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The 2011–2012 Papua New Guinean constitutional crisis was a dispute that started from January 2011 in Papua New Guinea between Peter O'Neill and Sir Michael Somare over who was legally Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea. It ended after the general election that was held from 23 June to about 13 July 2012.
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Prime ministerial dispute
By mid-2011, Somare had spent months in a hospital in Singapore, with Sam Abal as acting prime minister in Papua New Guinea. The majority of members of the National Parliament of Papua New Guinea decided in August 2011 to rescind their confidence in Somare in his absence and instead put it behind O'Neill. The Governor-General of Papua New Guinea, Sir Michael Ogio, then, on 2 August and according to constitutional convention, appointed O'Neil as prime minister. However, upon Somare's return, he challenged the dismissal in the country's supreme court, which ruled in December 2011 that Somare's removal from the role of prime minister in August had been unlawful and ordered and directed that he be reinstated. The Governor-General did not immediately comply, stating he "could not understand the court judgment", and O'Neill refused to relinquish the position and remained supported by most members of parliament.
Ogio, following the court order, subsequently recognised Somare as prime minister, to which the majority in parliament responded, on 14 December 2011, by "suspending" Ogio and declaring Jeffrey Nape, as Speaker of the National Parliament, as automatically acting governor-general. However, there is no indication the Queen of Papua New Guinea, Elizabeth II, who appoints the governor-general as her representative in the country, revoked Ogio's commission as viceroy. On 19 December, parliament again recognised Ogio as governor-general and O'Neill as prime minister.
The dispute continued amid the appointment of two different police commissioners on the conflicting advice of O'Neil and Somare.
Mutiny
On 26 January 2012, about 30 soldiers under the leadership of Colonel Yaura Sasa took control of the Taurama Barracks and military headquarters in Port Moresby, placing the head of the PNG defence force, Brigadier General Francis Agwi, under house arrest. Sasa had been appointed defence chief by Somare several days earlier. Sasa requested that O'Neill step down as prime minister in favour of Somare within a week. O'Neill's deputy Belden Namah said that 15 of the soldiers involved in the mutiny had been arrested and Sasa may be charged with treason. Sasa, still at Taurama Barracks, requested a pardon.
Standard & Poor's revised its outlook for PNG to negative after the mutiny attempt. Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard condemned the attempted mutiny, saying the military has no place in Papua New Guinea politics.