The objection window is the only opportunity a neighbouring clan or an interest holder has to influence a customary land registration under Part IIIA of the Land Registration Act. Missing it is close to fatal.
Section 34G — publication of the Registration Plan
On accepting a Registration Plan, the Director of Customary Land Registration shall, as soon as practicable:
- (a) forward a copy of the Plan to the Regional Surveyor; and
- (b) give notice to the public indicating:
- where the Registration Plan may be examined;
- the procedure for making an objection to its contents; and
- the period — not more than 90 days — within which an objection can be made.
The Director shall cause the notice to be advertised in such manner as he considers appropriate to bring it to the attention of all persons who may have an interest in the land or parcels the subject of the Plan.
That wording is deliberately open. In much of Papua New Guinea a National Gazette notice will not reach the people affected, so the obligation is framed by result — whatever is appropriate to actually bring it to their attention.
Section 135 of the Land Act 1996 takes the same approach for notices to customary landowners: the Custodian for Trust Land must take practicable steps to serve them, post a copy on the land, and notify the area by any method by which it is customary to transmit orders or news there. If a Part IIIA notice has not reached the people it should have, that is a point worth making.
Who may object
Section 34I(1) allows a person who objects to the contents of a Registration Plan to object. In practice that means:
- neighbouring clans disputing a boundary;
- individuals or groups holding derivative interests — gardening, sago, hunting, fishing, access — which they say have been left out or wrongly described;
- members of the applicant group who say the Plan misstates the group’s ownership or their own interests;
- anyone with a State-granted interest over the land.
Section 34I(2) — what the objection must contain
(a) whether, in the case of an individual, the person objects in a personal capacity or as a representative of a customary group;
(b) the matters in the Registration Plan which are the subject of objection;
(c) the area or areas within the Registration Area which are the subject of objection; and
(d) the grounds on which the objection is made.
It must be in writing and made to the Director within the period specified in the notice.
Paragraph (a) matters: an objection lodged personally when the real complaint belongs to the group can be met with the answer that the objector has no standing to raise it. If you are objecting for a clan, say so, and be able to show the authority — which is one of the reasons an Incorporated Land Group is useful.
Paragraph (c) matters equally: identify the areas by reference to the Plan, not in general terms.
Section 34H — the Adjusted Registration Plan
In parallel, the Regional Surveyor, on receiving a copy of the Plan, shall where necessary prepare an Adjusted Registration Plan showing:
- (a) the situation of the land or parcels;
- (b) any reservation, easement or other interest acquired for public purposes by the State under any law; and
- (c) any right, title or interest granted by the State under any law,
and shall return it to the Director as soon as practicable.
This is the step that reconciles the customary picture with the State’s own dealings — roads, easements, reserves, and any State lease already granted over part of the ground.
Section 34J — the Final Registration Plan
Where the objection period has expired and the Plan has been adjusted where necessary, the Director shall as soon as practicable prepare the Final Registration Plan, taking into consideration:
- the Registration Plan;
- the Adjusted Registration Plan; and
- any objection made.
So a properly made objection must be taken into consideration. One made out of time, or not specifying the matters section 34I(2) requires, gives the Director far less to work with.
If you may be affected
- Find out early. Ask the Director’s office whether any Registration Plan covers or adjoins your ground.
- Examine the Plan at the place stated in the notice, and take a copy.
- Walk the boundaries with the older people who know them, and record what they say.
- Diarise the objection date. Up to 90 days, but it may be shorter — the notice sets it.
- Draft the objection to section 34I(2) — capacity, matters, areas, grounds.
- Lodge in writing with the Director and keep proof.
- Take advice for the group — the Public Solicitor, or a firm from the law firms directory.
If the real dispute is about who owns the ground under custom, that is decided by the Land Courts and the Land Titles Commission under the Land Disputes Settlement Act — on evidence of custom. Objecting to the Plan protects your position in the registration process; it does not replace that jurisdiction.
Sources
- Land Registration Act (Chapter 191) — Part IIIA, ss 34D–34J
- Land Registration (Amendment) Act 2009
- Land Act 1996 — ss 134, 135
- Land Disputes Settlement Act (Chapter 45)
- Land Groups Incorporation Act
Part IIIA was inserted by amendment; PacLII carries the principal Act in its 1986 Revised Edition. Read the amending Acts alongside it and confirm commencement before relying on a section number.
Before relying on anything here, read the current text of the Land Act 1996 and check for later amendments. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor, or find a firm in the law firms directory.