Pangu Pati turns 52

By EHEYUC SESERU - The National

THE country is looking at processing its raw materials and natural resources locally from next year, Prime Minister James Marape said yesterday.
He said forestry would be the first to have round logs processed locally over the next two years.
Marape said he wanted to see local people and landowners forming companies and groups to process logs domestically.
“Round logs would not be exported in 2020 and 2021. By 2025 we would process fish within the country with decentralisation and powers given to provinces that have fishing as their source of income,” he said.
He said these would be steps taken to resurrect and take back the country’s economy.
Marape told Forest Minister Solan Mirisim not to give logging licences to outsiders but issue them to locals and landowner groups to process timber.
“Empower our people by giving licence to process timber locally and don’t issue new logging permits to foreign companies.”
Marape said the Government would create programmes to assist Papua New Guineans to venture into business and small to medium enterprises.
He said these would be done with the creation of 22 micro economies, which are the provinces and their provincial governments.
He said there would be reviews done on Porgera, Ramu NiCo Wafi-Golpu and Hides and other mineral processing industries.
Marape said past governments had tried to put country’s economy on the right path, but made mistakes and borrowed a lot and we were unable to repay quickly.

Pangu celebrates 52 years
Sir Pita Lus, left, who was a member of the House of Assembly and National Parliament for 38 years presenting Prime Minister James Marape with a bilum and shell money during Pangu’s 52nd anniversary celebrations in Lae yesterday.

THE country’s oldest political party, Pangu Pati, celebrated its 52nd anniversary yesterday in Lae.
Present were Prime Minster James Marape, MPs, former members, executives and supporters from around Morobe.
Former prime ministers Sir Michael Somare and Sir Rabbie Namaliu and party stalwart Sir Pita Lus also attended.
The Papua and Niugini Union party has produced three prime ministers in Sir Michael, Sir Rabbie and now James Marape. Pangu was founded in 1967 by the likes of Sir Michael, Tony Voutas, Sir Albert Maori Kiki and Barry Holloway.
Students, public servants, churches members and the public also turned up.
Marape said the party was there during founding years of the country.
Sir Pita, who served for 38 years in the House of Assembly and National Parliament, gave Marape his blessing during the event.

 Go to this link for more: https://www.thenational.com.pg/pangu-pati-turns-52

Pacific nations look at options in new EU agreement

Posted on Radio New Zealand

The Pacific Islands Forum says the region's Blue Pacific voice will be at the forefront of talks underway in Suva on the ACP negotiations with the European Union.

Representatives from 13 Pacific states are holding a two day regional workshop as they prepare to replace the current arrangement, the Cotonou Agreement.

There are 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific nations, that are beneficiaries under the ACP-EU agreement made with the 28 EU members.

The deal to replace Cotonou will be signed in Samoa in 2020.

The Forum head office is hosting the workshop and Secretary General, Dame Meg Taylor, said at the forefront of their minds are the principles and objectives of the Framework for Pacific Regionalism, with Pacific leaders wanting to see their Blue Pacific future determined by their own priorities.

She said the Pacific wants development to be more effective, more co-ordinated and to make a real difference to the people of the region.

Go to this link for more: https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/392058/pacific-nations-look-at-options-in-new-eu-agreement

Papua New Guinea's most divisive PM is gone – his successor must learn from his mistakes

By Stephen Bowes - The Guardian

Peter O’Neill struggled with tackling corruption, shoring up the economy and a refusal to share power.

It has been just two weeks since Papua New Guinean politics erupted. The dramatic events saw politicians in our nearest neighbouring country camping out in two hotels, shouting matches in parliament, and threats of no-confidence motions, before eventually, realising he had lost the support of his colleagues, the prime minister Peter O’Neill resigned.

The subsequent transition has been smooth. The new prime minister James Marape has succeeded O’Neill and his newly-appointed cabinet has begun work.

As the dust settles on the recent regime, what are we to make of Peter O’Neill’s eight years as PM? And what lessons there are for his successor, James Marape?

For Australians, O’Neill’s reign was most notable for his 2013 Manus agreement signed with Kevin Rudd. And that is a significant and controversial part of the O’Neill legacy. But we must not make the mistake of looking at O’Neill through an Australian lens. There was far more to O’Neill’s reign than Manus.

