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http://www.thenational.com.pg/030408/nation13.htm
Kabui critical of ‘soldiers’ boarding vessel
By ROMULUS MASIU
AUTONOMOUS Bougainville government president Joseph Kabui is very disappointed with the way the region’s flag carrier, mv Sankamap II has been checked at Port Moresby after its arrival from Philippines.
Mr Kabui yesterday said he was not happy after receiving reports from his primary industry and culture and tourism minister and Atolls MP Taehu Pais that some men dressed in military camouflage last Saturday went aboard the vessel and started going through everything onboard.
In the process they also drained the entire vessel’s engine fuel.
Mr Kabui said their action will again cost his government some more money to get fuel for the vessel to sail to Buka.
It is alleged the ‘soldiers’had acted on a tip-off from some prominent Bougainvilleans and were looking for guns and ammunition that might have been brought over from the Philippines.
This has angered president Kabui who is now taking the matter up with the Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare.
“The whole issue has turned out to be a political issue and I am taking this matter up with the Prime Minister.”
President Kabui said his government really doesnít want another war on Bougainville.
“This is the whole idea why ABG has dedicated 2008 to weapons disposal and reconciliation,” he said.
Mr Kabui added that this kind of attitude and action are coming from people who are trying their best to spoil the good work ABG was doing to bring peace and development to the region and its people.
MV Sankamap II will depart Port Moresby for Buka next week Tuesday.
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Veterans seek solutions to loose firearms in B’ville
By AUGUSTINE KINNA
Ex-combatant leaders and members representing all fighting faction in the Autonomous Bougainville Region are now working together to find amicable solutions to contain weapons that are still circulating around in the region.
The ex-combatants, together with the Autonomous Bougainville Government veterans affairs minister and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) officials met yesterday to plan how best they could carryout the weapons disposal programme this year.
The ABG with the UNDP will work closely on addressing reconciliation and weapons issue.
ABG Minister for veterans affairs Glen Tovirika told the ex- combatants that it is about time the issue of weapons disposal must be done away with.
“I believe the Government had made the right decision to earmark this year as the year for reconciliation and weapons disposal as it is timely,” Mr Tovirika said.
He said his Ministry, since the creation of the ABG, did not have the manpower and financial capacity to address
the outstanding reconciliation and weapons disposal issues.
Mr Tovirika told the meeting that ABG had located K1 million for reconciliation and weapons disposal.
“With the programme, we would be working with UNDP who would be assisting in funding and facilitating reconciliation and arms disposal in the region,” Mr Tovirika said.
He said the ABG has approved an invitation for the UNDP small arm unit who are experts in such programmes to come and assist.
Former ex- combatant and BRA commander of Kongara in the Kieta district Steven Topesi appealed to all ex- combatants in the area to work together to bring peace in the region.
He said there has been a big failure from all levels of Government, NGOs and the ex-combatants in addressing the issue.
“This is no time to point fingers at one another but rather a time to seriously commit ourselves in cleaning up our own back yard before we can talk more politics,” Mr Topesi said.
He urged all ex combatant commanders to carryout small awareness campaign on the major programmes that would be undertaken this year.
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Opp urges frank talks
TALKS between Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare and his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd should include open and frank discussion about the growing lack of good governance in Papua New Guinea, Opposition leader Sir Mekere Morauta said yesterday
Sir Mekere noted that Mr Rudd would be making his first official visit to Papua New Guinea as prime minister of Australia at a time when there was growing public concern about the siphoning off of millions of kina of public funds through institutionalised corruption.
“There is no secret about the accountability and governance problems we have,” Sir Mekere said.
“It is common knowledge that corruption in the public sector has thrived in recent years. Only a few weeks ago, the Minister for National Planning publicly admitted that a syndicate operating within his department had been illegally and corruptly paying out millions of kina.
“The Public Accounts Committee has estimated that billions, not millions of kina, have been misallocated, abused or stolen in the last five years,” he said.
“Currently there are a number of controversies either before the courts or being investigated. They include the Motigate affair, probes into Finance, Treasury and Planning, the National Housing Corporation, the Health Department and the National AIDS Council.
