Pacific Research Scholars Program (PRSP)

The Pacific Research Scholars Program is a well established program conducted by SSGM since 1996 to support and mentor younger researchers and policy practitioners through the Pacific Fellowship, the Pacific Research Scholars, the ANU College of Asia and the Pacific's annual Asia-Pacific Week and the organisation of regional conferences. These activities are viewed as valuable academic, networking, capacity strengthening, and professional development opportunities by researchers through the region.

To maintain and expand this program of excellence, the Australian Government through AusAID provides support funding under a partnership with SSGM.

Pacific Research Fellows

2011

Jack Maebuta
Orovu Sepoe
Patrick Vakaoti

2010

Asenati Liki Chan Tung

Pacific Research Scholars 2011

Sharryl Ivahupa
Jackie Kauli
Henry Okole

Sharryl Ivahupa
Ms Sharryl Ivahupa (10-31 March 2011) spent 3 weeks at SSGM supervised by Dr R Mike Bourke/Dr Nicole Haley. She was formerly an agronomist at the PNG National Agriculture Research Institute (NARI) and later Program Director with Conservation Melanesia. Ms Ivahupa was the Project Manager for the 'Farmer Evaluation and Multiplication of Sweet Potato Varieties in the North Coast of Papua New Guinea' Project conducted by World Vision Australia and World Vision PNG and funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR Project ID SMCN/2003/010). Technical advisors for the project were Dr Mike Bourke (ANU) and Mr Elic Guaf of NARI. This was a very large and ambitious project, with over 130 field trials.

While at SSGM, Ms Ivahupa presented a seminar based on the ACIAR project as part of the regular SSGM Seminar Series (30 March 2011).

Jackie Kauli
Ms Jackie Kauli spent a month at SSGM (9 Jan - 4 Feb 2011) supervised by Dr Elizabeth Reid. She has a Diploma in Theatre Arts (UPNG), a Bachelor of Creative Arts (UPNG) and an MA in Arts Admin & Cultural Policy from the University of London. Prior to her period at SSGM, Ms Kauli was Program Officer for the Community Conversations Initiative of the PNG Sustainable Development Program/

During her period at SSGM, she contributed to the panel discussion 'What is Development?' at the SSGM Pacific Research Colloquium: Developing Pacific Scholarship (31 January 2011) and presented a presented with Elizabeth Reid titled 'In the Field: Community Conversations' (3 February 2011). Upon the completion of her time with SSGM, she commenced a PhD program at the Queensland University of Technology. A publication 'Community Conversations: An inclusive and transformative response to the driving forces of the HIV epidemic in Papua New Guinea' (co-authored with Dr Elizabeth Reid during her time at SSGM) is forthcoming.

Pacific Research Scholars 2010

Mosmi Bhim
Henry Okole
Almah Tararia
James Tanis
Ashley Wickham

Mosmi Bhim
visited SSGM as a Pacific Research Scholar for six weeks (14 Aug - 26 Sept) in 2010. Her research examined the decrees of Fiji's Interim Government from 2006-10. Mosmi was supervised by Dr Jon Fraenkel and presented an SSGM seminar on her research at the end of her visit.

Since January 2007, Mosmi has worked at the Citizens' Constitutional Forum (CCF) as a Communications and Advocacy Officer. Among her many tasks, she has organised and conducted two-day grassroots education workshops, and conducted human rights and good governance workshops in English language in Fiji. In 2009 she assisted CCF's newly created education team in conducting human rights and good governance education workshops in the Hindi language. Mosmi works with the media to assist in advocacy and dissemination of information on the CCF submissions and an Anti-Racism campaign in March 2009 through radio, newspaper and TV advertisements against racism, and other human rights issues. She produces the CCF quarterly newsletter Tutaka, redesigning and maintaining content on the CCF website and other core promotional presentations.