In terms of achievements, surviving for eight years as prime minister was one of them. The resulting political stability facilitated the initiation of some large projects, the rehabilitation of the country’s most important highway chief among them. O’Neill also succeeded where others had failed in getting rid of school fees, thereby getting a lot more kids into school. And he pulled off the hosting of APEC in 2018, which probably leveraged more foreign aid for the country.

On the other side of the ledger, O’Neill borrowed heavily during the early years of his reign. Unfortunately, these years turned out to be the last years of the country’s economic boom, and the debt accrued made the subsequent downturn harder to manage.

More fundamentally, for a long time O’Neill played down the impact of the collapse in oil prices in late 2014 on the state of the economy. He could have – should have – used this external shock as the legitimate pretext for a number of tough economic decisions. But he didn’t, and ended being trapped by his own spin, endlessly talking up the economy, basically waiting for things to improve, while in fact they got worse with living standards falling, employment contracting, and government services weakening.

Politically, while O’Neill was a strong leader, he antagonised too many of his colleagues via a series of controversial captain’s calls. The 2014 UBS loan to purchase Oil Search shares cost him valuable allies, as did – much more recently – his finalisation, against bureaucratic advice, of the Papua LNG gas agreement. It is sometimes said that all power rests with the PM in PNG politics, but O’Neill’s eventual demise illustrates the dangers of concentrating rather than sharing power. His successor Marape acknowledged this when he resigned as one of O’Neill’s ministers in April – one of the events that precipitated O’Neill’s fall – saying that PNG was not a nation “to be dominated by one person”.

O’Neill also struggled with many of the dilemmas that ruling PNG involves. For example, on corruption, O’Neill came in promising a crack-down, establishing Taskforce Sweep to fight corruption within two weeks of becoming PM, in August 2011. But less than three years later the taskforce was disbanded after it went after O’Neill himself on corruption charges. The PM promised to replace Taskforce Sweep by an Independent Anti-Corruption Commission, but never did. While it is difficult to quantify corruption, the consensus is that it increased and institutions weakened under O’Neill’s reign.

O’Neill, by virtue of his longevity and energy, was probably PNG’s most powerful prime minister, but he was also perhaps the most divisive. A skilful politician, he appeared invincible for so long, but he finished his time as PM isolated and defeated by what even he admitted was a perceived “need for change”, his achievements insufficient to counter his mistakes and vacillations.

What are the lessons for the new prime minister? James Marape, finance minister under O’Neill, has got off to a good start. He has admitted what O’Neill never could: that the economy is “bleeding and struggling”. Like O’Neill early on, he has taken a strong stand against corruption, and promised action against it. And he has impressed with his Cabinet, appointing one of PNG’s foremost anti-corruption campaigners, MP Bryan Kramer, as police minister, and bringing back one of the UBS-loan ministerial casualties, Kerenga Kua, as petroleum minister.

If Marape can keep his allies close, and not only build but maintain a reputation as a campaigner against corruption, he may have a chance to promote both good policy and political stability. For the sake of our nearest neighbour, one certainly hopes so.

• Go to this link for more: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/jun/14/papua-new-guineas-most-divisive-pm-is-gone-his-successor-must-learn-from-his-mistakes?CMP=share_btn_tw

James Marape calls on youth to build up PNG

Posted on Radio New Zealand

The Papua New Guinea prime minister has made a rallying call to the youth of Morobe Province to help build up the country.

James Marape and his delegation are in Lae for his first official visit since being elected prime minister.

He spoke yesterday at an event marking the 52nd anniversary of his Pangu Party, during which he urged young people to build on the foundations his government was trying to lay for them.

"We are collecting these concepts and ideas, doing this work to give hope to you young people," he said.

"I am asking you young people to respect the women and children. You young men respect our young women and hopefully together you can make a difference in our country, to take our country down a better road and make it better."

The Post Courier reported that as well as government ministers and supporters Mr Marape's delegation includes Pangu Party founders Sir Michael Somare, Sir Peter Lus and Sir Rabbie Namaliu.

