PACIFIC CONSTITUTIONS RESEARCH NETWORK CONFERENCE: 23-25 NOVEMBER 2016, PORT VILA VANUATU

POWERPOINT AND PAPERS THAT HAVE BEEN MADE AVAILABLE TO THE CONFERENCE ORGANISERS ARE LINKED HERE. RECORDINGS OF MOST PRESENTATIONS WERE MADE AND ARE LINKED HERE AS PODCASTS. APOLOGIES BUT THERE WERE SOME RECORDING FAILURES.

Wednesday 23 November

Opening

Eric Colvin (Head of University of the South Pacific School of Law) Podcast

Kalkot Mataskelekele (Vanuatu Ombudsman and former President of the Republic of Vanuatu) Podcast

Eric Kwa (Secretary PNG Law Reform Commission) Powerpoint Podcast

Constitutions & custom

Miranda Forsyth (ANU) Custom authorities inside and outside of constitutions in the Pacific islands today Powerpoint Podcast Paper

Lucy Mathew (PNGC&LRC) The role of customary authorities in the Constitution compared to customary roles: Manus case study Powerpoint Podcast

Lalotoa Mulitalo (Samoa) Custom and the Constitution of Samoa Powerpoint Podcast

Moses Morssen (USP/AUF) Customary law as a source of law in Vanuatu Powerpoint Podcast

Constitutions and religion

Lee-Anne Sackett (USP) Trends in limiting fundamental rights and freedoms in the South Pacific Powerpoint No podcast

Corrina Ituaso-Lafaai (Tuvalu AG Office) Tuvalu's current legal framework concerning restrictions on religious bodies Powerpoint Podcast

Tom White (Otago) The status of 'religion' in Fijian constitutional analysis No powerpoint Podcast

Thursday 24 November

Constitutional reform processes

Ted Wolfers (Woll) Constitutional development in Papua New Guinea No powerpoint No podcast

Divine Waiti (RMI Parliament) The Marshall Islands Constitutional Convention Powerpoint No podcast

Romitesh Kant (USP) Seeking a democratic path? Constitution-making in post-coup Fiji Powerpoint No podcast

Paul Carnegie (USP) Systemic reform or reformed continuity? Memo from Indonesia No powerpoint No podcast

Constitutional reform and political instability

Bal Kama (ANU) The Role of the Courts in Political Stability: A case study of Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea Powerpoint Podcast

Jon Fraenkel (VUW) The fate of political party and government strengthening laws in Western Melanesia Powerpoint Podcast

Siobhan McDonnell (ANU) A bridge between two legal systems: Constitutional reform in Vanuatu Powerpoint Podcast

The place of courts

Netty Daemuna (PNGC&LRC) The need for reviewing and monitoring of Supreme Court judgments in Papua New Guinea's judiciary Powerpoint Podcast

Anna Dziedzic (UMelb) Designing constitutions for foreign judges: The Pacific experience Powerpoint Podcast

Michael Efi (PNG Ombudsman Commission) Liberty of persons under the Papua New Guinea Constitution: a case study of the Supreme Court decision on the Manus Island Detention Centre Powerpoint Podcast

Friday 25 November

Constitutions, rights and international relations

Claire Slatter (USP) Protecting sovereignty in Pacific Island states: the role of parliaments in approving binding trade agreements No powerpoint Podcast Paper

Pierre Jean Bordahandy (USP) The colonial legal heritage of Vanuatu and its implications in terms of fundamental rights Powerpoint Podcast

David Naylor (USP) Constitutional and international protections against torture: Freedom from torture in Fiji from 2009-2013 Powerpoint Podcast

Checks & balances

Robert Buchanan (World Bank/PASAI) The constitutional importance of legislatures and supreme audit institutions in achieving good governance outcomes for Pacific island countries Powerpoint Podcast Paper

Philip Kanairara (SILRC) The legislature encroaching into the executive function, a challenge to the operation of separation of powers doctrine in Solomon Islands Powerpoint Podcast

Vergil Narokobi (PNG Ombudsman Commission) Understanding Papua New Guinea's complex constitutional leadership accountability mechanisms: a discussion on Re Public Prosecutor's Power to Request the Chief Justice to Appoint a Leadership Tribunal [2008] PGSC 48 Powerpoint Podcast

Anita Jowitt (USP) Courts as a check on parliament? Case studies on the suspension of members of parliament Powerpoint Podcast