Adding a new country to a list of new destinations certainly doesn’t happen every day, but it could soon become a reality after the independence of this island in the South Pacific is finalized.
Bougainville is about the size of the main island of Hawaii and has a population of about 300,000. Along with Buka, the island is geographically part of the Solomon Islands, but politically separate and technically part of Papua New Guinea.
The struggle for independence has been going on since the 1960s, with the unrecognized Republic of the Northern Solomon Islands briefly existing, but it was incorporated into Papua New Guinea when it became independent from Australia.
Between 1988 and 1998, a civil war was fought over the Panguna mine, and a peace agreement eventually led to the establishment of an autonomous Bougainville government.
the Bougainville Civil War claimed over 15,000 lives. Peace talks brokered by New Zealand began in 1997 and led to autonomy. A multinational Peace Monitoring Group (PMG) under Australian leadership was deployed. In 2001, a peace agreement was signed, including the promise of a referendum on independence from Papua New Guinea. This referendum was held between 23 November and 7 December 2019, with results being declared on 11 December. The referendum question was a choice between greater autonomy within Papua New Guinea or full independence. Of the valid votes, 98.31% were in favor of full independence. The vote is not binding; the Government of Papua New Guinea has the final say on the status of Bougainville
In a 2019 referendum, the citizens of Bougainville voted to become independent from Papua New Guinea by 2027, but the referendum was non-binding on the Papua New Guinea government, which has not committed to this.
Government approval is still awaited, but it is believed that independence could be achieved by the end of 2027.
What does Bougainville have to offer as a tourist destination? The island tempts with paradisiacal beaches, many of which are great surfing spots, and Mount Balbi, known locally as Tutue, is a stratovolcano with six craters – an exceptional backdrop for hiking.
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First published in this link of The European Times.