Go to this link for more: https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/392022/james-marape-calls-on-youth-to-build-up-png

Peter O’Neill’s eight years as PNG’s Prime Minister

By Stephen Howes - DevPolicy Blog

Peter O’Neill was PNG’s second longest serving Prime Minister, and by a long way. He was PM from 2011 to 2019, about one-fifth of the country’s history as an independent country. He may well remain a political force, and even be a future PM. But for now at least his term of office is over. How should we assess it? Certainly, no other individual has so dominated the pages of the Devpolicy Blog, which I have co-edited since its inception in 2010. Indeed, the pages of our Blog provide a rich source of materials on which to base an assessment of O’Neill’s long tenure. In what follows, I focus on domestic policy, the importance of the 2013 O’Neill-Rudd Manus agreement not with standing.

On the positive side of the ledger, attempts had been made before Peter O’Neill became Prime Minister to abolish school fees in PNG, but none had lasted. O’Neill did it, and it stuck. One can criticise some of the modalities and consequences (in most provinces, a massive increase in school class sizes), but getting more kids in school is a step forward.

Free education stuck in part because O’Neill was PM for so long, and that stability was itself an achievement. It enabled O’Neill to pursue long-term goals like the hosting of APEC, which, while controversial, resulted in PNG getting more foreign aid. The stability also provided the environment in which the ADB’s 2017 US$1 billion loan to fix up the Highlands Highway was finalised – a transformational project.

The negative side of the ledger is prominent. First, O’Neill borrowed heavily during his first years of office, the boom years of 2012 to 2014. That was a big mistake, resulting in a heavy interest burden today, and accentuating the impact of the downturn on government services during the post-2014 bust years.

Second, and crucially in my view, O’Neill failed to grasp the opportunity which the end of 2014 presented. When oil prices crashed, he could have called the greatly changed external circumstances a crisis, and pushed through much-needed hard decisions, like budget cuts, revenue measures, and an currency devaluation. He could have done all this and blamed it on external necessity.

Instead, until much too late his government denied that the fall in oil prices would have any consequences at all. By then, the PM was trapped by his own spin into a passive economic policy stance, perpetually on the defensive, denying that there were any economic or other problems at all, even as employment fell, growth outside the resources sector fell below the population growth rate, foreign exchange dried up, revenue collapsed, and government services deteriorated. The admission of his successor – the new Prime Minister James Marape, in a maiden speech that was generally favourable to O’Neill – that the economy is “bleeding and struggling”, was never one the former PM could have made after he missed his 2014/15 window of opportunity. O’Neill’s defence of his healthcare policies at a time of health crisis was particularly galling.

Third, the former Prime Minister antagonised too many of his colleagues via a series of controversial decisions or captain’s calls. O’Neill could ban Australians like Ross Garnaut and Paul Flanagan with no fallout. He could nationalise Ok Tedi without consequence. But the 2014 UBS loan to purchase Oil Search shares cost him valuable allies, as did – much more recently – his finalisation, against bureaucratic advice, of the Papua LNG gas agreement. It is sometimes said that all power rests with the PM in PNG politics, but O’Neill’s eventual demise illustrates the dangers of concentrating rather than sharing power. (On his resignation as Minister in April, James Marape said that PNG was not a nation “to be dominated by one person”.)

O’Neill also struggled with many of the dilemmas that ruling PNG involves. The first and most prominent of these concerns corruption. Everyone agrees it needs to be contained, but when corruption is widespread clamping down on it is risky. O’Neill came in with energy at the end of Somare’s lethargic final term. He established Taskforce Sweep to fight corruption within two weeks of becoming PM, in August 2011. But it lasted less than three years, being disbanded by the man who set it up when the agency went after the O’Neill himself on corruption charges. He promised thereafter to replace Taskforce Sweep by an Independent Anti-Corruption Commission, but never did. While it is difficult to quantify corruption, the consensus is that it increased and institutions weakened under O’Neill’s reign.

Second, O’Neill supported decentralisation, but without clear direction. In his early years, he supported decentralisation to the districts or MP level, with multi-million Kina funds for MPs to disburse and new District Development Authorities to manage those funds. Provinces (made up of districts) seemed irrelevant. But in his later years, O’Neill tacked back to the provinces, promising their governors greater autonomy. Absent a settled and affordable framework for decentralised governance, expect service delivery to continue to decay.

Third, O’Neill – or at least his government – flirted with but never committed to a number of controversial policy stances. Policies to quarantine large parts of the economy from foreign investment and to hand mineral ownership to landowners were advanced, but then not implemented. There is a clear mood of economic nationalism in PNG which no leader can ignore, but it needs to be constructively channelled towards outlawing backroom deals rather than isolating the country. Women’s parliamentary representation is another issue the former Prime Minister flirted with but left in the too hard basket.

