Bougainville

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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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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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