Editing Politics of Papua New Guinea

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{{Politics of Papua New Guinea}}
[[File:Port Moresby parliament building front, by Steve Shattuck.jpg|thumb|upright|The Parliament building of Papua New Guinea in [[Port Moresby]]]]
[[File:Port Moresby parliament building side, by Steve Shattuck.jpg|thumb|Side of the parliament building]]
The '''politics of Papua New Guinea''' takes place in a framework of a [[Parliamentary system|parliamentary]] [[Representative democracy|representative democratic]] [[multi-party system]], whereby the [[List of Prime Ministers of the Papua New Guinea|prime minister]] is the [[head of government]]. [[Papua New Guinea]] is an independent [[Commonwealth realm]], with the monarch serving as head of state and a [[Governor-General of Papua New Guinea|governor-general]], nominated by the [[National Parliament of Papua New Guinea|National Parliament]], serving as their representative. [[Executive power]] is exercised by the government. [[Legislative power]] is vested in both the [[government]] and parliament.

Constitutional safeguards include freedom of speech, press, worship, movement, and association. The [[judiciary]] is independent of the executive and the legislature.

== Executive branch ==

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Main office-holders
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 | image1            = King Charles III (July 2023).jpg
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 | caption1          = The Head of State and [[Monarch of Papua New Guinea|King of Papua New Guinea]]:<br>'''[[Charles III]]'''<br>since<br>{{nowrap|9 September 2022}}

 | image2            = Sir Bob Dadae (cropped).jpg
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 | caption2          = The [[Governor-General of Papua New Guinea]]:<br>'''[[Bob Dadae]]'''<br>since<br>{{nowrap|28 February 2017}}

 | image3            = James Marape, February 2020 (GPO035) (cropped).jpg
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 | caption3          = The [[Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea]]:<br>'''[[James Marape]]'''<br>since<br>{{nowrap|30 May 2019}}

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The [[Monarch of Papua New Guinea]] is represented in [[Papua New Guinea]] by a governor general who acts on the advice of the prime minister and the cabinet. The [[Governor-General of Papua New Guinea|governor-general of Papua New Guinea]] is elected by parliament.

The governments of Papua New Guinea are characterized by weak political parties and highly unstable parliamentary coalitions.
The [[prime minister]], elected by Parliament, chooses the other members of the [[Cabinet of Papua New Guinea|cabinet]]. Each ministry is headed by a cabinet member, who is assisted by a permanent secretary, a career public servant, who directs the staff of the ministry. The cabinet consists of members, including the [[prime minister]] and ministers of executive departments. They answer politically to the parliament.

The governor general appoints the chief justice of the supreme court on the advice of the prime minister and the [[Leader of the Opposition (Papua New Guinea)|leader of the opposition]]. The governor general appoints the other justices with the advice of a judicial commission. The [[Judicial Committee of the Privy Council]] (based in the United Kingdom) serves as the highest appellate court.

== Legislative branch ==
{{main|National Parliament of Papua New Guinea}}
Papua New Guinea has a unicameral [[National Parliament of Papua New Guinea|National Parliament]], previously known as the House of Assembly. It has 111 seats, with 89 elected from single-member "Open" electorates and 22 from province-level "Provincial" electorates. Members are elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms. The [[2022 Papua New Guinean general election|most recent]] election was held in June to July of 2022.

[[Member of Parliament|Members of Parliament]] are elected from the [[Provinces of Papua New Guinea|nineteen provinces]] and the [[National Capital District (Papua New Guinea)|National Capital District]]. After independence in 1975, members were elected by the [[first past the post]] system, with winners frequently gaining less than 15% of the vote. Electoral reforms in 2001 introduced the Limited Preferential Vote system (LPV), a modified version of [[Instant-runoff voting|alternative vote]], where voters number their first three choices among the candidates. The first general election to use LPV was held in 2007.

Parliament introduced reforms in June 1995 to change the provincial government system, with provincial members of Parliament becoming provincial governors, while retaining their national seats in Parliament.  However, if a provincial member accepts a position as a cabinet minister, the role of governor falls to one of the Open members of Parliament from the province.

As of 1 February 2019, Papua New Guinea was one of only three countries in the world out of 235 that had no women in its legislative branch or parliament.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://archive.ipu.org/wmn-e/classif.htm|title = Women in Parliaments: World Classification}}</ref> There have only been seven women elected to parliament ever, one of the lowest rates of legislative representation in the world. See ''main article [[Women in the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea]] ''

== Political parties and elections ==
{{elect|List of political parties in Papua New Guinea|Elections in Papua New Guinea}}

=== 2022 parliamentary election results ===
{{main|2022 Papua New Guinean general election}}

== Judicial branch ==
{{main|Law of Papua New Guinea}}
Papua New Guinea's judiciary is independent of the government. It protects constitutional rights and interprets the laws. There are several levels, culminating in the [[Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea]].

