Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 11:59:50 -0500
From: malecki-AT-algonet.se (Robert Malecki)
Subject: M-G: Bougainville Update - 29/3/97


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>Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 19:27:05 +1000
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>From: Sasha Baer <sashab-AT-magna.com.au>
>Subject: Bougainville Update - 29/3/97
>
>Australia consults with other countries on arms flight to PNG
>============================================================>
>Radio Australia, Friday 28 March, 1997 (8:03pm AEDT)
>----------------------------------------------------
>
>The Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, says Canberra consulted with
>Port Moresby and other countries before a Russian aircraft carrying arms to
>Papua New Guinea was diverted to land in Australia.
>
>Mr Howard told reporters in Singapore before flying to China that the
>decision was taken after discussions with the P-N-G government and others,
>but did not name the other countries.
>
>A spokesman for Australia's Defence Minister, Ian McLachlan, says the arms
>were allowed into Australia because of concern by the P-N-G government about
>the delivery following almost 10 days of unrest in Port Moresby.
>
>The shipment, organised under the suspended Sandline Mercenary contract, is
>being stored at the Air Force base at Tindall, near Katherine in the
>Northern Territory, as Sean Dorney reports from Port Moresby.
>
>I understand the now stood aside Defence Minister Mathias Ijape was
>negotiating almost to the end to have the equipment delivered. On board were
>two M-I-24 Russian built helicopter gunships with multiple rocket pods and
>two M-I-17 troop transports. Amongst the fire power heavy machine guns and
>automatic grenade launches. I believe Sandline was keen to off load the
>cargo anywhere because the Antonov transport was costing a fortune in daily
>hire fees. And it had been held up in Bangkok and then Malaysia for the
>better part of two weeks because of the PNG military's rejection of
>Sandline. Sean Dorney Port Moresby.
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Tug-of-war over PNG arms 
>=======================>
>The Sydney Morning Herald, Saturday, March 29, 1997
>---------------------------------------------------
>
>By TONY WRIGHT and CRAIG SKEHAN
>
>Australia is likely to be drawn into an international tug-of-war over the
>ownership of a planeload of weapons that arrived in the Northern Territory
>from Bangkok on Thursday after Papua New Guinea refused to allow it on its 
soil.
>
>It is understood that both PNG and the mercenaries group Sandline are likely
>to claim ownership of the weapons, worth an estimated $19 million. One
>senior PNG military officer said yesterday: "We still want that stuff. We
>bought it already."
>
>The arms, aboard a giant Russian-built Antonov 124, had been stuck in
>Bangkok for more than a week after Thai officials impounded the plane. It
>was allowed to fly to Tindal RAAF base, near Katherine, early on Thursday
>morning.
>
>Australian diplomats and defence and intelligence chiefs had been involved
>in secret negotiations for days with Sandline and the governments of PNG and
>Thailand before agreeing to accept the weapons. 
>
>The arms, including two Russian helicopter gunships, two helicopter
>troop-carriers, assault rifles, ammunition, high explosives and
>rocket-propelled grenades, are now under guard in a hangar at Tindal.
>
>They are understood to have been bought on the East European arms market by
>Sandline for the PNG Government under the now-aborted contract that sparked
>the PNG crisis.
>
>A spokesman for the Minister for Defence, Mr Mclachlan, confirmed yesterday
>that he understand there were "legal issues" to be sorted out over ownership
>of the arms.
>
>Although opinions are likely to differ within PNG, a Defence Force captain
>allied with the sacked military commander, Brigadier-General Jerry Singirok,
>said that if equipment had been bought and the money was not going to be
>refunded, it should come to PNG.
>
>However, it is understood that Sandline has been paid only half of its $46
>million contract with the PNG Government.
>
>It is believed that the plane was held at Bangkok because its load manifest
>did not show it was carrying arms, and that there were also discrepancies
>over the identity of its crew.
