Vanuatu: Broken Dreams - Ethical and Governing Issues

This article discusses the ethical and governing issues faced by the locals of Vanuatu due to the negligence of tourists. It talks about the corruption prevailing in the country and how it affects the life of the islanders. The article suggests recommendations to avoid such issues in the future.

Running head: VANUATU
Vanuatu: broken dreams
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Ethical and governing issues
The key ethical and governing issues, which can be identified from Vanuatu’s Broken
Dream video mainly revolved around tourists’ negligence towards the locals of Vanuatu. It was
expected that the cruise ships, which were visiting the island should have been beneficial for the
local residents but it is not actually the reality. On ethical grounds, it can be hoped that the
emergence of tourists in the island might allow free flow of dollars but the truth was not as shiny
as it seemed.
Pacific islands are mostly dependent on tourism and they look forward to the entry of
tourists as they might be bestowed with ample resources (Dinnen and Walton 2016). This
particular video is based on the confused people of Wala in Vanuatu who have no clue where the
large amount of dollars is moving. Thousands of dollars are taken as a landing fee but the
islanders did not get a glimpse of those. Dateline took the responsibility of enquiring the
islanders about the little benefits and the facilities meant for the tourists are remaining restricted
to them.
Peter George was responsible for collecting information on behalf of Dateline and
focused on the role played by the politicians of the countries in neglecting the islanders. The
irony was that the politicians experienced a life of total luxury but the locals of the island led
their life in poverty. Corruption was considered as a major ethical and governing issue in this
regard. However, it was required to counter corruption and the fight has begun. The struggle to
combat corruption was getting popular but there is a question lurking around the corner of this
issue (Forsyth and Batley 2016). Will the locals be able to win the battle of turning the economy
in their favor?

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PO cruises’ ethical act
Peter George took a recent voyage in a cruise to find out about the issues that are faced
by the local islanders. On his trip, he found out that the emergence of foreign cruise is a routine
activity in the Pacific islands but that does not change the routine life of the local residents.
According to the video, the Prime Minister has also mentioned that corruption in the tourism
industry is beyond control. This video has considered the situation of Vanuatu where there are
numerous visitors coming to the island. When PO started sailing to the island, it seemed that a
gold mine has opened for the islanders (Forsyth 2015).
It was the right of the Wala inhabitants to get the major share of the landing and
anchoring charge, which would amount to thousands of dollars. They were supposed to make
money from selling souvenirs and trinkets and the most popular intoxicating brew in the entire
pacific region. PO was an exceptional case as it had contributed more than $800,000 for the
benefits of the local people (Rose-Ackerman and Palifka 2016). This amount was meant for
enhancing the facilities of the people of Wala and other two islands that are visited by PO.
PO was not an exception that acted ethically for the benefits of the islanders. Wala had
experienced the advantages in the form of cyclone- proof public toilet block with the provision
of running water and septic system mainly for the tourists. However, the facilities were not
meant for the local inhabitants and they were used by the visitors only. The money earned from
the tourists were not utilized properly from the initial days and the only development was in the
form of providing basic water facility. Their dreams of living a privileged life have shattered
with the incoming of foreign dollars (Nimbtik 2016).

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Individual responsible for rectification
The chief of different communities residing in the island should be responsible for
rectifying the issues. This is because they are accountable for providing a better livelihood to the
islanders. As there is no specific person for using the money, therefore the individual chief of
communities must come together for this holistic approach. The community chiefs must take the
initiative for providing sufficient space to the residents but they seemed very casual about it. For
instance, one of the individuals mentioned that he has to stay in a tiny room with his entire
family including two sons and nine grandchildren.
Moreover, the individuals of the community should be united to protest against this
corruption. They should complain about the negligence and ill treatment that they are facing.
They should draw the attention of the chiefs towards misuse of the foreign dollars offered by the
tourists. The chief of the community should escalate the issue to the local governing body for
taking proper action. On the contrary, the condition of corruption was so worse that the Prime
Minister was also unable to take any action even after being aware of the same. It is unlikely that
the political body will be interested in coming up with any kind of probable solution.
On a final consideration, the NGOs working for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islanders community can be approached for looking into this severe issue. They will be the
appropriate persons, as they will not be biased while coming up with a solution to this issue.
Being a non- profitable organization, there is minimum scope of falling into the chain of
corruption, which is most likely on the top hierarchy of politics. They will be suitable for
providing the islanders with the adequate basic amenities of daily life by finding a resolution to
corruption.

