Pacific Island Societies Destabilised by Infectious Diseases

Abstract

Infectious diseases de-populated many isolated Pacific islands when they were first exposed to global pathogen circulation from the 18th century. In most cases it is difficult to reconstruct mortality risk factors as few literate observers were present when the first epidemics arrived with lethality dropping rapidly during subsequent epidemics. In at least two instances, measles in Fiji in 1875 and influenza in Samoa in 1918, the island leadership died at a much higher rate than the general population. Hereditary chieftains were especially exposed to lethal infectious disease risks due to increased exposure through travel and diplomatic contacts. Sudden loss of their leadership during an infectious disease epidemic destabilised small island societies, compounding their fatal impact. Decapitation of society by removal of its leadership is unlikely to reoccur in the modern era as it was caused by epidemiological factors that no longer exist.