>
>The Thais were keen to get rid of the problem, and the PNG Government -
>apparently fearful that the weapons could be used by its soldiers in a
>potential coup - did not want to accept the shipment.
>
>Sandline, meanwhile, was stuck with the ballooning cost of the leased
>Antonov sitting on the tarmac in Bangkok.
>
>Sources told the Herald yesterday that Sir Julius Chan - who stepped aside
>on Wednesday as PNG Prime Minister - raised the matter last week with the
>personal envoys of the Prime Minister, Mr Howard, when they flew to Port
>Moresby to try to help settle the PNG crisis. 
>
>The envoys were led by the chief of the Department of Foreign Affairs and
>Trade, Mr Philip Flood.
>
>Before stepping aside, Sir Julius expressed deep concern to senior PNG
>officials about advanced military equipment already in the country.
>
>He feared that it could be used for a coup attempt or to kill members of his
>Government who had fallen out with the military. Mr Flood and his colleagues
>agreed to pass on Sir Julius's concerns to Mr Howard.
>
>Australia then began high-level negotiations with Thailand through the
>Australian Embassy in Bangkok to explore the possible freeing of the plane
>and its cargo, the sources said.
>
>The National Security Committee - a group of senior ministers including Mr
>Howard, the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Downer, and the Defence
>Minister, Mr McLachlan - met in Canberra on Tuesday to discuss a proposal
>that Australia should help by storing the weapons.
>
>Details were thrashed out at a meeting between PNG's Foreign Minister, Mr
>Kilroy Genia, and Australia's High Commissioner in Port Moresby, Mr David
>Irvine.
>
>Australia insisted that the request be put in writing and this was done by
>the secretary of Mr Genia's department.
>
>The documentation was important because of the likelihood that the weapons
>would be at the centre of a legal battle.
>
>The plane was allowed to fly to Tindal after Federal Parliament had closed
>down for seven weeks and Mr Howard had left Australia for a week-long visit
>to Singapore and China.
>
>The National Security Committee has been kept informed of developments
>associated with the PNG crisis by the Canberra-based intelligence agency,
>the Office of National Assessments. 
>
>Other information has been gathered by Australia's overseas spies attached
>to the Australian Secret Intelligence Service.
>
>Knowledge of the weapons involved helped to persuade the security committee
>that such deadly equipment should not be allowed into the over-heated PNG
>situation.
>
>The two helicopter gunships are Russian-built Hind Mi 24s, equipped with
>four-barrel machine-guns and rocket-launching systems.
>
>The two other helicopters are Hind Mi 17s, used for carrying troops and as
>machine-gun platforms, and are capable of being used as flying emergency
>hospitals.
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>The crisis is far from over
>==========================>
>The Sydney Morning Herald, Saturday, March 29, 1997
>---------------------------------------------------
>
>Sir Julius Chan has departed, as have the mercenaries, and a caretaker
>government is in place, but the crisis in Papua New Guinea is not over and a
>dangerous precedent has been set, writes LUCY PALMER. 
>
>SIR Julius Chan once admitted that he likes to read "The Phantom" comic
>strip in his spare time. When asked why, he replied: "Because I like to
>think of myself as a hero."
>
>A skilled survivor in the often turbulent world of Papua New Guinea
>politics, one of Chan's most remarkable traits is his seemingly undaunted
>personal belief in his own rhetoric and abilities.
>
>Despite losing face, office and power, the resilient Chan, 57, has signalled
>he could be back in office once an inquiry into his employment of
>mercenaries to help fight rebels on Bougainville has finished to lead a
>newly appointed caretaker government to the June elections.
>
>He remains undiminished by the enormous well of public opposition against
>him that the mercenary issue has triggered in recent weeks, claiming the
>outcry did not represent the "silent majority" who supported him.
