The Bougainville Referendum Commission has extended the enrolment of Bougainvilleans living outside of Bougainville in PNG until July 8th.
Chief Referendum Officer, Mauricio Claudio, said high voter turnout and delays in delivering enrolment forms to the more remote provinces meant more time was needed to make sure every eligible Bougainvillean had the chance to enrol.
“We have been delighted by the response of Bougainvilleans, both in Bougainville and outside Bougainville, who have never enrolled to vote in an election before, now putting their name on the referendum roll,” Claudio said.
“Thank you to everyone across the country who have been active in traveling to their provincial PNG Electoral Commission office to enrol – you now have until Monday 8 July to be included in this phase two of enrolment.
“We know that conducting this historic referendum across Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, and now Solomon Islands and Australia is new and would have its challenges - but our commitment remains to work within the given laws, resources and timeline to ensure Bougainvilleans can have the opportunity to vote.”
In Bougainville, Ward Recorders are handing in their phase two enrolment forms. All forms will be quality checked before data entry begins to develop a preliminary referendum roll.
In August, the preliminary roll will be publicly displayed in all wards for people to check their name, spelling and complete an enrolment form if needed.
For anyone in Bougainville not yet on the roll, please go to your BRC regional centre in Buka, Arawa and Buin – check if you are already on the roll, and if not, fill out an enrolment form.
In August, the Commission will conduct phase three of creating the referendum roll, which will be the last chance to enrol.
“We will be doing mass awareness before then to tell people how this short stage will work,” the Chief Referendum Officer assured. “People will have one last chance to check their name, correct misspellings and add their name if it’s still not on the roll.”
The Bougainville Referendum Commission is also mobilising international teams to travel to Solomon Islands and Australia to enroll Bougainvilleans living in Honiara, Gizo, Brisbane and Cairns.
“We encourage people to keep active in getting themselves informed about vital parts of the referendum, including the current voter registration process.”
(Bougainvilleans in Port Moresby enrolling during the AORB Day)