Bougainville is a Melanesian island that would be part of the Solomon Islands, to which it is related geographically and ethnically, but for decisions made in the last century by colonial powers. It is part of Papua New Guinea.

A bloody civil war - known locally as "the crisis" - took place between the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. This was a war over independence from Papua New Guinea and against copper mining being conducted by a global mining company. Fighting lasted almost a decade between the Bougainville Revolutionary Army and the PNG Defence Forces. However, the civil war also pitted Bougainvilleans against one another. Some (known as the Resistance) sided with the PNG defence forces against the Bougainville Revolutionary Army. Others - criminal gangs of rootless young men - had taken advantage of the disruption of civil order to terrorize and plunder civilians.

Terrible brutalities occurred. Murder, torture, rape, ambushes, and kidnapping of civilians touched the lives of people in every part of Bougainville. Villages were razed. All sides used these measures in varying degrees to punish and control their enemies. Furthermore, blockades by the PNG Defence Force and by the competing guerrilla forces caused shortages of food and medicine, resulting in further suffering and death. It is estimated that out of a total population of 160,000, between ten and twenty thousand Bougainvilleans died as a direct or indirect result of the war, and seventy thousand were displaced from their homes.

A peace agreement was negotiated in 1997. Under its terms Bougainville became an autonomous province of PNG in 2000. But very early in the negotiations it became clear that top-down peacemaking was not enough. For genuine peace to take hold, healing and reconciliation among the Bougainvilleans themselves was essential.

Many of them wanted peace. Women were insisting with increasing intensity that the conflict end. Women in Bougainville are the stewards of the land, which is passed down along matrilineal lines. They therefore have great influence even though their formal political power is limited.

Bougainvilleans have historically used customary processes similar to mediation and restorative justice to resolve disputes. However, their society had never experienced a conflict this extensive or sustained before. The tribal wars of the past were limited in scope and duration; if three or four people were killed a ceasefire was declared. This crisis, on the other hand, continued for a decade bringing unspeakable horrors. Traditional authorities, such as the chiefs, were undermined by the ongoing instability and disorder. Widespread displacement had broken the close community relationships that had existed for centuries and millennia.

The need and desire for peace were there. The technical skills and structures to support peacebuilding were not. Into that gap stepped PEACE Foundation Melanesia (PEACE).

PEACE was formally established in 1995 to do grassroots conflict resolution training in Papua New Guinea. Much of its initial work focused on Bougainville, since the crisis was coming to an end. More than a decade later it is still deeply involved there. Its strategy, driven by both philosophy and resource limitations, has been to train village leaders to be listeners, facilitators, negotiators and mediators. Many of those who were trained became trainers themselves, receiving a small stipend to supplement their normal work. Although there was initial suspicion by some local leaders, this gave way to support over time as they saw the positive results in the districts in which Peace Foundation trained mediators.

Three features of the Peace Foundation's work make it different from other NGOs. First, it is a grassroots organization. In its early days it operated virtually at the village level with minimal administrative coordination. While this created some problems over time, its strength was the local ownership that resulted. Second, it provides a skill rather than a service or product. Its goal is to help Bougainvilleans learn to help their communities resolve disputes, not to do that work itself. Third, its training is elicitive, stimulating participants to think of solutions and approaches by posing questions and using small groups to work on answers. The trainer is a facilitator, not a lecturer bringing in outside and (therefore) foreign ideas. All three of these features underscore a key message of the Peace Foundation: Bougainvilleans are able to build peace among themselves.

As one observer put it, traditional Bougainvillean understandings of restorative justice were in place, but seemed inadequate to address the current need. The old culture of peacemaking was revitalised by the more modern restorative justice training techniques of PEACE¹.

PEACE has trained thousands of people in basic restorative justice in Bougainville. Five hundred have been trained as facilitators and another 50-70 as trainers; the goal is for there to be 1000. The resulting mediations and restorative conferences address common crimes and create a context for the reconciliation conferences to address crimes related to the war. These may begin at the village or clan level and continue until individuals meet face to face to reconcile.

Creative approaches are being used to call people to confession and forgiveness. Currently the Youth Cross is visiting every village in Bougainville. This started out as a Catholic Youth initiative but now all the churches are participating. Thousands of people follow the cross as it is carried from village to village. At each stop men who killed during the war are asking forgiveness of the widows of their victims. When its work is done, the cross is carried to another village.

Sometimes the cross becomes stuck in its base when its bearers try to move it. The shout goes out, "The cross is stuck," and is repeated throughout the village until after a time a final person comes forward to ask forgiveness. Then the cross can be moved.

PEACE’s work demonstrates four truths about peacemaking. First, that work can be dangerous. In 1995 and 1996, three trainers - Tony Kasia, Tony Kaima and Angelina Nuguitu -- were killed in separate incidents by armed forces because they were leading community members in conversations about peacemaking.

Second, the work of peacemaking requires flexibility. The training offered in 1995 has been revised many times by the Peace Foundation to incorporate the experiences and ideas of its trainers. Although it is available in manual form and is being used in other Pacific islands, the learning and revisions continue.

Third, the work of peacemaking can create new structures. Bougainville villages have a constable and a magistrate appointed by the government. These two may have conflicts of interest, may be afraid to make tough decisions, and may refuse to work if they are not paid. So the Peace Foundation has helped develop Peace and Good Order Committees made up of the village constable, its magistrate and five respected people (including women). They operate under these two principles: mediation first - court second, and community first - police and court second. The Peace and Good Order Committee reviews all conflicts in the village and refers them to mediation, to restorative justice or to the police as necessary.

Finally, the work of peacemaking sets an example for others. The peace treaty in Bougainville included provisions for a multi-national peace force, as is common when the international community becomes involved. But the peace force was not armed - in fact, they brought musical instruments, which helped build ties to the Bougainvilleans. The peace force simply created a safe context in which the real work of peacemaking could be done. The peace force is now gone; the peacemaking work continues. There is something for the international community to reflect on.
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¹ Peter Damien Reddy (2006), Peace Operations and Restorative Justice: Groundwork for Post-conflict Regeneration, p. 363. Thesis for PhD at The Australian National University.

Dan Van Ness
August 2007