SYDNEY, Australia – The most important regional body of the Pacific Islands is on the verge of collapse after a dispute over the election of a new leader led to the country Palau abandoning the organization and announcing that she embassy withdrawn from Fiji.
Other Micronesian countries could follow Palau from the group, the Pacific Islands Forum, which could hamper the momentum in tackling climate change. The forum has long been the region’s megaphone and cries out for action on the world stage, as those living on hundreds of islands are flooded by rising seas and overwhelmed by more catastrophic storms.
“They have said in the past that the relationship in the Pacific is unique – it’s like a family,” said Jonathan Pryke, director of the Pacific Islands program at the Lowy Institute, an independent think tank in Sydney. . “Letting a family member leave completely is just a very bad sign.”
The forum was established in 1971 as a representative body for the South Pacific, and was subsequently expanded to the North Pacific in 1999, and divisions within the 18-nation organization (now 17 and shrinking) are not uncommon. . Fiji was expelled from the group after a coup in 2009, which returned in 2015. Six years ago, a dispute over who would lead the group as secretary-general was only resolved after a walk and a long conversation among a handful of influential leaders.
But this year, due to the pandemic, it was not possible. Covid kept the Pacific family apart: the annual forum was held on Zoom, and the dozens of personal meetings that usually precede the gathering did not take place.
Mr. Pryke said it appears that lack of connection has contributed to the explosion of long-simmering frustrations.
In general, the countries of Micronesia in the North Pacific – with smaller populations and economies – complained that they were singled out by the larger countries in the south, including Fiji, New Zealand and Australia.
To help manage this, the forum has developed a tradition of changing the position of Secretary-General among leaders of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.
This week, the protocol broke up into a heated free-for-all.
A flood of candidates appeared in the early votes, and Thursday’s final election elevated former Cook Islands prime minister Henry Puna to the role of secretary general. In simple terms, it was Micronesia’s turn, but its candidate, Gerald Zackios, the ambassador of the Marshall Islands to the United States, lost the final count by one vote.
In public, the forum said its decision was driven by strong support for Mr. Puna.
Surangel Whipps Jr., Palau’s president, described the result as an act of contempt.
“The process of appointing the Secretary-General has clearly indicated to the Republic of Palau that unity, regionalism and the ‘Pacific Way’ no longer lead the forum,” he said.
Mr. Praises from the Lowy Institute call the absence of consensus “a step backwards” for the group, at a time when unity is especially important.
“The Pacific is facing severe existential crises, of which climate change is the most important,” he said. “They were worldwide vocal advocates, far beyond their size and stature, and that’s largely due to the unity you see in the Pacific – which is apparently rapidly declining.”