Counting the votes in Bougainville's independence referendum, December 2019 Photo: Jeremy Miller / Bougainville Referendum Commission
Papua New Guinea's Minister for Bougainville Affairs, Manasseh Makiba, has reminded MPs that the Bougainville referendum results are non-binding, and the national parliament is the only authority that will determine the fate of the referendum results.
Makiba was responding to questions in Parliament from Central Bougainville MP Simon Dumarinu and supplementary questions from Morobe Governor Luther Wenge and North Bougainville MP Francesca Semoso, according to the Post Courier's report
Dumarinu had asked Makiba about the way forward, given what he called a "political impasse" over the ongoing consultations between the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) and the National Government, over the referendum results.
Makiba said there was no political impasse over the referendum results, which are yet to be formally tabled in the PNG Parliament and that the results are non-binding.
The minister went on to say: "what does that mean? It means that it (referendum result) does not take immediate legal effect until this National Parliament approves or ratify it. That is the position in law regarding the Bougainville referendum results.
"And I want to make it clear to everyone that there is no other authority that will determine the fate of the Bougainville Referendum results. It is this National Parliament that will determine (the result)," he said.
"And I want to make it clear to everyone and to the country that the Bougainville Referendum was very peculiar, and it must be properly and correctly seen in the context of internal conflict resolution and peace.
"I also want to make it clear that the Bougainville Referendum must not be seen in the context of decolonisation from a colonial power. PNG is not a colonial power."
He said the referendum must be seen in the context of internal conflict resolution over the Bougainville crisis, and it must be seen in the context of peace, and we must all stick to the Bougainville peace agreement and the Constitution."
"And I also want to stress that because of this perspective, the Bougainville Referendum must be properly and correctly distinguished from the situation of New Caledonia or West Papua for that matter."
"Section 342 of the Constitution provides for consultations between the National Government and the ABG over the referendum results. The two governments have had a number of consultations. The first one was in Kokopo, second was in Wabag and the third was in Port Moresby," the minister said.
