CDI held a series of events in Port Moresby in late April aimed at strengthening political parties in Papua New Guinea.
On 27 April, the PNG Political Party Development Seminar was held in Parliament House, Port Moresby. Attended by PNG ministers, senior officials and political party leaders, the seminar brought together Australian and PNG experts on issues of political party registration, financing and internal organisation. A feature of this event was the participation of the two major Australian political parties, Liberal and Labor, with their PNG counterparts to exchange insights on how stronger political parties can be forged in a fluid political environment such as Papua New Guinea's.
Presentations from CDI Director Ben Reilly and AusAID PNG head Margaret Thomas examined the importance of political parties to democratic governance, focussing on how stronger political parties can play an integral role in the development process. Norm Kelly of the ANU introduced CDI's forthcoming intensive course on Political party Development. Dr Orevu Sepoe, a commissioner in the Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates Commission, discussed the workings of the Organic Law on Political Parties and Candidates (OLIPPAC) and the nature of the PNG party system. Bruce Edwards from the Liberal Party of Australia and Nick Martin from the Australian Labor Party looked at issues of party organisation, structure and policy development, highlighting the insights that the long Australian experience of stable two-party competition may have for developing democracies such as PNG.
The open discussion focussed on how PNG political leaders and party officials could seek to strengthen their party systems, featuring strong contributions from PNG parliamentarians, party leaders and senior officials.
The following day, Dr Reilly and Mr Kelly joined Prof John Nongurr to discuss the issues of party development in PNG in a public seminar attended by over 100 political leaders, government officials, academics and students held in junction with ANU's Asia Pacific School of Economic and Governance annual Papua New Guinea Update. Subjects covered included the operation of PNG's new party laws, future plans for CDI's Political Party Development course, and the relevance of overseas models of party administration for a developing country such as PNG.
Separate discussions were also held with senior politicians and officials working on issues of party strengthening, including former Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta, the Hon. Jamie Maxton-Graham MP , PNG Deputy Registrar of Political Parties John Bishop, and a range of PNG party secretaries and politicians. These discussions focused on the subject of political linkages, with the Australian Liberal and Labor party representatives both seeking to forge deeper ties with political parties in PNG.
