Sandline affair
Encyclopedia
The Sandline affair was a political scandal that became one of the defining moments in the history of Papua New Guinea
, and particularly that of the conflict in Bougainville
. It brought down the government of Sir Julius Chan
, and took Papua New Guinea
to the verge of military revolt. The event was named after Sandline International
, an UK-based private military company
force.
After coming to power in mid-1994, Prime Minister Chan made repeated attempts to resolve the Bougainville conflict by diplomatic means. These were ultimately unsuccessful, due to the repeated failure of Bougainvillean leaders Francis Ona
, Sam Kauona and Joseph Kabui
to arrive at scheduled peace talks. In November that year, Chan attempted to set up the Bougainville Transitional Government, under a moderate Bougainvillean, Theodore Miriung. However, this too was doomed to failure, as Ona, Kauona, Kabui and others all chose not to take part. This was the last straw for Chan, and he decided to resolve the conflict using military force.
and New Zealand
, in preparation for an assault on the island. However, both nations refused to provide any military assistance. The decision was then made to investigate the use of mercenaries. Through some overseas contacts, Ijape was put in contact with Tim Spicer
OBE
, an ex-Colonel in the Scots Guards
, who had recently founded Sandline International, a company specialising in providing mercenaries to participate in conflicts.
Spicer attempted to persuade the head of the Papua New Guinea Defence Forces (PNGDF), Jerry Singirok
, to support the purchase of a package of military equipment that he had previously discussed with Ijape. Singirok dismissed the idea, and concentrated on proceeding with a planned assault on the island, codenamed "Operation High Speed II". However, the operation was a dismal failure, and within six days, Papua New Guinean forces had retreated from the island.
Later that year, Spicer met Chris Haiveta
, the Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, and convinced him of the benefits of using Sandline mercenaries to end the Bougainville conflict permanently, neutralise the Bougainville Revolutionary Army
, and reopen the controversial copper mine at Panguna
. While Singirok still refused to deal with Spicer, Haiveta invited him to visit the country and make an assessment of the situation. He did so in December 1996, and received US$250,000 as a result. He estimated that Sandline mercenaries could do the job for a total of US$36 million.
Sandline had subcontracted most of its crew for the Bougainville mission through Executive Outcomes
, a South African mercenary provider. The first mercenaries arrived on an Air Niugini
flight from Singapore on 7 February 1997. After a week, a total of 44 had arrived, 8 from the UK, 5 from Australia and the rest from South Africa.
In the meantime, a series of meetings were undertaken between Deputy Prime Minister Haiveta, Tim Spicer, and several other figures, with regard to buying out CRA's
stake in Bougainville Copper Limited, the owner of the Panguna mine, which was at the heart of the Bougainville conflict. On 19 February 1997, Prime Minister Chan mentioned to Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
that Papua New Guinea was bringing in mercenaries for "training purposes". Downer condemned the move, and was particularly opposed to their use on Bougainville. On 10 February, the move was leaked to The Australian
newspaper.
Over the next few days, the Australian government tried in vain to persuade the Papua New Guinean government not to proceed with the mercenary deal. On the night of 16 March 1997, the revolt began. By the time the night was over, the entire band of Sandline mercenaries had been disarmed and arrested. Prime Minister Chan did not find out until the next morning. That morning, Singirok accused Prime Minister Chan, Defence Minister Ijape, and Deputy Prime Minister Haiveta of corruption, and gave them 48 hours to resign. He also fiercely denied allegations that he was aiming to take power himself. Chan refused to resign, and the same day, sacked Singirok as Commander of the PNGDF, replacing him with controversial Colonel Alfred Aikung.
The weapons, including military small arms, piston engined light aircraft and helicopter gunships were taken to Australia
until the government of PNG arranged for the material to be returned to Sandline.
began to disobey orders, and police units had to be flown in from outside of the capital, Port Moresby
. Two days later, a boycott of classes began at the University of Papua New Guinea
, in support of Singirok. Crowds of civilians blocked the roads around the barracks, and bomb hoaxes closed down government departments. Chan still continued to insist that he was in complete control, and accused Singirok of being in a plot to manipulate the price of copper. The following day, the protests turned somewhat violent, and some looting began. The situation grew darker for Chan when the Governor-General, Sir Wiwa Korowi
, took out a newspaper advertisement that also accused the government of widespread corruption. Another two days saw Port Moresby almost grind to a halt.
