UNDP pushes political party systems for Pacific region [1]
Thursday, September 21, 2017 - 22:29. Updated on Friday, September 22, 2017 - 19:24.
A push for the development of political parties in democratic societies in the Pacific by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) was the focus of a dialogue held this week in Momi Bay, Fiji where over 40 representatives from the Pacific region attended including Tonga.
The Regional Pacific Party Dialogue was organized by the UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji and The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (KAS), a political foundation from the Federal Republic of Germany, with funding support from the Australian and New Zealand Governments.
The dialogue also aimed to give participants a deeper understanding of democracy in the Pacific in the context of the role political parties play where citizens have the opportunity of taking part in a process that affects their lives.
UNDP Office in Fiji Country Director and Head of Pacific Regional Policy and Programme, Bakhodir Burkhanov said that while the UNDP has traditionally supported two key political institutions; parliaments, and electoral management bodies, it now sees the need to “support the development of a third political institution – political parties”.
“Political parties are a conduit between citizens and civil society and the decision-making bodies such as Government and Parliament.”
While there are a variety of party-based electoral systems and political parties in the Pacific region, issues are arising and Burkhanov says political parties should aspire to some basic principals.
As an example, in several Melanesian countries, a growing number of parties are contesting elections causing the political party scene to be fragmented. In an attempt to regulate the increase of parties, legislation has been developed to ensure they meet certain standards before being able to register and contest elections.
Vision needed
Burkhanov said political parties need to be “more than just a temporary vehicle for the promotion of the interests of one political leader or a small group”.
“Parties need to have a vision and ideas that lift them above self-interest and short-term financial gains. Parties must be a permanent, broad and inclusive network that looks to the long-term, national interests of a country.”
Beatrice Gorawantschy, Director Regional Programme Australia and Pacific for Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung said “political parties and democracy are inseparable”.
“A regional dialogue on political parties in the South Pacific will further contribute to the development and stabilization of democracy, its fundamental values, processes and institutions.”
The two-day dialogue was attended by political party and electoral management body representatives from Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.
Tonga
Tonga is a Constitutional Monarchy democracy and its political system is not structured to have political parties, and has a different system compared to the western style of democracy.
In 2010, Tonga embarked on a more democratic reform by having more people’s representatives elected into parliament.
Currently, 17 people’s representatives and nine nobles are elected by the people and nobles respectively, giving the people’s representatives the majority in the house. This means Tonga’s Legislature has two different groups of representatives under the same roof.
However, Tonga is still finding its way along the democratic path experiencing what works and what doesn’t.