>
>But Chan's personal control over the political state of the nation was
>further eroded on Thursday night when cabinet elected John Giheno, a
>political colleague of the former Deputy Prime Minister Chris Haiveta, who
>has also stood down over the Sandline Affair, as Acting Prime Minister.
>
>That Chan should have followed the spirit of the much-vaunted Constitution
>and stood down for lying to the public over the true nature of the Sandline
>contract was without question. But the fact that the military forced his
>hand has set a dangerous precedent in the power politics of our closest
>neighbour.
>
>Former Deputy Secretary-General of the Commonwealth of Nations, Sir Anthony
>Siaguru, says PNG must learn the lessons from its 10-day crisis.
>
>"We ought to find a way to ensure that our leaders are sensitised to the
>needs and concerns of the people without having to resort to the military
>being the focal point of pricking the popular national conscience," he said.
>
>The issues of corruption and accountability, he said, would be the focus of
>upcoming debate.
>
>But at the moment, with national elections around the corner and an
>Opposition in disarray, there is no political watchdog force powerful
>enough, or sufficiently free from the stigma of corruption, who can fill the
>military shoes.
>
>Chan has bemoaned the fact that, due to outside scrutiny, PNG had not been
>able to resolve its own problems in a "Melanesian way", bizarrely suggesting
>that a highlands system of using pigs for compensation might have been more
>appropriate.
>
>But by the end of the saga, the major players were all conceding a little.
>
>The head of Sandline International, a dishevelled and baggy-eyed Lieutenant
>Colonel Tim Spicer, who appeared on criminal firearms charges in Boroko
>District Court, claimed he had no hard feelings against the PNG Government,
>and described the man who forced his fall from grace, Brigadier Jerry
>Singirok, as a perfectly professional soldier.
>
>Amazingly, Singirok then described Chan as a noble and courageous man and in
>turn was described by Chan, whose political career he has arguably ruined,
>as a very good friend.
>
>Strange as it may seem, this is simply politics PNG-style.
>
>Political alliances are never set in concrete and creating implacable
>enemies is foolish in a system which relies on the time-honoured rituals of
>open exchange and inter-tribal negotiations to maintain peace between
>neighbours.
>
>For Australia, the lessons of the last fortnight are critical to the
>long-term bilateral relationship, which Chan has already described as being
>irreparably damaged by the Sandline fiasco.
>
>While PNG may be considered an "inert shield" for strategic reasons, the
>volatile state of its political life, the impact of instability on two-way
>trade, the welfare of $4billion worth of investment and the safety of 10,000
>Australian residents, are all good reasons to pay much closer attention to
>the machinations of our neighbours.
>
>For the people of Bougainville, still reeling from the October assassination
>of Premier Theodore Miriung, the future is still uncertain.
>
>The recent actions of Chan, who rode into office in August 1994 declaring
>that a resolution to the crisis was his highest priority, will have damaged
>the tenuous trust between ordinary Bougainvilleans and the agents of
>government business and peace negotiations.
>
>And the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA), often dismissed by the media
>for circulating wild conspiracy theories about the evilness of the PNG army
>and government, have been proved to have not been so wide of the mark after 
all.
>
>From their mountainous jungle hideaways in central Bougainville, the rebels,
>although they enjoy little genuine authority among the local population,
>will have also boosted their negotiating position in relation to the
>national government and in terms of their all-important international support.
>
>Brigadier Jerry Singirok, who has a "hearts and minds" approach to winning
>the Bougainvillean population away from rebel areas, believes the army,
>despite numerous well-documented allegations of atrocities on the island,
>are still the right people to help restore peace. "Our men are some of the
>best soldiers in the world," he said.
>
>But Singirok, who also flouted the letter and spirit of the Constitution to
>get what he wanted, may also face investigation over an alleged cover-up in
>the Miriung assassination. A coronial inquest in November named several
>soldiers who were allegedly involved in the killing, but so far no-one has
>been charged.
