Exercise PUKPUK 2008 closing ceremony
Thursday 18 September, Murray Barracks Parade Ground
Speech by Deputy Australian High Commissioner to PNG, Ms Ann Harrap
Thank you for the invitation to represent the Australian Government at this, the closing ceremony of Exercise PUKPUK 2008.
This year’s exercise has seen a total of 78 engineers (23 from PNG and 55 from Australia) complete eleven different projects in just over a month– that’s quite an achievement, and one of which you can be justifiably proud.
As most of you know, Exercise Pukpuk is a joint exercise held annually between the Papua New Guinea Defence Force Engineer Battalion, and the Royal Australian Engineers.
Exercise Pukpuk first started in 2003 and has conducted projects at Igam Barracks Lae, Moem Barracks Wewak, the Kiunga Forward Operating Base, Goldie River Training Depot and Taurama Barracks.
Having been in PNG for a few years now, I am particularly pleased to have witnessed three of these previous exercises and I know first hand what a fantastic contribution they can make.
And I know too what an integral part these exercises play in our broader bilateral Defence Cooperation program - which aims to support the PNGDF to maintain a streamlined, affordable and sustainable force.
Exercise PUKPUK
Given the size of Exercise Pukpuk, I just want to take some time to identify some of the key projects that have been completed by our hardworking engineers:
At the Soldiers’ Living-In Accommodation, Exercise PUKPUK has repaired, refurbished and painted 144 individual rooms and made repairs to ablution areas and on the security front.
At the Murray Barracks Chapel, Exercise PUKPUK has repaired, replaced or repainted internal walls, roof and floor tiles, guttering, flooring and lighting.
At the Murray Barracks Communications Centre, Exercise PUKPUK has repaired and replaced sections of damaged roof and ceiling and installed new office partitions for the PNGDF Signal Squadron.
At the Ted Diro School, which was officially opened last week, Exercise PUKPUK made major improvements to ventilation, access and ablutions, completely refurbishing three classrooms in the process.
In addition, Exercise PUKPUK has completed a number of smaller tasks at Murray Barracks, including the construction of a multi-purpose sports area (volleyball/basketball) at the Ted Diro School.
These are all excellent projects - completed on time, within budget, to a high standard and with good spirits - and on behalf of the Australian government I want to congratulate and thank all of those involved in these efforts.
During Exercise PUKPUK, the contingent has been accommodated at Taurama Barracks.
So I also want to thank the Commanding Officer 1st Royal Pacific Islands Regiment Lieutenant Colonel Siale Diro for his hospitality.
And to note that the PUKPUK team did also complete a number of tasks at Taurama Barracks during the exercise, including at the gymnasium, the armoury and the regimental aid post and the Area Theatre Gate.
Now, I don’t think the success of a project can be measured just in terms of dollar figures or hours worked but it is worth noting that the total cost of Exercise PUKPUK was approximately K500 thousand and, in total, the projects took 78 engineers more than 420 working hours to complete.
But I’m sure you’ll all agree it was a job worth doing and a job done well.
PNGDF Infrastructure Refurbishment Project • Of course, Exercise PUKPUK is not the only engineering activity that Australia supported at Murray Barracks this year.
In conjunction with the PNG Defence Force Directorate of Engineers, the Australian Army’s 19 Chief Engineering Works unit conducted the third year of the five phase Barracks Infrastructure Rehabilitation Project.
Through this project, the Australian Government contributes to the ongoing maintenance of PNG facilities.
This program complements the work done by Exercise PUKPUK and this year made a number of improvements to the water and sewerage infrastructure at Murray Barracks, with a particular focus on married quarters for soldiers and their families.
Conclusion
So, I’ve just outlined for you some of the major infrastructure works that have been completed during this year’s exercise.
Of course, these are very visible and obvious to see.
But you know I’m a civilian diplomat – and what would I know about living in a military barracks. The buildings look good to me – but really you guys are the ones to judge – and from all accounts the infrastructure developments have been universally welcomed.