“In addition, the recommendations of the Singirok Guns Committee, the findings of the inquiries into the Investment Corporation/Pacific Balance Fund and NPF are yet to be acted upon,” he said.
“We must stop trying to sweep all these issues under the carpet and address them,” Sir Mekere said.
“Australia is not only our closest neighbour, it is our largest donor, providing hundreds of millions of kina in grants each year.
“It is naturally in their interest to know that these funds are properly spent.”
“It will be regrettable if Sir Michael fails to openly discuss these problems with Mr Rudd.”
The Opposition leader also suggested the need for the two prime ministers to revisit the objectives of the PNG-Australia Enhanced Cooperation Programme and to see how technical assistance from Australia could meaningfully be provided.
“Given the high number of push-outs of students after Grade 10, the two leaders also might revisit the seasonal labour concept that former prime minister John Howard fended off with a poor substitute in the concept of the Pacific Technical College.”
Sir Mekere said the National Alliance-led coalition’s second consecutive term in office was a direct result of the political reforms his government initiated and undertook between 1999 and 2002.
“This Government is in its sixth year of continued reign, with the luxury of a resource-led boom. It is an opportune time for the Prime Minister to inform his Australian counterpart of his Government’s record of performance, particularly relating to accountability, transparency, good governance and the rule of law,” he stressed.
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Bougainville fuel price skyrockets
By ROMULUS MASIU
THE price of fuel in Bougainville has skyrocketed overnight to K9 per litre for petrol, the highest in the market.
However, this is not preventing motorists including PMV owners and business houses, as everyone is reportedly going on a ‘suicide mission’ and purchasing whatever is available in the market.
In Buin some businessmen are crossing over to the neighbouring Solomon Islands and transporting fuel drums on outboard motor dinghies. They are selling a litre for K9.
A fuel outlet in Kokopau, northern tip of Bougainville mainland, yesterday sold out its last five drums of diesel in just 30 minutes with many disappointed customers turning away with their containers.
That service station was selling diesel for K6.50 per litre.
PMV driver Andrew Pito, who travelled from Arawa to Buka yesterday, said the township of Arawa had completely dried up with no fuel at all.
In Buka , some vehicles are now using marine diesel brought there on a vessel from Philippines.
The marine diesel is further mixed with kerosene to make it lighter for vehicle use.
Many drivers have already parked their vehicles and are waiting for the next shipment from Rabaul.
Meanwhile, reports said PNG Power may shut down its generators if no fuel reached Buka this week.
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Chief calls for Bougainville reconciliation
By AUGUSTINE KINNA
PARAMOUNT chief of Siwai district in South Bougainville Gerard Maimoi has called on his people to stand up and support the process of reconciliation in the region.
Mr Maimoi said although no reconciliation policy has been put put in place by the Autonomous Bougainville constitution, it was important for the people to take ownership of reconciliation in their respective communities.
He said that at the moment, a committee has been in place with a reconciliation structure that would help people to settle their problems.
He said the structure is a four-step procedure which includes the watering down process, actual reconciliation, integration and compensation.
“I believe that if all these steps are fully implemented there will be peace throughout the region,” Mr Maimoi said.
He said ex-combatants are the key stakeholders who should be playing a big role in initiating reconciliation and restoration of development in the region.
He thanked the ABG and other donor agencies for earmarking this year as the year for reconciliation and weapons’ disposal.
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Lihir sets K2b mine upgrade
By FRANK ASAELI
LIHIR Gold Ltd (LGL) will spend a record K2 billion for an expansion that will see the mine produce over one million ounces a year from 2011.
The expansion, which was approved by the Lihir board last Friday, was estimated to cost US$696 million (K2.062 billion) over the next four years.
The largest part of the planned expenditure would occur over the next two years with K409 million budgeted for this year and K794 million next year.
Another big budget of K557 million would be spent in 2010 with K302 million planned for 2011.
These costs exclude capital investment required for expansion of the geothermal power supply, which cost approximately US$150 million (K445 million), including costs of drilling and proving up the steam resource.
LGL chief executive officer Arthur Hood said the decision to proceed with the expansion represented a major step in the development of the company.
