Bougainville mining legislation mastermind, Anthony Regan, alleges mine-opposition a foreign plot

As the Mining Bill is debated before Bougainville’s parliament, which will deliver up Panguna to Rio Tinto, and potentially turn the rest of Bougainville into an industrial wasteland, the Bill’s mastermind and principal author, AusAID pundit and chief Rio Tinto apologist Anthony Regan, has declared all opposition to mining an ‘outsider’ plot – quite the irony given Regan, and his Australian troupe, i.e. outsiders, currently stand accused of hoisting a neo-colonial piece of legislation on Bougainville, i.e a plot.

Talking to Radio New Zealand, Regan claims only large-scale mining can support autonomy or independence on Bougainville. And the only viable large-scale mine in the medium term, he claims, is Panguna –

If it [Panguna] doesn’t reopen, then the options for Bougainville become more difficult because although there are other highly prospective areas, the average time for proving a prospective area that hasn’t been explored, proving and then getting established is fifteen to thirty years. Whereas the Panguna mine could reopen within six or seven years.

When asked by Radio New Zealand if he sees agriculture as a sustainable alternative, Regan (now a self-appointed economics expert!!), in a slap in the face to many hard-working and long suffering Bougainvillean agriculturalists, alleges calls for sustainable agriculture is a foreign-plot steered by the ‘activist community’,

So agriculture, contrary to what a lot of outside observers think, is a difficult one and brings with it many problems of its own in terms of land pressures.  Bougainville’s population has almost tripled in the last twenty years and land pressures are already very great. Land being locked up in cocoa plantations of one kind or another, both small-scale and large, puts incredible pressure on land availability for gardens … Outside commentators, especially from the activist community, who say there are obvious other ways of getting a sustainable economy in  Bougainville have yet to establish the viability of any alternative model unfortunately.

By ‘outside’ activists, does Regan mean MP for Central Bougainville, Jimmy Miringtoro (see here on Mine Watch), James Rutana (see here on YouTube) or the many other Bougainvillean commentators (see here on Mine Watch).

Get out more Mr Regan, the ‘kanakas’ can think for themselves without outsiders pulling their strings! Although we understand why you might think otherwise …

The lawyer-come-agronomist Regan concludes his insulting interview with a plug for the company he has helped deliver Panguna too through the new mining bill –

The majority of people in the public forums that the Bougainville government has held have wanted the mine to reopen and have wanted Rio Tinto, BCL, as the devil they know that accepts that it did some things wrong and wants to do something about it, they say they want the devil they know rather than a new devil that won’t take any responsibility perhaps.

There you have it. Those calling for sustainable development through agriculture are foreign activists, while according to Regan the grass roots only have eyes for Rio Tinto.

And why would we doubt the words of a man who has publicly defended Rio Tinto against accusations of war crimes, is on the payroll of a company which calls Rio Tinto one of its major clients, and who has been paid a ‘mere’ K680,000+ drafting the mine bill.