EMBARGOED AGAINST
DELI VERY ,4,, AtJST LAUAA
PRIME MINISTER
SPEECH BY THE PRIME MINISTER AT A PARLIAMENTARY DINNER IN
HONOUR OF H. E. SIR KINGSTON DIBELA, GCMG, K. St. J, GOVERNORGENERAL
OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA -26 FEBRUARY 1985
YOUR EXCELLENCY, MEMBERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC CORPS,
HONOURABLE MEMBERS.
IAM PLEASED TO WELCOME YOUR EXCELLENCY To AUSTRALIA, ON
BEHALF OF ALL THE PARLIAMENTARIANS HERE AND ON BEHALF OF
ALL AUSTRALIANS. I DO SO IN THE SURE KNOWLEDGE THAT
PAPUA NEW GUINEA HAS A SPECIAL PLACE IN THE HEARTS OF
ALL AUSTRALIANS. THE UNFORCED AND UNDIVIDED AFFECTION
WHICH AUSTRALIANS AND PAPUA NEW GUINEANS HAVE MAINTAINED
FOR EACH OTHER IS THE SUREST DEMONSTRATION OF THE
SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN OUR TWO COUNTRIES.
VISITS SUCH AS YOURS CONSOLIDATE AND CONFIRM WHAT WE ALL
KNOW TO BE TRUE THAT RELATIONS BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND
PAPUA NEW GUINEA ARE UNIQUELY CLOSE AND UNIQUELY FIRM.
IT IS EASY TO TAKE FOR GRANTED THE POSITIVE ASPECTS OF
THE RELATIONSHIP-BUT WE SHOULD NOT FORGET THAT
DEALINGS BETWEEN AUSTRALIA AND PAPUA NEW GUINEA
CONSTITUTE AN IMPORTANT A14D R~ ARE SUCCESS STORY.
WE IN THE LABOR PARTY * REGARD OUR OWN ROLE IN THE PROCESS
AS ONE OF OUR MAJOR HISTORICAL ACHIEVEMENTS. THE ROLE
OF THE COALITION PARTIES IN THAT SAME PROCESS,
PARTICULARLY TOWARDS THE END OF THE COLONIAL PERIOD,
ALSO BROUGHT GREAT CREDIT ON AUSTRALIAPAPUA
NEW GUINEA'S MOVEMENT TOWARDS INDEPENDENCE WAS
ACHIEVED WITHOUT VIOLENCE, WITHOUT RECRIMINATIONS,
WITHOUT INSTABILITY. SINCE INDEPENDENCE PAPUA NEW
GUINEA AND AUSTRALIA HAVE BEEN FORMALLY SEPARATED BUT
HAVE CONTINUED TO MOVE TOGETHER. WE DO NOT ALWAYS
AGREE, BUT WE ALWAYS RESPECT AND TRUST EACH OTHER-BO0TH
COUNTRIES RECOGNISE THAT THE OTHER IS A PARTNER OF
PERMANENT IMPORTANCE-WE HAVE NO INTENTION OF ALLOWING
ANY ASPECT OF THAT SITUATION TO CHANGEORGANISING
OUR RELATIONSHIP HAS ENTAILED A LOT OF GIVE
AND TAKE ON BOTH SIDES-MUTUAL RESPECT HAS MADE THOSE
PRAGMATIC ADJUSTMENTS EASY TO HANDLE-WE WILL CONTINUE
TO SHARE MANY INTERESTS IN OUR NEIGHBOURHOOD.
2.
THE BASIS FOR THAT RELATIONSHIP REMAINS THE WAY IN-WHICH
DE-COLONISATION WAS HANDLED-WE WERE ALL PROUD AT THE
TIME OF THE WAY THAT PROCESS WAS CARRIED OUT SMOOTHLY,
EFFICIENTLY, QUICKLY AND PEACEFULLY-WE CAN STILL BE
PROUD-
WE WILL CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC
DIMENSIONS OF OUR RELATIONSHIP-WE WILL CONTINUE TO
WORK TOGETHER IN MEETINGS OF COMMONWEALTH COUNTRIES AND
THE SOUTH PACIFIC FORUM.
OUR RELATIONSHIP IS NOT SIMPLY A MATTER OF SENTIMENT AND
TRADITION ALTHOUGH THE MUTUAL SENTIMENTS ARE NATURAL
AND WARM, AND THE TRADITIONS BINDING US TOGETHER ARE
LONG AND HONOURABLE-MY FIRST OVERSEAS VISIT AS PRIME
MINISTER WAS TO PAPUA NEW GUINEA. THAT WAS A NATURAL
AND FITTING ORDERING OF PRIORITIES-I RETURNED TO PORT
MORESBY LAST AUGUST TO ATTEND A REGIONAL COMMONWEALTH
MEETING AND TO SHARE IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA'S CELEBRATIONS
FOR THE OPENING OF THE NEW PARLIAMENT BUILDING-I WILL
BE BACK AGAIN-IN THE MEANTIME MR HAYDEN HAS ONLY
RECENTLY COMPLETED ANOTHER SIGNIFICANT VISIT. AIMED AT
FURTHER BROADENING AND DEEPENING THE LINKS BETWEEN USAs
YOU KNOW, MR HAYDEN VISITED PAPUA NEW GUINEA
PRINCIPALLY TO RATIFY THE TORRES STRAIT TREATY. I REFER
SPECIFICALLY TO THAT TREATY BECAUSE IT REPRESENTS A
LANDMARK IN OUR RELATIONS-THE TREATY HAS BEEN DRAFTED
LABORIOUSLY AND CAREFULLY-IT CONSTITUTES A PRACTICAL
RESOLUTION OF COMPLICATED AND CONTENTIOUS ISSUES. IT
PROVIDES APPROPRIATE RE-ASSURANCES FOR THE TRADITIONAL
INHABITANTS OF THE TORRES STRAIT ISLANDS-
4~.
