By Norm Dixon
The pro-independence Bougainville Interim Government has denied involvement in the murder of the Port Moresby-appointed premier of Bougainville, Theodore Miriung. BIG spokespeople believe that, in the light of tensions between Miriung and the PNG government and armed forces, it is likely the culprits are linked to the PNGDF.
Miriung was shot dead while visiting his family in Kapana, near Siwai, in south-west Bougainville on October 12. The killing appeared to be the work of a highly skilled hit squad.
Miriung's visit was unscheduled. The Siwai region is controlled by the PNGDF and pro-PNGDF "resistance" groups. Only PNG officials and the PNGDF were aware of Miriung's departure and his destination.
The killing was condemned by PNG prime minister Sir Julius Chan and by PNG government ministers. Chan, at first, stopped short of accusing the Bougainville Revolutionary Army of the murder. Provincial affairs minister, Peter Barter, chose his words carefully, saying those responsible will be brought to justice "regardless of where they are or who they are".
PNGDF commander, Brigadier General Jerry Singirok, however, immediately branding the killing the work of the BRA. Then on October 16, Chan stated over radio that Miriung "was assassinated by the BRA".
In a statement released on October 13, Francis Ona, president of the BIG, condemned the "tragic killing" of Miriung as "a cowardice act and an attempt to stall the peace process on Bougainville". Ona denied that any of BRA members were involved in the assassination and called on Chan to confirm as soon as possible whether members of the PNG security forces now on Bougainville were responsible for the assassination.
BRA commander General Sam Kauona also denied Singirok's charge. Kauona said the Miriung's regular run-ins with the PNGDF was "where the national government should start looking in order to find the assassins".
Miriung became the Port Moresby-endorsed premier of the Bougainville Transitional Government in 1994. Despite his dependence on PNG, he increasingly irked Port Moresby with his opposition to the PNGDF's preference for a military solution, and his support for a negotiated settlement and greater autonomy for Bougainville.
Miriung openly opposed the PNGDF's military offensive on the island earlier this year and correctly predicted that it would fail. Miriung exposed the massacre of eight Bougainvilleans by PNG troops on Buka just prior to the offensive earning him the deep hostility of sections of the PNGDF and the government. Miriung was prevented from travelling outside Buka by the PNGDF, which claimed the restrictions were for his security.
Tensions between Miriung and the PNGDF became uglier following the bloody ambush of a squad of PNG troops on Kangu Beach in south Bougainville in September. The ambush, which resulted in the deaths of up to 13 PNG soldiers and the capture of five, was carried out by BRA members and disgruntled resistance group members.
Following the ambush, PNG defence minister Mathias Ijape accused Miriung of "inciting" the attack and encouraging resistance members to defect to the BRA. Miriung was 200 kilometres away at the time. Ijape called for Miriung's sacking, placed him "under surveillance" by the PNGDF and again restricted him to Buka.
The BIG's statement reports that during the Bougainville Inter-Church Women's Conference in Arawa in late August, PNG troops marched Miriung at gunpoint to a waiting helicopter and flew him back to Buka. This action caused such embarrassment to the PNG government that PNG's minister for provincial affairs, Peter Barter, personally escorted Miriung back to the conference.
"Although we were disappointed with Mr Miriung leaving the Bougainville Interim Government in 1994 to form the Bougainville Transitional Government with Chan", Ona said, "we soon recognised that this was an avenue towards peace on Bougainville.
"Because of this the BIG and BRA fully supported Miriung's efforts, dropping all doubts about his intentions. We then fully co-operated with him and PNG to forge a peace process between PNG and Bougainville. The evidence of this was our full co-operation during the Cairns peace negotiations in September and again in December
1995."
Ona said that there were two possible motives for Miriung's murder: Miriung's stand against the PNGDF's military solution and to stall moves toward peace. "Miriung was the 'thin' link between the BIG/BRA and the PNG government", Ona pointed out.
The BIG also pointed to souring of relations between the PNGDF and their former resistance group allies in the south due to indiscriminate killings of civilians, and sexual harassment and rape of Bougainville women in the south Bougainville "care centres". The BIG says there have been several skirmishes between the PNGDF and resistance groups since October 9.
The BIG reported on October 14 that witnesses saw Miriung's assassins flee in the direction of the PNGDF camp in the Siwai area. The killers fired a flare in the air and were then picked up by an ambulance used by the PNGDF and taken towards the camp.
In the wake of the assassination, John Momis, an MP who represents Bougainville in the Port Moresby parliament, urged that a cease-fire be declared between the warring parties and that the PNG-imposed blockade on the island be lifted.