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Government approach
There were different ways by which the government of Vanuatu and Australia could have
taken a step forward against corruption but they seemed to be very careless about the issue. The
primary reason behind this is that most of the politicians were involved in the trap of corruption.
The foreign dollars that were earned from the visitors resulted in providing a luxurious life to
them whereas the poor and the helpless continued to live in poverty. Dateline has taken up a
unique approach to bring this issue into limelight for a probable solution (Walton and Dinnen
2016).
The government could have stopped corruption by implementing legal policies. As the
Prime Minister was aware of the persisting corruption in the country, then he could warn and
impose penalty on his ministers if anyone was caught for being corrupted. At this point, the
behavior of the government was extremely unethical and they did not do their work on a moral
ground. Neither did they take any step to improve the life of the islanders nor did they let the
foreign dollars do any good. They were extremely selfish in consuming the resources by
themselves rather than bestowing the distressed people with those.
The demands of the islanders were not something that was unable to achieve. They had
only wanted those facilities, which were provided to the tourists. It was justified on their part as
the tourists were only seasonal visitors but the local people had to stay there for 365 days. The
government could easily build a proper infrastructure for providing the residents with a healthy
and hygienic life. They could probe into the matter of corruption to find out its roots and pluck in
the basic level. Total negligence and carelessness of the government was responsible for the
unwanted growth of this issue (van Trease 2017).

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Recommendations
This negligence issue can be avoided in the future by employing ethical people on the
resolution of this matter. It needs to be ensured that they act on a moral ground with the intention
of improving the life of the unfortunate people. There should be a change in the political system
in a good and positive manner. The higher authorities need to understand that there is no one
apart from them who will help the islanders. There should be an end to the traditional culture of
corruption, which can be done only with the improved mentality of the governing bodies.
It can be further recommended that an NGO should immediately be given the charge of
looking after the welfare of this island. It will be effective as NGOs have a particular way of
working and reaching out to the poorer sections of the society. With their innovative approach,
they will be able to find out the real cause as well as find an effective solution to avoid future
issues. The islanders will feel free to open up in front of the NGO people rather than complaining
to the governing bodies.
It is not possible to eradicate corruption from every nook and corner but it can be
suggested that one small step towards a brighter future is always considered as a fresh beginning.
Punishment and penalty should be incorporated in every sector so that the corrupted people get
scared to commit such crime in the future. The politicians should remove their election winning
strategies and think of efficient remedies to help the unfortunate people of Wala.

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References
Dinnen, S. and Walton, G., 2016. Politics, organised crime and corruption in the Pacific.
Australian National University.
Forsyth, M. and Batley, J., 2016. What the Political Corruption Scandal of 2015 Reveals about
Checks and Balances in Vanuatu Governance. The Journal of Pacific History, 51(3), pp.255-277.
Forsyth, M., 2015. 'Fourteen Jailed': Politics and Justice in Vanuatu.
Forsyth, M., 2015. Understanding judicial independence in Vanuatu. Australian National
University.
Nimbtik, G., 2016. “Worlds in Collision”: an inquiry into the sources of corruption within
Vanuatu government and society.
Rose-Ackerman, S. and Palifka, B.J., 2016. Corruption and government: Causes, consequences,
and reform. Cambridge university press.
van Trease, H., 2017. Vanuatu. The Contemporary Pacific, 29(2), pp.361-373.
Walton, G. and Dinnen, S., 2016. The dark side of economic globalisation: politics, organised
crime and corruption in the Pacific.