BOTH GOVERNMENTS HAVE INDICATED THEIR DETERMINATION TO
FULFIL ALL THEIR OBLIGATIONS TO THE ISLANDERS-MORE
GENERALLY, BOTH COUNTRIES HAVE SHOWN THEIR ABILITY AND
THEIR INTENTION TO WORK THROUGH A SET OF DIFFICULT
QUESTIONS, TO DEAL HARMONIOUSLY AND EFFECTIVELY WITH
EACH OTHER, AND TO STRENGTHEN OUR RELATIONSHIP BY DOING
so. THAT IS A MODEL WHICH WE SHOULD NOT AND WILL NOT
FORGETOUR RELATIONSHIP HAS NOT STOOD STILL-WE HAVE GONE WELL
PAST DE-COLONISATION. MOREOVER WE IN AUSTRALIA HAVE
NEVER BEEN INTERESTED IN NEO-COLONIALism. THOSE ASPECTS
OF AUSTRALIAN EXPERIENCE WHICH HAVE FOUND A RELEVANCE IN
PAPUA NEW GUINEA HAVE BEEN APLIED BECAUSE THE PAPUA NEW
GUINEA GOVERNMENT AND PEOPLE FOUND THEM TO BE FITTINGNOT
BECAUSE AUSTRALIA WANTED TO IMPOSE THEM.
NOR WILL AUSTRALIA INTRUDE INTO AREAS PROPERLY THE
RESPONSIBILITY OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA. THE IRIAN JAYA
BORDER ISSUE, FOR EXAMPLE, IS ONE TO BE MANAGED BETWEEN
PAPUA NEW GUINEA AND INDONESIAIWISH
TO REFER TO TWO SPECIFIC FACETS OF OUR SHARED
EXPERIENCE IN WHICH YOU, YOUR EXCELLENCY, HAVE PLAYED A
PARTICULAR ROLE. THE FIRST IS THE WESTMINSTER SYSTEM,
FROM WHICH WE BOTH DRAW HEAVILY-YOU KNOW THAT SYSTEM
WELL AS A FORMER SPEAKER OF YOUR PARLIAMENT.
BOTH AUSTRALIA AND PAPUA NEW GUINEA HAVE ADAPTED THE
SYSTEM AS DEVELOPED AT WESTMINSTER ITSELF. BUT BOTH OF
US HAVE ALSO FOUND THAT SYSTEM TO BE A BUTTRESS FOR THE
DEMOCRATIC VALUES AND HABITS WHICH WE SHARE, AND A
SAFEGUARD FOR THE LIBERTIES WE CHERISHTHE
SECOND ASPECT OF SHARED EXPERIENCE CONCERNS
EDUCATION, A FIELD WITH WHICH YOU ARE MOST FAMILIAR FROM
YOUR YEARS OF WORK AS A TEACHER. A LOT OF AUSTRALIAN
TEACHERS HAVE IN THE PAST LIVED AND WORKED IN PAPUA NEW
GUINEA. A LOT OF PAPUA NEW GUINEA TEACHERS HAVE
RECEIVED SOME OF THEIR SECONDARY AND TERTIARY EDUCATION
IN AUSTRALIA.
THESE PEOPLE TO PEOPLE LINKS ARE VITAL AND MUST
CONTINUE. OUR EDUCATION SYSTEMS AND PRIORITIES WILL
NECESSARILY DIVERGE SOMEWHAT. BUT WE BOTH KNOW THAT
EDUCATION IN AUSTRALIA AS IN PAPUA NEW GUINEA IS
FUNDAMENTAL. FOR NATION BUILDING-WE BOTH KNOW THAT
EDUCATION SYSTEMS MUST TEACH ACCURATELY AND THOROUGHLY
WHAT OUR NATIONS IPLACE IN THE WORLD MEANS AND HOW WE
MIGHT BOTH WORK WITH EACH OTHERTHAT
MEANS GIVING A PARTICULAR PRIORITY TO TEACHING HOW
OUR TWO COUNTRIES HAVE DEALT WITH EACH OTHER. THIS, I
BELIEVE, IS AN IMPORTANT WAY OF CONTINUING AND
CONFIRMING THE TIES BETWEEN US-
6. A
ICOULD GO ON TALKING ABOUT OUR CRUCIAL AID
RELATIONSHIP, OUR PRACTICAL NETWORKS* OF DEFENCE
CO-OPERATION, OUR IMPORTANT ECONOMIC RELATIONSHIP, OUR
EXCHANGES IN MOST FIELDS OF GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION;
THAT GROUND WOULD BE FAMILIAR TO YOU-I WOULD RATHER
CONCLUDE, HOWEVER BY REITERATING A POINT I MADE EARLIER,
THAT WE SHOULD NOT TAKE THE WARMTH AND DEPTH OF OUR
RELATIONSHIP FOR GRANTED. THE RELATIONSHIP REFLECTS
WELL ON BOTH COUNTRIES AND PROMISES BOTH OF US A GREAT
DEAL. IHOPE AND EXPECT THAT YOUR VISIT, YOUR EXCELLENCY, WILL
BE NOT ONLY A CAUSE FOR RE-AFFIRMATION OF OUR TIES BUT A
SPUR TO FURTHER DEVELOPMENT OF OUR RELATIONS-