The protests continued to get larger with each day, and the police and the army faced off against each other, with the army under Major Enuma's strict orders to hold their positions and the police in no hurry to confront the army. Enuma also instructed the army to halt the looting. The Australian government sent emissaries to Port Moresby, and threatened to withdraw financial aid altogether if the Sandline deal was not cancelled. Reluctantly, Chan cancelled the deal and announced an inquiry. While this meant that Singirok and Enuma had accomplished one of their major goals, they continued to demand the resignation of Chan, Ijape and Haiveta. On 21 March, all Sandline's personnel, with the exception of Tim Spicer
, who remained to give evidence to the enquiry, were withdrawn.
Despite having cancelled the Sandline contract, the security situation continued to slip further out of the government's control. The Acting Commander, Alfred Aikung was attacked and his vehicle was burnt. Aikung subsequently fled into hiding fearing for his life. Chan considered asking for foreign military intervention, but Aikung advised him against it. Speaker of Parliament and former Prime Minister Sir Rabbie Namaliu
met with Chan and Singirok, and advised the latter that two of his demands had been met, and that Chan would resign only at the wish of Parliament.
, then Governor of Port Moresby, was ready to bring forth a motion calling on Chan to resign. On the night of 24 March, several members deserted the Chan government, and the capital once again came to a standstill. Soldiers at Murray Barracks demanded to be able to march on the Parliament, but Enuma steadfastly refused. Large crowds began to gather outside the Parliament. The police attempted to stop students from reaching the Parliament, but the soldiers escorted them in. Inside, Sir Michael Somare
amended Skate's motion, so it only called upon Chan to step down for the period of the inquiry. A fierce debate ensued, with the Parliament divided. In the end, Chan realised that his position was hopeless. He spread the word inside the Parliament that if members supported him, he would resign anyway. The Parliament voted against the motion.
The crowd outside, upon hearing of the news, began to riot. They had not heard of Chan's plan to resign anyway. The police advised the parliamentarians that they should stay inside the Parliament, as they could not be safely evacuated. Chan and Haiveta had to be disguised and then raced out in a police car. All through the night, the standoff continued, with the parliamentarians fearing that they would be arrested. Though many soldiers continued to demand to be able to move in on the building, Enuma resisted his own soldiers, and convinced them to remain in their positions. He also addressed the Parliament, assuring them that there was not going to be a military coup. Enuma attempted to order the soldiers back to barracks and the crowds to disperse, but they remained until Parliament began sitting again the following morning. That morning, Chan resigned, and sacked both Ijape and Haiveta.
Bill Skate, who had moved the motion against Chan, replaced him as Prime Minister on 22 July after a Federal election, (Giheno took on the acting PM role up until 2 June, where Chan was again raised to the PM for his last six weeks of term). Under Skate, the peace process continued, and within a year after the Sandline affair, a treaty was in place, which , remains intact. A number of inquiries into the affair followed. Jerry Singirok was reappointed to his previous position as head of the PNGDF in 1998, but was dismissed again in 2000 over charges stemming from the incident. However, in April 2004, Singirok was formally acquitted of all charges laid against him over the events of February and March 1997.
History of Papua New Guinea
The prehistory of Papua New Guinea can be traced back to about 60,000 years ago when people first migrated towards the Australian continent. The written history began when European navigators first sighted New Guinea in the early part of the 16th century....
, and particularly that of the conflict in Bougainville
Bougainville Province
The Autonomous Region of Bougainville, previously known as North Solomons, is an autonomous region in Papua New Guinea. The largest island is Bougainville Island , and the province also includes the island of Buka and assorted outlying islands including the Carterets...
. It brought down the government of Sir Julius Chan
Julius Chan
Sir Julius Chan GCL GCMG KBE was Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea from 1980 to 1982 and from 1994 to 1997. He is currently Member of Parliament for New Ireland Province, having won the seat in the 2007 national election...
, and took Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
to the verge of military revolt. The event was named after Sandline International
Sandline International
Sandline International was a private military company based in London, established in the early 1990s. It was involved in conflicts in Papua New Guinea in 1997 causing the Sandline affair, in 1998 in Sierra Leone and in Liberia in 2003 Sandline International was a private military company based...
