Bougainville overwhelmingly votes to seek independence from Papua New Guinea in an important post-conflict referendum.
Some 181,067 Bougainvilleans — or 85 per cent of people enrolled — votedPNG and Bougainville are expected to hold negotiations to find a way forwardThe historic referendum was carried out over a two-week period, with people asked if they wanted independence or greater autonomy from Papua New Guinea.brought an end to a bloody civil war in the regionUp to 20,000 people, or about 10 per cent of Bougainville's population, died during the Bougainville Civil War, fought from 1988 to 1998.
Decades after the region's bloody civil conflict, the people of Bougainville will today start casting their votes in a referendum on whether they should seek independence from Papua New Guinea.Negotiations between PNG and Bougainville about the road forward will now begin and could continue for years, andBougainville Referendum Commission chair Bertie Ahern said yesterday the vote was conducted"in an environment that was conducive to a free, fair and credible process".
The scheduled two weeks of voting ended earlier than expected, with many Bougainvilleans casting their vote just days after polling stations opened.
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