Land investigation reports way forward

THERE have been many challenges and even court battles in relation to landownership which are more common these days.
Under the Land Act, landownership includes the air space above the land, the surface land itself and what’s under the surface.
Until recently, as PNG moves more rapidly into the extractive industry, landowners have been more vocal on ownership issues from lack of not being recognised by Government authorities for financial benefits (The National, “K1.1 billion awaiting clan vetting” – Nov 12).
This problem is further compounded by internal landowners’ difference among the tribe or clan members themselves.
To properly understand and identify genuine landowners in resource areas, a dynamic and robust mode of landowner identification needs to be used.
One of the modes currently used by the Department of Petroleum is clan vetting.
This mode is a shallow form of landowner identification.
It deals with identifying landowners based on social connectivity of the people in the resource area although land matters are also considered.
With clan vetting, whilst genuine landowners in the impact area are recognised, their distant tribesman or clan’s way outside of a project impact area are highly likely to be stringed into the vetting exercise via social connectivity.
The related clans outside the impact area has been and will be a problem if not recognised as such.
Their claim to ownership is by remote control and clan vetting indirectly encourages that.
Conversely, under clan vetting, genuine landowners can be down played and dominated by remote clan members thus creating ownership issues.
In addition, many traditional dynamics come into play such as past tribal alliance and obligation, matrilineal and patrilineal standings, constructive or physical ownership issues and so forth.
These traditional nitty gritty needs to be identified understood and presented well.
Clan vetting based landowner identification has a lot to improve on. More and as mentioned clan vetting process invites distance clan members who are not necessarily legitimate landowners to be recognised.
It allows illegitimate people to take the queue because clan vetting is based on social connectivity and has the potential to trigger that.
These kinds of landowners are “ hang loose “ landowners.
They cannot be pinned down to a reference point on a project impact land.
Their claim to legitimacy is via social connectivity.
Nothing to do with land use.
Hence, these are the kind of people who will continue to create problems by going into courtrooms with an ill founded and deceptive argument to the detriment of genuine members or vice versa.
On the other hand, land investigation report currently used by the Department of Lands tries to address landownership firstly, by identifying the subject land itself.
This is done by site inspection of the impact area, surveying, taking notes of unique features and so forth.
Based on the land investigation report, landowners are identified against their proof of existence on the impact land within the defined boundary.
Their proof of existence to ownership of a land maybe by way of a house, bush hut, gardens, caves, burial grounds, hunting grounds, water holes etc.
These features pinned them to the land and justify their ownership within the defined demarcation.
These are fundamental proof to landownership.
As mentioned, this mode of identifying landowners is mostly determined by investigation of the impact land first, then move on to identify the landowners within the defined boundary and what they own within.
Land investigation report has the inbuilt mechanism to limit and filter remote illegitimate landowners and pinpoint whether the contesting clans are either in or out of the defined impact area.
Land investigation report challenges proves of real ownership among the contesting clan members by also considering patrilineal and matrilineal issues among others.
In conclusion, I believe recognition of land ownership in resource areas based on land investigation report (LIR) is the way forward.
The Department of Lands and Physical Planning has been using that without any problem.
The Government needs to step in and help the landowners on this matter with the best mode.

Manevi Gene.
Landmark Valuers & Consultants
Goroka