, an UK-based private military company
Private military company
A private military company or provides military and security services. These combatants are commonly known as mercenaries, though modern-day PMCs refer to their staff as security contractors, private military contractors or private security contractors, and refer to themselves as private military...
force.
After coming to power in mid-1994, Prime Minister Chan made repeated attempts to resolve the Bougainville conflict by diplomatic means. These were ultimately unsuccessful, due to the repeated failure of Bougainvillean leaders Francis Ona
Francis Ona
Francis Ona was a Bougainville secessionist leader who led an uprising against the Government of Papua New Guinea, motivated at least initially by his concerns over the operation of the Panguna mine by Bougainville Copper, a subsidiary of Rio Tinto Group...
, Sam Kauona and Joseph Kabui
Joseph Kabui
Joseph Canisius Kabui was a secessionist leader and the first President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, off the coast of Papua New Guinea, from 2005 to 2008. He was also the leader of the Bougainville People's Congress....
to arrive at scheduled peace talks. In November that year, Chan attempted to set up the Bougainville Transitional Government, under a moderate Bougainvillean, Theodore Miriung. However, this too was doomed to failure, as Ona, Kauona, Kabui and others all chose not to take part. This was the last straw for Chan, and he decided to resolve the conflict using military force.
The first meetings
His defence minister, Mathias Ijape, requested logistical assistance from AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, in preparation for an assault on the island. However, both nations refused to provide any military assistance. The decision was then made to investigate the use of mercenaries. Through some overseas contacts, Ijape was put in contact with Tim Spicer
Tim Spicer
Timothy Simon Spicer, OBE is a British former army officer, current CEO of the private security company Aegis Defence Services. He is a veteran of the Falklands War and also served with the British Army in Northern Ireland...
OBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
, an ex-Colonel in the Scots Guards
Scots Guards
The Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
, who had recently founded Sandline International, a company specialising in providing mercenaries to participate in conflicts.
Spicer attempted to persuade the head of the Papua New Guinea Defence Forces (PNGDF), Jerry Singirok
Jerry Singirok
Jerry Singirok was the commander of the Papua New Guinea Defence Force throughout the Sandline affair of 1997.-Military career:Singirok was a career soldier who had risen through the ranks of the PNGDF, including a time as commander of the forces on Bougainville...
, to support the purchase of a package of military equipment that he had previously discussed with Ijape. Singirok dismissed the idea, and concentrated on proceeding with a planned assault on the island, codenamed "Operation High Speed II". However, the operation was a dismal failure, and within six days, Papua New Guinean forces had retreated from the island.
Later that year, Spicer met Chris Haiveta
Chris Haiveta
Chris Haiveta is the head of the Pangu Party of Papua New Guinea and a member of National Parliament. In 1993 he was named Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea. He also served as the governor of Gulf Province twice. Haiveta served as finance minister in the government of Julius Chan. They...
, the Deputy Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, and convinced him of the benefits of using Sandline mercenaries to end the Bougainville conflict permanently, neutralise the Bougainville Revolutionary Army
Bougainville Revolutionary Army
The Bougainville Revolutionary Army was formed in 1988 by Bougainvilleans seeking independence from Papua New Guinea .BRA leaders argue that Bougainville is ethnically part of the Solomon Islands and has not profited from the extensive mining that has occurred on the island...
, and reopen the controversial copper mine at Panguna
Panguna
Panguna is a town and a copper mine on Bougainville Island, Papua New Guinea. By the end of its operations on May 15, 1989 it was the largest open-cut mine in the world; it was also a major catalyst in the unrest in Bougainville in the 1970s and 1980s.- See also :* History of Bougainville*...
. While Singirok still refused to deal with Spicer, Haiveta invited him to visit the country and make an assessment of the situation. He did so in December 1996, and received US$250,000 as a result. He estimated that Sandline mercenaries could do the job for a total of US$36 million.
The official dealings begin
On 8 January 1997, Tim Spicer had his first meeting with Prime Minister Chan. Spicer succeeded in convincing Chan that Sandline could assist in retaking Bougainville before the upcoming elections. They agreed that Sandline would provide 44 special forces personnel, mainly British, South African and Australian, to fight alongside PNGDF personnel. The US$36 million was never voted upon by the full Cabinet of Parliament, but instead by the secretive National Security Council. Half was to be paid up front, with the other half to follow after completion of the mission. The money came from cutbacks to a number of ministries, including the education and health departments .Sandline had subcontracted most of its crew for the Bougainville mission through Executive Outcomes
Executive Outcomes
Executive Outcomes was a private military company founded in South Africa by former Lieutenant-Colonel of the South African Defence Force Eeben Barlow in 1989. It later became part of the South African-based holding company Strategic Resource Corporation....
