Kokoda Track management could switch to Veterans Affairs

A push among veterans to shift control of the historic Kokoda Track into Veterans Affairs is gaining pace.

A push among veterans to shift control of the historic Kokoda Track into the Department of Veterans’ Affairs is gaining pace, with MPs told a decision could be made as early as June.

Victorian MPs Gary Blackwood, Russell Broadbent and Tim Bull will meet Veterans’ Affairs minister Dan Tehan and Environment Minister Josh Frydenberg in June for a discussion on management at the key World War II battleground.

Veterans calling for a change of departmental control have argued that poor oversight means military history at the site is being eroded. MPs barracking for change claim they want to see stronger oversight and greater accountability from the track authority, noting that the Australian government has poured more than $50 million into the Kokoda Initiative in the past three years. yet those walking the track report its toilets and amenities are putrid, and parts of the track are choked by trekker traffic.

“The trail isn’t in a good way, and it’s not because it’s needed any more resources thrown at it; it’s because the people responsible for managing the site are not running it in the way a proper historical tourism destination should be run,” Narracan MP Gary Blackwood told The Australian.

The comments come less than a month after The Australian reported that a war memorial funded by the Australian government had omitted the word “mateship” in what tour operators saw as a progressive demilitarisation of war history at the track.

Already, moves are afoot in Canberra to rethink management at the track and the way Australia works with local landowners and provincial governors to preserve military history after the high-profile incidents last month. The Department of Environment has quietly offloaded a number of key responsibilities to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in January, with some aspects of control falling in the portfolio of International Development and the Pacific.

A government spokesman this week confirmed the move.

“DFAT became the lead Australian government agency for the Kokoda Initiative in January 2016,” the spokesman said.

“The Kokoda Initiative is a partnership between the Australian and PNG governments to sustainably develop and protect the Kokoda Track and the surrounding Owen Stanley Ranges.

“The Kokoda Initiative reflects the strong commitment of both governments to continue to enhance the quality of life of communities living along the track, to protect the environment, cultural values and to keep the track open and well managed.”

Former NSW MP Charlie Lynn, who is also a tour operator, said the change to the Department of Foreign Affairs was “cosmetic at best” without regard for local operators, many of who conduct treks without being eligible for public liability insurance because they are registered in Papua New Guinea or cannot afford it.

“The same people with the same attitudes have remained in place in PNG,” he said. “They continue to operate in a parallel — nothing has changed and the management system they put in place is beyond dysfunctional.”