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https://theconversation.com/50-years-without-coups-or-dictators-how-png-built-a-durable-democracy-based-on-dignity-and-fairness-264484>
"On April 20 1972, 100 newly elected parliamentarians gathered in Port Moresby
for the opening of the Third House of Assembly, Papua New Guinea’s legislative
body.
Many of these members were young and some were new to politics: Chief Minister
(later Grand Chief) Michael Somare was 37, Minister of Finance Julius Chan was
33, and Josephine Abaijah, the only woman, was 32.
Within three years, these trailblazers would steer the country from a colonial
territory of Australia to a newly independent nation, declared on September 16
1975, 50 years ago this week.
As they moved from colony to self-government to independence, the members of
the Third House of Assembly held sophisticated debates on decolonisation.
Leaders did not simply inherit Australian institutions. They reimagined them,
arguing about land, law, unity, culture and what the concept of “development”
should mean in a Melanesian society.
These speeches and debates are captured in
Debating the Nation: Speeches from
the House of Assembly, 1972–1975, the recently published book we co-edited
along with Keimelo Gima, a historian at the University of Papua New Guinea."
Share and enjoy,
*** Xanni ***
--
mailto:xanni@xanadu.net Andrew Pam
http://xanadu.com.au/ Chief Scientist, Xanadu
https://glasswings.com.au/ Partner, Glass Wings
https://sericyb.com.au/ Manager, Serious Cybernetics
