Suchergebnisse

Papua New Guinea's famous diversity manifests itself in extraordinarily high levels of normative and legal pluralism. These have posed considerable challenges to efforts to establish a rule of law system along Western lines. Rule of law mechanisms often come into direct contestation with indigenous belief systems and practices and this has been a significant factor behind the limited success of international rule of law support. An exploration of the social complexities of PNG viewed through an historical lens provides the context for arguing that international rule of law assistance needs to take on forms attuned to local realities rather than the pursuit of unrealistic – and often inappropriate – international ideals. In PNG, this necessarily means engagement with a broad spectrum of both state and non-state justice actors. The evolving character of international assistance in PNG in recent years provides some practical clues as to how a more socially attuned engagement might look.

[Conclusion]: In conclusion, Canberras renewed engagement with its Pacific neighbours is a welcome and timely development. A major window of opportunity has opened. There is a significant role for external assistance in helping address many of the difficulties experienced in parts of the region. The success to date of the Australian-led intervention in the Solomon Islands provides ample evidence of what can be achieved. At the same time, assistance needs to be grounded in a thorough understanding of the socio-economic and political complexities of the recipient countries. Outstanding challenges of governance require sustained engagement and are not susceptible to quick or easy solutions. Many aspects of the fragility of the postcolonial states in the Solomon Islands and PNG reflect their particular histories and the weakness of their articulation with their domestic societies. Current problems cannot simply be attributed to the mendacity of a handful of incompetent or corrupt leaders. Nor can they be resolved through an exclusive focus on strengthening the principal institutions of state. Non-state resources also need to be acknowledged and, where appropriate, mobilised in the larger processes of building state and nation. This requires that greater weight be given to local circumstances, knowledge and expertise. The most difficult challenge of all remains that of long-term sustainability. ; AusAID

Introduction: Problems of lawlessness loom large in current accounts of Papua New Guinea. Concerns about these have induced high levels of personal insecurity, as well as providing a major disincentive to foreign investment. While such problems cannot be resolved by law and justice solutions alone, the continuing deterioration of PNG's 'law and order' situation raises questions about the adequacy of the formal regulatory system. Successive governments have been loud with 'tough' rhetoric, like many of their counterparts elsewhere. Practical responses have been essentially reactive and short-term. Australia, PNG's largest aid donor, has claimed to concentrate on institutional-strengthening projects with individual law and justice agencies. While there have been achievements, it is clear that improving the performance of law and justice processes is a complex and long-term task and one that needs to be integrated with other areas of governance reform. Building a more effective law and justice sector requires strategies that go beyond the strengthening of particular institutions. Given the operational inter-dependence of law and justice agencies, a broader sectoral focus is needed. In addition, while the state is the central player, there is a need to recognise the contributions of other stakeholders to the management of conflict and maintenance of peace at local levels. PNG's non-government sector, comprising 'traditional' structures of governance, community groups, churches, NGOs and the private sector, already plays a significant, if often unacknowledged, role. A sustainable law and justice framework needs to delineate responsibilities between different organisations and develop appropriate and mutually reinforcing linkages between government and non-government sectors. This paper examines the challenges facing PNG's law and justice sector and identifies key directions for reform. Section one describes the broader context of PNG's problems of order, including the acute fragility of the nation-state and the high levels of social and legal pluralism. Attention is drawn to the restorative character of many 'traditional' justice practices and the manner of their interactions with colonial institutions of social control. Section two examines the workings of the modern criminal justice system. Its shortcomings are attributed as much to a lack of legitimacy and strong social foundations as to its patent lack of institutional capacity. The final section looks at the recently endorsed National Law and Justice Policy (The National Law and Justice Policy and Plan of Action) and the prospects for building a more socially attuned and effective law and justice system.

Law and order issues feature prominently in public debate in Papua New Guinea. Concerns centre around criminal violence and the limited effectiveness of state controls. High levels of interpersonal violence are apparent in the activities of criminal gangs (rascals), the tribal fighting occurring in parts of the Highlands, as well as in everyday gender relations throughout the country. The continuing escalation of disorder in many areas is indicative of the limitations of state authority in Papua New Guinea, most dramatically demonstrated in the bloody and unresolved secessionist conflict on Bougainville (May and Spriggs 1990; Spriggs and Denoon 1992). Burgeoning corruption among elements of the political and administrative elite provides another significant strand to current debate. Widespread concern with personal security manifests itself in the elaborate security precautions routinely adopted by individuals, households and businesses. National planners, on the other hand, have been preoccupied with the serious economic repercussions of law and order problems, notably their effects on investor confidence, as well as their impact on Papua New Guinea's fledgling tourist industry. In 1993 the Asian Development Bank bluntly warned that Failure to secure an improvement in peace and order will have a major adverse impact on the performance of the economy over the next few years (The Saturday Independent, 9 September 1995:22). This paper outlines the principal law and order concerns and the policies thus engendered in Papua New Guinea since Independence in 1975. The first section looks at state responses, while the second examines specific areas of concern. ; AusAID

