Townsville this month will host a milestone event that has been decades in the making, but which marks a single, sad truth. Leprosy is still a thing.
Leprosy Mission Australia is holding a commemorative re-release of the movie Molokai, which tells the story of Father Damien and his work with leprosy patients sent away to the Hawaiian island of Molokai in the 19th century.
The screenings form part of Leprosy Mission’s ‘Still a Thing’ campaign and will mark the 150th anniversary of Leprosy Mission, the 25th anniversary of the release of Molokai, and the 15th anniversary of Father Damien being canonised by the Roman Catholic Church.
Molokai stars Australian actor David Wenham who lent his voice to the ‘Still a Thing’ campaign after, in his own words, he “learned of the true suffering caused by leprosy” while preparing for and filming the 1999 movie.
The Townville screening (3pm on Saturday, 31 August) is being hosted by dedicated volunteers from Leprosy Mission’s Townsville Support Group, which has been operating for 44 years.
Like the island of Molokai, the Palm Island Group off the coast of Townsville was home to a facility for the detention and treatment of people – Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and South Sea Islander people – impacted by leprosy, which is also known as Hansen’s Disease. The Fantome Island Lazaret, or leprosarium, opened in 1939 and ran for 34 years.
“We have a strong community of people in Townsville dedicated to supporting Leprosy Mission and its goal of zero transmission of leprosy,” said Townville Support Group member Judy Satish.
“We’re delighted that Townsville is part of this special commemorative event so we can celebrate how far we have come in treating leprosy and offer new support to the work of the Mission and the goal that leprosy is no longer a thing.”
The campaign concept was born from the everyday experience of Leprosy Mission Australia CEO Dr Greg Clarke and his team, who frequently gets asked: “Is leprosy still a thing?”
“For most Australians, the closest experience they will have with leprosy is through novels, television shows and movies depicting events set hundreds of years ago,” Dr Clarke said.
“Now, through the re-release of the movie Molokai, we hope to raise awareness that this ancient disease isn’t something we left in the past. Sadly, each day around the world, 50 children contract leprosy, often from the poorest, most underprivileged communities.”
“Leprosy is still a thing,” Dr Clarke said.
“Leprosy continues to steal the lives of children around the world. We have the cure, we can spot it and stop it, but we urgently need the community’s help to defeat leprosy.”
The Townsville event is the first in a series of 10 or more screenings around the nation over the next six months as part of a campaign was launched during the Sydney Film Festival in June 2024. Molokai will also be screened in Melbourne, Hobart, Darwin and Perth, with other screening dates to be confirmed.
Patrons at Molokai screenings will hear a short message from Wenham, who voices the television and radio commercials for the ‘Still a Thing’ campaign.
Wenham was confronted by the reality that leprosy is still a thing while preparing for and filming his role as Belgian priest Father Damien. The actor spent five months living on Molokai with a community of people impacted by leprosy, some of whom went on to appear in the movie.
Twenty-five years later, the people of Molokai and others living with leprosy are still on Wenham’s mind, inspiring him to become a spokesperson for the work Leprosy Mission Australia is doing to end the disease.
“The people of Molokai had a profound effect on me,” Wenham said. “I defy anybody to meet people living with leprosy and not be affected.”
“Leprosy is still a thing, but we’re closer than ever to ending leprosy transmission and in the meantime, diagnosis and treatment are critical to restoring lives and communities.”
“We can all help beat leprosy, to end the suffering,” Wenham said.
More information about Molokai and tickets to screening events are available from www.fan-force.com/films/molokai/
People can read more about the campaign or make a donation at stillathing.org and learn more about Leprosy Mission’s 150th anniversary and the jubilee gift projects at leprosymission.org.au/150.
Watch the trailer of ‘Molokai – The Story of Father Damien’ below.
