The Yegiora Files

Michael Somare was an influential leader in his time. He was vocal during the pre-independence period that PNG should be an independent nation. His call materialized in 1975 when the country became independent. Apart from his charismatic leadership, we want to know whether he played a part in influencing the creation of the first foreign policy. We also want to know the other key decision makers who contributed to the formulation of the policy of universalism or 'Friends to all, enemies to none' . Gedare (1994, p.51) wrote that the policy of universalism was embodied in a series of statements between 1973 and 1975 by Somare and Albert Maori Kiki. He categorized the period from 1975 to 1981 as phase 1 where universalism was the first foreign policy approach. He did not really describe in detail Somare's influence in the formulation of the policy but focused on the rationale and outcome of the policy. Mitna (2018, p. 42) said during the self-governing era there w...

Premdas presented the three categories of foreign policy options in his article published in 1976 by the Australian Journal of International Affairs. The three categories aid us to develop our understanding of PNG's first foreign policy. In other words, it is a useful framework or typology for analysis extracted from the work of Holsti. The three categories of foreign policy options open to a state are: Isolationism Non-alignment Diplomatic coalitions and military alliances According to Premdas (1976, p. 263) a state that choose a particular foreign policy strategy does so because if feels that its national interest will be served by this orientation. National interest is categorized into three categories: Security interest Economic interest Ideological interest PNG has the option of selecting the isolationism option at independence but did not. Like all other newly independent countries, PNG opted for a non-alignment foreign policy based on the doctrine of unive...

Gyngell and Wesley (2003) talked about the two worlds of foreign policy. Practitioners have a different view of foreign policy in comparison to academics. I agree with their distinction and will expand on some of the points they made in their book. Some academics think that foreign policy is a structured detailed plan outlining the interaction between two states. Mitna (2018) challenged this perception with the statement that foreign policy does not need to be a predetermined course of action or strategy. It can be an impromptu statement or expression of a particular view, reflecting the reactive nature of foreign policy. Decision-makers decide what foreign policy is by choosing what they do. This is evident in the case of Marape and his choice to focus on Southeast Asia. After his election as the Prime Minister, he made this impromptu statement about working with Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. He said he wanted to focus more on trade and economics. Furthermore, Mitna ...