Ishmael Toroama (born 28 February 1969) is a Bougainvillean politician who was elected

President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

. He is a former commander in the

Bougainville Revolutionary Army The Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) was a secessionist group formed in 1988 by Bougainvilleans seeking independence from Papua New Guinea (PNG). The leader of the BRA was Francis Ona who led the BRA against the Papua New Guinea Defence Forc ...

Early life

Toroama was born in Roreinang in the Kieta District in Central Bougainville on 28 February 1969 and educated at the local school and at Hutjena High School. After dropping out of school, he worked for the Tonolei Development Corporation.

Civil war and aftermath

Toroama joined the

in the early days of the

Bougainville Civil War The Bougainville conflict, also known as the Bougainville Civil War, was a multi-layered armed conflict fought from 1988 to 1998 in the North Solomons Province of Papua New Guinea (PNG) between PNG and the secessionist forces of the Bougainvi ...

and quickly became one of its field commanders. In 1997 he was injured by a rocket-propelled grenade. In 1999 he became the BRA's chief of defence, succeeding Sam Kauona. As chief of defence, he was one of the signatories of the Bougainville Peace Agreement and opposed the breakaway faction under

Francis Ona Francis Ona (15 February 1953 – 24 July 2005) was the Supreme Commander of the Bougainville Revolutionary Army (BRA) during the 19881998 Bougainville conflict. The war began when Ona "went bush" and began organising acts of industrial sabota ...

. Following the conflict, he enriched himself by becoming a broker in the reconciliation process, then providing "protection" to local businesses. He later became a

cocoa Cocoa may refer to: Chocolate * Chocolate * ''Theobroma cacao'', the cocoa tree * Cocoa bean, seed of ''Theobroma cacao'' * Chocolate liquor, or cocoa liquor, pure, liquid chocolate extracted from the cocoa bean, including both cocoa butter and ...

farmer.

Political career

Toroama repeatedly ran unsuccessfully for office following the signing of the Bougainville Peace Agreement and the establishment of the Autonomous Bougainville Government. In the

2010 Bougainvillean general election General elections were held in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea from 6 to 24 May 2010.- In the presidential election John Momis, the former Governor of Bougainville and framer of the Papua New Guinean constitution, defe ...

he ran unsuccessfully for the seat of South Nasioi, and in the

2012 Papua New Guinean general election General elections were held in Papua New Guinea from 23 June until around 13 July 2012, after being postponed by a further week to allow for security personnel to crisscross the country, particularly the highland provinces. The elections followe ...

he failed to win the seat of Central Bougainville. In the

2015 Bougainvillean general election A presidential and parliamentary election was held in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville between 11 May and 25 May 2015. Incumbent President John Momis won re-election, the first President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville to do so. Camp ...

he ran for

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

, coming second to

John Momis John Momis (born 3 March 1942) is a Bougainvillean politician who served as the President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, President of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville in Papua New Guinea between 2010 and 2020. Momis served as ...

. In December 2019 he announced his intention to stand for president in the

2020 Bougainvillean general election A presidential and parliamentary election was held in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville between 12 August and 1 September 2020. 440 candidates were contesting the 40 seats in the Bougainville House of Representatives, including 25 competing ...

. He subsequently launched the Bougainville People’s Alliance Party to contest the

Bougainville House of Representatives The Bougainville House of Representatives is the legislature of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, an autonomous entity within Papua New Guinea. It was established in 2005 under Part 5 of the region's constitution, which specifies that the Ho ...

. He performed well in the election, leading the count at the 21st elimination, and ultimately winning the presidency. He was formally sworn in as president on 25 September 2020. He appointed his Cabinet on 2 October 2020.

Personal life

Ishmael Toroama is married to Betty Toroama, with whom he has 3 children: Doreen, Esau, and Victor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Toroama, Ishmael Bougainvillean politicians Living people 1969 births Presidents of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville People from Bougainville Island Bougainvillean rebels 21st-century Papua New Guinean politicians