2001 Bougainville Peace Agreement ceremony in Arawa Photo: RNZ Walter Zweifel
Members of former warring groups in Bougainville are holding a national reconcilation in Papua New Guinea's East New Britain today.
The reconciliation in Kokopo will involve former Bougainvillean combatants and members of the PNG Defence Force, police and prison service.
The Minister For Peace Agreement Implementation, Albert Punghau, said the event was initiated by the Bougainville veterans, who came together after Bougainville rebel and resistance fighters reconciled three months ago.
"Some Bougainvilleans were also in the Papua New Guinea military force which came and fought on the island with their counterpart brothers, so they also need to reconcile with the Bougainville resistance and the BRA [Bougainville Revolutionary Army]. We are trying to lay the foundation for a good and prosperous and also peaceful referendum," he said.
