Comments

Joel. Nice article; balanced and sensible. As one of the ex-DFID people to whom you refer it sems to me that what matters is not whether AusAID follows DFID (or anyone else for that matter) - what matters is whether AuSAID seeks to do what is developmentally appropriate in the specific circumstances in question. The fact that some ex-DFID staff (and in reality there is only a handful) have come here suggests that AusAID does indeed want to do 'the right thing'. Seen from the inside there is no doubt about this. Graham Teskey

I can personally confirm that the health facilities and the service delivery in the rural areas of Gulf Province is near extinction. Being a health worker myself from the isolated mountains of Gulf-Kotidanga district (Kaintiba) I have felt the pain of living in Gulf and providing these services. The major problem lays between the Provincial health Department, and managers who relax and dream away on their comfortable chairs assuming that everything is just right. There is a lack of inspections, monitoring, and regular evaluation on the state and progress of service delivery. Furthermore, there is lack of funding, a shortage of staff, a lack of or no drug supplies, and no up skilling staff through in-services. These are all key contributing factors. Despite, the above problems I acknowledge the Church Services for whole hearted effot in proving the essential service on behalf. My appeal to PROVINCIAL DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH and people in authority is to wake up and look into the vision 2010-2020 health care implementation strategies and work hand in hand with NDoH to up grade and delivery quality services to the people. To those health care workers serving in other provinces it is by time we should return to service our own province and our own people rather than attending only for funerals. Today is the day for change or else we will be left behind. Thanks.

This is certainly not an issue limited to developing countries, as the author (and, indeed, Huntington) state. Rather, much corruption in developed countries is stymied by formalising rewards for not engaging in corrupt acts, along lines of individual reward: classic carrot versus stick stuff. The clearest example of this is in political pensions, which are just juicy enough to convince deposed politicians to walk away rather than risk public ire and private equity on legal or other forms of challenge. One can only wonder what rewards would await an Assad or even a Bainimarama if they were to step aside…

Maree, thanks for this lovely (and warranted) piece on Helen. Margaret and Adam have known Helen better than most and I agree with their sentiments. Helen is owed much credit for my studies at the ANU, and I was fortunate to see the softer side of Helen. So mine are some very fond memories of this otherwise ferocious woman. She had a heart of gold, stood by her students even when they strayed, and was the first to offer help whenever required. What most people don’t know, and Maree correctly points out, is that Helen loved a good argument. In being purposefully provocative, Helen got the best out of her opponents.

As a reporter at the recent summit of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG), I thought there was significant changes in the West Papua debate, although growing trade, investment and security ties between MSG members and Indonesia will delay the transformation. While Papua New Guinea and Fiji stressed Indonesia’s sovereignty over West Papua and Papua, the recent summit took a strong stand on human rights abuses and the right to self-determination. In unprecedented language, the final MSG Summit communique supported “the inalienable rights of the people of West Papua towards self-determination” and criticised “human rights violations and other forms of atrocities relating to the West Papuan people.” In his address to the summit, Vanuatu’s Prime Minister Moana Carcasses Kalosil stated that “The epicentre of support for the advocacy for West Papuan self-determination must begin in this region, Melanesia.” In a keynote speech at the Jean-Marie Tjibaou Cultural Centre, former PNG Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare acknowledged “there is strong and growing support among the MSG peoples for West Papua’s membership to MSG and West Papua’s aspirations to self-determination.” “For me personally, I believe that MSG should actively make representations to Indonesia to address human rights abuses in West Papua,” Somare said. “MSG must also involve West Papua in some of MSG’s cultural events, sporting activities and technical skills exchanges.” Even so, PNG’s security interests weigh heavily in the debate. Fiji too has stronger ties to Jakarta, after it exchanged ambassadors with Indonesia and welcomed the Asian power as an observer as Suva hosted the previous MSG summit in 2011. To the disquiet of some delegates, Fiji arrived with a roadmap to drive the West Papua debate, following a meeting held in Nadi in early June between Prime Minister Bainimarama and Djoko Suyanto, Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Legal, Political and Security Affairs and a former commander of Indonesia’s armed forces. For background on the forthcoming MSG mission to Jakarta and Jayapura, see my report from the summit <a href="http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/new-caledonia/1540/msg-to-send-mission-to-jakarta-and-west-papua/" rel="nofollow">here</a>.