Her recent research papers include:

• Democracy disabled due to uninformed citizenry, presented at the Australian Association for the Advancement of Pacific Studies (AAAPS) 3rd Conference at Victoria University, Melbourne, 8-11 April 2010, in a plenary session on 'Experiences of Democratisation in the Pacific'. [Powerpoint]
• Opposition and Media's Role in Holding Fiji's Government Accountable, presented at the Pacific Islands Political Studies Association Conference (PIPSA), 7-8 December 2007, Port Vila, Vanuatu. Fiji's Promotion of Reconciliation, Tolerance and Unity Bill, presented at the Asia-Pacific Week, Australian National University, 29-31 January 2007.

Publications

• 2007, Chapter 10 - 'The Impact of the Promotion of Reconciliation, Toleranace and Unity Bill on the 2006 Election', published in From Election to Coup in Fiji: the 2006 campaign and its aftermath, editors Jon Fraenkel and Stewart Firth, pages 111-143.
• 2005, 'Public Leadership in the Pacific: Ethically Challenged', published in the Online Journal of the 'World Student Community for Sustainable Development' (www.wscsd.org).
• 2009, 'Public Leadership in the Pacific: Ethically Challenged', republished in the coursebook titled - Special Topic Pacific Leadership, Graduate Diploma in Not for Profit Management, Unitec New Zealand, pages 134-145. "The Looting" - the script for this 20-minute radio play on a theme of racism, and based on true events in Muaniweni Fiji in the aftermath of the 2000 coup, written in 2008-2009. The incidents resulted in violation of several human rights (English version published in Dreadlocks, 2009).
• "The Ex-Prisoner" - the script for this 16-minute radio play was written in 2007. It is based on fictionalising a true story of a severe beating given to an ex-prisoner by soldiers. The ex-prisoner later tries to get justice. (Published in English and Hindi in Dreadlocks 2008).

Henry Okole
is visiting SSGM for the period 3 November to 2 December 2010. Henry is from East New Britain in Papua New Guinea , his research interest is Papua New Guinea politics. He studied at UPNG 1985-1989 (Political Science and Public Administration (Hons); Diploma in Political Science (ANU), Masters in International Studies (University of Sydney); and a PhD (Northern Illinois University), Henry was awarded a Fullbright Scholarship (1995-2000). From 2005-10, Henry was Chief of Cabinet and Advisor to successive Secretaries General to the ACP Group of States, based in Brussels.

At the commencement of his visit, Henry will present two papers at the SSGM Workshop Elections in Solomon Islands & Bougainville 2010: Electoral Reform, Political Parties, Forming Government, Peace-building, on 3-4 November 2010 at the College of Asia and the Pacific. His first paper is 'A critical Review of Papua New Guinea's Organic Law on the Integrity of Political Parties and Candidates' and the second paper is 'Proposals for Reserved Seats in the PNG Parliament — a Comment'. (for a podcast of these papers, visit SSGM's podcast page). Henry will prepare the first paper for publication in the SSGM Discussion Paper Series.

Almah Tararia
visited SSGM for a 3 week period (18 Jul - 7 Aug) in 2010. Almah completed her Law degree at the University of Papua New Guinea in 1996 and a Masters of Environmental Law at the University of Sydney in 2004. She is currently working for the Justice For the Poor, East Asia and Pacific Program (World Bank Group), (Papua New Guinea) and her role includes contributing to and providing local analysis on program documentation for Pacific wide program; team member to the World Bank on missions into Port Moresby, providing country context and knowledge and facilitating dialogue between the national agencies and at community level, providing advice on the scope, thematic focus and implementation of the Justice for the Poor Program in the Pacific. Her previous positions were as Program Officer, Women and Environment and Rural & Indigenous Women Programs of Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law & Development (APWLD) in Thailand; and as instructing solicitor in two major court challenges with the Papua New Guinea Eco-Forestry Forum Inc. (PNG EFF), Papua New Guinea.

Almah is engaged with the ANU academic team Nicole Haley (SSGM), Matthew Allen and Frazer MacDonald (RMAP) on the World Bank consultancy, J4P, and has undertaken surveys in 9 districts in PNG. She has been involved in discussions, planning and design of a survey into the development, planning, resource allocation and benefit sharing in Papua New Guinea. During her visit with SSGM, Almah will be writing up her findings arising from research undertaken in New Ireland Province as part of the larger survey, and will present an SSGM seminar at the end of August. Almah will travel to Vanuatu to present her findings at the USP Law and Culture Conference on Legal Pluralism, 30 August-1 September 2010.

