The Moti Affair in Papua New Guinea

Abstract

Itself a minor matter in international affairs, the arrest, detention and escape of Julian Moti in Papua New Guinea revealed something of the relationships between three nations, the subsequent inquiry in Papua New Guinea provided evidence of the performance of institutions and elected and appointed officers, and the affair’s knockon effects still reverberate. As with previous occasional revelations – such as the Commission of Inquiry into Papua New Guinea Forestry, (the Thos Barnett Inquiry) of 1987-89, Ombudsman reports into violations of the Leadership Code, and evidence given before public accounts committee – the PNGDF Board of Inquiry into Moti’s arrest and escape provides outsiders with frank information into the way the government works.1 Given little research by social scientists on contemporary government in Papua New Guinea, the absence of sustained investigation by the media (but revealing immediate reporting) and few people engaged in serious public debate, the publication of insider testimony and informed scrutiny is all the more valuable. Understanding how the government works is basic to – and often missing in – debates about labelling the state ‘weak’, ‘fragile’, ‘at risk’ or ‘failing’. Knowledge of government processes and the behaviour of officers is basic to any reform programs: it helps determine what needs to be done and what is possible.