It was an emotional end to the Bougainville Parliament Thursday as the Bougainville House of Representatives officially transitioned into the Bougainville Constituent Assembly.
The House erupted in applause as the motion was unanimously passed, signaling the beginning of the next phase in Bougainville’s transition from autonomy to independence.
ABG President Ishmael Toroama, in presenting the motion in parliament, described it as a profound moment, paying tribute to past, present and future leaders who have contributed to Bougainville’s independence aspirations.
“This is a historical day in the history of our political journey to independence. This day marks the departure from being autonomous to independence status. This is the day our people have been waiting for – the Bougainville House of Representatives as the legitimate representative institution to materialise 97.7 percent vote for independence chosen through the constitutionally guaranteed referendum,” President Toroama stated.
“Let us be clear today that this motion signals the political journey for Bougainville moving to independence status.”
The conversion of the House into the Bougainville Constituent Assembly sets the stage for the deliberation and adoption of Bougainville’s Independence Constitution, a critical step towards self-governance.
ABG Attorney General and Minister for Bougainville Independence Mission Implementation, Ezekiel Masatt, explained that this conversion was necessary to ensure the Assembly could effectively deal with matters relating to the new Independence Constitution for Bougainville.
The Independence Constitution is expected to be tabled later this year, but today’s passing of the motion marks the official beginning of this process.
Members of the Bougainville Constituent Assembly will be sworn in this morning before convening for their first meeting today.
The session will include an induction on the rules and procedures of the Assembly and a briefing on their roles.
Membership of the Constituent Assembly will include:
• All members of the HOR
• All four national MPs of Parliament
• Three regional head commissioners of the Bougainville Constitutional Planning Commission (BCPC)
• Three female commissioners of the BCPC.
