SYDNEY, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Papua New Guinea and the autonomous island of Bougainville have appointed a commission on Tuesday that will oversee a referendum on the region's independence.
In 2001, after a decade-long civil war, a peace treaty was established with the precondition of holding a vote on Bougainville seceding from Papua New Guinea.
The date of the referendum has been set in 2019.
Bougainville will have to follow two conditions in order to secede: the region must create "good governance structures" and dispose of any "remaining firearms."
"The referendum is conditional on those two key conditions. We have to make sure those are fully compiled to the letter of the law," Papua New Guinea chief secretary Isaac Lupari told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
There will also be a review process if the vote for Bougainville is successful.
