Nearly five years after the islanders of remote Bougainville voted decisively in a referendum for independence from Papua New Guinea (PNG), local frustrations are rising as the political process falters.
More than 97 percent of voters in the autonomous island region of about 300,000 people, in eastern PNG, chose independence over greater autonomy in a 2019 referendum. But there cannot be a change in its political status until the result has been ratified by PNG’s parliament.
After high-level talks stalled, parliamentary ratification, which was supposed to take place last year, failed to happen. Achieving it this year is “a possibility, but not yet a likelihood”, Professor Anthony Regan of the Department of Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University (ANU) told Al Jazeera.
Last year, major disagreements about how the ratification process should work led to a breakdown in talks between the national and Bougainville governments. A major bone of contention is that Bougainville wants the parliamentary vote to be a simple majority, while PNG says it should be a two-thirds majority.
Both parties have agreed an international moderator is needed to break the deadlock, but any appointment is likely to take time.
“I am not too satisfied with the current progress [of Bougainville’s Independence]. It’s almost five years since the referendum, and there is still no positive response from the PNG government,” Barbara Tanne, president of the Bougainville Women’s Federation, told Al Jazeera.
It is deeply “frustrating”, Theresa Jaintong, a local government member in Arawa, Central Bougainville, added. “After joint government meetings, the resolutions passed are not honoured … The PNG government must come out clear as we people of Bougainville must know.”
For 56-year-old Ishmael Toroama, the former rebel fighter who was elected Bougainville’s president in 2020 with a mandate to achieve statehood, the pressure is intensifying.
Last month, he called on PNG’s parliament to make good on their promises.
“I am committed to the independence of Bougainville,” he said in a statement.
Former rebel military commander Ishmael Toroama was elected president of Bougainville in 2020 and has stressed his commitment to independence [Chris Noble/Handout via Reuters]
Bougainville, reluctantly incorporated into the new nation of PNG in 1975, has long wanted to manage its own affairs. Demands for secession rose in the following decade amid anger about the severe environmental and social impacts of the Panguna copper mine in central Bougainville, then majority-owned by British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto and the PNG government.
In 1989, an armed landowner uprising shut down the mine, and Bougainville and PNG became embroiled in civil war until 1998. A peace agreement in 2001 paved the way for autonomous government in 2005 and then the referendum.
But since the people of Bougainville voted emphatically for independence, PNG’s leaders have given the impression that they do not favour the region breaking away.
Last month, PNG Prime Minister James Marape stressed the need for the PNG parliament’s approval and acknowledged Bougainville’s request for an independent moderator in the discussions.
“While I personally sympathise with the desires of Bougainville, as prime minister, I must uphold our sovereignty and the rule of law,” Marape said in a public statement on May 9.
That could create trouble. “If the national government says no and does not want to ratify the referendum result, then there are options that Bougainville will take that could be harsh and heavy,” Peter Arwin, a landowner in Panguna, Central Bougainville, told Al Jazeera in an interview.
ANU’s Regan said that a ‘no’ vote by PNG would “be intended to make it clear that talk about the possibility of independence is over”. He said discussions might explore other options which fall short of independence, such as greater autonomy – although Bougainville’s Attorney General and Minister for Independence Ezekiel Masatt has dismissed the idea.
“There is open talk in Bougainville of the likely risks of leaders losing their lives were they to compromise … That possible threat indicates how little room there is to manoeuvre for the Bougainville government,” Regan said.
Mine controversy
Meanwhile, the Panguna mine, previously at the centre of the civil war, is now party to two competing legal challenges.
In May, a class action suit against Rio Tinto by nearly 4,000 local landowners and residents affected by the mine’s former operations was announced. The case, funded by unnamed foreign investors, is seeking billions of dollars in compensation for the mine’s social and environmental impact, which includes contamination of agricultural land and waterways.
“Rio Tinto have had more than 50 years to do right by the people of Bougainville, more than 25 years since the end of the civil war, and they have not done so. We are tired of waiting for justice and tired of Rio Tinto alone deciding what is best for Bougainville through their legacy impact assessment,” the lead claimant, Martin Miriori, told Al Jazeera.
