Australia-PNG: More in common than immediately apparent
01 December 2013
JENNY HAYWARD-JONES | The Interpreter | Lowy Institute
WHILE THE AUSTRALIA-PAPUA NEW GUINEA relationship is currently strong, we need only look at the Indonesia spy scandal to understand how vulnerable Australia’s official relationships in the neighbourhood are to shocks.
The relationship went through its own difficulties during the era that John Howard and Sir Michael Somare were in power. It is during such times that people-to-people and business relationships come to the fore, helping to alleviate the damage of official rows.
Earlier this week, the Lowy Institute convened the inaugural Australia-Papua New Guinea Emerging Leaders Dialogue. It brought together young leaders from business, civil society, government and the media in an effort to improve people-to-people links between the two neighbours.
The group shared experiences in areas ranging from growing the economy and attracting investment to the impact of social media on political accountability. A summary of the outcomes can be found here.
Dialogues such as these, particularly if they are convened regularly, can help expand people-to-people links if the participants continue to engage with each other and drive new initiatives forward. There are already a number of close business and non-government ties between Australia and Papua New Guinea so it’s important that new initiatives build on and not replicate existing activities.
The discussion at the Dialogue revealed that Australia and PNG have a lot more in common that might be obvious to the casual observer, including in the ways our economies are structured, difficulties in distributing the benefits of the resources boom and our approaches to engaging with new investors from Asia.
The development of infrastructure to meet growing populations and private sector demand is important in both countries. Even though our health and education systems are vastly different, Australia faces similar challenges to PNG in delivering health and education services to remote indigenous communities.
Young people in both Australia and Papua New Guinea are frustrated with the political system but finding other ways, including through social media, to get involved in policy discussions.
Some of the most interesting recommendations were around initiatives to improve perceptions of PNG in Australia. The participants had innovative ideas about using film, television and children’s literature as well as professional journalism exchanges to help Australians gain a better understanding of their nearest neighbour.
Concluding the inaugural Dialogue, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop delivered a great account of her own long-standing personal interest in PNG and her confidence that improved links between young people would further enhance Australia’s relations with PNG. She foreshadowed a visit from Papua New Guinea ministers to Australia for the annual Ministerial Forum in December and her own visit to Papua New Guinea.
So far Bishop has maintained the passion for Papua New Guinea we have seen from her previous visits to the Lowy Institute.
From colonisation, independence and post independence, relations with Australia has been fraught with scepticism and mistrust.
French territories in the Pacific have far better services and infrastructure than PNG while Britain's legacy in Fiji is unmatched.
These levels of services and infrastructure benchmarks are a reflection of intent, genuiness and a desire for goodwill. Can the same be said of Australia?
What about the aid money that is almost akin to boomerang aid? What about Australia's constant ignorance of the visa arrangements while at the same time promoting people to people, business relations,etc?
For me and my kind the sum does not add up. Therefore hopefully Julie and Tony can do well by realigning the status quo for the start.
Posted by: Peter Pirape Anage | 02 December 2013 at 03:25 PM
Unfortunately there's not enough interest in PNG from this government. These are mere talks. Do not take PNG for granted. We can refuse the asylum seekers. We have nothing to lose.
Posted by: Mike Yapis | 01 December 2013 at 07:53 PM