Peter O’Neill, by virtue of his longevity and energy, was probably PNG’s most powerful PM, but he was also perhaps the most divisive. A skilful politician, he appeared invincible for so long, but he finished his time as PM isolated and defeated by what even he admitted was a perceived “need for change”, his achievements insufficient to counter his mistakes and vacillations.

Go to this link for more: http://www.devpolicy.org/peter-oneills-eight-years-as-pngs-prime-minister-20190613/

Combating gender-based violence must be a government priority

FIONA HUKULA | National Research Institute | Edited

PORT MORESBY - In his maiden speech as prime minister, James Marape, stated that Papua New Guinea’s economy will be the key priority for his government.

Mr Marape also reiterated the need to maximise local benefits from the extraction of the country’s natural resources.

It is important to note that a strong and resilient economy will have a positive impact on men, women and children.

However, a prosperous, secure and equitable society requires continued and concerted effort in addressing fundamental problems that affects women and children. Gender-based violence is a key issue which requires continued government attention.

All forms of violence against women and children such as rape, sexual assault and violence related to sorcery accusation affects individuals, families and communities.

Violence against women affects their mental and physical health; and their mobility and productivity.

In the case of children, violence in the home affects their education and general well-being.

Significant progress has been made in terms of instituting a response and raising awareness about violence against women, however there is still much to be done.

The National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based Violence 2016-2025 was endorsed in December 2016 by the cabinet that now prime minister Marape was part of.

But to date the National Gender-Based Violence Secretariat has not been set up.

At present the Family and Sexual Violence Action Committee (FSVAC) continues to champion the work in addressing family and sexual violence and gender-based violence.

A number of provinces have taken the initiative to address family and sexual violence and wider gender-based violence issues through provincial Family and Sexual Violence Action Committees.

Sorcery accusation-related violence continues to be an ongoing problem in certain provinces.

The national action plan to address sorcery accusation and related violence was endorsed in 2015 and the Department of Justice and Attorney General and the FSVAC provides leadership in rolling out the plan to selected provinces.

Better coordination and assistance for survivors of sorcery accusation and related violence is needed as it can lead to extreme forms of violence, displacement, stigma and social isolation.

Key target areas for attention include:

Government ownership of the gender-based violence agenda through high level coordination at the national level.

Adequate allocation of resources and increased support for referral pathways.

A holistic approach towards addressing the needs of survivors, perpetrators and their families.

Gender-based violence will continue to be a major social problem in PNG and it is incumbent that the present government continues to support the strengthening of the referral pathways so that survivors can access timely medical, social and legal care.

While there needs to be more research into the area of perpetrator programs, it is becoming evident that this is a gap in the provision of gender-based violence services available in the country.

A holistic, locally owned and driven response to gender-based violence will hopefully see more perpetrators being held to account for their behaviour and a decrease in violence against women and children in PNG.

Dr Fiona Hukula is Building Safer Communities Program Leader at the PNG National Research Institute

Go to this link for more: https://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2019/06/combating-gender-based-violence-must-be-a-govt-priority.html

Can the Marape government reverse PNG’s ‘resource curse’

By PAUL FLANAGAN | PNG Economics | Edited

CANBERRA – Last year Dr Luke Fletcher and I co-authored a report comparing the projected economic benefits of the PNG LNG project with its actual outcomes.

So, more than a year later, do the controversial conclusions of ‘Double or Nothing: The Broken Economic Promises of the PNG LNG Project’ still hold true?

The broad answer is ‘yes’ – indeed the report’s conclusions have been reinforced by recent economic data.

Fortunately, PNG’s new Marape-Steven government is seeking better terms for future projects.

It is too early to tell whether the new government will make the important and politically difficult policy changes required to reverse the ‘resource curse’ approaches of the O’Neill government.

Recent PNG National Statistics Office figures confirmed that the PNG Treasury was over-estimating the health of the PNG economy in 2016.

The new figures increase the gap between PNG LNG promises and actual outcomes relative to if there had been no PNG LNG project at all.

At a sectoral level, there is a mixed story with some sectors such as health not doing as badly as thought (now minus 27%) but manufacturing doing worse (now minus 32%).

