a group of islands in the southwest Pacific Ocean, southwest of Vanuatu and east of Australia. Located from Metropolitan France, it forms a Overseas France#Sui generis collectivity, ''sui generis'' collectivity of t ...

and was the only country in the region to support the independence of

East Timor Timor-Leste, also known as East Timor, officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is a country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the coastal exclave of Oecusse in the island's northwest, and ...

, then under Indonesian occupation, to

self-determination Self-determination refers to a people's right to form its own political entity, and internal self-determination is the right to representative government with full suffrage. Self-determination is a cardinal principle in modern international la ...

. In 1988, President Ati George Sokomanu sought unsuccessfully to remove Lini from office. His term ended in 1991, due to factionalism within his party. He joined the National United Party, of which he was leader at the time of his death. He was later appointed deputy prime minister,

minister of justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

and minister of interior. He died of an illness in Vanuatu's capital

Port Vila Port Vila ( ; ), or simply Vila (), is the capital of Vanuatu and its largest city. It is on the island of Efate, in Shefa Province. The population was 49,034 as of the 2020 census. In 2020, the population of Port Vila formed 16.3% of the ...

Personal life

His sister, Hilda Lin̄i, and brother, Ham Lin̄i, also served as politicians in Vanuatu. His sister Heather Lin̄i-Leo Matas was the first indigenous female lawyer in the country. According to Lini, on his mother's side, he was a descendant of the high chief Virasangvulu, while on his father's side, he was descended from the famous weaver, Nuenue, as well as from the high chief Viralalau.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

* Stuart, Andrew. ''Of Cargoes, Colonies and Kings: Diplomatic and Administrative Service from Africa to the Pacific'', Radcliffe Press, 2009. * Robie, David. ''Blood on their Banner : Nationalist Struggles in the South Pacific'', Zed Books, 1990. * Premadas, Ralph R. ''Melanesian socialism: Vanuatu's quest for self-definition (Discussion paper series / Centre for Developing-Area Studies)'', McGill University, 1986. * Lin̄i, Walter. ''Beyond pandemonium: From the New Hebrides to Vanuatu''. Asia Pacific Books, 1980. * Lin̄i, Walter, ed. ''Vanuatu: Twenti Wan Tingting Long Team Blong Independents'', Institute of Pacific Studies, 1980. * Shears, Richard. ''The

Coconut War The Coconut War was a brief clash between Papua New Guinean soldiers and rebels in Espiritu Santo shortly before and after the independence of the Republic of Vanuatu was declared on 30 July 1980. Background Prior to Vanuatu's independence ...

: The Crisis on Espiritu Santo'', Cassel, 1980. * Tabani, Marc. 2000
"Walter Lin̄i, la coutume de Vanuatu et le Socialisme Mélanésien"
'' Journal de la Société des Océanistes'' 111(2): 173–195. {{DEFAULTSORT:Lini, Walter Prime ministers of Vanuatu Deputy prime ministers of Vanuatu Interior ministers of Vanuatu Justice ministers of Vanuatu Presidents of Vanuatu Vanuatuan Anglican priests Vanua'aku Pati politicians Vanuatuan socialists 1942 births 1999 deaths People from Penama Province 1970s in Vanuatu 1980s in Vanuatu Anglican socialists Oceanian Christian socialists Members of the Parliament of Vanuatu 20th-century Vanuatuan politicians