STABLE AND EFFECTIVE PARLIAMENTARY GOVERNANCE FORUM Port Vila, Vanuatu 19-20 May 2005 Conducted by the Offices of the Speaker and the Clerk of Parliament, Vanuatu in Cooperation with the Centre for Democratic Institutions. Introduction This report covers the Stable and Effective Parliamentary Governance Forum, convened in the Parliamentary Chamber in Vanuatu, 19-20 may 2005. Initiated by the Speaker of Parliament, Sam Dan Avock, and the Clerk of Parliament, Lyno Bulekuli dit Saksak, and supported by the Centre for Democratic Institutions (CDI) at the Australian National University, the workshop brought together some 60 participants for two days of training and discussion on the major issues related to parliamentary governance in Vanuatu. Of this number, 30 were members of parliament, the remaining were constituted from the ranks of political staff, the public service, civil society and the Malvatumauri (National Council of Chiefs). This is the first time that CDI’s training in parliamentary procedures has been offered to other stakeholders in good governance, and uniformly the response was positive. Designed primarily to provide training for new members of parliament, the program was designed around a set of technical briefings on the roles and functions of the parliament and its officers. Presentations included: 1 The roles, responsibilities and duties of the Clerk - presented by Lyno Bulekuli dit Saksak The principles of the Westminster system - presented by Resource Team Leader and Acting Director of CDI Dr Michael Morgan The Committee System - presented by Dr Simon Pentanu former Clerk of the PNG Parliament The Role of the Presiding Officer (Speaker) - presented by the Speaker, The Hon, Sam Dan Avock The Legislative Cycle, Legal Drafting, Plain English Drafting, Translation, Questions and Evaluation - presented by Angelyne Saul, Banuatu State Law Office To facilitate dialogue and understanding on the part of all participants, the majority of the workshop was conducted in Bislama, Vanuatu’s lingua franca. During discussion, members outlined the challenges they faced in the prosecution of their duties as elected members of parliament. Participants agreed that the cost of government changes, floor-crossings and party splits has become too expensive to sustain for the country. It has undermined parliamentary functioning and the people of Vanuatu are suffering as a result. The issue of political reform, either through statutory or constitutional amendment was raised. Although there was no agreement as to exactly what kind of reform is needed, participants gave unanimous support to initiating the process of investigating the principles, options and precedents available in the Pacific, and more widely. At the conclusion of the workshop, members issued a joint communiqué on the challenges faced by members of parliament, particularly relating to political instability, and on avenues for encouraging stable and effective parliamentary governance. Rationale The Forum’s intention was to provide key stakeholders in parliamentary governance with improved, comparative knowledge of the goals and benefits of parliamentary structures and processes. It aimed to raise all participants’ 2 awareness of the parliamentary oversight roles of key institutions of parliamentary governance, particularly the offices of the Speaker and the Clerk, the committee system, the Public Accounts Committee, the Committee of the Whole House and individual Members of Parliament. To this end, MP participants were provided with the Vanuatu parliamentary handbook and standing orders, in English or French (depending on their language of education). Using as a vehicle the technical training of MPs, the forum fostered debate about the impediments to effective and stable parliamentary governance in Vanuatu, particularly from political instability occasioned by the breakdown in the major political parties. A major intention of the workshop was to open dialogue on appropriate reforms to the system, given the consistent statements by senior politicians and public servants about the potential dangers of inaction. Thus, this forum was designed to contribute to the improvement of political governance and practice in Vanuatu by focusing on the challenges, opportunities, and benefits of stable and effective parliamentary governance both in theoretical and practical terms. Program Day 1: Thursday 19 May 2005 Time Topic Presenter 0800-830 Registration 0830-0900 Welcome to participants Opening, CDI Official, Speaker of Parliament, Australian High Commissioner Introduction to resource team Introduction to major themes Goals of the workshop Proposed outputs of the workshop 0900-0915 Coffee Break/Discussion 0930-1030 Overview of Parliament, its roles and functions in