He said this upgrade would lift the Lihir Island operations to the appropriate scale to extract full value from the 23 million ounce gold deposit.
The feasibility study concluded the upgrade would increase production by an average 240,000 ounces to 1.1 million ounces annually over the life of the operation that would lift output over the period from 2011 to 2021 by 2.35 million ounces to more than 10 million ounces.
The costs for the upgrade were significantly higher than the earlier US$550 million (K1.630 billion) estimate.
The biggest individual cost of K480 million would be spent on pressure oxidation and oxygen plant to deal with refracting of the ore.
Other direct costs for the project over the four-year period included K193 million for primary crushing and conveying, K130 million for grinding and classification, grinding thickeners and reagent handling at K95 million, cyanidation and absorption, gold recovery at K160 million, water supply will cost LGL K107 million and K130 million would be spent on other costs.
Overheads, project management, engineering and design, freight and so on are indirect and contingency costs that will cost the company US$259 million (K768 million).
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PNG wants Australian police back on the beat
INTERNAL Security Minister Sani Rambi says he wants Australian police redeployed in Papua New Guinea to tackle law and order issues, but on PNG’s terms.
Mr Rambi said he supported a new influx of Australian police under a revamped Enhanced Cooperation Program (ECP) police initiative between the two countries.
PNG’s police chief also said an Australia-PNG policing scheme needed to be on the agenda.
The topic is expected to be discussed during Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s PNG tour, which starts today.
Rudd’s fence-mending talks with counterpart Sir Michael Somare and other dignitaries will cover climate change initiatives, the Kokoda Track and the viability of a seasonal migrant workers scheme in Australia.
But law and order control through a joint PNG-Australia police scheme needed to be discussed, Mr Rambi said.
“We very much support an ECP scheme, but by our terms,” he said. “Australian police assistance must go through our command.”
Australian police officers began deploying in PNG under the ECP in late 2003 but around 150 officers were withdrawn in May 2005 after the Supreme Court ruled their legal immunities conflicted with PNG’s Constitution.
The failed plan to boost the run-down police force and tackle police corruption was one of several issues to cause problems between the two countries during former Australian prime minister John Howard’s time in power.
Police Commissioner Gari Baki said he could not comment on a proposal to bring back Australian police as it was a matter between the two governments.
“There are some discussions about this and we are quite mindful of the change in the new Australian government’s thinking.
“It’s on the plate but it is something we will need to look at and evaluate,” he said.
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(BOC akt. 0,80 AUD +3,9%)
http://www.thenational.com.pg/031008/biz1.htm
KSi ends up, driven by rise in share prices
Port Moresby Stock Exchange KSi index closed trading at a record high of 5,997.14 pointed last Thursday.
The Kina Securities Index (KSi) closed on the record high driven largely by increases in share prices of some of its listed companies.
“When trading closed on the Port Moresby Stock Exchange (POMSoX) today (Thursday), the Kina Securities Index (KSi) recorded a new high of 5,997.14 points driven by the share price of New Britain Palm Oil, Oil Search, Credit Corp, Ramu Sugar and Lihir Gold,” Kina Securities chief executive Syd Yates said.
“The KSi rose by 165.64 points from yesterday (Wednesday)’s trade, which is an increase of 2.84%, to close at a new record high and a market capitalization of K38.178 billion.”
Mr Yates said this is the 4th year running that the local bourse has delivered a double digit return, placing it amongst the best performing markets in the world.
“The KSi at 5,997.14 is our new record high in the history of the stock exchange, and today’s trading results is a testimony to the confidence and growth in the locally listed stocks.
He said last Wednesday’s result showed an increase 5.95% since the start of trade this year, when the KSi closed at 5,660.52 on December 31st, 2007.
“New Britain Palm Oil Ltd’s share today rose K3, or 13.04%, to close at K23 a share to give the company a market capitalisation of K3.120 billion.
“Oil Search Ltd share rose K0.45 or 5.26%, to close at a record high of K10 a share, recording a market capitalisation of K11.930 billion for the company.