The average outcome remains that PNG’s industries were just over one-fifth worse off in 2016 than if they had simply continued ‘business as usual’ growth prior to the PNG LNG project.

Overall, the PNG LNG project massively over-promised and then failed to deliver. This is not because of the fall in oil prices – indeed LNG export returns are higher than predicted.

Resource projects should be good for development – but this requires good policies. The PNG LNG project induced poor policies under the O’Neill government. These poor policies overwhelmed potential PNG LNG benefits.

There are encouraging signs that the new Marape-Steven government is seeking better returns from PNG’s resources.

Hopefully, it will also pursue better policies in other areas such as competition policy and devaluing the exchange rate to deal with the resource curse. But these will be politically difficult.

Of course, there were beneficiaries from the PNG LNG project - local transport, catering and security firms, support for local health and education, responses to the 2015 drought and 2018 earthquake, some tax and dividend revenues, and some landowner benefit payments.

However, taking a helicopter view of the entire economy, worse off by 2016 were household incomes, government expenditures, employment and import levels.

Worse off, that is, compared with if the pre-PNG LNG ‘business as usual’ growth trends had continued.

The reasons for failing to deliver had nothing to do with the fall in oil prices in late 2014. Indeed, the PNG LNG project is earning more in export income than initially projected.

The reasons for failure are linked to the O’Neill government’s shortcomings in not addressing the well-known risks of a major resource project.

In PNG’s case these included a 50% build-up in spending before revenues flowed that led to the largest budget deficits in PNG history; crippling foreign exchange shortages due to poor exchange rate policies; a failure to put enough effort into other critical sectors of the economy; unwise state investments such as the Oil Search purchase funded by the UBS loan; and growing corruption.

Our ‘Double or Nothing’ report was condemned as “utter nonsense” by former prime minister O’Neill, even though he later admitted he hadn’t read it.

Oil Search CEO Peter Botten promised to subject the report to “rigorous analysis” by an independent accounting firm to “demonstrate that there are some serious flaws”. This was not done, or at least the findings have not been released.

It is encouraging that the new Marape government appears to be taking a more balanced approach towards the resource sector and its potential contribution for inclusive development.

Prime minister Marape has discussed PNG’s resources as more than minerals and gas to include agriculture, forestry, fisheries and human resources.

And given his strong legal background, new petroleum minister Kerenga Kua should help address local concerns about current and prospective LNG agreements.

There is also positive language from the government on what needs to be done to create a healthy economy even if it means it doesn’t make many friends. And the strong stance on corruption is welcome.

However, some policy corrections to move away from the resource curse will be extremely challenging politically. Time will tell if the new government will tackle it difficult economic challenges, challenges that must be addressed to make PNG a much richer black Christian nation.

Go to this link for more: https://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2019/06/can-the-marape-government-reverse-pngs-resource-curse.html

New PNG govt’s resources stand in the spotlight

By Johnny Blades | Dateline Pacific | Radio New Zealand

Papua New Guinea’s new prime minister has stressed that his government is pro-foreign investment.

James Marape’s announcement that he wants to review the laws governing the country’s resources has caused some concern among investors in the sector.

But the move is popular at the grassroots level in PNG.

In his first state of the nation address, James Marape said PNG had not been enjoying the full benefits of the commercialisation of its abundant natural resources.

His government will review the laws governing the oil, gas, mining, fisheries and forestry sectors, which he has described as outdated.

Mr Marape showed his hand by appointing Kerenga Kua, a critic of the previous government’s handling of resource projects, as PNG’s Minister of Petroleum.

The prime minister said they will be looking at the resource sector “in a very big way”.

In April, James Marape and other MPs resigned from the Peter O’Neill-led government after it signed with French company Total for the $US13-billion Papua LNG project in Gulf province.

They cited concerns that local interests were not being served and claimed mandatory requirements were not fulfilled before the agreement was signed

Their stand has resonated with Gulf landowners who baulk at the two percent equity on offer for them.

The Purari Development Association general secretary Roy Daniel Evara says the developer has dictated terms to PNG.

“The agreement itself did not comply to very critical pre-conditions of the Oil and Gas Act, which is the guiding pillar for the industry. An agreement should never dictate to the pillars of the country’s laws. It should only conform and comply with it.”

Mr Marape’s moves are being watched closely by companies deeply involved in PNG’s resource sector such as energy firm Oil Search Ltd, a partner in the Papua project.

