Bougainville autonomy - Implications for Governance and Decentralisation

The founding and guiding principles for the establishment, operation and development of the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) are contained in the Bougainville Peace Agreement. Insofar as they are concerned with political/constitutional/institutional reform, they represent an attempt to transform and channel previous, violent conflicts into political processes and institutions (Bachler n.d.; cf. Widner 2005 and Ghai 2004). They are, therefore, concerned with governance – the process by which society collectively attempts to solve problems, maintain public order and meet other shared needs – and not just government – one of the main instruments used for such purposes (Osborne and Gaebler 1993:24; cf. Wolfers 2006a:4). This is made clear by the way in which the arrangements for Bougainville autonomy are embodied together as but one of three pillars in a much broader Agreement, concerned with autonomy, a guaranteed referendum on Bougainville’s political future, and weapons disposal. In fact, the three pillars themselves are only part of an Agreement which also provides an amnesty for persons convicted and immunity from prosecution for offences committed during the Bougainville conflict, and a commitment by former combatant groups to disband and work through a unified set of administrative and political structures – the ABG. The broader concern with governance expressed in the attention the Agreement gives to weapons disposal, amnesty and reconciliation is given additional, clear expression in the provisions dealing with the referendum, which state that the timing of the referendum in the 5- year window allowed, 10-15 years after the establishment of the ABG – that is, between 2015 and 2020 – will be determined by reference to weapons disposal and good governance (in the case of the latter, defined with regard to internationally accepted standards as they are applicable and implemented in the circumstances of Bougainville and the rest of Papua New Guinea).AusAI

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

Pacific Women and Peace: Bougainville’s ‘Mothers of the Land’

War is widely regarded as men’s business. Women are often assumed to have a particular affinity and talent for peace. These stereotypes have the unfortunate effect of reinforcing conceptions of manliness defined in terms of warrior-like qualities (Bates 77; Dyfan 1). They may also change, especially as modern militaries admit women to combat responsibilities. Either way, they do not make it easy for women to secure seats at the negotiating table or to make themselves heard in the context of peace processes,1 which tend to be dominated by the presence and concerns of former fighting men and their political spokesmen. Even when they manage to participate, the contributions by women tend to go unrecognised; women’s support for peace is frequently overlooked, or simply taken for granted

Award-Winning Account of a Pioneering Papua New Guinean Woman’s Life on the Frontiers of Change: MamaKuma by Deborah Carlyon

Publications about aspects of life or the natural environment in Papua New Guinea have won important prizes overseas, generally for the anthropological studies or scientific or other discoveries they report, not their literary qualities. Recent, outstanding recipients of significant, international prizes include the joint winner of the 1976 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, D. Carleton Gajdusek (for research on kuru), and the winner of the 1998 Pulitzer Prize for Non-Fiction, Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs and Steel: A Short History of Everybody for the Last 13,000 Years (1997). Other reports of work in or closely relevant to Papua New Guinea have been recognised in the awards made to fourteen or more of the eighty-plus winners of the Royal Anthropological Institute’s (2006) Rivers Memorial Medal, which was originally given specifically for ‘anthropological work in the field’ (a method of study which owes much to pioneering research in Papua New Guinea), and five gold medallists of the Royal Geographical Society (2006). The latter include the first Administrator of the British New Guinea colony, Sir William MacGregor, for ‘exploring, mapping and giving information on the natives’; C.H. Karius for the first expedition to cross from the Fly to the Sepik Rivers in 1926–28 (recounted by his companion, Ivan Champion, in Champion [1932]); and Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau inventor of the aqualung, underwater photographer, conservationist, and prolific author (‘Jacques-Yves Cousteau’, 2006), for ‘underwater exploration’. Among women who have written about Papua New Guinea, Margaret Mead, winner of the United Nations Educational and Scientific Organisation’s Kalinga Prize (among others), stands out as ‘arguably the most renowned anthropologist of all time’ (‘Margaret Mead. 1901–1979’, 2006) — author of forty-four books and more than 1,000 articles, including at least seven books which deal substantially with Papua New Guinean topics (‘Margaret Mead (1901–1978)’, 2006)

Sustainability: Suspicions concerning attainability, with particular reference to the pacific

Sustainability and unsustainability are frequently deployed in discussions of intended, predicted and observed changes occurring in or impacting on Pacific islands societies. Local communities often have their own distinctive understanding of the natural environment. Their concern for sustainability frequently extends further afield - to languages, cultures, and other aspects of life. International agreements and the constitutions of a number of Pacific islands countries address relevant issues. Constitutional government in the region has been remarkably sustained. Sustainable development has diverse dimensions and can be controversial. Climate change and rising sea-levels threaten the very survival of low-lying islands. Harvesting of non-renewable resources raises particular issues. Pacific islands studies have made significant contributions to scientific knowledge and human understanding of issues and processes of wider, even global importance

Australia's northern neighbours : independent or dependent

x, 276 p.; 14 cm

Constitution-making and constitutional development

Translated into the most widely used of Papua New Guinea\u27s three official languages, the Constitution of the Independent State of Papua New Guinea has been called the \u27aslo bilong gavman bilong [or basic law of government of ] Papua New Guinea\u27. However, current usage-in which \u27constitution\u27 is translated as \u27Mama Lo\u27 (as in Oxford2008, and Dr Tony Deklin\u27s paper) is, arguably, more accurate in that it recognizes the role that the Constitution plays in requiring or authorizing the National Parliament to legislate within the framework of the Constitution (including amendment of the Constitution itself)

Bougainville Autonomy - Implications for Governance and Decentralisation

The founding and guiding principles for the establishment, operation and development of the Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) are contained in the Bougainville Peace Agreement. Insofar as they are concerned with political/constitutional/institutional reform, they represent an attempt to transform and channel previous, violent conflicts into political processes and institutions (Bachler n.d.; cf. Widner 2005 and Ghai 2004). They are, therefore, concerned with governance – the process by which society collectively attempts to solve problems, maintain public order and meet other shared needs – and not just government – one of the main instruments used for such purposes (Osborne and Gaebler 1993:24; cf. Wolfers 2006a:4). This is made clear by the way in which the arrangements for Bougainville autonomy are embodied together as but one of three pillars in a much broader Agreement, concerned with autonomy, a guaranteed referendum on Bougainville’s political future, and weapons disposal. In fact, the three pillars themselves are only part of an Agreement which also provides an amnesty for persons convicted and immunity from prosecution for offences committed during the Bougainville conflict, and a commitment by former combatant groups to disband and work through a unified set of administrative and political structures – the ABG. The broader concern with governance expressed in the attention the Agreement gives to weapons disposal, amnesty and reconciliation is given additional, clear expression in the provisions dealing with the referendum, which state that the timing of the referendum in the 5- year window allowed, 10-15 years after the establishment of the ABG – that is, between 2015 and 2020 – will be determined by reference to weapons disposal and good governance (in the case of the latter, defined with regard to internationally accepted standards as they are applicable and implemented in the circumstances of Bougainville and the rest of Papua New Guinea).AusAI