Leo Hannett

Leo Hannett (17 July 1941 – 18 June 2018) was a Bougainvillean and Black Power activist, playwright, journalist and politician who played a significant role in Papua New Guinea's anti-colonial struggle and movements for the autonomy and independence of Bougainville. He was regarded as Bougainville's "most important secessionist leader of the 1970s."

Leo Hannett CMG
Premier, North Solomons Province
In office 1980–1984
Member, National Parliament of Papua New Guinea
In office 21 February 2006 – 2007
Member, Bougainville House of Representatives
In office 2010–2015
Personal details
Born	(1941-07-17)17 July 1941 Nissan Island, Territory of New Guinea
Died	18 June 2018(2018-06-18) (aged 76)
Spouse	Elizabeth Korinai Hannett
Children	4
Education	University of Papua New Guinea University of Hawaiʻi

Early life

Hannett was born on 17 July 1941 in Nissan Island within the Australian-administered Territory of New Guinea, shortly before the Japanese occupation of New Guinea. Evacuated to the Solomon Islands during World War Two, he returned with his father and two brothers, his mother having died while in the Solomons.

Politics

Hannett was one of a group of Bougainvillean students living in the territorial capital of Port Moresby who in 1968 called for a referendum to be held on Bougainville's future. He served as the group's spokesman and issued a statement requesting a vote by 1970 "to decide whether Bougainville should be independent, should unite with the Solomon Islands to constitute a separate unit, or should remain with PNG".

In 1969, the Australia Party sponsored Hannett to undertake a four-state speaking tour in Australia, at the invitation of party leader Reg Turnbull. Interviewed by The Sydney Morning Herald he declared himself committed to non-violence and cited his influences as James Baldwin, Tom Mboya, Dag Hammarskjöld and Mahatma Gandhi.

In 1973, PNG chief minister Michael Somare asked Hannett to chair the Bougainville Special Political Committee. The committee comprised 36 local leaders and was tasked with gauging public opinion on Bougainville's political future, with a report to be delivered to the Constitutional Planning Committee chaired by John Momis. Hannett made clandestine visits to Honiara around the same time, exploring the possibility of Bougainville's union with the Solomon Islands.

In September 1975, following dissatisfaction with proposals for PNG's new constitution related to the distribution of profits from the Panguna mine, Hannett joined with others in Bougainville in proclaiming the unilateral declaration of independence of the Republic of the North Solomons.

In 2006, Hannett was elected to the national parliament in a by-election for the provincial seat of Bougainville. He served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister and Chair of the Public Accounts Committee. As the sitting member, he unsuccessfully sought re-election at the 2007 general election, coming second with 23.04% of the vote.

Between 2010 and 2015, Hannett served in two ministries in the Autonomous Bougainville Government: Minister of Police and Minister for Public Services.

Following his death, the National Parliament observed a moment of silence in respect on 17 July 2018.

References

Sources

News media

• Balderstone, David (20 September 1975). "Talk of treason on Bougainville". The Bulletin. Vol. 97, no. 4975. Sydney, N.S.W: John Haynes and J.F. Archibald. pp. 29–30. ISSN 0007-4039. Retrieved 14 December 2023 – via Trove.
• "'Hannett, a true son of Bougainville'". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 10 July 2018. Archived from the original on 14 December 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
• "Hannett hits at leaders". Papua New Guinea Post-Courier. 31 March 1981. p. 12. Retrieved 15 December 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
• Kathoa, Tom (12 September 2010). "Hannett's No Gun Era". New Dawn FM 89.9. Archived from the original on 24 September 2010. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
• Laukai, Aloysius (21 May 2013). "President Appoints New Minister". New Dawn FM 89.9. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
• "Leo Hannett becomes new regional MP for Bougainville". Radio New Zealand. 30 January 2006. Archived from the original on 21 May 2022. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
• Momis, John L. "Death of Leo Hannett - a Bougainville leader of the middle way". PNG Attitude. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
• Pritchard, Chris (10 August 1969). "A poor guerilla but a good priest". Sydney Morning Herald – via newspapers.com.

Academic materials

• Hermkens, Anna-Karina (November 2013). "Like Moses Who Led His People to the Promised Land: Nation- and State-Building in Bougainville". Oceania. 83 (3): 192–207. doi:10.1002/ocea.5020.
• Devlin, Matthew (2019). Decentralization Without Disintegration: Provincial Government in Papua New Guinea, 1972-1985 (PDF) (Report). Innovation for Successful Societies, Princeton University. p. 14. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 August 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2024.
• Laracy, Hugh (1991). "Bougainville secessionism". Journal de la Société des Océanistes. 92 (1): 53–59. doi:10.3406/jso.1991.2896.
• Swan, Quito (10 May 2022). Pasifika Black: Oceania, Anti-colonialism, and the African World. NYU Press. ISBN 978-1-4798-8508-4.
• Wesley-Smith, Terence (1992). "Development and Crisis in Bougainville A Bibliographic Essay". The Contemporary Pacific. 4 (2): 408–432. ISSN 1043-898X. JSTOR 23699910.

Primary sources

• "Bougainville Provincial". Papua New Guinea Electoral Commission. 23 July 2007. Archived from the original on 23 August 2007. Retrieved 18 December 2023.
• "Hansard - Deaths of Former Members, Statement by the Acting Speaker" (PDF). National Parliament of Papua New Guinea. 17 July 2018. p. 2. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 June 2023.