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Bougainville

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Bougainville independence: recalling promises of international help

After another year of global uncertainty and disruption, spare a thought for the people of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, the majority (97.7%) of whom voted for independence from Papua New Guinea in a 2019 referendum. Despite the convincing result, a key plot twist is that the vote was non

By Kylie McKenna, Emelda Ariku

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Bougainville independence: Pressure for PNG agreement builds

The second constitutionally mandated post-referendum consultations between Papua New Guinea and Bougainville leaders about independence for Bougainville are being planned for late June 2021. Bougainville President Ishmael Toroama stated a goal of independence and full United Nations membership by

By Anthony Regan

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Power politics lies behind how new countries are born – or not

Book review: Gëzim Visoka, John Doyle and Edward Newman (eds) Routledge Handbook of State Recognition (Routledge 2019) At the school hall in Buka, in that heady hour after the declaration of Bougainville’s referendum result in December 2019 – a thumping 97.7% in favour of independence –

By Gordon Peake

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A false start for PNG-Bougainville consultations

F.R. Stockwell was a British officer of the old school, the grandfather of a friend of mine who writes historical crime novels. Stockwell had a wonderful maxim about political meetings: Decide before you have a meeting whether it is meant to achieve anything substantive. If it isn’t, hold it in

By Gordon Peake

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Bougainville: A new captain at the helm

Following weeks of anticipation, the people of Bougainville woke on Wednesday to news of a new president-elect. Former Bougainville Revolutionary Army Commander Ishmael Toroama, from Central Bougainville, will take up the mantle of president from John Momis. Toroama was a popular

By Leanne Jorari

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Consulting on Bougainville’s future: The what, who, how and when

Campaigns for presidential and parliamentary elections are underway in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville. A three-week poll commences in mid-August with results expected by mid-September. No matter who will be the president or members of the 39-seat House of Representatives, a daunting task

By Gordon Peake

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A crowded house on the Bougainville ballot

There’s been little rest for democracy in Bougainville. After a break of a few months, the Autonomous Region of Papua New Guinea is plunging back into politics, with elections formally launched this week for its regional House of Representatives. Coronavirus had forced a delay to the process,

By Shane McLeod

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Bougainville: Ringing in the change?

Bougainville’s president John Momis has long been a towering figure in local politics. President for two consecutive terms since 2010, he was a leading instigator of the archipelago’s early secessionist movement in the 1970s while still a Catholic priest, then an important facilitator during the

By Annmaree O’Keeffe

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The Bougainville referendum: Celebrations turn to sadness and hope

In a referendum to decide on a future political relationship with Papua New Guinea, a 97.7% majority of Bougainvillean voters have chosen independence. The referendum voting process is now formally closed. A 40-day petition period passed without any complaint lodged, and international observer

By Kylie McKenna

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The celebratory Bougainville referendum – stories from Siwai

Piled into the back of an overcrowded ute – appropriately named the “Highway Slave”, although formally known as a Public Motor Vehicle – we made the nine-hour expedition across bumpy, unsealed roads and through rivers without bridges to the district of Siwai to act as observers in

By Kylie McKenna, Augusta Ariku, Emelda Ariku, Lieberth Sam, Anthony Siniku

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An upbeat mood in Buka as Bougainville waits for a result

“Joyous” and “excited” aren’t the first adjectives I normally reach for to describe Buka town, but they are the ones that best encompass the mood here these referendum days. Buka is the administrative capital of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville and centre of operations of the two-

By Gordon Peake

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Bougainville referendum: Not the last word

For two weeks from this Saturday, Bougainvilleans will exercise their right to say whether their autonomous archipelago on the eastern edge of Papua New Guinea should become an independent country. This long-awaited referendum was at the heart of the 2001 Bougainville Peace Agreement, which marked

By Annmaree O’Keeffe

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The Bougainville referendum and beyond

As Bougainville prepares for a referendum on independence, Australia must navigate a policy response that acknowledges the history of conflict and colonialism there, Bougainville nationalism, PNG sensitivities, the principles of the guiding Bougainville Peace Agreement and new geostrategic

By Ben Bohane

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Bougainville’s predicament, independence or not

The referendum to take Bougainville a step closer to full independence finally looks set to start on 23 November, after the issuing of the writs late last month. Voters will have a fortnight to reach the polling places, which will close on 7 December. The Referendum Commission, chaired by former

By Annmaree O’Keeffe

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The Pacific and a “third option” to the independence question

The Pacific Islands is in a period of transition, with two new potential independent states on the horizon. In New Caledonia and Bougainville, referenda on self-determination are the culmination of decades-long peace processes. The first referendum was held in New Caledonia in November 2018. While

By Kerryn Baker

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Bougainville: A nation in waiting?

On 23 November this year, Bougainvilleans will vote in a referendum to decide whether they wish to stay part of Papua New Guinea or become an independent nation. It is perhaps the high point of a 20-year peace process that in turn followed a gruelling, 10-year battle for independence waged between

By Ben Bohane

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Simplistic and wrong to say the ABC is missing from Pacific coverage

I was surprised and disturbed The Interpreter published the recent article (Australian media: missing in action on Bougainville) which included claims of a “paucity of coverage by the ABC of one of the most important running stories in the Pacific”. As Managing Editor Asia Pacific

By Kellie Mayo

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Australian media: missing in action on Bougainville

The ABC Managing Editor Asia Pacific, Kellie Mayo, has subsequently disputed aspects of this article; read her response here. Bougainville – the autonomous region of Papua New Guinea which suffered a brutal 10-year civil conflict in the 1990s – was due to have a referendum in June to

By Annmaree O’Keeffe

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Bougainville’s Panguna – “a challenging opportunity”

With just under six months before Bougainvilleans go to the polls to decide if they want independence from Papua New Guinea, last month’s APEC leaders’ meeting in Port Moresby gave fresh impetus to assertions that Bougainville is yet another fly caught in the web of influence and counter-

By Annmaree O’Keeffe

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Facing ghosts of the past in Bougainville

There is disquiet among many for how post-conflict Bougainville society will evolve over the next generation if impunity reigns for the wartime horrors. Over the next few months, the spotlight in our immediate region will turn to Bougainville and its referendum on independence from Papua New

By Catherine Wilson

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The new battle for Bougainville’s Panguna mine

Speculation about the future of the Panguna copper mine in Papua New Guinea’s autonomous region of Bougainville, which ignited a decade long civil war in the 1990s, peaked late last year when an application for exploration by former Rio Tinto subsidiary, Bougainville Copper Ltd (BCL), was put to a

By Catherine Wilson

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Bougainville

Bougainville independence: recalling promises of international help

Bougainville independence: Pressure for PNG agreement builds

Power politics lies behind how new countries are born – or not

A false start for PNG-Bougainville consultations

Bougainville: A new captain at the helm

Consulting on Bougainville’s future: The what, who, how and when

A crowded house on the Bougainville ballot

Bougainville: Ringing in the change?

The Bougainville referendum: Celebrations turn to sadness and hope

The celebratory Bougainville referendum – stories from Siwai

An upbeat mood in Buka as Bougainville waits for a result

Bougainville referendum: Not the last word

The Bougainville referendum and beyond

Bougainville’s predicament, independence or not

The Pacific and a “third option” to the independence question

Bougainville: A nation in waiting?

Simplistic and wrong to say the ABC is missing from Pacific coverage

Australian media: missing in action on Bougainville

Bougainville’s Panguna – “a challenging opportunity”

Facing ghosts of the past in Bougainville

The new battle for Bougainville’s Panguna mine

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