While Mr Kua and others have suggested the Project agreement could be reviewed, Oil search’s chief executive Peter Botten said he didn’t expect to make any significant new concessions on the deal.

Mr Botten told a mining convention in Sydney that delays to the deal could jeopardise PNG’s standing in the international LNG market.

Subsequently, Mr Marape bristled at suggestions that he was trying to chase away investors.

He said he made no apologies for his aim of ensuring PNG citizens get greater benefits from the petroleum sector.

Mr Marape knows the struggles of landowners in resource-rich areas well.

His own elecorate of Tari-Pori is in Hela province, where the country’s first LNG gas Project operated by Exxonmobil and Oil Search is centred.

A magnitude 7.5 earthquake hit the region last year causing around 150 deaths and widespread devastation to infrastructure.

Although it has it share of critics, Oil Search was heavily involved in the immediate relief effort.

The man who headed PNG’s response to the disaster, Bill Hamblin, says Oil Search showed itself to be a good corporate citizen in PNG.

Meanwhile, PNG’s Chamber of Mines and Petroleum says it’s waiting on clarity from the new government on its policies and plans in relation to the resource industry.

But it says that stability on fiscal and regulatory regimes is important to ensure ongoing investment in the sector.

Go to this link for more: https://ramumine.wordpress.com/2019/06/13/new-png-govts-resources-stand-in-the-spotlight/

PNG PM Marape urges investors in Mining and Petroleum to consider Resource owners Interests

Posted on PNG Today 

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister  James Marape  has urged investors in the mining and petroleum sectors to consider the interest and benefit of the resource owners and the country.‍

Prime Minister Marape said this when responding to the Managing Director of Oil Search Peter Botten, who said the new Government led by Prime Minister Marape should be investor friendly.

“I know Oil Search Managing Director, Peter Botten came out a while ago in the media asking me to be investor friendly.‍

“Peter Botten knows that I am investor friendly. But I am more concerned for the interests and benefits and speaking for the 8 million shareholders of this country.

“That is what this generation of leaders wants in our country. That is the catch cry of these leaders and our country and what our people want,” said Prime Minister Marape.‍

He said that his Government welcomes new investors and encourages those already in the country to continue investing in the economy.‍

“I am not in the business of harming our investors in the country. Other investors in the country and our partner investors, ExxonMobil, Oil Search, Total, Santos, Nippon Oil, they have been with us for a long time.‍

“We are in the business of now consolidating on these investments here, as well as attracting new investors into the country.‍

“But, as I speak I want to first pick the lowest hanging fruits to improve our economy, improve on areas of domestic market obligations, areas of local content, and in improvements in greater equity participation in the resource sector by our landowners.‍

“We are tired of being rent collectors. Sometimes down the line, whether that is in 2022 or 2025 with the best advice from the Petroleum Department and with the new Ministers we will be making regime shift and change in the resource laws and most importantly it will be friendly to the investors.‍

“But more so importantly friendlier to the interests of the 8 million people of our country and the benefits they truly deserve.‍

“And that is by making sure that our economy gets the residual benefit from those resources.

“And I make no apologies to anyone. I make no apologies. If you don’t like the way I am speaking, pack up and leave.

“I am more about adding value to the economy and for my people to benefit,” said Prime Minister Marape.

Prime Minister Marape on May 30th during his maiden speech after his election as the 8th Prime Minister of PNG told Parliament he does not want any international conglomerates in the resource sector to dictate to his Government what to do and or change the laws to suit their interests.‍

He said he would tweak and turn the resource laws for the benefit of the resource owners and the country. Prime Minister Marape said his intention is not to chase away investors, but wants maximum benefit and meaningfully participation by landowners and the Government in the resource development.

Go to this link for more: https://ramumine.wordpress.com/2019/06/14/png-pm-marape-urges-investors-in-mining-and-petroleum-to-consider-resource-owners-interests/

PNG LNG Project Developer To Provide Scholarships

Posted on PNG Facts

FORTY students from Gulf will benefit from a scholarship from the operator of the Papua LNG Project, Total E&P PNG following the signing of an agreement.

A memorandum of understanding was signed between Total E&P PNG, Port Moresby Technical College and the Department of Education on Friday in Port Moresby.

