Bougainville President has described the National Parliament’s decision to adopt a draft sessional order on the results of the Bougainville Referendum as a breach of the Melanesian Agreement and a move that undermines the Bougainville peace process.
In a media statement, President Ishmael Toroama said Parliament’s decision on June 9, to adopt the draft sessional order without the required consent of the Speaker of the Bougainville House of Representatives was contrary to the principles of respect, good faith and partnership that underpin the Bougainville Peace Agreement.
The President expressed disappointment with aspects of Prime Ministerial statements made during the debate, the order in which the debate was conducted and what he described as a unilateral position on the negotiated majority threshold.
“I warned that the resolve of the people of Bougainville would be tested by events in the National Parliament and urged all Bougainvilleans to remain calm, united and respectful. I echo that entreaty now,” President Toroama said.
He urged Bougainvilleans to remain united, saying their strength lies in their common purpose and faith in the justice of their cause.
President Toroama said the Autonomous Bougainville Government would continue to engage with the National Government in good faith despite what he described as recent attempts to subvert the Melanesian Agreement and undermine the ratification process.
He also called for international monitoring, saying the Melanesian Agreement provided for oversight with United Nations support.
The President urged the facilitator appointed to support the development of the Melanesian Framework to activate the commitment to international monitoring and convene a meeting of international partners, members of the international community and witnesses to the signing of the Bougainville Peace Agreement.
According to President Toroama, such a meeting would address what he views as a breach by the National Government of its commitments under the Melanesian Agreement and help ensure that the process and principles agreed to at Burnham are honoured.
He concluded by reaffirming Bougainville’s commitment to a peaceful process and expressed faith that all parties would be guided in good faith toward the delivery of Bougainville’s political future.
“We continue to place our trust in God to protect us and to guide all parties in good faith in the delivery of Bougainville’s legitimate political destiny,” he said.