>
>Next week, the hastily convened commission of inquiry into the Sandline
>affair will begin its two-week inquiry into the circumstances surrounding
>the deal. But while the immediate heat has died down, the crisis is not over.
>
>The bevy of international journalists piled onto aircraft on Thursday
>afternoon. They included Chan's volatile Australian press secretary, Mark
>Lillyman, who was hitching a ride in Channel Nine's private plane. Lillyman,
>described as an unguided missile in some media circles for his unpredictable
>behaviour, was reportedly carrying a bundle of confidential government
>documents when he fled the country. It was not clear what he intended to do
>with them.
>
>The arrival of a Russian cargo plane crammed with high-level firepower at
>the RAAF base near Katherine in the Northern Territory on the same day, also
>presents a new twist for the former contract partners who will undoubtedly
>fight a legal battle over who has the right to the weapons.
>
>The day before the Antanov 124 was diverted from PNG airspace, Chan, who has
>for some time been fearful about the risk of assassination, was frantically
>asking senior advisers to find out where the Sandline weapons had gone.
>
>After several days of tense negotiations with the military, Chan may have
>feared that the renegade elements in the military could turn the arsenal of
>weapons on the Government.
>
>Chan, privately educated by the Catholic Church in Australia, inherited a
>small family shipping business. His worth a decade ago was estimated at less
>than $1million. Now that sum is reportedly more than $100million. He has
>never had to struggle like the majority of his countrymen and concedes he is
>out of touch with the majority.
>
>In a defiant address to parliament on why PNG could go without foreign aid
>if Australia decided to withdraw its $320million program, Chan astonished
>some MPs when he said the country's four million citizens, most of whom live
>a tough subsistence lifestyle, should be prepared to make more sacrifices:
>"Instead of eating rice, you eat yams. Instead of eating meat, you eat fish,
>something like that."
>
>His final throwaway comment said much about how remote he is from people's
>daily lives and concerns.
>
>Although to many, the principles of parliamentary democracy and
>constitutional government appeared to have been upheld last week, there are
>still nagging questions about the future political role of the army and the
>ability of the wider society to keep a check on those in power.
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>PM confirms request on arms intercept
>====================================>
>The Age, Asia Online, 28 March 1997
>-----------------------------------
>
>By LAURA TINGLE and BEN MITCHELL
>
>Arms destined for Papua New Guinea mercenaries were under guard in the
>Northern Territory last night after a Russian cargo plane en route to PNG
>was diverted to an RAAF base.
>
>The Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, confirmed that the PNG Government had
>asked Australia to let the plane land.
>
>``After some discussions with the PNG Government and others, arrangements
>were made for the aircraft to fly to the Northern Territory and for the
>equipment there to be unloaded,'' Mr Howard said in Singapore.
>
>An Army spokesman said the Defence Force would hold on to the military
>equipment until legal issues surrounding the contract between PNG and the
>Sandline International mercenaries had been clarified.
>
>The spokesman said the Antonov cargo plane had been diverted to Australia on
>Thursday morning where military equipment, including attack helicopters, had
>been offloaded.
>
>He said the plane had been chartered by Sandline. It landed at the Tindal
>air base near Katherine in ``accordance with its scheduled (return) flight
>plan''.
>
>``The (military) equipment will be held under quarantine at Tindal while the
>question of ownership is worked out between the Papua New Guinea Government
>and Sandline,'' the spokesman said.
>
>He said two FA-18 fighter-bombers had been prepared for take-off in case of
>emergency, but were not
>scrambled.
>
>A spokesman for the Defence Minister, Mr Ian McLachlan, said the PNG
>Government feared the arrival of Sandline equipment could aggravate the
>tense military and political situation on the island.
>
>``The PNG Government was concerned about the delivery of this material to
>PNG in the uncertain circumstances, and asked Australia to receive it and
>store it,'' the spokesman said.
>
>The Antonov landed at Tindal about 9am on Thursday and left after 5pm, once
>the cargo had been unloaded. 