Total E&P PNG managing director Jean-Marc Noiray said about 200 students applied for the scholarship but 40 have been selected.

He said they were excited to partner with one of PNG’s most recognised training institution who would teach a new generation of young people.
“The decision to partner with POM Tech shows a commitment to work with PNG government institutions starting here by offering scholarships,” Noiray said.
The MoU paves way for students from Gulf to attend technical, vocational education and training (Tvet) at Pom Tech in engineering, building and construction.
“Our commitment is to pay tuition and fully support the students while they are studying,” he said.
The scholarship cost Total E&P PNG a total of K600,000.
Noiray said they would employ some of the students when the project starts after a few years.
“Some of the students might become a part of the pool of people we would need in the building of the project and we will know where to find them,” he said.
Port Moresby Technical College acting principal Henry Wamaingu thanked Total E&P PNG for the partnership and said they were ready to provide the training.
The acting deputy education secretary – policy and corporate services directorate Titus Hatagen said partnership was the way forward.
“No man is an island and the way forward for any country is through partnership,” he said.

Go to this link for more: https://edu.pngfacts.com/education-news/png-lng-project-developer-to-provide-scholarships?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

New minister looks to problematic attitude in PNG police force

Posted by Radio New Zealand

Papua New Guinea's new police minister says he wants to address the attitude problem which he links to the force's disciplinary problems.

Bryan Kramer, who was appointed by prime minister James Marape last week, is aiming to improve the constabulary's working relationship with a public which he said often fears police more than criminals.

He said it hadn't helped that the force has been politicised over the years.

"When you put on a police uniform, there's a degree of power and respect that comes with that uniform. And it becomes very easy to abuse it. And that has been the problem with the police force," Mr Kramer said.

"There's been ill-discipline and very little accountability in members of the force. So, I'm hoping to change that attitude."

Mr Kramer is also aiming to review the way the country's troubled constabulary is funded.

He acknowledged the long-running problem of lack of resourcing for the force and inconsistent pay for individual officers.

Mr Kramer said that with the country facing significant cash flow problems, government has struggled every fortnight to pay public servants

"My focus will be establishing what is the true cost of policing in Papua New Guinea and ensuring that the police get sufficient funding to allow them to address the law and order issue that is currently escalating in the country.

"We're looking at how we can address that, the funding available. But also, there's a lot of wastages, there's a lot of funding that is being misused through the police force."

Another priority for the minister is addressing the trend of police officers or reservists being engaged in paid work by logging companies or private businesses.

"The problem is logging companies provide great incentives," he said, adding that a number of police officers lack adequate housing and regular pay.

Mr Kramer said he would work "to ensure that members of the force that are paid by public money are not paid by private organisations or logging companies".

Meanwhile, the minister this week had a de-briefing with Police Commissioner Gary Baki whose appointment was in May renewed for three months.

The pair had a public war of words last year after Mr Kramer criticised the commissioner for closing a fraud case file against former prime minister Peter O'Neill.

Since his appointment, Mr Kramer has brushed off suggestions that he would look to fire Mr Baki. According to the minister, it's up to cabinet to decide on a long term commissioner appointment.

Papua New Guinea police. Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades

Go to this link for more: https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/391992/new-minister-looks-to-problematic-attitude-in-png-police-force

The internal dimensions of sovereignty in the Pacific islands

By Patrict Kaiku - Australian Strategic Policy Institute

The Australian government’s step-up in the Pacific islands is premised on the argument that the sovereignty of Pacific states needs safeguarding from Chinese strategic designs. But how should sovereignty be conceived? In State failure, sovereignty and effectiveness, Gerard Kreijen traces the historical usage of the concept, concluding that ‘external sovereignty or independence rests on internal sovereignty—the latter being a condition sine qua non for the former’.

The internal definitions of sovereignty matter in the Pacific islands—they aid the processes of identifying genuine threats and applying practical measures to address them. Pacific states are concerned with the internal aspects of sovereignty; that is, ‘the supreme power of the State to formulate and uphold the laws in respect of its population’. Enforcing domestic laws and regulating the negative effects of economic globalisation are immediate priorities in safeguarding the sovereignty of Pacific states.

The disruptive influences of non-state actors tax the limited capacities of states, undermine domestic agencies, and enrich the selfish impulses of local elites. When transnational criminal enterprises or unsavoury non-state actors are involved, they can easily erode the domestic capacities of states, enabling loopholes to be exploited unabated. The case of Papua New Guinea and its enforcement of immigration and labour laws is illuminating in this regard.

