Bougainville: Our Island, Our Fight (1998)

The Island of Bougainville is located in the Solomon Islands, but is politically considered a territory of Papua New Guinea. For the last ten years the people of this Island have fought a guerrilla war with salvaged and recovered World War II weaponry against government forces supplied with more modern equipment. The government has instituted a a complete economic blockade of the island in addition to an extended campaign of aerial bombardment and violence against its civilian population. Bougainville - "Our Island, Our Fight" depicts the world of Bougainville residents as they leave their traditional coastal society to take refuge from a dangerous military conflict. An explanation of the conflict's causes reveals that the installation of an open cut copper mine at Panguna had initially offered promise of economic prosperity for the region. Bougainville residents eventually determined that the mine project entailed significant ecological damage and social exploitation. Through interviews staged above the now-derelict mine, "Bougainvillians" speak about their initial recognition of the consequences of this mine, the poisoning of their water supply and the degradation of farmlands and jungle habitat. Later scenes show the difficulties which Bouganville residents face due to the naval blockade of their island. The blockade prevents them from receiving medical and humanitarian aid, leading to declining health and appearance of leprosy (though some supplies are smuggled from the Solomon Islands). "Our Island, Our Fight" does violate the Papua New Guinea government blockade. The film was made at great personal risk to its director, Wayne Coles-Janess who had to be smuggled onto and off the island. It includes the first and only television interview with the BRA President Francis Ona and the defecting Papua New Guinea officer, BRA General Sam Kouna. In the many international film festivals in which it has featured, it has provoked a strong response amongst audiences as diverse as Turkey, the United States, Brazil, and Tunisia It has also been used as a resource by Amnesty International, the United Nations, the Australian Army and the Australian Parliament