Military History Lecture & Dinner

Military History Evening

Thursday, July 3rd 2025

Topic: ‘KIAPS’

Guest Speakers: Rob Kelvin

For nearly a century Patrol Officers, or “Kiaps,” were one-man representatives of the government in remote parts of Papua New Guinea (PNG). They were responsible for administration and law and order, serving as police officers, magistrates, jailers, bank clerks, surveyors, council advisers and diplomats. They built infrastructure like roads, bridges, and airstrips. They were “outside men,” spending most of their time in the bush, in contact with the villagers. They helped to run national elections and set up local councils, then advising them at their meetings. Around two thousand Kiaps served in Papua New Guinea, and eighty-eight of those died in the line of duty. Adelaide’s Rob Kelvin was a Patrol Officer in the Milne Bay and Western Highlands regions in the late 1960s. He will share his stories of extraordinary adventures, fantastic people, and a phenomenal…