Hi Stephen, Thanks for your comment. PM O'Neill did indeed go to Jakarta rather than Noumea and his absence was the most significant factor in the MSG's deferral of a decision about the WPNCL's application for membership. As well as restating his belief in the territorial integrity of Indonesia, he signed an extradition treaty which has already caused a lot of concern about how this will affect West Papuans who have crossed the border into PNG. His actions have provoked something of a backlash in Moresby, with the leader of the opposition lashing out and saying that the PM is not a 'Melanesian' - O'Neill has retaliated by threatening defamation. The wording of the MSG communiqué is significant; the influence of Vanuatu is evident in the inclusion of the recognition of self-determination for the people of West Papua and the explicit reference to human rights atrocities in that region. The overall ambivalence of the MSG towards the Fiji situation does create something of a paradox and may cause problems in the future but at the moment whilst the issue is whether WPNCL can be members/observers it is unlikely to be in focus.

Tess, Thanks for this. I note that PNG PM O'Neill went to Indonesia instead of to the MSG, and there, among other things, he reiterated that Papua was an integral part of Indonesia, and that PNG's position hadn't changed on this issue. (http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/indonesia/1556/west-papua-part-of-indonesia-png-pm/). In light of this, do you think MSG will take up the Papuan independence cause in any serious way? With Fiji as part of the MSG, the organization might also find it hard to take a stand on human rights. Stephen.

Bishop Brown clearly doesn't understand much about the process of resolving civil war such as was in progress in Solomons. Extreme force such as RAMSI was needed in order to disarm the warring parties and to enforce the peace for a considerable time in order to see if the grievances giving rise to the conflict could be resolved. I believe that, unfortunately, the grievances giving rise to the conflict have not been resolved and the likelihood that the conflict will recur in the absence of RAMSI, or an external force of similar capacity will be required, is high. A second function of RAMSI was to assume the government responsibilities that local authorities were ill-equipped to undertake because of the pervasiveness of the conflict. These included, importantly, all aspects of law and justice. Areas such as education and health, which Bishop Brown says that RAMSI should have taken on, are areas that local authorities could be expected to manage, even if with the help of other donor assistance. So, do not judge RAMSI using the wrong criteria.

I believe that removing the rankings would basically destroy the usefulness of the DB. They have been an important tool for achieving progress in business environments.

Dear Ashlee Thanks for opening this conversation. The International Development Contractors (IDC) Australia certainly welcomes the announcement of a Minister for International Development. While we acknowledge the result is not exactly as was proposed by the Independent Review of Aid Effectiveness, we consider this a positive step. We agree with earlier commentary by Professor Stephen Howes regarding the “uncertainty around the aid program’s future” and how a lack of predictability of forward funding can impact effectiveness. Consequently, we hope this Ministerial elevation as a recognition of the size and importance of the aid program assists to ensure a good program is built upon and strengthened in its pursuit of delivering effective aid to help the world’s poor. MEL DUNN Chair, IDC Australia <em> The IDC brings together more than 20 Australian and international private sector organisations that manage the delivery of international aid to the world’s poorest countries, on behalf of multilateral and bilateral organisations including AusAID.</em>

The 2013 People's Survey has just been released and can be downloaded here: http://www.ramsi.org/Media/docs/FINAL-Peoples-Survey-2013-1-final-111900c1-79e2-4f41-9801-7f29f6cd2a66-0.pdf

It’s good to see this discussion on the DB reports. The methodology is far from perfect and clearly requires improvement. The issues around this have been discussed for quite some time, including the IEG’s evaluation published in 2008. I am not sure I agree with the recommendation to remove the index. While the rankings are crude, they are a powerful tool for getting countries to think about these issues. The media love it and it gets governments and business to at least begin to talk about the need for reform - unlike other more “sound” assessments undertaken by the World Bank and other agencies. My biggest problem with the DB rankings is how they have been misused and included as measures of success for development assistance programmes.