land royalties
p. 71 · Read in the full issue
What the Minister said about land royalties
From a Port Moresby correspondent The Commonwealth Govern ment has agreed to pass into law the controversial P-NG House of
Assembly bills guaranteeing
native landowners a five per
cent, share of royalties payable
from mining operations on their
land.
THE Minister for Territories, Mr.
C. E. Barnes, announced this in Canberra and Port Moresby on Feb ruary 6. It is an important decision, md means that P-NG has been granted a principle of ownership not illowed to landowners within Aus ralia. The principle will apply only ;o native held land.
The controversial amendments to he bill were moved in the House ast November by Mr. Paul Lapun, nember for Bougainville ( PIM, Jan., >. 7).
Mr, Barnes said the amending irdinances, provided that landowners n the territory would receive five per rent, of royalties payable from min ng operations on their land. Such layments would be in addition to irovisions already made for the pay nent of occupation fees for land iccupied for prospecting or mining imposes and also for the payment if compensation to landowners for my damage done to the land in the rourse of prospecting or mining.
Best interests
Mr. Barnes said the Government itill believed that it would be in the jest interests of the territory, for all oyalties payable under the Mining Ordinances to be paid into the central Ferritory Treasury. Nevertheless the jovernment accepted that the sub itance of the amending ordinances vas strongly influenced by the raditions and customs of the ndigenous people in relation to land.
The amendments did not place in ioubt the general principle that nineral resources belong to the leople as a whole.
The Government, in the light of he views expressed in the course of he House debate, would accept the übstance of the amendments on the ?asis that the proportion of royalty
payable to landowners would not be subsequently increased beyond the five per cent, now proposed, and looked to the House to give its full backing to the Administration in ensuring that the Bougainville copper project, and any other major mining projects in the territory, could go ahead.
Mr. Barnes said royalties would not be available to people holding Administration leases (the terms of which express reserved mineral rights to the Administration) or owners of freehold land granted before Aus tralian administration of Papua or New Guinea.