Almah used her time at SSGM to work with various ANU-based academics to strengthen her analytical research skills and methods for future research collaborations in Papua New Guinea.

James Tanis
visited SSGM for a six week period (5 Oct - 16 Nov) in 2010. James is from Nagovisi, Bougainville. He commenced studies in Commence and Accounting at University of Technology, Lae in 1986 but this was interrupted by the Bougainville conflict in 1988, when he joined the Bougainville Revolutionary Army. James was appointed as Minister for Education in the Bougainville Interim Government in 1990, and in 1996 as Minister for Peace and Reconciliation. After successive Government appointments to the peace process, he was subsequently elected President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in 2008-10.

James presented a paper at the SSGM Conference Elections in Solomon Islands & Bougainville 2010: Electoral Reform, Political Parties, Forming Government, Peace-building, on 3-4 November 2010 at the College of Asia and the Pacific titled 'Presidential Campaigning and Formation of Government — 2005, 2008 and 2010' and he contributed to the Panel Discussion on 'Electoral Systems and Constitutional Change: Conflict or Peace-Building'. (for a podcast of these papers, visit SSGM's podcast page). James is currently preparing a paper for SSGM reviewing the first five year term of the Autonomous Bougainville Government, 2005 to 2010.

Ashley Wickham
visited SSGM for a month (2 Nov - 6 Dec) in 2010. Ashley is from Munda in Solomon Islands and is a writer engaged in consultation and facilitation of initiatives in communication and media, governance, education and change management. He is a former editor and manager of the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation. From 1986-1996 he was a radio trainer and advisor for the then South Pacific Commission (now Secretariat of the Pacific Community). In 1996 to June 2000 when the coup d'êtat took place, he was engaged as the Permanent Secretary in the Solomon Islands Government. In 2008 he joined the staff of Prime Minister Dr Derek Sikua as Head of Policy Evaluation.

Ashley presented a paper at the SSGM Workshop Elections in Solomon Islands & Bougainville 2010: Electoral Reform, Political Parties, Forming Government, Peace-building, on 3-4 November 2010 at the College of Asia and the Pacific entitled 'How Governments are Formed and Fall Apart in Solomon Islands'. (for a podcast of these papers, visit SSGM's podcast page).

Ashley will prepare a paper on recent developments in Solomon Islands policy reform debates for the SSGM Discussion Paper Series.

 

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Pacific Research Fellow (2009-10)

Asenati Liki Chan Tung

Asenati was a Pacific Research Fellow in 2009-10 at the State, Society and Governance in Melanesia Program (SSGM) at the Australian National University. She is a cultural and population geographer with research interests in gender and development, governance, labour migration and social change in the Pacific. Her current research investigates the socio-cultural and political dimensions and management implications of women's leadership in Pacific Public Services with a specific focus on Solomon Islands and Samoa. This is an extension of her previous work on leadership experiences and mobility among the women of her community — the Melanesian-Samoans — in Samoa and New Zealand. Her other research includes development implications of brain-drain migration in the Pacific and work strategies among island women. She has presented in international and regional conferences including the Oceanic Conference in International Studies (2010, Auckland), Oceania Development Network Conference (2010, Fiji), Pacific Science InterCongress (2009, Tahiti), Pacific History Association Conference (2006, Dunedin & 1998, Honiara), and the New Zealand Geographical Society Conference (2003, Auckland).

Asenati lectured previously at the University of the South Pacific (2003 — 2008), the National University of Samoa (1999-2001), and the University of Auckland (2002). She has been a senior public manager and as head of the Census and Survey Division of Samoa's Department of Statistics (1994-1996) she coordinated the Apia Urban Youth Survey (1994), the National Household Income Survey (1994) and the National Agricultural Survey (1995). She is also active in Civil Society and is currently Secretary for the Association of Solomon Islander Descendants in Samoa (ASIDS), a position she has held since 1996.