“Since Credit Corp Ltd shares rose by 10.29%, or K0.28, to close at K3 a share, with a market capitalisation of K0.920 billion for the company.” CPL is a major shareholder of BSP.
“Ramu Sugar Ltd rose K0.03, or 0.73%, to close at a high of K4.13 a share to give the company a market capitalisation of K0.97 billion,” Mr Yates said.
“Lihir Gold Ltd LGL shares rose by 0.12% or K0.01 to close at K8.01 a share, with a market capitalisation of K15.246 billion for the company.
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fällt vielleicht einigen, die zu früheren „Nachkaufkursen“ eingestiegen sind, etwas schwer,
und die werden eine Erkenntnis sicher aus den letzten Monaten mitgenommen haben,
auch entgegen hier gelegentlich geäußerten Zweifeln,
die Kurse werden in AU gemacht,
also dorthin sehen,
und sich nicht in D verrückt machen lassen – in beide Richtungen
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Wir haben einen Anstieg in 12 Monaten von rund 45 cents auf 52 cents bei den Originalen gesehen, bei den ADRs von rund 38 cents auf 45 cents. Damit wurden viele andere Werte mehr als "outperformed". Wir reden hier über ein plus von knapp 20% auf Jahressicht. Davon träumt jeder Bankaktienanleger.
Natürlich hat sich Bougainville der allgemeinen Börsenschwäche nicht entzogen und sich von seinen Höchstkursen weit entfernt. Schade. Na klar, denn wir wollen alle Höchstkurse sehen.
Es lohnt sich aber auch ein Blick auf die für Bougainille maßgeblichen Rohstoffe:
Gold von rund 650 auf 950, Silber von rund 13 auf 20 und das wichtigste, Kupfer von rund 6400 auf 8400 Dollar in den letzten 12 Monaten gestiegen.
Das Umfeld für Bougainville hat sich damit weiterhin rasant positiv entwickelt.
Jetzt öffnen die Notenbanken noch die Geldschleusen um die USA wirtschaftlich zu retten. Man kann diese Maßnahme immer konträr diskutieren, aber die Angst der Anleger vor Inflation wird dadurch kräftig angeheizt. Also weiterhin gute Zeiten für Gold, Silber und Co.
Wer an das Eröffnungsszenario bei Bougainville Richtung 2010 glaubt, kann sich jetzt noch einmal günstig eindecken. Es sind nur noch 2 Jahre. Allein ein Anstieg auf den letztjährigen Höchstkurs von rund 1,10 ist mehr als eine Kursverdoppelung.
Ich denke, nicht schlecht für 2 Jahre.
Die Analyse von Swen Lorenz ist immer noch eine tolle Grundlage für eine Investitionsentscheidung. Nur gibts jetzt die Aktien für die Hälfte gegenüber der Veröffentlichung.
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VOL heute 76K Kurs 0,78 (+4%)
Orderbuch
Sellers
Price Quantity Number
0.900 48,000 1
Buyers
N Quantity Price
1 3,276 0.770
1 11,991 0.750
1 11,500 0.735
1 813 0.730
1 4,000 0.720
1 4,000 0.710
3 12,500 0.700
1 1,000 0.560
1 19,500 0.505
1 100,000 0.500
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oyoo
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Buyers
Num Quantity Price
1 2,858 0.810
1 10,000 0.800
2 54,000 0.780
1 11,500 0.775
1 3,276 0.770
1 11,991 0.750
1 813 0.730
1 4,000 0.720
1 4,000 0.710
3 12,500 0.700
1 1,000 0.560
1 19,500 0.505
1 100,000 0.500
Sellers
Price Quantity Number
0.890 4,847 1
0.895 2,436 1
0.900 48,000 1
1.480 75,000 1
2.340 125,000 1
Die akt. Situation ist m.M. nach bedeutend besser als der Kurs.In den letzten 3 Tagen wurden in AU über 200K vorwiegend aus dem Ask gekauft.Wer sich dort eine grössere Position zulegen will,kann das wohl nur zu bedeutend höheren Kursen ;-)))
@ Tom
Das Treffen war erst gestern,offiziell gibt es noch kein Statement dazu
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Thursday 13th March, 2008
Leahy takes over as new head of chamber
The PNG Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PNGCCI) has elected John Leahy
as its new president after former president Michael Mayberry declined to
accept nomination for the top job.