What I know about – as a diplomat – are relationships. And that’s the one thing that I can see from exercise Pukpuk. It’s more than just the bricks and mortar – it’s about cooperation and relationship building between individuals and military units.
It’s about mates – you know Aussies are very big on mateship and I know for Papua New Guineans the wantok is all important. So for me that’s what I see coming out of these joint Australia-PNG military exercises.
A chance to build friendships, cultural understanding and mutual respect between PNG and Australian soldiers.
And from that mutual respect and understanding, can come success whenever PNG and Australian soldiers work together, including in places like the Solomon Islands as part of the Regional Assistance mission there – RAMSI.
The military connection between our two countries is so important – it has historical underpinnings but it is also so vital for our future mutual security in the Asia-Pacific region.
And the military connection also helps to cement the broader bilateral relationship between Australia and PNG.
Sure – we have our ups and downs at the political level. When you get two mature sovereign nations together there are always going to be areas of difference.
But there are also lots of areas of mutual concern which can only be addressed by working together – such as the challenge posed by HIV/Aids and other major health issues, border integrity and the stopping of illegal people movement, addressing significant development issues in a way that ensure citizens of both our countries can maximize their full potential.
As I said, it is so much easier to address these challenges working together and so much easier working together if you know the person you’re dealing with, if you understand how they operate – if you’re friends, mates, wantoks.
So we are very proud to once again conclude a major exercise with our PNG wantoks – one which brings physical improvements to the lives of our PNG mates at both Murray and Taurama barracks – but one which also serves to bring us closer; and to reinforce those strong people-to-people links which are so fundamental to a solid, mutually beneficial bilateral relationship.
It is with great pleasure, therefore, that I look forward to officially handing over all of the completed project sites to Commodore Ilau, commander of the PNGDF.
Background
Exercise Puk Puk 2008 is a joint exercise held annually between the Papua New Guinea Defence Force Engineer Battalion, and the Royal Australian Engineers. In total 78 soldiers are taking part in the exercise, 23 from PNG and 55 from Australia.
By the end of the exercise on 20 September 2008, Exercise Puk Puk will also have demolished two disused school buildings to make way for sports courts, constructed a new toilet block for the school, completely refurbished two blocks of soldiers’ accommodation, built office cubicles in the PNGDF Communications Centre and renovated St Paul’s Chapel at Murray Barracks.
The exercise is designed to support the transfer of engineering skills and knowledge between participants, while at the same time enhancing PNGDF capability through vital infrastructure. Cooperation and relationship building are important to the success of Exercise Puk Puk, which builds friendships, cultural understanding and mutual respect between PNG and Australian soldiers. This cooperation leads to success whenever PNG and Australian soldiers work together, particularly in the Regional Assistance Mission in the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), and maintains both our strong military history and our future as security partners in the South Pacific region.
The soldiers are led by Major Michael Brereton, the Officer Commanding and his Squadron Sergeant Major, Warrant Officer Class Two Andrew Stokey. Both men have served in the South Pacific and worked with the PNGDF during training and on operations. In total 78 soldiers are taking part in the exercise, with 23 of those coming from the PNGDF Engineer Battalion at Igam Barracks, Lae. The school was identified by the Commanding Officer of Murray Barracks, Lieutenant Colonel Karl Hayai, as being a project of integral importance to the Murray Barracks community.
The contingent is currently being housed and well cared for at Taurama Barracks by Lieutenant Colonel Siale Diro and the members of the 1st Royal Pacific Island Regiment. To date they have been exposed to a range of PNG cultural activities, such as a Mu Mu, Sing Sing groups and traditional warrior challenge at the gates of Murray Barracks during the opening ceremony.
Ex PP08 is an opportunity for Combat Engineers and Tradesmen from two nations to practice their individual crafts and achieve a common goal. This classroom is a product of teamwork, compatibility, and mateship, qualities which will serve both forces well when they come together on future operations.