Joe Natuman (born 24 November 1952) is a

Vanuatu Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (; ), is an island country in Melanesia located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of northern Australia, northeast of New Caledonia, east o ...

an politician of the

Vanua'aku Pati The Vanua'aku Pati () is a democratic socialist political party in Vanuatu. History The party was founded on 17 August 1971 by Walter Lini as the New Hebridean Cultural Association, renamed later that same year as the New Hebrides National Part ...

and former

Prime Minister of Vanuatu The prime minister of Vanuatu is the head of government of the Vanuatu, Republic of Vanuatu. The office of prime minister was created under the Constitution of Vanuatu upon the country's independence in 1980, with independence campaigner Walt ...

. He is a graduate of the

University of the South Pacific The University of the South Pacific (USP) is a public research university with locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. Established in 1968, the university is organised as an intergovernmental organisation and is owned by the gov ...

, and was also an

exchange student A student exchange program is a program in which students from a secondary school (high school) or higher education study abroad at one of their institution's partner institutions. A student exchange program may involve international travel, bu ...

at the

University of Papua New Guinea The University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) is a university located in Port Moresby, capital of Papua New Guinea. It was established by ordinance of the Australian administration in 1965. This followed the Currie Commission which had enquired ...

. In the 1980s, he worked in the highest ranks of the civil service, culminating with the position of First Secretary to the Prime Minister's Office from 1987 to 1991, at the time of Prime Minister

Walter Lini Walter Hadye Lin̄i ( ; 1942 – 21 February 1999) was a Raga Anglican priest and politician who was the first Prime Minister of Vanuatu, from independence in 1980 to 1991. He was born at Agatoa village, Pentecost Island. Lin̄i was a key figure ...

. He then worked as assistant registrar at the University of the South Pacific in

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

Fiji Fiji, officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists of an archipelago of more than 330 islands—of which about ...

, until 1995. He entered national politics when he was elected MP for Tanna, representing the

, in the 1995 general election. He has been continuously re-elected since. From 1996 to 2008, he served in the following positions in successive governments:Biography
, Parliament of Vanuatu * Minister for Judicial Services, Culture and Women's Affairs in 1996 * Minister for Lands, Energy, Geology and Mines in 1997 * Minister for Education in 1998 * Minister for Internal Affairs from April to March 2002 * Minister for Education in 2004 * Minister for Internal Affairs from 2007 to 2008. While Minister of Education, he was chairman of the Vanuatu National Commission for

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

. Prime Minister

Edward Natapei Edward Nipake Natapei Tuta Fanua`araki (17 July 1954 – 28 July 2015) was a Vanuatuan politician. He was the prime minister of Vanuatu on two occasions, and was previously the minister of Foreign Affairs briefly in 1991, the acting president of ...

appointed him Minister for Lands in 2008, then reshuffled him to the position of Minister for Foreign Affairs, External Trade and Telecommunications in 2010. Natapei's government was ousted in a motion of no confidence in December 2010, and Natuman sat on the Opposition benches until Serge Vohor ascended to the premiership in a successful motion of no confidence against Prime Minister

Sato Kilman Meltek Sato Kilman Livtuvanu (born 30 December 1957) is a Vanuatuan politician who served as the Prime Minister of Vanuatu on four previous occasions, most recently from 4 September to 6 October 2023. he was previously prime minister from Decembe ...

Easter Sunday Easter, also called Pascha (Aramaic: פַּסְחָא , ''paskha''; Greek language, Greek: πάσχα, ''páskha'') or Resurrection Sunday, is a Christian festival and cultural holiday commemorating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, de ...

(24 April), 2011, and restored Natuman as Minister for Foreign Affairs. Three weeks later, however, Vohor's election and premiership were voided by the Court of Appeal, and Natuman lost his position in government (13 May). On 16 June, Kilman's election and premiership were themselves voided by the Supreme Court, on constitutional grounds, and previous Prime Minister

became caretaker Prime Minister until a new leader could be elected. Natuman was restored as interim Minister of Foreign Affairs.

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subsequently praised Natuman for having, as Minister for Foreign Affairs, "proceeded with a full clean-up" in the selling of

diplomatic passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's Identity (social science), identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign ...

s which had occurred frequently under previous governments. On 26 June 2011,

was elected Prime Minister by Parliament, and Natuman lost his position in government. Natuman was convicted of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice in 2018 and given a suspended sentence. He was pardoned by the President of Vanuatu, Tallis Obed Moses, in September 2021, which restores his eligibility to run for public office again.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Natuman, Joe 1952 births Ministers of foreign affairs of Vanuatu Living people Members of the Parliament of Vanuatu Prime ministers of Vanuatu Justice ministers of Vanuatu Education ministers of Vanuatu Interior ministers of Vanuatu University of the South Pacific alumni Vanua'aku Pati politicians People from Tafea Province 20th-century Vanuatuan politicians 21st-century Vanuatuan politicians