In-House in Papua New Guinea

"Papua New Guinea is the world's most unlikely and complex democracy. The first marvel is that it is there after 26 years of excitement, turbulence, agony and occasional ecstasy. The second marvel is that it is working through a demanding program of reform of economic and political institutions. Papua New Guinea still has its democracy because enough Papua New Guineans of goodwill were there to defend important institutions, to risk defeat in pushing for reform against the odds, and to give support to leaders seeking to caulk the holes in what has sometimes seemed to be a sinking ship. Some of these people at any time were in parliament and the political leadership of government, some in the bureaucracy, some in business, and some, the largest numbers, spread widely through civil society. Sir Anthony Siaguru - Tony - has been all of these people in all of these places. He has been the decathlon gold medallist in Papua New Guinea's national life since independence, earning points in each of many events. These essays have been selected from the weekly Post-Courier newspaper columns and from speeches in Tony's years outside official life, mostly in the late 1980s and after the return from London in 1996. This is a highly readable volume, clearly written, spiced with good humor and with points of reference drawn from the experience of the whole of humanity. It leaves the reader with a sense that, despite the difficulties, democracy is the most natural as well as the best of all the imperfect ways of organizing the affairs of humanity in Papua New Guinea." Ross Garnaut