PMCCI announced the election of Mr Leahy after its annual general meeting
in Port Moresby.
Mr Mayberry served at the helm of the chamber since 1996.
He will remain as vice president and will continue to be the chamber's
representative on a number of boards including, in particular, the central
bank where he pays a key role. Mr Leahy commended Mr Mayberry for his
distinction for many years and that it was heartening that he was prepared
to continue to actively contribute to the work of the chamber.
The PNGCCI is a peak body that represents the 13 chambers of commerce
throughout PNG. POMCCI is affiliated to the international Chamber of
Commerce movement through its membership of the Confederation of Asia
Pacific Chambers of Commerce and Industry (CACCI).
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Beschaffung von Eintritts- und Stimmrechtskarten für die Hauptversammlung von Bougainville Copper Ltd. in Port Moresby / Papua Neu-Guinea am 8.Mai 2008
Liebe Freunde,
Mein letztes Schreiben hat offensichtlich einige unserer Mitglieder wach gerüttelt. Das ist gut so. Die Nachrichten indes, die ich erhielt, stimmen mich nicht sonderlich euphorisch.
Im Zusammenhang mit der Beschaffung von Eintritts- sowie Stimmrechtskarten für die Hauptversammlung von Bougainville Copper Ltd. in Port Moresby am 8.Mai 2008 geben sich Depotbanken offensichlich gerne zugeknöpft: Entweder sie geben von vornherein zu, beides nicht besorgen zu können oder aber sie verlangen horrende Gebühren. Diese stehen dann, gerade bei Kleinanlegern, in keinem Verhältnis zur Anzahl der gehalten Aktien.
Schon in Zusammenhang mit meiner Anfrage an fast alle Depotbanken, wie und zu welchen Kosten bei ihnen ADRs in Originalaktien umgewandelt werden könnten, hatte ich schon denkwürdige Erfahrungen gesammelt. Manche von Euch werden sich noch erinnern. Das scheint sich jetzt zu wiederholen. Offensichtlich ist es den meisten Instituten vollkommen egal, was sie verkaufen. Hauptsache die Provision und die Depothaltungsgebühren stimmen. Dass gerade bei den teils erheblichen Kosten für die Depothaltung auch ein Minimalservice, wie oben beschrieben, vom Kunden erwartet wird, stört diese Herrschaften wenig. Das ist nicht hinnehmbar.
Deshalb meine Bitte: Diejenigen unter unseren Mitgliedern, die entgegen allen Erwartungen gute Erfahrungen sammeln, sollten sich bitte unbedingt bei mir melden. Das gäbe mir nämlich die Möglichkeit allen Interessierten diejenigen Depotbanken nennen zu können, die korrekt und zuverlässig arbeiten. Dann kann ja jeder selbst immer noch darüber entscheiden, ob er sein Depot verlegen soll oder nicht. Ich bin schon der Meinung, dass die Faulenzer, Inkompetenzler und Raffgeier unter den Depotbanken abgestraft gehören.
Übrigens: Diese Mail geht nicht nur an unseren Mitgliederverteiler sondern auch an die Presse und an alle Depotbanken. Ich bin doch sehr gespannt, ob sich von letzteren jemand meldet, um mir zu sagen: „Wir sind das Institut, dass Euch all diese Dienstleistungen erbringt und darüber hinaus auch noch kostengünstig arbeitet.“ Vermutlich aber wird meine Mailbox wieder mit Standardschreiben vollgemüllt.
In diesem Sinne ein schönes Wochenende!
Axel G. Sturm
Escaldes-Engordany , 14.03.2008
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---snip
Sehr geehrter Herrr XXX,
vielen Dank für Ihre Anfrage.
Leider müssen wir Ihnen mitteilen, dass wir laut der Lagerstelle doch keine Möglichkeit haben Eintrittskarten für die BOUGAINVILLE KI 1 zu bestellen,
da das Ursprungsland Papua-Neuguinea ist.
