Michael Somare
Sir Michael Thomas Somare was a Papua New Guinean politician. Widely called the "father of the nation", he was the first Prime Minister after independence. At the time of his death, Somare was also the longest-serving prime minister, having been in office for 17 years over three separate terms: from 1975 to 1980; from 1982 to 1985; and from 2002 to 2011. His political career spanned from 1968 until his retirement in 2017. Besides serving as PM, he was minister of foreign affairs, leader of the opposition and governor of East Sepik Province.
He served in a variety of positions. His base was not primarily in political parties but in East Sepik Province, the area that elected him. During his political career he was a member of the House of Assembly and after independence in 1975 the National parliament for the East Sepik Provincial – later open – seat. He was the first chief minister at the end of colonial rule. Thereafter he became the first Prime Minister after independence from 1975 to 1980. He returned to the office of Prime Minister from 1982 to 1985, and his longest stint in the position was from 2002 to 2011. He also served as Cabinet Minister: he was minister of foreign affairs from 1988 to 1992; from 1999 to 2001 he was subsequently minister of foreign affairs, minister of mining and Bougainville, minister of foreign affairs and Bougainville affairs. He was leader of the opposition from 1968 to 1972, from 1980 to 1982, and thereafter in that position from 1985 to 1988, from 1992 to 1993, and finally from 2001 to 2002. When the new position of political governor as head of the provincial administration and representative MP was created in 1995, Somare took up the job. He was governor of East Sepik from 1995 until 1999. After the last election that he contended, he again became Governor of East Sepik. He was a founding member of the Pangu Party which led PNG into independence in 1975. He resigned from the Pangu Party and became an independent in 1988. He rejoined the Pangu Party in 1994 but was sacked as a leader in the following year. He was then asked to join and lead the National Alliance Party. In 2017 he left politics and also the National Alliance Party.
While Somare was in March 2011 hospitalised in Singapore, a majority of parliamentarians declared the post of Prime Minister vacant. Peter O'Neill was the new prime minister. This was contested. On 12 December 2011, the Supreme Court of Papua New Guinea ordered that Somare be reinstated as Prime Minister, ruling that O'Neill had not been lawfully appointed. This event triggered the 2011–12 Papua New Guinean constitutional crisis. Following a decisive victory for O'Neill in the 2012 general election, Somare expressed support for him, thereby ending the crisis and forming a coalition government. However, this truce did not last. When Somare announced his departure from politics, he made a blistering attack on O'Neill.
Early life
Somare was the son of Ludwig Somare Sana and Kambe Somare. Ludwig Somare was a policeman, rising to the rank of sergeant. Having taught himself to read and write, he was subsequently active in encouraging formation of small businesses and co-operatives, founding the Angoram Co-operative Society which he chaired from 1961 until 1967. In all, Ludwig Somare Sana had four wives and six children, of whom Somare was the eldest.Born in Rabaul in a village called Rapikid, where his father was then stationed, Somare grew up in his family village of Karau in the Murik Lakes district of East Sepik Province. Somare's earliest education was in a Japanese-run primary school at Karau during World War II where he learned to read, write and count in Japanese. Meanwhile, Somare's father was in hiding and fear of his life from the Japanese in Rabaul, but he remembers the Japanese with affection. Somare's earliest overseas trips, first as a parliamentarian and then as Prime Minister, were to Japan.
From 1946 Somare attended Boram Primary School, then Dregerhafen Education Centre and Sogeri High School, graduating with a Leaving Certificate issued on behalf of the Australian state of Victoria in 1957. This was a teaching qualification at the time, and he then taught at several primary and secondary schools, returning to Sogeri High School for further training from 1962 to 1963.
