Royal Commission on the Affray at Goaribari Island, British New Guinea, on the 6th of March, 1904
Royal Commission on the affray at Goaribari Island, British New Guinea, on 6 March 1904 · Royal Commission of Inquiry respecting the Collision between the Natives of Goaribari Island, British New Guinea, and the Government Party on the Steam Yacht Merrie England · Goaribari Royal Commission
25 July 1904 – 13 September 1904
Inquired into the killing of Goaribari Islanders by a government party from the steam yacht Merrie England, led by the acting administrator of British New Guinea, Christopher Robinson, on 6 March 1904 during an expedition to recover the remains of the missionaries James Chalmers and Oliver Tomkins.
How it came into existence
Appointed by Letters Patent dated 25 July 1904, during the Watson government, after the missionary Charles Abel alleged in the press that a massacre had occurred. The sole commissioner was a judge named Murray: the report is catalogued as that of “Judge Murray”, identified in a search result as Charles Edward Robertson Murray of the New South Wales District Court. Robinson, recalled over the affair, took his own life in 1904 while the inquiry was pending.
How it ended
The report was presented on 13 September 1904, and the commission then ended. Hubert Murray, who had been appointed Chief Judicial Officer of the territory in 1904, succeeded Robinson in that role.
Main functions
- Circumstances of the shooting at Goaribari Island
- Conduct of the government party
Where it sits
Last in the portfolio of Department of External Affairs.
Lineage
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