All the lawmakers in Nauru join the government’s side

NO OPPOSITION: David Adeang did not say who would supply the scrutiny provided by opponents, saying only that the country would have ‘robust debate’

All opposition lawmakers in parliament have joined his government, Nauruan President David Adeang said, adding that it reflected “unity, stability and shared purpose” in the Pacific Island country’s politics.

The unusual move leaves the 19-member parliament without any political opposition. While it is common for island countries in the South Pacific Ocean to take fluid approaches to forming government and opposition blocs or for lawmakers to switch between them, political debate is habitually robust and Nauru is rare in having no opposing politicians at all.

Adeang did not explain what had prompted the change beyond a “shared commitment” to put Nauru’s interests first. He also did not suggest who would supply the scrutiny usually provided by opponents in a country with a single house of parliament.

Nauruan President David Adeang addresses the UN General Assembly at its headquarters on Sept. 22.

Photo: AP

“There will still be a diversity of views and robust debate as in any strong and healthy democracy,” Adeang said.

The appointment of two lawmakers, Pyon Deiye and Jason Bingham Agir, as deputy Cabinet ministers meant that Nauru’s parliament was in total support of the government for the first time since the country’s independence in 1968, Adeang said.

Government Facebook posts announcing the change were the sole source of information about it; all news outlets in the country of 12,000 people are government-owned. Foreign reporters are discouraged from traveling there, with journalist visa applications priced at A$8,000 (US$5,435).

The president has led the country since 2023 when a no-confidence motion ousted his predecessor. He was chosen unopposed to continue in the job among lawmakers sworn in after last year’s election.

Freedom House in a report said Nauruans “generally enjoy political rights and civil liberties,” but that corruption was “an ongoing challenge.”

Nauru subsists on foreign aid, sales of tuna fisheries licenses in its waters, and funding from Australia to host that country’s offshore detention facilities for asylum seekers and accommodate foreign criminals Australia wanted to deport.