A Rio Tinto spokesperson told the media the company was reviewing the details of the claim.
The Bougainville government hopes to revive the controversial Panguna copper mine, which was at the centre of a decade-long civil war in the 1990s [File: Catherine Wilson/Al Jazeera]
But Bougainville’s Toroama has denounced the suit. “I strongly condemn this court proceeding and view it as targeted towards hindering Bougainville’s economic independence agenda … those Bougainvilleans involved in pushing this class action have committed treason in the highest form,” Toroama said on May 24.
The lawsuit could interfere with a government-backed mediation process already under way between Rio Tinto and PNG and Bougainville stakeholders aided by the Australia-based Human Rights Law Centre. Through this initiative, Rio Tinto agreed to fund a Panguna mine impact assessment, which is due to make its first report in September.
Rio Tinto “will consider its position once it has seen the results … [But] there is a strong expectation from community and government stakeholders alike in Bougainville that following the release of the Phase 1 impact assessment report, Rio Tinto will commit to funding remediation of the huge problems left by the mine,” Keren Adams, legal director of the Human Rights Law Centre in Melbourne told Al Jazeera.
Communities living around the mine have suffered copper contamination of rivers and waterways, agricultural land rendered unusable by the dumping of mine waste and related health issues, such as respiratory illnesses and skin diseases.
Some residents in the Panguna area are wary of the lawsuit. “I do not support Panguna Mine Action because it’s a process that the majority of us are not aware of, as opposed to the legacy impact assessment, which is supported by the Bougainville and national governments. And we don’t know who the financial guarantor is … The implications of this are huge and risky,” Arwin said.
The Panguna mine, which the Bougainville government hopes to reopen, is seen as the only major source of revenue that could create economic self-sufficiency in the underdeveloped region, although it could take a decade and billions of dollars to rebuild.
Only about 10 percent of Bougainville residents have access to electricity, while just 16 percent of households have proper sanitation. Its large youth population – an estimated 40 percent of people are aged under 15 years – face high unemployment. Less than 20 percent of the government’s budget this year came from internal sources, making the island financially reliant on the national government and international donors.
Some experts believe that if PNG does not grant independence, Bougainville might consider a unilateral declaration. Such a move would make international support – from donors and governments – even more important.
In November last year, Toroama visited Washington, DC, to seek support from United States President Joe Biden’s administration for the region’s political aspirations, and he has also publicly called for backing from Australia.
British Columbians could find out who wins the provincial election on Oct. 19 in about the same time it took to start counting ballots in previous votes.
Andrew Watson, a spokesman for Elections BC, says new electronic vote tabulators mean officials hope to have half of the preliminary results for election night reported within about 30 minutes, and to be substantially complete within an hour of polls closing.
Watson says in previous general elections — where votes have been counted manually — they didn’t start the tallies until about 45 minutes after polls closed.
This will B.C.’s first general election using electronic tabulators after the system was tested in byelections in 2022 and 2023, and Watson says the changes will make the process both faster and more accessible.
Voters still mark their candidate on a paper ballot that will then be fed into the electronic counter, while networked laptops will be used to look up peoples’ names and cross them off the voters list.
One voting location in each riding will also offer various accessible voting methods for the first time, where residents will be able to listen to an audio recording of the candidates and make their selection using either large paddles or by blowing into or sucking on a straw.
The province’s three main party leaders are campaigning across B.C. today with NDP Leader David Eby in Chilliwack promising to double apprenticeships for skilled trades, Conservative Leader John Rustad in Prince George talking power generation, and Greens Leader Sonia Furstenau holding an announcement Thursday about mental health.
It comes as a health-care advocacy group wants to know where British Columbia politicians stand on six key issues ahead of an election it says will decide the future of public health in the province.
The BC Health Coalition wants improved care for seniors, universal access to essential medicine, better access to primary care, reduced surgery wait times, and sustainable working conditions for health-care workers.
It also wants pledges to protect funding for public health care, asking candidates to phase out contracts to profit-driven corporate providers that it says are draining funds from public services.
