Activities: Peace monitoring in Bougainville

In addition to peacekeeping several activities were combined with these patrols that may be considered as falling more into the realm of peacebuilding:

• Monitors initially went out to the villages usually accompanied by an interpreter, distributed printed material on the peace process, and held so-called “peace awareness meetings” where they read the Peace Agreement and gave talks on peace-related issues. (2)

• In addition they conducted village infrastructure assessments, and

• set up sporting competitions (volleyball, soccer) in mixed teams, with members of TM/PPG participating as well.

• Several other activities were carried out with the objective of breaking the ice and building up trust. The monitors organised and attended events which included music, singing and dancing; they learned to convene meetings around lunch or dinner times and shared food with villagers; and the Operations officer made attendance at church services compulsory for all team members, because he considered this to be an essential element in the success of the team considering the very religious setting of Bougainville.

TM/PPG supported a medical facility that also treats Bougainvilleans who are critically ill.

However, they did not fulfil requests for material aid although this was often requested and, according to the reports, they brought patrols into difficult situations.

There are not many indicators in the reports on peacemaking activities other than what is referred to as “facilitation.“ Facilitation included providing ideas, information, communications and transport. At the start this occurred mainly at the grass-roots level, but as the peace process progressed, facilitation shifted to assisting the Bougainvillean leaders at all levels with attending meetings and the passage of information from these meetings back to the people (3).

In terms of organisation and structure, it seems that at least initially the Mission faced many problems. Many things improved over time, especially when predeployment training was introduced (one-week training) (4). Breen reports that a real learning process had set in, and the concentration on military mechanics was reduced. Criticism includes:

• Commanders feeling left alone with the problems once the Mission had started;

• No real selection process of personnel;

• Non-military staff having problems adapting to military culture; military having difficulty adjusting to the civilian monitors;

• Cultural sensitivity conflicts between Fijians and Vanuatuans on the one side, and Australians/ New Zealanders on the other. Australians thought Vanuatuans badly prepared, while the latter found that some New Zealand and most ADF personnel treated them as interpreters, and seemed condescending about their lack of military experience and skills;

• Partly as a result of concentration on force protection, and partly because the exact nature of monitoring operations was not well practised or understood, there was strong emphasis on military mechanics, but weak effort on political and cultural engagement with the factions and groups in Bougainville;

Gender awareness was obviously very low. One (female) monitor stated: “Many of the women’s issues are considered to be only for the female PMG patrol members to be aware of… In fact, a directive that came out from the Headquarters was that patrols should not become “over burdened” by women’s issues. I never quite understood that. Perhaps if I had known how not [to] become over burdened with men’s issues and how they differed from those of women, I could have reached an appropriate balance.” Another adds: “As the only woman in our teamsite, I was sometimes mistaken as being the teamsite cook, or as being there to provide other services (I won’t elaborate!) to the team.” (6)

Notes :

• (1) : The activities have been compiled from the following sources: Tracy Haines, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/haines.htm ; Trina Parry, Department of Defence, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/parry.htm; Andrew Rice, Department of Defence, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/rice.htm; Colonel Bob Breen from the Australian Defence Force, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/breen.htm; Major Luke Foster from the Australian Defence Force, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/foster.htm

• (2) : The patrol within which Parry participated they talked, for example, about the dangers of home brew drinking. Later, Parry heard through the women that consumption was reduced and this made life for the women much easier because it reduced the level of domestic violence. See Trina Parry a.a.O.

• (3) : Quote from the Commander of the PMG in 1998, Brigadier Bruce Osborn. Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/osborn.htm.

• (4) : The training was given by an Australian military regiment in a hot zone close to an indigenous Australian community with whom participants had a chance to interact. The participants had already bonded into teams by the time that the training started. There was also language training in Tok Pisin (Pidgin English), and they became familiarised with the culture of other nations participating in the mission. Colonel Bob Breen from the Australian Defence Force, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/breen.htm .

• (5) : Trina Parry, Department of Defence, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/parry.htm. Similar: Melissa Bray, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/bray.htm

• (6) : Melissa Bray, Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Contribution to the Seminar Monitoring Peace in Bougainville, rspas.anu.edu.au/melanesia/bray.htm