We Melanesian affiliates of PIANGO call upon the leaders of the MSG to join us in our journey to redefine and rethink the Melanesia we want, an endeavour that requires bold and courageous leadership.
We urge the MSG to convene sub regional wide discussions with civil society organisation, to look beyond trade and profit in the lead up to their 2020 Leaders meeting to listen and learn from how CSOs in the sub region are contributing to sustainable development in their communities.
We specifically call on the MSG to strengthen its support to ensuring that human rights for West Papuan is respected by 2030 by granting full membership to the ULMWP and facilitating its members’ cooperation for transitional support and international advocacy.
As CSOs, we recognise that a region that does not prepare its future generations for leadership is a region that is ill prepared for the challenges for the future, we therefore urge the MSG to invest in next generation leadership capacity enhancement.
This requires consistent support and commitment from Melanesian leaders to ensure that the tribulations of the past does not plague the future of our sub region.
The growing vulnerability of our sub region to the forces of globalisation must bring Melanesians together and MSG stands as the ideal convenor for building solidarity of our national leaders on issues such as the protection of land and natural resources, national sovereign interests in the face of increased influence of international powers and increased inequality.
MSG must remain confident despite the pressures of international powers to stand for and advocate for Melanesian interests and future generations of our countries.
In this endeavour, DSE of the Solomon Islands, FCOSS of Fiji, PEDA of PNG and VANGO of Vanuatu commit to supporting MSG to realise its full responsibilities and obligations to the people of Melanesia.