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Ministers defect from Papua New Guinea Cabinet
Pressure building on prime minister to resign
March 24, 1997
Web posted at: 1:20 p.m. EST (1820 GMT)PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (CNN) -- The pressure on Papua New Guinea's prime minister, Sir Julius Chan, to resign over his decision to hire international mercenaries to crush a rebellion increased Monday, with mass defections of ministers from his Cabinet.
Five ministers, including three senior members of Chan's own People's Progress Party, have either resigned or promised to resign. Four others were expected to hand in their resignations before Tuesday, when the parliament of the Pacific island nation meets to debate the worst political crisis in its 22 years of independence.
Governor-General Sir Wiwa Korowi also called on Chan to resign. Korowi is the representative of Britain's Queen Elizabeth II, who is Papua New Guinea's official head of state. However, the governor-general does not have the power to dismiss Chan.
Chan entered into a $36 million contract with a British firm, Sandline International, to provide mercenaries to crush a rebellion on Bougainville Island. That infuriated the country's army chief, Brig. Gen. Jerry Singirok, who demanded Chan terminate the contract and quit.
Instead, Chan last week sacked Singirok, who is popular among troops. The firing set off two days of rioting in Port Moresby, the capital.
New army chief meets troops with deposed general
In a bid to win over soldiers loyal to Singirok, Col. Jack Tuat, appointed by Chan to replace Singirok as army chief, addressed several hundred soldiers Monday with the deposed general at his side.
Meanwhile, the British commander of the mercenaries, Tim Spicer, made a court appearance Monday to plead not guilty to two firearms charges. Spicer, a retired colonel who was a high-ranking peacekeeper in Bosnia, will go on trial April 8.
"I don't think we would have done anything different," Spicer said after his court appearance. "It's unfortunate the way things have turned out."
Parliament will debate Chan's ouster Tuesday
On Tuesday, opposition lawmakers are expected to press a motion in parliament that would force Chan to resign, making way for a caretaker government that would serve until scheduled elections in June.
About 150 demonstrators have been holding a sit-in in front of the parliament, and protest leaders said thousands would turn out for a demonstration on Tuesday.
In the midst of the turmoil, Papua New Guinea's Pacific neighbors are making preparations to extract their nationals from the country if the situation deteriorates. Australia, Malaysia and New Zealand were all working on contingency plans for an evacuation.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- Political crisis grows in Papua New Guinea - March 23, 1997
- Pilots: Papua New Guinea cancels mercenary contract - March 19, 1997
- Military crisis ends in Papua New Guinea - March 18, 1997
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