Date: Thu, 15 May 1997 11:53:52 -0400
Subject: M-NEWS: Bougainville


>From: "Vikki John" <VIKKI-AT-lexsun.law.uts.edu.au>
>To: Bougainville.Updates-AT-lexsun.law.uts.edu.au
>Date:          Thu, 15 May 1997 17:36:35 GMT-1000
>Subject:       (Fwd)SUPPORT THE HEROES WHO STOPPED THE KILLERS
>
>------- Forwarded Message Follows -------
>
>Subject:       SUPPORT THE HEROES WHO STOPPED THE KILLERS
>Priority:      normal
>
>URGENT - PLEASE ACT NOW - URGENT - PLEASE ACT NOW - URGENT.
>SUPPORT THE HEROES WHO STOPPED THE MERCENARIES    15/5/97
>
>Calling All Peace Loving People of the World,
>
>It is time we gave our greatest support to the Non-Government Organisations in 
>Papua New Guinea (PNG) who stopped the Sandlines International/ 
>Executive Outcomes mercenaries from going to Bougainville to kill, maim and 
>murder the people of Bougainville.
>
>The people of Papua New Guinea protested peacefully to stop the mercenaries 
>and to expose the corruption of Sir Julius Chan's cabinet who hired the 
>mercenaries.
>
>Community and civil rights groups like MELSOL (Melanesian Solidarity), 
>ICRAF (Individual and Community Rights Advocacy Forum) and the 
>PNG Watch Council worked together to assemble the people of Port Moresby 
>(the capital of PNG) to create peaceful protests to stop the murderous 
>Sandline International mercenaries who were hired by the Sir Julius Chan's 
clique 
>then running the PNG Government for $36 American million dollars.
>
>Between 16 and 26 March 1997, the combined soldier and civilian protests 
>prevented Sir Julius Chan's plan to use the mercenaries of Sandline 
International/
>Executive Outcome to murder thousands, perhaps tens of thousands of people on 
>Bougainville. 
>Even after the mercenaries had been expelled from the country, Sir Julius Chan 
>continued to plan an intensified war, using the armoured Russian MIL 24 
gunships, 
>the thousand air-to-ground rockets, the heat-seeking spotter planes which 
>Sandline International/Executive Outcomes had prepared for this job.
>
>But the combined civilian and anti-war soldier protesters forced Prime 
Minister 
>Sir Julius Chan, Treasurer Chris Haiveta and Defence Minister Mathias Ijape to 
>step aside while the allegations of corruption in relation to the 
>Sandline International mercenary contract were investigated.
>
>It is clear that the PNG Constitution was breached to allow Sir Julius Chan 
and 
>his Cabinet to squander public monies, recruit an "illegal international 
force" and 
>plan massive violations of human rights of Papua New Guinea citizens protected 
>by the Constitution.
>
>The ordinary citizens of Papua New Guinea led by the Non-Government
>Organisations (NGOs) - MELSOL, ICRAF, PNG Watch Council, by 
>Trade Unions, Students and many now anti-war rank and file soldiers took to 
the 
>streets in peaceful demonstrations to exercise their socio-political rights 
and to 
>protect democracy in Papua New Guinea and to stop the war on Bougainville.
>
>The "Public Order Law" which was passed in the early eighties already greatly 
>restricts the rights of PNG citizens to exercise their political rights 
through public 
>meetings, assembly, demonstrations and pickets.  This law directly copied from 
>dictatorial legislation of  Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore.  It is highly 
repressive 
>and is not needed in Papua New Guinea, a country of great diversity and free 
>thinking influenced by great cultural diversity.  The politicians are now 
using this 
>very law to stop the NGOs who speak for the ordinary and under privileged 
>majority of Papua New Guineans.  This law will continue to allow the Police 
and 
>Politicians to restrict the democratic rights of the PNG people and allow 
>corruption to spiral amongst PNG politicians.  This law must now be 
repealed as 
>soon as possible by the PNG Parliament.
>
>The courageous NGOs, PNG citizens and rank and file soldiers took to the 
>streets and stopped not only a wholesale massacre on Bougainville but also the 
>creation of a very dangerous precedent, which would have been used by the PNG 
>elites against their own people - especially those who are also fighting to 
protect 
>their land and resource rights in Papua New Guinea.
>
>The non-government organisations MELSOL, ICRAF, PNG Watch Council, the 
>people of Port Moresby, Brigadier General Singirok and the anti-war soldiers 
>stopped the mercenaries Sandline International from murdering in Bougainville.
>
>Their protests were peaceful, they killed nobody.
>Now that Sir Julius Chan and his associates have somewhat recovered from their 
>fright of mid March 1997 they are preparing their revenge.
>
>They have begun arresting the civilian protest leaders, and are trying to 
disperse 
>the anti-war soldiers, whom they will try and punish in the near future.
>
>WHAT YOU CAN DO
>
>Please send letters of support by fax now to the four (4) 
>Non-Government Organisation officials who will be appearing in Court on 
>Wednesday 21 May 1997 facing charges of "unlawful assembly".
>Please send to:
>
>Mr Powes Parkop, 	I.C.R.A.F.			Fax 675-326-0273
>
>Mr Jonathan O'ata, Mr John Napo and Mr John Kawowo
>MELSOL & PNG WATCH COUNCIL 		Fax 675-325-4854
>
>If you are unable to send faxes, please E-mail  
>v.john-AT-uts.edu.au
>and your messages will be passed on to ICRAF and MELSOL and 
>PNG WATCH COUNCIL. Thanks
>
>Letters of support to these courageous, peace loving people need to be sent 
>NOW.
>They have been charged and arrested for "unlawful assembly".
>The nature and substance of the charges against the four (4) NGO officials are 
>trivial and baseless.
>On Monday 12/5/97, the District Court Magistrate Bill Noki who presided over 
>the bail hearing summed up that "the wrong people are in court."
>The four (4) NGO officials face Court proceedings on Wednesday 21 May, 1997 
>-Please ACT NOW!
>Please tell your friends and families to also send faxes.  Thankyou.
>
>
>