Thursday, April 21, 2011

PNG’s Strategic Culture and Its Policy Implications in 21st Century

By Francis Hualupmomi
Since Sandline crises followed by 9/11 PNG’s strategic culture remains static. The prime purpose of the state as a “rational strategic man” in its strategic interaction under the organizing principle of anarchy is to maximize strategic choices in consistent with national preferences – guarantee our security and survival in the new multipolar world.
There is compelling plausible why PNG’s strategic culture remains unchanged and under question or threat. To analyze this strategic scenario, we need to understand PNG’s strategic culture. Three questions worth answering: What is PNG’s strategic culture? Has it changed? What are the policy implications?
Strategic culture is a new concept in strategic studies and international relations borrowed from anthropology, sociology and less on psychology and historicism to understand how culture shapes strategic behavior and outlook of states under different conditions. Understanding strategic culture helps the state to rationally maximize strategic choices. This concept is complex but it can be defined within its own context. For this article’s sake, I refer to it as “shared beliefs, attitudes, ideas, norms, traditions that shape strategic behavior of state over a period of time under given conditions”. In this logic culture is not static but is dynamic, i.e. culture changes under different conditions. Hence, I define PNG’s strategic culture as benign in nature yet remain static despite rapid changes in internal and international environment.
There are several factors which physically and psychologically shape strategic culture: economy, geography and demography, history, culture, generational change, and technology. For instance, through the lens of strategic culture influenced by these factors we can calculate why Australia and PNG Defence Force behave differently or why Australian Defence Force is more advanced than PNG Defence Force? Premise on this definition, I attempt to define factors shaping PNG’s strategic culture in post-Sandline Crises.
First, economy is the most important element in shaping states behavior and outlook. Economy fundamentally influence the way actors may behave in its strategic interaction given the size of its economic power. For instance, a simple analogy of state as an abstraction of a rich man may use his economic power to want what he wants. State A with an economic power can use coercive force or non-coercive (normative) force over state B to want what it wants in consistent with its national preferences. Economy and military cannot be separated. Economic power is the function of military power projection. With economic wealth a state can project strategic capacity and capability. Without economic power a state is weak. For instance, China’s military modernization is shaped by its current economic power. PNG’s economic power can also shape its future strategic outlook in the region.
Second, geography and demography plays an important role in shaping strategic behavior of a state. The size, climate, topography, resources, ethnicity and population are important elements in considering strategic choices. PNG is the second biggest island apart from Australia in the Western Pacific theatre. Its location is geo-strategically and geo-economically important given its territorial and maritime positioning and abundance of natural resources. The nature of geography proliferate internal and external threats such as natural disasters, terrorism, transnational crimes and power competition over resources by big powers and complex ethnic rivalries. Population in a given state also makes a difference in which a state may behave towards others in its strategic interaction. PNG although small in population in world index, may still be the largest populated state in the region apart from Australia. Population determines the strategic capacity of the state.
Third, historical factor helps shape strategic behavior. History constitutes a continuous process of past social events which may explain why a state as a rational strategic man behaves over time, space and distance. For instance, East Sepik and Highlanders are warriors based on historical evidence. The pattern of historical social facts can help us understand why Sepiks and Highlanders are aggressive. Such behavior can shape individual perceptions in leadership to maximize national interests given strategic choices. For instance, based on historical evidence we can calculate why Somare is nationalistic and anti-colonialist or why Chan mishandle Sandline crises.
More over, cultural norms, beliefs and traditions also shape strategic behavior of state. PNG has a complex unique culture with more than 800 different languages and ethnicities which play an important role in shaping its strategic interaction in the international system. For instance, PNG’s strategic behavior can be defined as benign rather than benevolent due to its Melanesia culture of communalism, although some form of real-politic or realism metaphor exist in tribal warfare in different regions. Hence, we can argue that PNG’s non-intervention and non-interference in Fiji coup signifies how cultural norms constraint her strategic reaction. Culture therefore is a strategic constraint in PNG’s strategic interaction in regional politics. Culture also plays an important role in external relations. For instance, by understanding China’s culture we can calculate whether China is or will be a threat in the region. Cultural Identity can also help us construct our common enemy or friend in international relations, for instance, China and US threat perception in the region.

Nevertheless, generational change is also considered as important. Perceptions change behaviors with time, space and distance. The way generation thinks and act will affect strategic behavior. New ideas and culture shift perceptions of leaders, elites and ordinary populous in shaping strategic behavior and outlook. We expect clash of strategic thinking between orthodox western based thinkers and new eastern based thinkers, especially Chinese thinkers in PNG (Machiavellian versus Tsen Su). For instance, PNG’s strategic interaction highly depends on new ideas, norms or culture hence we may expect different future outcome, whether PNG will become a realist (belligerent) or liberalist (benign) power in the region is still unknown, let alone time, space and distance foretold.
Finally, since the end of Cold War with the triumph of capitalism over socialism (communism) the world has undergone a complex new wave of globalization driven by transportation, information and communication technology and innovation in technologies. The world has shrunk into a small porous international community. Technology has socially constructed an imagine community of real and potential threats never experienced before, for instance, terrorism, transnational crimes, cyber crime, spread of biological disease, etc. The new reconfigured international security community has extremely shaped how states develop new highly sophisticated strategic capability to project power with precision and speed in military modernization in what is called as “star wars”. PNG located within this new system is more vulnerable to real and potential threats.
Given these strategic factors, I argue that PNG’s strategic culture although has remained static since post-Sandline Crises is more benign due to its own strategic cultural constraint. The state has played a minimal role in securitizing threats perception with changes in internal and international environments. PNG’s strategic culture is still too conservative. What it needs though is to seize the current economic opportunity to rebuild its new strategic culture by modernizing defence force, police force and other state security apparatus. Defence doctrines and structure should be redefined with shift in global power from West to East and diffusion of global power from state to non-state actors driven by globalization and civic demands.
In summative, the internal and external threats suggest new strategic thinking in shaping PNG’s strategic outlook. The lost pride in strategic culture must be restored in a smart fashion. A new-look smart PNGDF supported by well advanced police and intelligence or strategic research organizations is the prime target if PNG is to attain a “harmonious, wealthy, wise and smart nation by 2050”.

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