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Growing pains of independence 
>============================>
>The Age, Asia Online, 28 March 1997
>-----------------------------------
>
>By Lindsay Murdoch 
>
>SIR Michael Somare, one of the founders of modern Papua New Guinea, is a
>quietly proud man. 
>
>At the races in Port Moresby he will take the time to sign your 50-kina note
>which has his face on it. I was talking with Sir Michael amid the drama of
>this week's crisis when Ray Martin, who is as big a television star in PNG
>as he is in Australia, nudged into the conversation. 
>
>``Did you get the cigarettes?,'' asked Martin. Sir Michael politely replied
>yes and returned to what was on his mind: the damage the crisis had done to
>PNG internationally.
>
>Martin may not realise it but the leaders of Papua New Guinea 21 years after
>gaining independence don't need patronising. 
>
>In many ways that is how successive Australian Governments and Australians
>have generally regarded the people of PNG. Send up buckets of money ($320
>million this year) and feel good about it. 
>
>When Sir Julius Chan went on PNG television at the height of the calls for
>his resignation this week he spoke about the weight bearing on the shoulders
>of the leader of the country attempting to make its own way in the world. 
>
>The country might have only four million people, but it would be the only
>South Pacific nation that is a member of the Asia Pacific Economic
>Cooperation forum. 
>
>Sir Julius knew there is a deep well of nationalism to be tapped in PNG. 
>
>When PNG's leaders look outside the country these days, it is no longer only
>south to Australia. 
>
>Take, for example, the nine-year war on Bougainville. 
>
>Sir Julius made a momumental blunder when he decided to bring merceranies
>hired by London-based Sandline International into PNG to fight in the war. 
>
>But it is telling that when Sir Julius, his then Defence Minister, Mathias
>Ijape, and then Finance Minister, Chris Haiveta, were looking to boost the
>capability of the PNG defence force, they went to Asian countries, including
>Singapore and Malaysia, before deciding to take Sandline. 
>
>They had given up on Australia, partly because Canberra had protested when
>Australian-supplied helicopters were used on Bougainville as gunships. 
>
>But there was a deeper reason. Among some of PNG's elite there is a feeling
>the country needs to be doing more to find its own way in the world, to
>distance the country further from the old colonial bonds and, as they often
>see it, Australia's fatherly finger-pointing. 
>
>Many of PNG's poor still hanker for the days of colonial rule when they
>remember the bureaucracy actually functioned reasonably efficiently and
>there wasn't the corruption that exists now. But almost everybody realises
>there is no going back. 
>
>Australia's Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, says the former Labor
>government neglected PNG. But Mr Downer himself has had great difficulty
>winning the respect of Sir Julius and other PNG leaders since he took office
>12 months ago. 
>
>Last year, during a meeting of South Pacific leaders in the Marshall
>Islands, Sir Julius made his contempt of Mr Downer known to PNG journalists
>he was having a drink with late one night. 
>
>When the new PNG government is formed after mid-year elections, Mr Howard
>and Mr Downer will have to think hard about how to help PNG but not in the
>patronising ways of the past.
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Contact Details:
>===============>
>Vikki John (BFM)     +61-2-9558-2730   email: V.john-AT-uts.edu.au
>Moses Havini (BIG)   +61-2-9804-7632
>Max Watts            +61-2-9818-2343   email: MWATTS-AT-fisher.biz.usyd.edu.au
>(Journalist specialising in Bougainville, East Timor and West Papua issues)
>
>Bougainville Freedom Movement
>P.O. Box 134, Erskineville, NSW 2043, Australia
>
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>Regards Sasha
>
>Sasha Baer
>International Amateur Radio Network
>Bougainville Freedom Movement
>Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol
>Mobile:    +61-0419-433-702
>sashab-AT-magna.com.au
>http://www.magna.com.au/~sashab/
>
>
>



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