Bougainville News 30/9/97 - The National PNG id BAA26791; Tue, 30 Sep 1997 01:23:16 -0400 Via NY Transfer News Collective * All the News that Doesn't Fit source: VIKKI@lexsun.law.uts.edu.au Mon Sep 29 19:14:56 1997 The National (PNG) Newspaper - 30/9/97 Peace talks due to begin tomorrow Delegates start arriving in NZ WELLINGTON: Delegates from Papua New Guinea and Bougainville island began arriving in New Zealand yesterday for peace talks due to start tomorrow aimed at hammering out the terms of a cease-fire deal. The talks between senior officials will bring representatives of the PNG government into a forum of Bougainvillean parties which drew up an outline peace plan in July after meeting at Burnham army base near Christchurch. "The willingness now of the Papua New Guinea government to be involved is the key thing," New Zealand's Foreign Minister Don McKinnon told TVNZ television news in an interview. After 17 days of negotiations among 70 delegates in July, the warring factions in the nine-year conflict drew up the Burnham Declaration, which committed signatories to a future negotiation process with the PNG government. The first of about 100 expected second-round delegates began arriving at Christchurch yesterday, foreign ministry officials said. The talks should start by tomorrow and run for about a week, they added. Diplomatic sources say they expect the participants to try to draw up detailed plans for implementing a cease-fire, some form of withdrawal of the PNG Defence Force, and to outline reconstruction plans. They believe the Burnham process is the best prospect yet of restoring peace to the island, after nine years of conflict. The planned visit of Prime Minister Bill Skate to New Zealand during the coming days could lend weight to the talks' chances of success, they said. Mr Skate said at the South Pacific Forum in the Cook Islands earlier this month that he planned to visit New Zealand during the talks. He would not formally take part in talks, however, until a proposed third round between political leaders which Mr McKinnon said would be needed. The location for the next round of talks had yet to be decided, Mr McKinnon said. "There's obviously a desire to have one of the major talks somewhere on Bougainville, which really is a full declaration that both sides are here on the ground. "But nevertheless, what we'll be doing at Burnham this week is on the path to that solution," the foreign minister said. Mr McKinnon declined to comment in detail on the latest talks' prospects, but said: "I'm confident we'll see a bit of progress and a renewed determination to keep this process going." He said the leader of the rebels, Francis Ona, would not attend the talks and was "still sitting up in the hills". An increasingly isolated Mr Ona has given a mixed response so far to the Burnham process and did not attend the first round despite being invited. Mr McKinnon said Mr Ona's absence was not significant at this stage, saying "he wasn't due to come down anyway because this doesn't include leaders." - Reuter ================== Australia played key role in travel arrangements CANBERRA: Australia played a crucial role in transporting rebels from Bougainville to peace talks in New Zealand, Foreign Affairs officials said yesterday. In an operation organised and financed by Australia, civilian helicopters on Saturday flew 30 rebels to the nearby Solomon Islands. An Australian Defence Force Hercules also flew 31 members of the Bougainville Transitional Government (BTG) from Buka to the Solomons. The delegates were then flown in the same RAAF Boeing 707 to Auckland, with three overseas-based spokesmen for the rebels and five observers from the Solomon Islands government. "It went extraordinarily smoothly," foreign affairs department senior spokesman Nick Warner said. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said he was pleased Australia had been able to play a critical role in transporting delegates to the conference. "Australia's role follows a request to the prime minister (John Howard) from the PNG Prime Minister, Mr Skate," Mr Downer said in a statement. "It was endorsed by the other parties to the dispute, with whom we have maintained close contact." Mr Downer said Australia would not take sides in the dispute, nor seek to impose a solution on the warring parties. "Australia is not promoting a blueprint for a settlement of the Bougainville conflict," he said. "We see our role as that of a friend and a facilitator". Australian officials later said Australia would have a significant role in bringing peace to Bougainville. This could involve an Australian commitment to a peacekeeping force, although they stressed that was a long way off. "The question of a peacekeeping force is a bit down the track," one official said. "First you've got to have a peace to keep." - AAP ======================= Sinato wants HQ shifted to Arawa PORT MORESBY: North Solomons Premier Gerard Sinato has hinted at the Bougainville Transitional Government's plans to move the provincial headquarters to Arawa next year. "I think the time is right for us to start planning for this move. We have now come to a stage where the authorities should seriously look at moving the provincial headquarters to Arawa in Central Bougainville,'' Mr Sinato said in a statement. The re-location of the headquarters would have an impact on the combined drive for peace while being close to the rebel leaders in Central Bougainville, he said. "As leader of the province, I have instructed the Bougainville administration to look at the BTG's plan to move the provincial headquarters back to Arawa next year.'' Mr Sinato said the question of the return of the provincial headquarters to Arawa would be raised by him during the second round of talks in Christchurch, New Zealand, later this week. ================================================================= NY Transfer News Collective * A Service of Blythe Systems Since 1985 - Information for the Rest of Us 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012 http://www.blythe.org e-mail: nyt@blythe.org ================================================================= nytpac-09.30.97-01:23:17-22016