Wir bitte die von uns gemachte Fehlauskunft zu entschuldigen.
Mit freundlichen Grüßen
---snip
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Friday, 14 March 2008, 9:46 pm
Column: Jeremy Rose
Many readers of Lloyd Jones’s Mr Pip come to the novel unaware that there is even an island called Bougainville let alone with any knowledge of the conflict that provides the backdrop to the award winning work.
The following extract New Zealand Abroad: The History of VSA in Africa, Asia and the Pacific provides some factual background to the conflict.
Bougainville’s struggle for self-determination
By Jeremy Rose
For The Scoop Review Of Books
“I stood there watching one of the BRA [Bougainville Revolutionary Army] soldiers trembling on the ground with his head bleeding … Five minutes later he was motionless with his mouth closed and eyes open. I took a deep breath and started to drag the body out of the fighting zone.”
This description is from one of a dozen graphic accounts of Bougainville’s nine-year civil war that were handed in to VSA teacher Don Hadden. Others recount a church massacre; a father being chopped into ‘smaller and smaller pieces’, which were then thrown into the sea; and a brother’s head being ‘cut off by machine-gun fire’.
The civil war that broke out in 1989 set the pro-independence BRA against the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Defence Force and Bougainvilleans opposed to the BRA’s tactics (though not always to its aims). Few if any of Bougainville’s 160,000 inhabitants were left unscathed. An Australian government report in 2001 estimated that 15,000 to 20,000 people died as a result of the conflict and the medical and economic blockade imposed by PNG, and that 70,000 were displaced. More commonly, the estimates have been 8,000 to 10,000 dead and 50,000 displaced. Even the lower figure would equate to 180,000 deaths in a population the size of New Zealand’s.
The decade of bloodshed had been triggered by discontent over the foreign-owned Panguna copper mine, but the source of the conflict goes back much further.
A brief history
In 1768, when French explorer Louis de Bougainville sighted the islands that were to bear his name, they had been inhabited for about 29,000 years. The islands of Buka and Bougainville form a single landmass 240 kilometres long, separated by a shallow 300-metre strait.
The northern island of Buka gets its name from a misunderstanding typical of first contact. As Bougainville’s ship anchored offshore, islanders paddled out in dugout canoes shouting ‘Buka, Buka’, which the newcomers took to be the name of the island. (The word in fact translates as ‘What?’) Confusion soon turned to hostility as the islands were visited by whalers, traders and ‘blackbirders’ – labour recruiters for the plantations of Queensland, Fiji and Samoa, whose methods at times were those of slave-traders.
Early visitors commented on the lively trade in pigs and vegetables among the estimated 40,000 inhabitants, and noted that agriculture was well established. The chewing of betel nut and the carrying of bows and arrows – both still common today – were also recorded.
Geologically, Bougainville is part of the Solomon Islands chain. But in one of those bizarre map-drawing exercises typical of nineteenth century colonialism, it was included in the German colony of New Guinea after an exchange of notes between Great Britain and Germany in 1899. The First World War saw Australia replace Germany as the colonial master, and between 1942 and 1944 control of Bougainville was briefly lost to the Japanese.
During the German and Australian colonial periods, large tracts of land were alienated by expatriate copra plantation owners. By the 1960s there was growing pressure for independence. In 1962 more than a thousand Bougainvilleans made submissions to a visiting UN mission, calling for an end to the Australian mandate.
By the time Conzinc Rio Tinto Australia (CRA) (a subsidiary of the multinational mining giant Conzinc Rio Tinto) began its initial explorations in Panguna in 1964, twenty-eight villages and two hundred homes had been forcibly relocated. The young Bougainvillean leader, Raphael Bele, told the CRA chairman in 1969: ‘Land is like the skin on the back of your hand. You inherit it, and it is your duty to pass it on to your children in as good a condition as, or better than, that in which you received it. You would not expect us to sell our skin.’
In 1975 a group of Bougainvillean leaders declared independence to avoid becoming the most distant province of PNG. Australian riot police were dispatched and the leaders arrested. Bougainville, Buka and a scattering of outer islands became the North Solomons Province of the newly independent nation of PNG.
