Chair of the Papua New Guinea (PNG) Hunters, Stan Joyce, says the Australian government’s $600 million (US$373 million) agreement to fund a top-tier National Rugby League (NRL) side in PNG could be game-changing, but admits the challenges are plentiful.
The announcement last year by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his PNG counterpart James Marape taps into the country’s national fervour for rugby league, in the hopes it can bind Australia and PNG closer and keep Beijing out.
The 10-year deal also includes a clause for Australia to pull support if PNG is deemed to fall too close to Beijing’s orbit, a move likely to keep any future PNG leader in check given the likelihood of riots and violence across the country in response to the deal falling over.
Murder, Unrest in Port Moresby
On one front, Joyce—who spent 14 years leading South Pacific Brewery, the largest brewer in PNG—admits there is a vast amount of work ahead for the NRL to set up a team in Port Moresby, which according to one survey, has the 12th highest murder rate in the world among cities.“There are elements of the society that are very, very, very difficult at times, you know, even like [recently] there was a murder somewhere out in one of the suburbs, and that’s caused ethnic tension between two different groups of people,” Joyce told The Epoch Times.
“And you know, one chops up another guy, another guy goes and chops up another couple, and away it goes.”
The former chairman says PNG is still “very rough and ready, very raw.”
“It’s not the cleanest place in the world, but as I said, I’ve lived there for 43 years, so it can’t be the most dangerous city in the world, but it’s not in the most 10 top liveable cities in the world, either.”
At the same time, Joyce says things can often be “simplistic” and setting a goal for the nation to work towards by 2028 would be an “amazing benchmark.”
“You know, 50 years of independence, there hasn’t been a lot of positive news,” he said, regarding the efforts by the PNG government to develop economic opportunities.
“[A rugby league team would be] an amazing health check on a lot of other things in the community which will have to be rectified in order to do this.”
Joyce said the island nation would benefit immensely from the deal.
A New Pathway for Youths
The establishment of an NRL side means youths will now have somewhere to train, and girls will also be able to aspire to playing the game.At present, there is nothing much to give people hope in PNG, but looking forward to a future in sport is “highly aspirational,” Joyce says.
There are also plans to build a village living area for families of players.
The village will house around 100 employees and family members who will be able to live, work and play in a relaxed environment. Big tax breaks will be offered by the PNG authorities to attract players, recruitment staff, and coaches.
“Hopefully we'll be announcing a very exciting coach to be involved,” Joyce said.
If CCP Establishes Foothold, Australia’s Defence Budget Skyrockets
Locking Beijing out of PNG is a strategic move on Australia’s behalf, and one that would ultimately save money.“I was at a dinner with a very senior Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade official in Moresby a couple of months back, who’s basically been involved with all of this,” Joyce said.
“And you know, the way he put it to me was, well, if, if China builds a base in PNG, the cost of running the Australian Defence Force goes up 10-fold.
“I think we spend about $33 billion a year on defence here. That’s a lot of money. So $600 million for a football team is pretty cheap chips when it comes down to it.”
His comments were echoed by defence analyst Michael Shoebridge, who compared the $60 million a year commitment to Australia’s defence procurement problems.
The Deal
The government’s $600 million deal comes with the condition that PNG not enter into security or defence ties with Beijing.Australia would also contribute $200 million to supporting national security priorities in PNG.
Under the agreement, Australia and PNG can request assistance from each other in case of security threats.
The deal was described by Prime Minister Albanese as “historic,” a partnership that can build strategic and economic ties.
Albanese’s PNG counterpart, James Marape, has said Australia is his nation’s first choice for security partnership.
“That doesn’t stop us from relating with any nation, especially our Asian neighbours,” he said.
“We relate with China, for instance, a great trading partner, a great bilateral partner.
History in PNG
Prior to Joyce’s role as chair of South Pacific Brewery—now owned by Heineken—he was the business’s managing director from 2007-19.His days at the brewer began in 1995, when he got on board as a marketing manager.
Further cementing his connection to PNG, he serves as a chairman for City Pharmacy Group, Mainland Holdings and Westpac Banking Corporation.
Joyce is a permanent resident of PNG and goes “up there every now and then,” also having children from the region.
