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Women, Peace and Security Initiatives: Papua New Guinea
In-country | International

In-country

Wife-Beating is a Crime- Disarming the Fist
1986-1991
The Papua New Guinea's Law Reform Commission (LRC) launched a massive public-education campaign to try to change attitudes to wife-beating. In collaboration with the Women and Law Committee, the LRC published a series of leaflets and posters and a video called Stap Easi (Take it Easy). These explained what was wrong with wife-beating and how beaten wives could get help from the law. Also, a young people's theater group toured villages, often on foot, performing plays about the evils of wife-beating and working with local groups to develop their own plays. National radio participated by broadcasting plays, panel discussions, documentaries, interviews and recordings of training sessions. Local action groups sprang up all over the country, one of which produced a reggae song called Noken Paitim Meri! (Don't hit your wife!) that became a smash hit on the national airwaves. The Catholic Church joined the campaign, requiring that young men preparing to marry should disclaim any right to beat their wives and granting dispensations for wives to leave husbands who beat them.

For more information click here

International

WILPF’s Letter to Bougainville’s President Kabui Regarding the Dismissal of Bougainville Women’s Minister, Magdalene Toroansi
In early June 2008, WILPF wrote a letter to President Kabui urging him to reinstate Women’s Minister of the Bougainville Autonomous Government, Magdalene Toroansi.

Magdalene Toroansi was the lone voice in the Cabinet to oppose President Kabui’s signature to a mining contract with Canadian mining company, Invincible which would reopen the Panguna Mine in Central Bougainville, taking 70 per cent of the profits offshore.

President Kabui had not consulted the women landowners. He had not even consulted the parliament about this contract.

Magdalene Toroansi was sacked because she represented the valid fears and concerns in Bougainville that conflict that could occur if this controversial mine is reopened without proper consultation.

To view the letter, please click HERE

Urgent Action: Bougainville Women's Minister sacked for trying to prevent conflict
Please respond to this urgent action alert.

On Monday 3 June 2008, the Women’s Minister of the Bougainville Autonomous Government was sacked from her Cabinet position.

We urge you to send a letter to Bougainville Autonomous Government President Kabui demanding that he reverse this decision.

We have drafted a sample below for you to adapt, put on your letterhead, and send it to the fax numbers provided. Please also send your letter to your own Foreign Ministry to alert them to what is happening.

Why was Magdalene Toroansi sacked from Cabinet this week?

Magdalene Toroansi was the lone voice in the Cabinet to oppose President Kabui’s signature to a mining contract with Canadian mining company, Invincible which would reopen the Panguna Mine in Central Bougainville, taking 70 per cent of the profits offshore.

President Kabui had not consulted the women landowners. He had not even consulted the parliament about this contract.

Magdalene Toroansi was sacked because she represented the valid fears and concerns in Bougainville that conflict that could occur if this controversial mine is reopened without proper consultation.

The Panguna mine is very sensitive and significant because this mine was at the centre of fighting in Bougainville between1989 and 2002. At that time, another foreign company, Australian owned Rio Tinto subsidiary CRA, was extracting a million dollars worth of copper per day. While obscene amounts of toxins and tailings polluted the rivers, Bougainvilleans received very, very little of the profits from this mine, which was closed by the people against great odds. The militarised response by the Papua New Guinea Defence Force, strongly supported by Australia, caused divisions in the society, and terrible killings; a civil war. A blockade imposed by Australia stopped medicines coming in, causing many people, thousands of children, to die of malaria and other easily preventable diseases. A lot of guns managed to make it through the blockade, however, many are still there today, strongly impacting Bougainville today. People are scared to speak their minds, make decisions, and move freely. Women are being raped at gunpoint.

Please can the international sisters and NGO friends stand in solidarity with the women of Bougainville to help prevent more mining-driven conflict in Bougainville?

Please send the letter below. You can also find more information is in the Press Release from the Bougainville Women’s Development Agency, Leitana Nehan, quoting the Executive Director, Helen Hakena.

Best wishes,

Helen Hakena (Leitana Nehan) & Felicity Hill (WILPF)

For the draft letter and further information, please click HERE

Justice and Self-determination for West Papua
To sign the petition on-line for a call for a genuine act of self-determination for Papuans click here.