Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister James Marape has slammed US President Joe Biden’s “offensive” remarks about cannibalism in the south Pacific nation. At a war memorial last week, Biden claimed that his uncle, an Army Air Corps aviator, may have been eaten by other people after his plane was shot down over the country.
“They never found the body because there used to be – there were a lot of cannibals for real in that part of New Guinea,” Biden said.
Prime Minister Marape shot back in a statement to the Associated Press on Monday: “President Biden’s remarks may have been a slip of the tongue; however, my country does not deserve to be labelled as such.”
Biden is known for embellishing anecdotes and stories about his personal life, a habit that has led multiple outlets to fact-check tales about his personal life.
Prime Minister Marape added: “World War II was not the doing of my people; however, they were needlessly dragged into a conflict that was not their doing.”
Historians and other experts in the region have cast doubt on Biden’s suggestion, even though cannibalism is a known part of the country’s history.
“The Melanesian group of people, who Papua New Guinea is part of, are a very proud people,” said political scientist Michael Kabuni in an interview with The Guardian. “And they would find this kind of categorisation very offensive. Not because someone says ‘oh there used to be cannibalism in PNG’ – yes, we know that, that’s a fact. But taking it out of context, and implying that your [uncle] jumps out of the plane and somehow we think it’s a good meal is unacceptable.”
The rift between Marape and Biden comes as the US tries to strengthen its ties to the region as China works to exert its influence.
Biden’s account that Finnegan’s plane was shot down was not supported by military records. Finnegan was a passenger on a Douglas A-20 Havoc transport plane that crashed into the ocean after both engines failed on May 14, 1944, according to a Pentagon report.
That didn’t stop White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre from defending the gaffe. “He takes this very seriously. His uncle, who served and protected this country, lost his life serving. And that should matter,” she said Friday.
