Transcript
JOHN MOMIS: The ABG is the legitimate democratically elected and mandated government for the people of Bougainville and the ABG has its own mining law and in accordance with the mining law the share that goes to the landowners is much much greater than the shares that the national government gives to the mining operations, so the 17.4 percent that the Prime Minister's giving to the landowners, once the mine becomes fully operational, with a new developer who will be demanding that they also be given shares, the current shares that we hold will be much diluted, in other words the 17.4 percent will result in practically nothing. So it is a smokescreen, it's not really helping the landowners, whereas under our mining law the landowners are entitled to five percent "free carry" when the mine is fully operational.
DON WISEMAN: Why do you think Peter O'Neill has done it this way?
JM: Well it is consistent with his practice, the national government's practice of wanting to circumnavigate the ABG in all things. The peace agreement specifically stipulates that the restoration development grant, which is the only unconditional grant, which means the ABG can spend this money in accordance with its own priorities to its own discretion. We don't even get anywhere near the full amount, they reduce it so badly that it's very difficult to do anything with this money, with current grants, for example, and drawdown of powers are not happening. So the national government is refusing, by its consistent practice of negligence, to honour and respect the peace agreement.
DW: We've talked quite a lot over the years about this dispute over the funding and I know you've had long discussions with Prime Minister Peter O'Neill over that, to clearly no avail it would seem, but you say that this latest development involving the BCL shares is the most serious dispute that's ever happened between the two governments. So what happens now in that sense?
JM: Well the relations between Bougainville and the national government is at its all time low and it really threatens the peace process. It took us a long time to reach the current stage where peace is not only existing in Bougainville but we have created a conducive atmosphere for partnership between the national government and ABG, and both governments, according to the peace agreement must jointly accept the responsibility to implement the Bougainville Peace Agreement with integrity and peacefully and if that's so the outcome will inevitably be also mutually acceptable and peaceful.
DW: You've said previously and you've reiterated it this week that the ABG would effectively be left with no other option than to withdraw the licence for BCL. That would make BCL shares absolutely worthless, so the biggest loser out of that would be the national government.
JM: Yes it would be an example of a grandiose lose/lose deal. Our current proposal with the national government would be a win/win deal. Give Bougainville the controlling interest, the national government comes in with its 19.2 percent and the 27 percent held by private share holders and we then together find a developer to come in and it'll cost something like 20 billion to reopen the mine, it's a lucrative mine, if we agree on opening it under the Bougainville mining agreement. There's no other way. Currently we can invoke the provision in the mining agreement to disqualify BCL from operating in Bougainville at all. The national government would lose its 19 percent.
DW: You have called for an urgent meeting with Mr O'Neill?
JM: Yes we have been bending over backwards despite the fact that we've been given a 'don't argue' policy from the national government, despite our huge contribution from the very beginning of the mine to Papua New Guinea, in terms of the revenue from the mine, in copper and cocoa and from the contribution by the intelligence of Bougainville to Papua New Guinea, the national government treats us as if it's still practising the neo-colonial attitude of treating people as if they don't really matter you know, you either take it or leave it, and that's not the case under the peace agreement. We are legitimate stakeholders, the Bougainville peace agreement empowers the people of Bougainville and that is one of the most basic reasons why Bougainville has been given autonomous powers and that is to solve its own problems and not to have somebody else give them pre-fabricated answers which are no answers at all.
