There are plans in Papua New Guinea to restore short wave radio services in Bougainville.
The service, run by the national broadcaster NBC, ended when Bougainville became engulfed in a civil war nearly 30 years ago.
But the regional member for Bougainville in the PNG parliament, Joe Lera, got a positive response when he suggested a beefed up service was needed to improve the dissemination of information, especially leading into the referendum on possible independence.
Mr Lera told Don Wiseman radio is vital in the rural areas because these regions do not have ready access to newspapers or television, and the current FM signal is inadequate.
Many remote communities in Pacific island countries rely on shortwave radio.
Photo: RNZI
Transcript
JOE LERA: At the moment on Bougainville only the three urban centres receive the FM and the majority in the rural areas have no access to the radio so they have been missing out on lots of information and issues that affect their lives, but before the crisis [the civil war] we had shortwave transmitters. And when shortwave was in operation everyone, from all corners of Bougainville, were receiving Radio Bougainville and they were kept informed daily. What I would like to see is we should go back to before the crisis. The role that radio played before the crisis, reaching out to all corners of Bougainville so that people can be informed, especially now with the referendum awareness. There are lots of awareness [exercises] going but only the urban centre people receive that information while the 80% rural population is kept in the dark about referendum issues.
DON WISEMAN: You are a member of the government. What is the government saying about this? You have made this suggestion. What is going to happen?
JL: Well after I raised the issue in parliament last week the Minister [Sam Basil] is coming over with a team, two weeks' time, they are coming over to Bougainville because the national government sees the importance of people getting the information about the referendum and the issues related. Access to information so they vote freely and make decisions without outside influence. The Minister is taking the whole NBC team over and his thinking is two options. One, national government to immediately buy two shortwave transmitters and bring Radio Bougainville back to where it was before the crisis, and two, we want to keep FM. He is also talking national government paying for two FM transmitters. So whichever option it should bring Radio Bougainville to where we were before.
DW: When you talk about external forces influencing people, who are you talking about?
JL: Well if people don't have access to information about the referendum and the issues related to it people like the ex-combatants, or people who hold one view, like independence, and can force most people, who [otherwise] don't want it. Because of ignorance they will submit to them.
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