ABORIGINE FLOGGED

Press, Volume C, Issue 29514, 16 May 1961, Page 22

ABORIGINE FLOGGED

Girl Of 16 Abducted

' (N 2. P.A.-Reuter—Copyright) BRISBANE, May 14. A mission superintendent thrashed a 21-year-old aborigine “to save him from being mutilated by other aborigines,” the Queensland Native Affairs’ Minister (Dr. H. Noble) said yesterday. The superintendent. Pastor E. Kermck, thrashed the native at the Hopevale Mission, near Cooktown, last week. The native. Jim Jaeko. abducted a 16-year-old girl from the mission. Pastor Kernick chased Jaeko through dense bush near the mission, caught him and took a loaded rifle from him. He gave Jaeko 12 lashes with a cane. In an oflicial report on the thrashing yesterday, Dr. Noble said: “All praise must be given to this very devoted man, who has acted very wonderfully in his Christian work at the mission.” Dr. Noble said the girl was given “slight corporal punishment” and had her hair shorn by the tribal elders. It Pastor Kernick had not caned Jaeko the tribal elders would have mutilated him Pastor Kernick had acted “very courageously,” said Dr. Noble. Dr. Noble said Jaeko arrived at the Hopevale Mission in 1958. He became a troublemaker and refused to work. Jaeko and other young men of the tribe began to be objectionable to many young girls—some of whom were only children. On April 16. Jaeko interfered with the 16-year-old girl. He was warned to leave her alone until she came of age and eould make up her own mind about marrying. He had. however, ignored the warnings and abducted the girl.