, a South African mercenary provider. The first mercenaries arrived on an Air Niugini
Air Niugini
Air Niugini Limited is the national airline of Papua New Guinea, based in Air Niugini House on the property of Jacksons International Airport, Port Moresby. It operates a domestic network from Port Moresby and Lae, as well as international services in Asia, Oceania, and Australia. Its main base is...
flight from Singapore on 7 February 1997. After a week, a total of 44 had arrived, 8 from the UK, 5 from Australia and the rest from South Africa.
In the meantime, a series of meetings were undertaken between Deputy Prime Minister Haiveta, Tim Spicer, and several other figures, with regard to buying out CRA's
Rio Tinto Group
The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, British-Australian, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London and Melbourne. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the...
stake in Bougainville Copper Limited, the owner of the Panguna mine, which was at the heart of the Bougainville conflict. On 19 February 1997, Prime Minister Chan mentioned to Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was Foreign Minister of Australia from March 1996 to December 2007, the longest-serving in Australian history...
that Papua New Guinea was bringing in mercenaries for "training purposes". Downer condemned the move, and was particularly opposed to their use on Bougainville. On 10 February, the move was leaked to The Australian
The Australian
The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....
newspaper.
The affair becomes public
The immediate public stir in Australia was larger than Chan had expected. While it briefly moved the Papua New Guinean people behind the idea, the international furore also hardened the dislike that Jerry Singirok had for the Sandline deal. By the time he returned from a visit to the Philippines on 27 February, his mind was made up. He condemned the government for leaving him, as head of the PNGDF, out of the loop, and condemned Spicer for having more access to the government than he did. Over the next week, he made plans for Operation Rausim Kwik (pidgin for 'get rid of them quickly'). On 8 March, he asked Major Enuma to command the operation. Enuma agreed.Over the next few days, the Australian government tried in vain to persuade the Papua New Guinean government not to proceed with the mercenary deal. On the night of 16 March 1997, the revolt began. By the time the night was over, the entire band of Sandline mercenaries had been disarmed and arrested. Prime Minister Chan did not find out until the next morning. That morning, Singirok accused Prime Minister Chan, Defence Minister Ijape, and Deputy Prime Minister Haiveta of corruption, and gave them 48 hours to resign. He also fiercely denied allegations that he was aiming to take power himself. Chan refused to resign, and the same day, sacked Singirok as Commander of the PNGDF, replacing him with controversial Colonel Alfred Aikung.
The weapons, including military small arms, piston engined light aircraft and helicopter gunships were taken to Australia
until the government of PNG arranged for the material to be returned to Sandline.
The military standoff begins
Singirok stated that he would accept the decision, and urged his soldiers to support his replacement. Chan stated to the media that Singirok had been neutralised and would be arrested. He also alleged that Singirok had attempted a coup, but had not had his men behind him. However, Chan's optimism turned out to be premature. The soldiers at the central Murray BarracksMurray Barracks
Murray Barracks was a barracks for British Army in Admiralty of Central in Hong Kong. It was named after Sir George Murray, the Master-General of the Ordnance at the time of construction.-Location:...
began to disobey orders, and police units had to be flown in from outside of the capital, Port Moresby
Port Moresby
Port Moresby , or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea . It is located on the shores of the Gulf of Papua, on the southeastern coast of the island of New Guinea, which made it a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942–43...
. Two days later, a boycott of classes began at the University of Papua New Guinea
University of Papua New Guinea
The University of Papua New Guinea was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired into higher education in Papua New Guinea...
, in support of Singirok. Crowds of civilians blocked the roads around the barracks, and bomb hoaxes closed down government departments. Chan still continued to insist that he was in complete control, and accused Singirok of being in a plot to manipulate the price of copper. The following day, the protests turned somewhat violent, and some looting began. The situation grew darker for Chan when the Governor-General, Sir Wiwa Korowi
Wiwa Korowi
Sir Wiwa Korowi, GCMG was the sixth Governor-General of Papua New Guinea.Sir Wiwa is from the Southern Highlands. He was a member of the Nationalist Party and was voted by the Parliament to the position of Governor-General on November 18, 1991, to fill the position which Serei Eri had vacated...