Nine years of bloodshed
By the late 1980s the 400-hectare Panguna mine (now run by Bougainville Copper Ltd (BCL), a joint venture by CRA and the PNG government) was producing 40 to 50 per cent of PNG’s export revenue, and had many years of productive life left.
Of the 3,500 workers on the mine’s payroll, 610 were expatriates, mostly Australians and New Zealanders. Only a third of the PNG workers were from Bougainville. The enigmatic leader of the New Panguna Landowners’ Association, Francis Ona, described the set-up as officially sanctioned apartheid. ‘There are in this company people in top management who have South African identities and ideologies. This is why on the principles of apartheid, there are two nations in one. White and Black. Facts: Two hospitals, two schools, two drinking clubs, worst of all, two living standards.’
If it was apartheid, it was of the economic rather than the legal variety. The state-of-the-art company hospital and the international school accepted anyone who could afford the fees, the vast majority of whom were white. Australian journalist Sean Dorney has argued that BCL was, by Third World standards, ‘an exemplary corporate citizen’. Since independence in 1975, the company had paid more than US$650 million in company tax and dividends to the PNG government, US$60 million to Bougainville’s provincial government, and US$20 million to local landowners. The latter payments were controversial. Land ownership among the Nasioi people is matrilineal, but the titleholders identified by Australian patrol officers in the 1960s were virtually all men.
Those opposed to the mine included people who wanted the profits used for the benefit of Bougainvilleans, and others like Francis Ona (a former truck driver and surveyor at the mine) who wanted it shut down permanently for environmental and philosophical reasons. On 22 November 1988, Ona’s followers raided the company’s armoury and stole dynamite, which was then used to blow up company installations. PNG’s response was swift and brutal. Helicopters were used to strafe villages and the bodies of militants were dumped at sea. Widespread human rights abuses led to whole villages being abandoned and villagers fleeing to the hills to join the BRA, recently formed in protest against the mine and the PNG reaction.
The BRA responded to the PNG attacks by killing suspected civilian collaborators and destroying property. Village militias formed in opposition to the independence movement were armed and supported by PNG, and known collectively as the Resistance. Meanwhile, the independence movement had unilaterally declared Bougainville independent, with Ona as president.
Sporadic attempts to negotiate a settlement, initiated by Australia, New Zealand and the protagonists themselves, all failed to have a lasting impact. In early 1997 the PNG government hired the London-based Sandline mercenary organisation to crush the independence movement. An outraged PNG Defence Force mutinied, ultimately bringing down the PNG government and arguably paving the way to a settlement of the Bougainville crisis.
Bougainvillean leaders had identified New Zealand as a mediator in the conflict, seeing it as more neutral than Australia with its close economic and military ties to Port Moresby. Later in 1997 peace talks were held at Burnham Military Camp near Christchurch between representatives of the BRA and the Resistance. Brokered by New Zealand diplomat John Hayes, with the encouragement of Foreign Affairs Minister Don McKinnon, the talks led to a lasting cease-fire. New Zealand also led the initial Truce Monitoring Group (TMG), made up of soldiers from New Zealand, Fiji and Vanuatu, and civilian members of the Australian defence forces.
A close relationship quickly developed between the Bougainvillean people and the Kiwi contingent. BRA commander Sam Kauona attributed this to the Maori influence. ‘A mutual respect existed between Bougainvilleans and Maori … The Defence Force in New Zealand has blended a military culture with Maori custom. It is unique.’
On 30 August 2001, after three years of negotiations, a final peace agreement was signed between the PNG government and most of the Bougainvillean factions. New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs Minister Phil Goff and VSA chief executive Terry Butt were among the thousands attending the ceremony. The agreement provides for a period of ten to fifteen years of autonomy, followed by a binding referendum on independence.
The long road to freedom
‘What do I want? I want my freedom.’ Those are not the defiant words of a BRA veteran, but the plea of a young woman too scared to go out alone. ‘Freedom to me is being able to walk down the street without drunk young men hassling me.’