Ayendri Riddell, the coalition’s director of policy and campaigns, said in a statement that British Columbians need to know if parties will commit to solutions “beyond the political slogans” in campaigning for the Oct. 19 election.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2024.
In Canadian parliamentary democracy, a vote of no confidence (also known as a confidence motion) is a crucial mechanism that can force a sitting government to resign or call an election. It is typically initiated when the opposition, or even members of the ruling party, believe that the government has lost the support of the majority in the House of Commons.
What Is a Vote of No Confidence?
A vote of no confidence is essentially a test of whether the government, led by the prime minister, still commands the support of the majority of Members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Commons. If the government loses such a vote, it is either required to resign or request the dissolution of Parliament, leading to a general election.
This process upholds one of the fundamental principles of Canadian democracy: the government must maintain the confidence of the elected House of Commons to govern. This rule ensures accountability and provides a check on the government’s power.
How Many Votes Are Needed for a No Confidence Motion?
In the Canadian House of Commons, there are 338 seats. To pass a vote of no confidence, a simple majority of MPs must vote in favor of the motion. This means that at least 170 MPs must vote in support of the motion to cause the government to lose confidence.
If the government holds a minority of seats, it is more vulnerable to such a vote. In this case, the opposition parties could band together to reach the 170 votes required for the no-confidence motion to succeed. In a majority government, the ruling party has more than half the seats, making it more difficult for a vote of no confidence to pass, unless there is significant dissent within the ruling party itself.
Types of Confidence Votes
Explicit Confidence Motions: These are motions specifically introduced to test whether the government still holds the confidence of the House. For example, the opposition might move a motion stating, “That this House has no confidence in the government.”
Implicit Confidence Motions: Some votes are automatically considered confidence motions, even if they are not explicitly labeled as such. The most common example is the approval of the federal budget. If a government loses a vote on its budget, it is seen as losing the confidence of the House.
Key Legislation: Occasionally, the government may declare certain pieces of legislation as confidence matters. This could be done to ensure the support of the ruling party and its allies, as a loss on such a bill would mean the collapse of the government.
What Happens If the Government Loses a Confidence Vote?
If a government loses a confidence vote in the House of Commons, two outcomes are possible:
Resignation and New Government Formation: The prime minister may resign, and the governor general can invite another leader, typically the leader of the opposition, to try to form a new government that can command the confidence of the House.
Dissolution of Parliament and General Election: The prime minister can request that the governor general dissolve Parliament, triggering a general election. This gives voters the opportunity to elect a new Parliament and government.
Historical Context of Confidence Votes in Canada
Canada has seen several instances of votes of no confidence, particularly during minority government situations. For example, in 2011, the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper lost a vote of confidence over contempt of Parliament, which led to the dissolution of Parliament and the federal election.
Historically, most no-confidence votes are associated with budgetary issues or key pieces of legislation. They can be rare, especially in majority governments, as the ruling party usually has enough support to avoid defeat in the House of Commons.
To pass a vote of no confidence in Canada, at least 170 MPs out of 338 must vote in favor of the motion. This vote can lead to the government’s resignation or a general election, making it a powerful tool in ensuring that the government remains accountable to the elected representatives of the people. In the context of Canadian democracy, the vote of no confidence is a key safeguard of parliamentary oversight and political responsibility.
OTTAWA – A senior federal official says the government is mulling new ways to inform the public about possible foreign interference developments during an election campaign.
Under the current system, a panel of five top bureaucrats would issue a public warning if they believed an incident — or an accumulation of incidents — threatened Canada’s ability to have a free and fair election.
There was no such announcement concerning the 2019 or 2021 general elections.
Allen Sutherland, an assistant secretary to the federal cabinet, told a commission of inquiry today that officials are looking at how citizens might be told about developments that don’t quite reach the current threshold.
He said that would help inform people of things they ought to know more about, even if the incidents don’t rise to the level of threatening the overall integrity of an election.
Allegations of foreign interference in the last two general elections prompted calls for the public inquiry that is now underway.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 26, 2024.
