Blogs

By APP

Papua New Guinea's Supreme Court has ruled the reappointment of the governor-general was unconstitutional and invalid.

Controversy surrounded the June installation of Sir Paulias Matane, who critics said was appointed by the government despite numerous breaches of parliamentary process.

On Friday, the full bench of the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the appointment was unconstitutional because Sir Paulias was not selected after a secret ballot in parliament.

Back in April two articles were written on the ACT NOW! blog about a Pastoral Letter from the Catholic Bishops' Conference which asked the question: Will Papua New Guinea's liquified natural gas projects be a blessing or a curse?

Below (thanks to our friends at LNG Watch) is the full text of that letter. It should be essential reading for anyone concerned about the future of PNG and should, perhaps, have been tabled for discussion during this weeks PNG mining talk fest in Sydney...

ABC Radio reports the Papua New Guinea Chamber of Mines and Petroleum has called on the PNG government to sign up to an international anti-corruption initiative.

The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative began in 2003.

It is designed to help countries clean up their mining and resources industry by publishing the details of all revenue received, in a format easily understood by all citizens.

Thirty-two nations, most from the developing world, have already joined.

Editorial: Post Courier

The 11th Mining and Petroleum Conference in Sydney, Australia kicked off on Monday. In a packed room, PNG’s Oil Search Limited, a major partner in the LNG project, shocked the experts and government officials including ministers from both countries, by revealing it has paid a whopping K11.931 billion in oil benefits between 1992 and 2009.

ACT NOW!, has welcomed the public admission by Harmony Gold and Newcrest Mining that sediment run off from their Hidden Valley mine has caused pollution in the Watut river.

"This is a significant step forward by two leading companies and we welcome their announcement," says Effrey Dademo, Program Manager for ACT NOW! 

"Hopefully responsible resource companies are beginning to see the need for much greater transparency, honesty and respect for local people."

Harmony Gold and Newcrest Mining have, for the first time, publicly accepted their Hidden Valley mine in Papua New Guinea has caused pollution problems in the Watut River.

This is a significant admission from the two mining companies, in the face of mounting community pressure, as they have only previously spoken about 'higher than expected sediment loads' in the river system.

The companies have also announced steps to seek a 'constructive resolution' of the pollution problem in consultation with local people and their MP Sam Basil. 

By Derek Wall

Grassroots groups warn that the UN forest protection scheme being negotiated in Cancún amid the UN 16th Conference of the Parties may severely undermine climate mitigation policies and exacerbate environmental and social problems.

A new report, No REDD: A Reader, is based on groundbreaking research exposing links between REDD and carbon trading, International Financial Institutions, extractive industries, GMO trees and biotech.

Leader of PNG Party, Belden Namah, has called on Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare to act decisively in dealing with corruption in the Treasury and National Planning departments.

Namah said it was common knowledge that corruption was rife in Treasury and National Planning offices, but Sir Michael continues to pretend that all is well.

He said Sir Michael had conveniently shut his mouth and chooses to remain deaf and blind.

Kevin Conrad, Papua New Guinea's shadowy international climate change ambassador, in Cancun, Mexico, for the latest round of United Nations Climate Change negotiations, is still pushing the international community to give the PNG government US$1 billion for, well, for not very much really.

 By Peter Kailap