In May 2015, PNG parliamentarian Gary Juffa queried the minister for labor and industrial relations about a syndicate operating in the country. Juffa called on the government ‘to seriously consider re-engaging the Immigration taskforce, [the disbanded] Rausim Alien, … in light of a lot of serious issues concerning national security, such as illegal immigrants, foreigners breaching visa and work permit conditions and foreigners dominating reserves jobs’. The taskforce, in the brief period it was active, provided a sound model of interagency collaboration in law enforcement.

In 2012, the PNG National Executive Council authorised the establishment of what became known as Rausim Alien (‘rausim’ means ‘remove’ in pidgin). The taskforce was directed to ‘remove illegal non-citizens and non-citizens engaged in illegal or disreputable practices without delay’. It was mandated by government to ensure a coordinated approach to identifying and acting against unlawful and disreputable activities by non-citizens, and to work lawfully in fulfilling the national interest of PNG.

The PNG Immigration and Citizenship Service was charged with coordinating the activities of the taskforce in collaboration with six core agencies: the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Royal PNG Constabulary, the National Intelligence Organization, the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, the Customs Service, and the Department of Justice and Attorney-General. These agencies were expected to participate in all taskforce meetings and contribute to its activities and operations. The Internal Revenue Commission, the Investment Promotion Authority, the National Fisheries Authority, the Standards and Censors Board, and the Office of the Public Prosecutor had ad hoc membership status in Rausim Alien.

Rausim Alien’s terms of reference outlined the activities and people who were subject to the taskforce’s scrutiny. An ‘illegal non-citizen’ was defined as ‘an individual who is unlawfully present in Papua New Guinea’. It included non-citizens who ‘overstayed the validity of a visa’ and individuals who entered PNG unlawfully. Non-citizens who participated knowingly in illegal activities and contravened PNG laws also fell into this category.

Rausim Alien uncovered illegal activities that were criminal (such as violent crimes, property crimes, crimes against women and children, production of pornography, and production and distribution of illegal drugs) or were administrative in nature (including working unlawfully in the country and conducting a business without appropriate approvals).

Through its operations, 14 foreign nationals identified as high risk and threats to the national security of PNG were promptly deported. In all, 156 foreigners were arrested for breaching various PNG laws.

During an operation in Goroka, Eastern Highlands, in 2013, a total of 35 foreign nationals were charged and convicted. The penalty fees on breaches of various PNG laws totalled K1.3 million. Other notable achievements included the arrest of seven public servants and 16 PNG citizens found to be harboring and aiding illegal foreign nationals. Rausim Alien also carried out investigations into a firearms-smuggling ring along the border regions of East and West Sepik provinces, uncovering high-powered semi-automatic rifles brought illegally into the country. Such incidents are indicative of the porous and unguarded borders of PNG.

The operations brought to light the serious transnational threats to PNG, especially human smuggling. Evidence from Rausim Alien suggests that operations involving international smuggling rings are now established in PNG. The taskforce demonstrated the urgency of PNG collaborating with regional governments to stem human-smuggling operations. Such activities also facilitate the trade in drugs and firearms. A worrying sign for law enforcement in PNG is that some Papua New Guineans are knowingly facilitating illegitimate activities.

For Pacific states, frontline agencies enforcing the laws of their countries stand to benefit from closer regional cooperation and coordination with other law-enforcement bodies in the Pacific. In the areas of immigration, labour, intellectual property rights, taxation, natural resources and consumer protection, Pacific states are faced with powerful and organised groups undermining their sovereignty. These are the vulnerable entry points for external threats to the stability of states in the Pacific.

While Pacific states want to attract foreign investors into the region, there are foreign non-state entities readily evading compliance with domestic laws. PNG’s Rausim Alien taskforce provides a template for interagency cooperation in thwarting corrupt forces undermining internal sovereignty. A regional approach to tackling transnational security threats to the domestic sovereignty of Pacific island states is an incentive for regional cooperation.

It’s timely that the Pacific Islands Forum’s Boe declaration emphasises ‘strengthening the existing regional security architecture inclusive of regional law enforcement secretariats and regional organisations’. It can be starting point in rethinking cooperation on regional security matters.

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