The counting of the votes in the Bougainville poll has been temporarily suspended for an indefinite period of time due to bad weather.

Below is an article written by Papua New Guinea Post-Courier published by the Pacific Island Development Program:

Vote counting in Bougainville has been temporarily suspended for an indefinite period pending polling on the Atolls because the election office is still arranging transport due to bad weather. And July 10 to 20 [2007] has been endorsed for extension for the atolls because the officials are still in Buka due to transport and bad weather.

Provincial returning officer Reitama Taravaru said yesterday [July 8] counting would have to be put on hold until the office was certain the polling officials and the ballot boxes safely arrived in the Atolls.

Mr. Taravaru said all three polling teams had not traveled to the Atolls to conduct the elections there because the weather was bad and the two hired vessels were in a "conflict of interest" situation as they were linked to certain candidates -- one a regional and the other an Open seat candidate. He said the other hired vessel MV Manus, was undertaking a refit so they were arranging for the Rabaul Shipping Company’s MV Kimbe Queen to transport the officials today.

The office expects the polling in the Carterets, Nukumanu, Nuguria and Mortlock Islands to start by this Thursday [12 July 2007].

"We will wait and see how polling goes in the Atolls, if I see that the polling for these areas is smooth and orderly, that there is no disturbance also from the weather than I will decide to count even if the ballot boxes are still in the Atolls but only if I know what day and time they will get here," Taravaru said.

"We have until July 16 [2007] to conduct elections in the Atolls, let’s say Monday next week [16 July 2007], and no later than that because if there is no boat by this Friday [13 July 2007] and if I wait until July 30 [2007], which is the return of the writs date, then we are in a disaster … our elections will be null and void.

"We have exhausted all avenues and now it’s up to the headquarters to give us the okay to hire the vessel which will cost us PGK121,000 [US$42,000]."