Bougainvilleans are justly famous for their ingenuity. In the evening, the hills are speckled with pinpricks of light from villages that have constructed miniature hydro-electric plants by reversing old washing-machine motors. It is a tragic irony that of the local innovations developed during the PNG blockade, the most evident is the production of lethally strong distilled spirits. Jungle Juice (JJ), as the cheap local brew is known, is one of the biggest problems facing the province as it enters a period of autonomy. Its popularity among the many former combatants has predictable and devastating consequences. ‘JJ stops us being free,’ says the young woman, who asks to remain anonymous. ‘People still have guns and if they get mad they can kill you.’
Joe Bakoi, assistant secretary of the BRA Defence Council, shares the young woman’s dream of a Bougainville without guns. He is attending a two-day meeting of BRA southern district commanders to discuss the disarmament process. Similar meetings are taking place throughout the island. The agreement finally hammered out by BRA, Resistance and PNG representatives reflects the high level of distrust that still pervades the islands. In Stage One, BRA platoon commanders will collect all weapons from ex-combatants and lock them in containers under UN supervision, with the BRA commander retaining the key. In Stage Two the weapons will be locked in more robust containers with keys held by both the BRA and the UN. New Zealand is supplying 250 steel lockers for the purpose.
Wearing a US army singlet, camouflage trousers, combat boots and an expensive watch, Joe has the look of an effective soldier. He says many of the young men under his command feel they are missing out on the peace process.
They have nothing to do. Many of us young people have grown up during the crisis. We don’t know what a normal life is. Some people have proposed that we
ex-combatants form a security company. But if we started putting fences around our trade stores we would just be creating another Port Moresby. Fences just teach people that there is something to steal. We had a vision that we were fighting for, a vision of an independent Bougainville. But if we are creating fear among our community and fear amongst NGOs, then I don’t think we can really believe in that vision.
Jeremy Rose is the editor of the Scoop Review of Books and a former communications coordinator for Volunteer Service Abroad.
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Quelle:http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0803/S00223.htm
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http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0803/S00222.htm
A Bougainvillian gives Mr Pip the thumbs-up
By Jeremy Rose
For The Scoop Review Of Books
Lloyd Jones’s award winning Mr Pip has been celebrated from London to New York but until now a Bougainvillian voice has been absent from those praising it.
The Scoop Review of Books recently asked the President of the Autonomous Government of Bougainville, Joseph Kabui, whether he had had the chance to read the Mr Pip. “No, I haven’t heard of it,” was his succinct reply.
After hearing it was set in Bougainville and was doing well around the world he said he would keen to read it but would have to wait until his next trip out of Bougainville to buy a copy as there’s bookshops in Bougainville.
In fact there’s a few copies available for borrowing around the island. Last year the SRB in collaboration with Volunteer Service Abroad and Penguin Books organised for six copies of the book to be donated to Bougainville’s one public library and five secondary school libraries.
Possibly the first Bougainvillian to read Mr Pip was human rights campaigner Agnes Titus. Titus spent the nine-year crisis on the Bougainvillian island of Nissan and – like the mothers portrayed in the novel - was instrumental in keeping her children’s school running throughout the civil war.
Titus says the book was so realistic it was painful to read. “It was a bit dry at first but once I got to the tale about what happened during the crisis. I didn’t want to put it down. By the third day I had finished it.
“It actually brought memories back. Because it seemed too true it was quite painful. It was like reliving the situation again.”
She says the scene in the book where the women went to the school to tell stories was a realistic example of how the mothers, in particular, tried to maintain a sense of normality during the crisis in an attempt to protect their children from the suffering of war.
Titus would like to see the book taught in Bougainvillian schools. “There are no books about the crisis… it would be good for our children to be able to read this book.”
Sadly, Bougainville’s one public library at Arawa was recently burnt to the ground: rumour has it by a disgruntled student who didn’t do well in his exams.
Anyone wanting to know a bit more about the background of the Bougainville crisis should take a look at an extract [Al I’ve sent this as a separate word document and it could be linked to the word extract.[ from a chapter I wrote on Bougainville for New Zealand Abroad: The History of VSA in Africa, Asia and the Pacific.
Reviews of Mr Pip:
The Independent
The Guardian
Sydney Morning Herald
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