Special dance by Bougainville students of Polytechnic Institute of Lae during the 6th anniversary this in June this year. Picture by Samuel Toposona

Marking six years of political autonomy was milestone for the Autonomous Region of Bougainville. This historic event also saw a colourful display of contemporary dances from different areas in the

Pitalan Five Key group performing. Picture by Samuel Toposona

region.

Despite walking six years across on its own, Bougainville has also enjoyed significant support by the national government of Papua New Guinea through funding and other forms of support.

With the new autonomous government development is slowly taking place for the people of Bougainville. There are plans to reopen the Copper Mine in Panguna with just over ten years remaining.

Caption: Title of the dance is ‘Pik i brukim banis’ ( fence broken into by pigs) as illustrated by the students in the top left picture.

It was worth the celebrations for these Bougainvillean community in Lae while other Bougainvilleans in Papua New Guinea also joined in a similar fashion to mark six years in working towards full political and economical autonomy in the region.