There is a Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea, not separately constituted but an appellate Full Court of the National Court. Its [[Chief Justice|chief justice]], also the chief justice of the National Court, is appointed by the governor general on the proposal of the National Executive Council after consultation with the minister responsible for justice. Other justices of the National Court, who are available to sit as members of ad hoc benches of the supreme court, are appointed by the Judicial and Legal Services Commission.

== Provincial government ==
{{main|Provinces of Papua New Guinea}}
Reforms in June 1995 changed the provincial government system. Regional (at-large) members of Parliament became provincial governors, while retaining their national seats in Parliament.

Papua New Guinea has 22 province-level divisions: twenty [[province]]s, one autonomous province ([[Bougainville Province|Bougainville]]) and the [[National Capital District, Papua New Guinea|National Capital District]].
{|
|
# [[Central Province (Papua New Guinea)|Central]]
# Chimbu ([[Simbu Province|Simbu]])
# [[Eastern Highlands (Papua New Guinea)|Eastern Highlands]]
# [[East New Britain]]
# [[East Sepik]]
# [[Enga Province|Enga]]
# [[Gulf Province|Gulf]]
# [[Madang Province|Madang]]
# [[Manus Province|Manus]]
# [[Milne Bay Province|Milne Bay]]
# [[Morobe Province|Morobe]]
|
<ol start=12>
<li>[[New Ireland Province|New Ireland]]</li>
<li>Northern ([[Oro Province]])</li>
<li>[[Bougainville Province|Bougainville (autonomous region)]]</li>
<li>[[Southern Highlands (Papua New Guinea)|Southern Highlands]]</li>
<li>[[Western Province, Papua New Guinea|Western Province]] (Fly)</li>
<li>[[Western Highlands (Papua New Guinea)|Western Highlands]]</li>
<li>[[West New Britain]]</li>
<li>[[West Sepik]] (Sandaun)</li>
<li>[[National Capital District (Papua New Guinea)|National Capital District]]</li>
<li>[[Hela Province|Hela]]</li>
<li>[[Jiwaka Province|Jiwaka]]</li>
</ol>
|  style="width:315px; vertical-align:middle;"|
[[File:Papua new guinea provinces (numbers) 2012.png|right|400px|Provinces of Papua New Guinea.]]
|}

=== North Solomons (Bougainville) ===
[[File:Bougainville Panguna mine shovel.jpg|thumb|Panguna mine]]
On [[Bougainville Island]], initially focused on traditional land rights, environmental and economic issues stemming from the operation of the [[Panguna mine]], (a ''Conzinc RioTinto Australia'' (now [[Rio Tinto (company)|Rio Tinto]] Limited) and PNG government joint venture), a civil war quickly grew into a war for independence from PNG.

From early 1989 until a truce came into effect in October 1997 and a permanent cease-fire was signed in April 1998 as many as 20,000 people were killed. Under the eyes of a regional peace-monitoring force and a [[United Nations]] observer mission, the government and provincial leaders established an interim government. In 2019 a non-binding [[2019 Bougainvillean independence referendum|referendum]] was held in which 98.31% of voters voted in favor of independence.

The people of Bougainville are closely related to those of the nearby [[Solomon Islands]].

== Instability ==
[[File:Peter O'Neill May 2015.jpg|thumb|Peter O'Neill]]
[[File:Michael Somare 2014.jpg|thumb|Michael Somare]]
The [[Mekere Morauta|Morauta government]] brought in a series of electoral reforms in 2001, designed to address instability and [[Corruption in Papua New Guinea|corruption]]. Among the reforms was the introduction of the Limited Preferential Vote system (LPV), a modified version of [[Instant-runoff voting|Alternative vote]], for future elections in PNG. (The introduction of LPV was partly in response to calls for changes in the voting system by [[Transparency International]] and the [[European Union]].) The first general election to use LPV was held in 2007.

There are many parties, but party allegiances are weak. Winning candidates are usually courted in efforts to forge the majority needed to form a government, and allegiances are fluid. No single party has yet won enough seats to form a government in its own right.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/oceania/png-political-parties.htm|title = Political Parties}}</ref>

Papua New Guinea has a history of changes in government coalitions and leadership from within Parliament during the five-year intervals between national elections. New governments are protected by law from votes of no confidence for the first 18 months of their incumbency, and no votes of no confidence may be moved in the 12 months preceding a national election.

On [[Bougainville Island]], a rebellion occurred from early 1989 until a truce came into effect in October 1997 and a permanent cease-fire was signed in April 1998. Under the eyes of a regional peace-monitoring force and a [[United Nations]] observer mission, the government and provincial leaders established an interim government and made efforts toward toward election of a provincial government and a referendum on independence, the latter of which occurred in 2019. [[Michael Somare]] was reelected Prime Minister, a position he also held in the country's first parliament after independence, in 2002, where he won amidst violence-marred polling. Supplementary elections were held in Southern Highlands province in June 2003 after record levels of electoral fraud and intimidation during the 2002 polls.