Introduction: Problems of lawlessness loom large in current accounts of Papua New Guinea. Concerns about these have induced high levels of personal insecurity, as well as providing a major disincentive to foreign investment. While such problems cannot be resolved by law and justice solutions alone, the continuing deterioration of PNG's 'law and order' situation raises questions about the adequacy of the formal regulatory system. Successive governments have been loud with 'tough' rhetoric, like many of their counterparts elsewhere. Practical responses have been essentially reactive and short-term. Australia, PNG's largest aid donor, has claimed to concentrate on institutional-strengthening projects with individual law and justice agencies. While there have been achievements, it is clear that improving the performance of law and justice processes is a complex and long-term task and one that needs to be integrated with other areas of governance reform. Building a more effective law and justice sector requires strategies that go beyond the strengthening of particular institutions. Given the operational inter-dependence of law and justice agencies, a broader sectoral focus is needed. In addition, while the state is the central player, there is a need to recognise the contributions of other stakeholders to the management of conflict and maintenance of peace at local levels. PNG's non-government sector, comprising 'traditional' structures of governance, community groups, churches, NGOs and the private sector, already plays a significant, if often unacknowledged, role. A sustainable law and justice framework needs to delineate responsibilities between different organisations and develop appropriate and mutually reinforcing linkages between government and non-government sectors. This paper examines the challenges facing PNG's law and justice sector and identifies key directions for reform. Section one describes the broader context of PNG's problems of order, including the acute fragility of the nation-state and the high levels of social and legal pluralism. Attention is drawn to the restorative character of many 'traditional' justice practices and the manner of their interactions with colonial institutions of social control. Section two examines the workings of the modern criminal justice system. Its shortcomings are attributed as much to a lack of legitimacy and strong social foundations as to its patent lack of institutional capacity. The final section looks at the recently endorsed National Law and Justice Policy (The National Law and Justice Policy and Plan of Action) and the prospects for building a more socially attuned and effective law and justice system. ; AusAID

Introduction / Vicki Luker -- 1. Entwined Endemics: HIV and 'Law and Order' / Vicki Luker and Sinclair Dinnen -- Masculinity, violence and HIV: 2. Masculinity matters: men, gender-based violence and the AIDS epidemic in Papua New Guinea / Richard Eves -- 3. Teasing out the tangle: raskols, young men, crime and HIV / Vicki Luker with Michael Monsell-Davis -- Networking, sex working and the law: 4. From gift to commodity . . . and back again: form and fluidity of sexual networking in Papua New Guinea / Lawrence Hammar -- 5. Decriminalisation of prostitution in Papua New Guinea / Karen Fletcher and Bomal Gonapa -- 6. Sex workers and police in Port Moresby (1994-1998): research and intervention / Carol Jenkins -- Police, prisons, army and mainstreaming HIV: 7. The Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary / Abby McLeod and Martha Macintyre -- 8. Prisons and HIV in Papua New Guinea / Greg Law and Sinclair Dinnen -- 9. HIV and the Papua New Guinea Defence Force: risk behaviours and perceptions / Joachim Pantumari, Peter Bamne and Vicki Luke -- 10. Mainstreaming HIV and AIDS in the law and justice sector / Ian Patrick -- Governance, rights and security: 11. Witchcraft, torture and HIV / Nicole Haley -- 12. Community-building and security: case studies / Sinclair Dinnen, John Cartwright, Madeleine Jenneker, Clifford Shearing, Isaac Wai, Paul Maia -- 13. Re-thinking human rights and the HIV epidemic: a reflection on power and goodness / Elizabeth Reid -- 14. Enabling environments: the role of the law / Christine Stewart -- 15. HIV and security in Papua New Guinea: national and human insecurity / Michael O'Keefe -- Conclusion: Civic security / Vicki Luker -- Epilogue: Ela's question / Elizabeth Reid

Papua New Guinea has a complex 'law and order' problem and an entrenched epidemic of HIV. This book explores their interaction. It also probes their joint challenges and opportunities—most fundamentally for civic security, a condition that could offersome immunity to both. This book is a valuable and timely contribution to a limited but growing body of scholarship in the social and structural contexts of HIV epidemiology in Papua New Guinea. The volume offers a unique collection of interdisciplinary insights on the connections between law and order and the HIV epidemic and is presented in a manner accessible to a wide audience, scholars and lay people alike… Significantly, this is the first volume to critically examine the complex and inexorable links between HIV, gender, violence, and security within a theoretical framework thv at illuminates the challenges of the epidemic for PNG's future cohesion and stability as a young nation…The importance of this courageous book cannot be overstated. While it communicates an urgent and potent message about the need for immediate action … it offers insightful reflections on the processes and possibilities of social transformation that undoubtedly will have enduring scholarly and practical value.

Dr Katherine Lepani, Social Foundations of Medicine, The Australian National University.