ensuring stable and Michael Morgan effective governance. Main issues: Political parties, Stability, Effective Government, Accountability, Local Culture 1030-1130 The role of the Clerk and the Clerk’s Office, the function of the standing Lyno Bulekuli dit orders, the order of business, election of the speaker etc Saksak 1130-1330 Lunch 1330-1430 Parliament and Institutions of Accountability – the Parliamentary Simon Pentanu, Committee System (House Committees, Standing Committees) former Clerk of the PNG Parliament 1430-1445 Afternoon Tea 1445-1600 The Role of the Presiding Officer (Speaker) in Providing Stable Sam Dan Avock, Parliamentary Governance Speaker of the Vanuatu Parliament Margaret Reid, former President of the Senate, Australian Federal 3 Parliament Day 2: Friday 20 May 2005 Time Topic Presenter 0800-0900 State Law Office: the Legislative Cycle, Legal Drafting, Plain English Angelyne Saul, SLO Drafting, Translation, Questions and Evaluation 0900-0915 Morning tea 0915-1030 Round table discussion on the role of MPs, strengths, challenges and Two senior MPs. problems – led by two senior MPs. Included will be a discussion of the (One Government representation of women in parliament and what roles are available to & One Opposition) them. 1030-1130 Break Out Sessions 1130-1330 Luncheon 1330-1430 Rapporteurs of Working Groups present their findings 1430-1500 Afternoon Tea 1500-1630 Future Directions: Drafting of a communiqué on Stable and Effective Chaired by Sam Parliamentary Governance Dan Avock, Speaker of Parliament Participants The program was designed to provide induction training for MPs in light of the snap elections held in Vanuatu in July 2004. Sixty people took part in the forum. The core participants therefore were 30 MPs, including 11 newly elected members. The remaining number was constituted from the ranks of political staff, the public service, civil society and the Malvatumauri (National Council of Chiefs). Resource Personnel The Stable and Effective Parliamentary Governance Forum was initiated and hosted by Sam Dan Avock, the Speaker of Parliament and Lyno Bulekuli dit Saksak, the Clerk of the Parliament, and they formed the core of the organising committee of the event. The Speaker chaired sessions throughout the two day workshop and made a presentation to the forum on the roles of the Speaker as established under the Vanuatu Constitution and the Standing Orders. The Clerk presented an overview of his roles and responsibilities in addition to a walk through of the procedures of parliament. Additionally, the Clerk and his staff provided secretariat support throuhgout the workshop. The Resource team provided by CDI was led by Acting Director, Dr Michael G. Morgan, who presented participants with an overview of thhe Westminster system of government, and drew out the major themes of the separation of powers, especially between the Executive and Legislature. He 4 outlined the repsonsibilities of the parliament to make laws, oversee the executive and represent issues of public importance. He then discussed the effects of local culture, demonstrating the ways that the particular conditions of a given country influence the operation of the Westminster system. For Vanuatu, the breakdown in the major political parties has had clear effects on parliamentary processes, destabilising committee work, the office of the Speaker, and the Executive. Simon Pentanu, former Clerk of the Papua New Guinea parliament and a former Ombudsman of PNG, addressed the political and procedural challenges of committee work. This was of particular relevance in Vanuatu because of a proposal currently being considered in Vanuatu to strengthen its institutions through the creation of a set of Standing Committees to vet legislation and facilitate community consultation. Pentanu warned that from the PNG experience it was clear that committees reflect the conditions of the overall parliament and are subject to the same sest of problems, but they provide one of the best frameworks for facilitating community consultation and the expert vetting of bills before the house. Margaret Reid, former President of the Senate, Australian Federal Parliament, presented on the Role of the Presiding Officer (Speaker) in Providing Stable Parliamentary Governance, especially where the presiding officer is a member of the party in power. Drawing on her extensive experience in parliament, Reid argued that partisanship should never be allowed to get in the way of due process. As the presiding officer, she was obliged to keep her door open to all parties in the senate and she tried to avoid compromising her office by becoming involved in her party’s parliamentary strategies. Reid also focused on the particular responsibilities and privileges of being