A study by the [[Australian Strategic Policy Institute]], entitled "Strengthening our neighbour: Australia and the future of Papua New Guinea" and published in December 2004 found that PNG's weak government and [[police|policing]] has allowed [[organized crime]] [[gang]]s to relocate from [[Southeast Asia]] in recent years.

== 2011–12 political crisis ==
{{main|2011 Papua New Guinea political crisis}}
From 2011 to 2012, there was a constitutional dispute between [[Parliament of Papua New Guinea|parliament]] and [[Peter O'Neill]] and the judiciary, governor-general and [[Michael Somare|Sir Michael Somare]]. The crisis involved the status of the prime minister and who is the legitimate head of government between O'Neill and Somare.

== After 2019 ==

In May 2019, [[James Marape]] was appointed as the new prime minister, after a tumultuous few months in the country’s political life. Marape was a key minister in his  predecessor [[Peter O'Neill|Peter O’Neill]]’s government, and his defection from the government to the opposition camp had finally led to O’Neill’s resignation from office.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/may/30/papua-new-guinea-james-marape-next-prime-minister|title = Papua New Guinea MPS elect James Marape to be next prime minister|website = [[TheGuardian.com]]|date = 30 May 2019}}</ref> In July 2022, Prime Minister James Marape's [[Pangu Pati|PANGU]] Party secured the most seats of any party in the [[2022 Papua New Guinean general election|election]], meaning James Marape was elected to continue as PNG's Prime Minister.<ref>{{cite news |title=James Marape returned as PNG's prime minister after tense election |url=https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-09/papua-new-guinea-election-results-james-marape-to-govern/101311978 |work=ABC News |date=9 August 2022 |language=en-AU}}</ref>

== International organization participation ==
{{Main|Foreign relations of Papua New Guinea}}
[[ACP countries|ACP]], [[Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation|APEC]], [[Asian Development Bank|AsDB]], [[Association of Southeast Asian Nations|ASEAN]] (observer), [[Commonwealth of Nations|C]], [[Colombo Plan|CP]], [[Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific|ESCAP]], [[Food and Agriculture Organization|FAO]], [[Group of 77|G-77]], [[International Bank for Reconstruction and Development|IBRD]], [[International Civil Aviation Organization|ICAO]], [[International Confederation of Free Trade Unions|ICFTU]], [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|ICRM]], [[International Development Association|IDA]], [[International Fund for Agricultural Development|IFAD]], [[International Finance Corporation|IFC]], [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|IFRCS]], [[International Hydrographic Organization|IHO]], [[International Labour Organization|ILO]], [[International Monetary Fund|IMF]], [[International Maritime Organization|IMO]], [[Intelsat]], [[International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies|IFRCS]], [[International Organization for Migration|IMO]], [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|ICRM]], [[Interpol (organization)|Interpol]], [[IOC]], [[International Organization for Migration|IOM]] (observer), [[International Organization for Standardization|ISO]] (correspondent), [[International Telecommunication Union|ITU]], [[Non-Aligned Movement|NAM]], [[Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons|OPCW]], [[Pacific Islands Forum|SPF]], [[Sparteca]], [[Secretariat of the Pacific Community|SPC]], [[United Nations Conference on Trade and Development|UNCTAD]], [[United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization|UNESCO]], [[United Nations Industrial Development Organization|UNIDO]], [[United Nations|UN]], [[Universal Postal Union|UPU]], [[World Federation of Trade Unions|WFTU]], [[World Health Organization|WHO]], [[World Intellectual Property Organization|WIPO]], [[World Meteorological Organization|WMO]], [[World Trade Organization|WTrO]]

== See also ==
{{portal|New Guinea}}
*[[Corruption in Papua New Guinea]]

== References ==
<references/>
* Chin, James. 2005. Papua New Guinea in 2004: Recolonization, Somare"s Staying Power, and a Slight Economic Recovery, [[Asian Survey]], Vol 45, No 1, 2005. pp.&nbsp;191–195
* White, Hugh; Wainwright, Elsina et al. 2004. "[http://www.aspi.org.au/publications/publication_details.aspx?ContentID=63 Strengthening Our Neighbour: Australia and the future of Papua New Guinea]", Australian Strategic Policy Institute

== External links ==
*[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4094053.stm Papua New Guinea 'set to implode']

==Further reading==
* {{cite book |last1=May |first1=Ron J. |editor1-last=May |editor1-first=Ron J. |editor2-last=Selochan |editor2-first=Viberto |title=The Military and Democracy in Asia and the Pacific |date=March 2004 |publisher=ANU Press |isbn=9781920942007 |url=https://press.anu.edu.au/publications/military-and-democracy-asia-and-pacific |chapter=Government and the military in Papua New Guinea |chapter-url=https://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p33231/pdf/ch1015.pdf}}

{{Papua New Guinea topics}}
{{Oceania topic|Politics of}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Politics of Papua New Guinea}}

[[Category:Politics of Papua New Guinea| ]]