In the old days, people who made toluk were generally known individuals who were respected in the communities. Today, it is said that many individuals, some with connections to outside factories, manufacture toluks in great quantities.
Palauan monies have also undergone some strange developments. No one knows where the genuine Palauan money came from, but they have been here for many centuries and the larger pieces have names and histories, which were generally known throughout Palau. The necks of many Palauan women were once decorated by Palauan monies showing the wealth and cultural prestige of the clans and families of the women who were showing off these pieces. Today, however, the values of genuine Palau moneys may have been diluted or obscured by the introduction of “imitation Palauan money”, which any tourist can buy in certain shops in town to decorate the necks of the female members of his family.
Nowadays, it is not the traditional Palauan money that defines the success or failure of a cultural function, but the number of “Toluk” contributed during the occasion that does the job. The international ban on harvesting turtle shells may have helped to enhance the value of toluk, the majority of which were made many years ago, long before the ban went into effect. The shells of hawksbill turtles do not deteriorate for many years after the turtles have been harvested, and many of these shells are lying around waiting to be cleaned and made into toluk. Knowledgeable people say this is the reason why there are many new toluks that are being made and sold in the community. Hawksbill turtle shells, however, are still illegal in the United States no matter how long the animal had been dead and people who make toluk or other instruments from the shell of hawksbill that have been dead, including those who buy them, could still be persecuted if they bring their products into the United States.
Let us protect our hawksbill turtles and all of our endangered marine species. There are public announcements, with very harsh punishments attached to them, urging people to report incidents where dugongs, Mesekiu, have been killed anywhere in the waters of Palau. Resent reports indicate that Mesekiu remains have been found dead in different areas around Palau. What a shame! Considering the legendary image of this animal in our folklores, these killings are nothing short of outright murders. The President has also declared that all species of “sharks” are also protected species in Palauan waters and must not be harvested or injured in anyway. These marine species, along with other fish species such as the Kemedukl (hump head) parrot fish and the Tiau enjoy protection in our waters and they must not be harvested at anytime.
Let us also protect many of our unique shell species (giant clams, mangrove clams, trochus shells, and many others) so that they may not disappear from the Earth. Let us do what the Conservation Society had been telling us all these years and save the unique marine species in our waters. Our children and all the generations that will come after us will thank us for preserving them for the future.
