Bougainville. Papua New Guinea press review
Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea Hon. James Marape extended his warm congratulations to Ishmael Toroama on his election as the next President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville (ARB). Mr. Marape also said that he looks forward to working with the President-elect in progressing consultations on the outcome of the recent referendum and securing long term economic development and a lasting peace for the people of Bougainville. According to PNG Prime Minister, in the coming weeks, he will meet with Toroama to discuss next steps with a view to convening a meeting of the Joint Supervisory Body (JSB) to affirm mutual commitment to peace and the way forward.
The Former Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) Commander Ishmael Toroama was declared morning as ARB President on the 23rd of September 2020.
United Nations Resident Coordinator in PNG Gianluca Rampolla said the UN was committed to working with Mr. Toroama and supporting the implementation of the Bougainville Peace Agreement. [1-3]
In turn, the president-elect of Bougainville has thanked the region’s voters for giving him the mandate to pursue independence from Papua New Guinea. It’s expected that Mr. Toroama will form a government to implement last year’s referendum result, which saw Bougainvilleans overwhelmingly back independence from PNG with nearly 98%. [4]
President Ishmael Toroama also highlighted that he would like to rearrange the public service within the first 100 days to put in place strategies to help the people of Bougainville. [5]
[1] https://www.kalangfm.com/news/marape-congratulates-toroama-as-abg-president-elect-994
[2] https://www.thenational.com.pg/pm-vows-to-back-toroama/
[3] https://postcourier.com.pg/accolades-pour-in-for-ishmael-toroama/
[4] https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/426779/bougainville-president-elect-sets-sights-on-independence-process
[5] https://postcourier.com.pg/independence-top-of-agenda-for-toroama/
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