, took out a newspaper advertisement that also accused the government of widespread corruption. Another two days saw Port Moresby almost grind to a halt.
The protests continued to get larger with each day, and the police and the army faced off against each other, with the army under Major Enuma's strict orders to hold their positions and the police in no hurry to confront the army. Enuma also instructed the army to halt the looting. The Australian government sent emissaries to Port Moresby, and threatened to withdraw financial aid altogether if the Sandline deal was not cancelled. Reluctantly, Chan cancelled the deal and announced an inquiry. While this meant that Singirok and Enuma had accomplished one of their major goals, they continued to demand the resignation of Chan, Ijape and Haiveta. On 21 March, all Sandline's personnel, with the exception of Tim Spicer
Tim Spicer
Timothy Simon Spicer, OBE is a British former army officer, current CEO of the private security company Aegis Defence Services. He is a veteran of the Falklands War and also served with the British Army in Northern Ireland...
, who remained to give evidence to the enquiry, were withdrawn.
Despite having cancelled the Sandline contract, the security situation continued to slip further out of the government's control. The Acting Commander, Alfred Aikung was attacked and his vehicle was burnt. Aikung subsequently fled into hiding fearing for his life. Chan considered asking for foreign military intervention, but Aikung advised him against it. Speaker of Parliament and former Prime Minister Sir Rabbie Namaliu
Rabbie Namaliu
Sir Rabbie Langanai Namaliu, GCL, CSM, KCMG is a Papua New Guinea politician. He served as the fourth Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea from 1988 to 1992 as leader of the Pangu Party...
met with Chan and Singirok, and advised the latter that two of his demands had been met, and that Chan would resign only at the wish of Parliament.
Prime Minister Chan resigns
The next session of Parliament began on 25 March, and Bill SkateBill Skate
Sir William Jack Skate KCMG was a Papua New Guinea politician and statesman. He was the son of an Australian father and a native PNG mother...
, then Governor of Port Moresby, was ready to bring forth a motion calling on Chan to resign. On the night of 24 March, several members deserted the Chan government, and the capital once again came to a standstill. Soldiers at Murray Barracks demanded to be able to march on the Parliament, but Enuma steadfastly refused. Large crowds began to gather outside the Parliament. The police attempted to stop students from reaching the Parliament, but the soldiers escorted them in. Inside, Sir Michael Somare
Michael Somare
Sir Michael Thomas Somare, GCL, GCMG, CH, CF, KStJ, MP was Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea from 2002 to 2011; he had previously been Prime Minister from independence in 1975 until 1980 and again from 1982 until 1985. Somare's first two terms were as a member of the Pangu Party, but he then...
amended Skate's motion, so it only called upon Chan to step down for the period of the inquiry. A fierce debate ensued, with the Parliament divided. In the end, Chan realised that his position was hopeless. He spread the word inside the Parliament that if members supported him, he would resign anyway. The Parliament voted against the motion.
The crowd outside, upon hearing of the news, began to riot. They had not heard of Chan's plan to resign anyway. The police advised the parliamentarians that they should stay inside the Parliament, as they could not be safely evacuated. Chan and Haiveta had to be disguised and then raced out in a police car. All through the night, the standoff continued, with the parliamentarians fearing that they would be arrested. Though many soldiers continued to demand to be able to move in on the building, Enuma resisted his own soldiers, and convinced them to remain in their positions. He also addressed the Parliament, assuring them that there was not going to be a military coup. Enuma attempted to order the soldiers back to barracks and the crowds to disperse, but they remained until Parliament began sitting again the following morning. That morning, Chan resigned, and sacked both Ijape and Haiveta.
Bill Skate, who had moved the motion against Chan, replaced him as Prime Minister on 22 July after a Federal election, (Giheno took on the acting PM role up until 2 June, where Chan was again raised to the PM for his last six weeks of term). Under Skate, the peace process continued, and within a year after the Sandline affair, a treaty was in place, which , remains intact. A number of inquiries into the affair followed. Jerry Singirok was reappointed to his previous position as head of the PNGDF in 1998, but was dismissed again in 2000 over charges stemming from the incident. However, in April 2004, Singirok was formally acquitted of all charges laid against him over the events of February and March 1997.