The New Cannibalism: The International Community and the Problem of Governance Weaknesses in Papua New Guinea

In its first section, this article surveys several understandings of state failure, the doctrine of the Responsibility to Protect (R2P), and proposes a special category of states suffering under specific forms of misgovernance: ruined states – the consequence of ruling elites’ unwillingness or incapacity to guarantee human security (freedom from want and fear) for their citizens. This unwillingness and/or incapacity is described as the new cannibalism – alluding to the devouring of state resources by corrupt and incompetent power elites, resulting in widespread suffering among the peoples they govern. Secondly, the article summarises the decline in governance in Papua New Guinea (PNG) over some three decades of independence, noting the unfolding of high levels of corruption and incapacity in politics and the civil service. This suggests that the new cannibalism is threatening to emerge in PNG today, placing the country on a ruined state trajectory. Third, given that successive governments in PNG have appeared unwilling to accept responsibility for protecting all Papua New Guineans, or have been incapable of doing so (thereby failing to honor the UN-endorsed principle of R2P), the question is asked: Should appropriate representatives of the international community be anticipating a form of intervention? The article concludes by canvassing a mentoring/collaborative engagement strategy.