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Critique of the World Bank's Tropical Forestry Action Plan Review for Papua New Guinea, Working Paper 26 [1990] PGLawRComm 3 (1 March 1990)

CRITIQUE OF THE WORLD BANK'S

TROPICAL FORESTRY ACTION PLAN

PAPUA NEW GUINEA

BRIAN D. BRUNTON

Chairman of the Law Reform Commission of Papua New Guinea

WORKING PAPER N0.26
MARCH 1990

The views expressed in this paper do not represent the final views of the Commission. This paper is intended to stimulate awareness in the area of resource conservation generally, and specifically to promote public debate on the pressing problem of the future of Papua New Guinea's rain forests.

l. Introduction: Setting the Basic Values.

The basic values in this critique are:

* the tropical rainforests in Papua New Guinea are part of a global eco-system which sustains life on this planet.

* they are unique, and support unique life-systems: flora, fauna, and
Melanesian social formations.

* as an essential component of the Papua New Guinea environment the rainforests are to be conserved and used for the collective benefit of all Papua New Guineans, in trust for future generations.

* the rainforests are not a commodity to be exchanged or transformed into capital. Their value is not exchange value, but properly characterized as use value, as a strategic component in maintaining global, national and local eco-systems.

* any exploitation of the rainforests, transformation of their social utility from use value to exchange value, must be subordinate to the strategic ecological role of the rainforests.

* any exploitation must take place by the use of skills and resources available in the country and primarily through the use of Papua New Guinean forms of social organisation. All laws and forms of exploitation should recognise the priority of customary tenures and the customs of the People.

* the priority of customary tenures creates special conditions, which have to be met first, if the primacy of the rainforest's strategic role is to be maintained. The special measures have a priority over any commercial exploitation.

* provincial governments are an important link between the State and customary land-owning groups and part of the political reality of Papua New Guinea. In the long run, attempts to subvert them are likely to isolate and alienate customary landowners which could well contribute to rebellion and bloodshed. This is particularly so when foreign investors are able to buy off landowners, at the expense of other groups, or wider provincial interests.

* there should be a strict control of foreign investment, and the State should actively participate in any forest industry.