For the last few weeks, it has been election campaign time in PNG. There are a lot of interesting things we could say about that, because elections are so different here than in Canada. But we'll try give just a few snapshots.
The campaigning officially concludes tomorrow (Friday), and voting is to begin on Saturday. Because PNG has so many remote areas accessible only by helicopter (or a very long hike!), voting will be spread out over about 10 days in different parts of the country, to allow election commission officials to be present at each polling station.
Election time has the potential for unrest in PNG, especially in the Highlands. So far, that hasn't affected us in Lae at all. The only inconveniences to us have been when election campaigns hit the road and slow traffic down.
Maybe another inconvenience: the noise. Candidates have their rallies – all-day events with lots of speeches and lots of food. But they also like to drive around town in cars, either playing music or making speeches. They do that through megaphones mounted on the roof of the car. Yes, they are very loud, but we have yet to understand a word of what's said.
There are about 4.5 million registered voters in Lae. And there are 3435 people running for just over 100 seats available in Parliament. Do the math, and that's one in 1300 Papua New Guineans running for Parliament, and an average of 34 in each electoral district (but still, only an average of 4 per language group).
Some of you have been following the PNG politics that hit world news in the past year – the tussle between two Prime Ministers (and between the Supreme Court and Parliament) that seemed to never end. Even at the beginning of the election campaign, the courts decided that Sir Michael Somare is the legitimate Prime Minister, a ruling that was quickly overturned by Parliament, which voted for the third time since August to make Peter O'Neill the legitimate Prime Minister. We pray that this election may bring some stability to the political situation.
Here are a few pictures to round things off. First off, an election-induced traffic jam heading into Goroka. A former Prime Minister and now still-prominent politician was speaking there the day we happened to drive in, and so there were many trucks and buses headed into town to hear him speak. We avoided the rally.
The way some people dress up really makes you wonder.
And of course, the ubiquitous election campaign sign. In PNG, signs prominently feature the face of the candidate (and not so prominently his or her name). And they are often hung from trees, the more of one face the better.
I really wanted to get a picture of one of those cars with the megaphones, but haven't had a chance yet.
The campaigning officially concludes tomorrow (Friday), and voting is to begin on Saturday. Because PNG has so many remote areas accessible only by helicopter (or a very long hike!), voting will be spread out over about 10 days in different parts of the country, to allow election commission officials to be present at each polling station.
Election time has the potential for unrest in PNG, especially in the Highlands. So far, that hasn't affected us in Lae at all. The only inconveniences to us have been when election campaigns hit the road and slow traffic down.
Maybe another inconvenience: the noise. Candidates have their rallies – all-day events with lots of speeches and lots of food. But they also like to drive around town in cars, either playing music or making speeches. They do that through megaphones mounted on the roof of the car. Yes, they are very loud, but we have yet to understand a word of what's said.
There are about 4.5 million registered voters in Lae. And there are 3435 people running for just over 100 seats available in Parliament. Do the math, and that's one in 1300 Papua New Guineans running for Parliament, and an average of 34 in each electoral district (but still, only an average of 4 per language group).
Some of you have been following the PNG politics that hit world news in the past year – the tussle between two Prime Ministers (and between the Supreme Court and Parliament) that seemed to never end. Even at the beginning of the election campaign, the courts decided that Sir Michael Somare is the legitimate Prime Minister, a ruling that was quickly overturned by Parliament, which voted for the third time since August to make Peter O'Neill the legitimate Prime Minister. We pray that this election may bring some stability to the political situation.
Here are a few pictures to round things off. First off, an election-induced traffic jam heading into Goroka. A former Prime Minister and now still-prominent politician was speaking there the day we happened to drive in, and so there were many trucks and buses headed into town to hear him speak. We avoided the rally.
Some people like to dress up for political rallies. This was part of a procession of hundreds of people that took over the road and walked by our church building.
The way some people dress up really makes you wonder.
And of course, the ubiquitous election campaign sign. In PNG, signs prominently feature the face of the candidate (and not so prominently his or her name). And they are often hung from trees, the more of one face the better.
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