Sepik identity
Somare liked to present himself in a lap-lap instead of in trousers. Lap laps are not traditional in the sense of pre-colonial and is therefore a declaration of neo traditionalism. That is also evident in his autobiography that he published at independence. He was stressing his Sepik identity, despite being born in Rabaul on the islands and far from the Sepik, but he portrayed his time as a child in Sepik villages as decisive in forming his personality. His father brought him there to the village of Karau in the Murik Lakes region when Somare's mother separated from him. Somare paid elaborate attention to his initiation and the role of matrilineal descent is also evident there. ”Our mother’s brothers" receive for example the initiates after their ordeal. Yet the people of the Sepik do not enforce descent rules rigorously. Somare claimed also the honorific title of Sana in his father's line. This title asserts descent from the founder of the clan and is a designation as peacemaker. The title of Sana bestowed for example on the bearer the duty of organising a meal for the enemies before a fight. Sepik societies are no longer expected to make war: a historical element is thus given meaning in a new context. In order to obtain the title he was approved for admission to the elders of the clan before he had reached the required minimum age.This may be less controversial than Somare portrayed. Leadership in the Sepik is not based on descent but on a consensus among the elders and reputation is decisive. Anthropological literature argues that Western Polynesian societies are not particularly centralised and although there is a big man attitude to leadership there is a continuous jockeying for position among those who want to be big man. Political ideology in PNG refers to this as the Melanesian way. This background can be seen as a formative influence on Somare's political practice. PNG has not been dominated by one particular leader whose power base was in a centralised institution like a party or the army. Political life in Papua New Guinea is fragmented and decentralised: party formation is weak. Above all, Papua New Guinea has maintained a Westminster style democracy and leaders moved aside when they lost parliamentary majorities. At independence Somare insisted on a ministerial rather than a presidential system. In his valedictory parliamentary speech, he urged young leaders to learn what the Westminster system of government is meant to achieve.
Early political career
Somare stressed his background in the small emerging modern sector of Papua New Guinea rather than his immersion in Sepik culture in two long interviews at the end of his career.Later on, he was one of the 35 Papua New Guineans who went through a crash course that gave entry to the civil service. He was as a result also one of the few Papua New Guineans with a command of the English language. Therefore, he was qualified as a translator for the Legislative Council. This was a white-dominated institution but it gave him insight into the game of politics. He also became a radio announcer in Wewak, East Sepik. That was a great opportunity to make his name known in the area that elected him throughout his long career consistently as their MP. It also brought the ire of his supervisors because of his critical comments and they transferred him on administrative duties to Port Moresby. There he became part of the small group of educated nationalists that had the nickname of the bully beef club. This group protested already early on against the racist nature of colonial rule. Somare maintained that he was already in 1962 in favour of independence. He was in Port Moresby one of the founding members in 1967 of the Papua and Niugini Union party. He stood for election when opportunities opened up for native Papua New Guineans to enter the National Assembly in 1968 and he was one of the eight Pangu candidates who were successful. He embarked in politics practising a judicious mixture of opposition to and co-optation by the Australian government. Pangu opted in 1968 for the opposition rather than having seats in government. From that position they consistently attacked the racist nature of colonial rule as they had also done outside parliament. Somare was leader of the opposition but he was also a member of the Constitutional Planning Committee preparing for independence. He was despite his radical position also a moderate. He argued for example for a period of internal self government. That was granted in 1973. Foreign affairs and defence remained an Australian responsibility until full independence was granted two years later.
Somare was particularly adept at steering a clear way among various conflicting forces. There were for example those who advocated that Papua New Guinea should become the seventh state in the Australian Federation. More important were the centrifugal forces in the country. There was a rival political party with mass following in the highlands, the Compass party. A separatist movement was pleading for separate independence for Papua apart from New Guinea. In Bougainville, there were forces claiming independence. There were conflicts among the Tolai in East New Britain. The People's Progress Party under the leadership of Julius Chan rather than Pangu was important on the islands. Somare succeeded in bringing all these centrifugal forces together at independence. Somare's advocacy of independence was radical as compared to the other parties who were much more in favour of the status quo. It was particularly important to sway the opinion of Julius Chan who was not keen on immediate independence. When that succeeded a coalition government between Pangu and the PPP became possible.
Some forces on the Australian side were also not in favour of independence for PNG, but it was definitely not the case that there was a veritable independence struggle. There was some protest against colonial practices, for example, a civil service strike pleading for equal treatment of PNG personnel with Australian personnel or protest against discriminatory practices. However, there was a fair amount of co-optation on the way to independence, especially after Gough Whitlam became prime minister of Australia. Since there has been access to the Australian archives from this period it was clear that Australia wanted to get rid of PNG already early on. The Australian government was keen to let the complexities of ruling PNG go. The possibility to declare Papua New Guinea an Australian state in the federation and making all inhabitants Australians was always rejected by Australia.
Michael Somare's role in the independence struggle reflects therefore the values he advocated throughout his career, as a builder of consensus and a politician whose main mission was avoiding or reconciling conflicts.