By Mark Hitchcock – BCL’s PNG general manager
The Special Mining Lease Osikaiyang Landowners Association (SMLOLA) held an Annual General Meeting on 21 December last year and have made subsequent public announcements. It is necessary to make some observations that appear to have been overlooked and to ensure nobody is misinformed.
First and foremost, despite an impression created, the SMLOLA is not in fact representative of all the several hundred customary landowner agents who are actually authorised to represent project area block owners at Panguna. Nor does the SMLOLA “own the mineral rights at the old Panguna mine” under the Bougainville Mining Act (2015), as the association’s so-called developer of choice, RTG Mining Inc., has asserted on its web site.
Further to these points, it is worth noting a letter from the chairman of the Panguna Developments Company (PDC), Mr Michael Pariu, to the registrar of the Department of Mineral and Energy Resources opposing the AGM in the days prior to the meeting. In a copy that has been circulated, Mr Pariu states “that the membership of the PDC, comprising legally appointed block agents and next of kin, completely reject the validity of the above association [SMLOLA] to assume they represent ex-SML landowner blocks and their landowner community”.
The letter goes on to say that the SMLOLA “enjoys no status under the Bougainville Mining Act and is currently embroiled in a legal action against itself”.
It is certainly true that in recent times, issues around the leadership and legitimacy of the SMLOLA as a representative body have been both controversial and contested. For example, there remains a lack of clear definition about the actual make-up of the SMLOLA membership.
In his letter, Mr Pariu questions “the appropriateness of this proposed election, when the ABG has insisted, through the mining reserve that parties with an interest in the ex-SML do nothing to disturb the [independence] referendum process”.
Mr Pariu also states that he was not aware if accepted process was being followed regarding the issuing of notices of meeting and in relation to the supervising of the elections by the electoral authorities. “Regardless of the above, our membership has already decided to divorce PDC from the current, non-approved association. We will not participate in any election and will not allow the association to speak or act on behalf of blocks of our membership,” he wrote.
At the AGM, the SMLOLA is reported to have formally approved the nomination of RTG as the preferred developer for the Panguna project. This endorsement ignores the lack of ABG support for RTG, as outlined by President Momis in a strongly-worded speech to parliament last September, as well as among block holder agents such as those Mr Pariu is representing. The endorsement could also be seen to disrespect the indefinite moratorium the ABG has put in place over Panguna and overlooks a travel ban to Bougainville imposed on a number of RTG representatives by the PNG government, at the ABG’s request.
It should be noted that while a Judicial Review is underway of the decision by the ABG not to renew BCL’s exploration licence (EL1) over the project area, BCL remains the holder of the exploration licence until any final determination by the court.
For the record, BCL remains entirely respectful of the Bougainville Peace Process, including the referendum and would do nothing to undermine them. We are indeed a company committed to the highest standards of ethical behavior and consistently demonstrate good governance which is well-recognised.
Finally, BCL remains heartened by the strong levels of support we continue to receive from authorised blockholder representatives and, also by the positive relationships we maintain more broadly. Our ongoing work in collaboration with ABG departments and others in the community to deliver worthwhile community projects is a clear demonstration of this.