Cops, Govt mull SOE to stem ethnic violence, breakdown in law and order in PNG

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Cops, Govt mull SOE to stem ethnic violence, breakdown in law and order in PNG

PORT MORESBY: Police and the Government are discussing the declaration of State if Emergency (SOE) as a short-term solution and option to stem the unabated ethic violence and law and order woes in Papua New Guinea (PNG)’s capital city.

It will not be surprising to anyone if the declaration of SOE is also extended to cover the interiors of PNG, like Milne Bay’s Alotau and the fast deteriorating breakdown in law and order in Madang.

There have been reports of killings almost daily in PNG nationwide and the police and Government are now seriously considering action to stem the violence, mostly triggered by ethnic clashes.

 

And Police Comm David Manning said domestic terrorist had declared war with the State and that they will be dealt with swiftly and strongly.

This follows another attack on the police in Milne Bay’s Alotau on Thursday when 13 houses of policemen were razed.

PNG Cyber Monitor reproduces below a string of news reports by The National on the violence and breakdown of public law and order in Port Moresby and Milne Bay:

Police, Govt discuss SOE

May 3, 2021The NationalMain Stories

Manning: State of emergency a short-term solution to city’s ethnic clashes

DECLARING a state of emergency (SOE) in the National Capital District (NCD) as a short-term solution and option to stem ethnic violence is being discussed with the Government, Police Comm David Manning says.
“We are also suggesting to revisit the introduction of the Vagrancy Act, but this time as a provision under a proposed Internal Protection and Security Act,” he added.
Comm Manning’s remarks follows the latest fight between two ethnic groups that has claimed two lives in a week.
The commissioner has called on the leaders of the Goilala (Central) and Hela people to end the bloody and deadly ethnic clashes in the nation’s capital.
“The recent ethnic clashes have caused so much fear and anxiety within communities in the NCD in the last three days,” he added.
“While police are out on the streets of Port Moresby to prevent further blood-shed and maintain public order and peace, real and lasting peace and normalcy can be restored with the assistance of the leadership of both groups at the family, clan, tribal, ward, district, provincial and national levels.
“These ethnic clashes have been going on for some time now between various ethnic groups within the NCD and in other parts of the country.
“We need to seriously look into these clashes and identify the underlying causes.
“While drugs and alcohol may be contributing to the clashes, there could be other reasons as well.
“Law and order is not an exclusive police responsibility but is everyone’s business as well.
“So leaders at all levels of society must step up and take responsibility,” he said.
Comm Manning, who is also the Covid-19 national pandemic response controller, said the virus had to date claimed 115 lives and infected more than 10,000 people, including frontline workers.
He said health facilities nationwide were overwhelmed with addressing the Covid-19 and ongoing health concerns and the last thing it needed were additional patients injured from ethnic clashes.
“These ongoing ethnic clashes are symptoms of serious underlying problems within our country and we all need to begin to seriously address them instead of expecting them to go away,” he said.

 

Man slashed to death

May 3, 2021The NationalMain Stories

By MIRIAM ZARRIGA
A 29-YEAR-OLD man was slashed to death in Moresby South’s Koki on Friday morning in what is believed to be an ethnic clash slaying.
The killing raised community tensions and police had to be stationed until Saturday to maintain law and order as about 400 settlers abandoned their homes in fear of being attacked by tribesmen of the victim.
Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko and National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop issued warnings to the settlers that if they continued to fight among themselves, they would not hesitate to remove the settlements.
Tkatchenko and Parkop expressed disgust over the “barbaric killing”.
Badili police station commander Insp Jerry Obert in a media briefing said a manhunt for the killers had been launched and that their identities were known.
“I urge the families to surrender the killers,” he added.
The slaying was captured on closed circuit TV camera showing two men approaching Danli Kotapu, from Goilala, Central, who was seated between two buildings along the road near the City Mission building.
“One of them pulled out a long bush knife from a bag and slashed Kotapu on the back.
“Kotapu tried to flee but was cut down again.
“As he scrambles to flee by jumping over the road barrier dividers, he trips and the two killers hacked him to death.
“They then casually ran away as if nothing had happened, leaving Kotapu sprawled in a pool of blood on the road,” Insp Obert said.
The killers were seen running and turning into the Koki Primary School road.
Kotapu’s death sparked a fight between two different groups, blocking the 2-Mile hill road down into Koki.
In the aftermath of the killing, 300 settlers fled their homes on Friday evening seeking refuge at Murray Barracks with the Papua New Guinea Defence Force.
Metropolitan Police Fox Units were deployed to maintain police presence until Saturday.

Agarobe’s Facebook post condemns deaths, violence

May 3, 2021The NationalNational

CENTRAL Governor Robert Agarobe has jolted Port Moresby politicians by posting on Facebook describing Papua New Guinea’s capital as “More deaths in amazing Port Moresby”.
“What is the National Capital Governor and Housing Minister and Moresby South MP doing about these deaths and what are their long-term plans to fix these continued loss of innocent lives and the growing law and order issues in bloody amazing Port Moresby.
“Stop building stupid multi-million-kina infrastructure in amazing Port Moresby like stadiums, roads, markets after markets whereby you do not grow anything to sell in them.
“Build some real industry to create job opportunities for your residents, for goodness sake,” Agarobe said in his posting following an ethic slaying of a 29-year-old in Koki on Friday.
Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko responded by saying that the issues were from “one particular ethnic group”.
“That group comes from Central, and when the Governor talks about what are we doing about law and order, I think he better look at himself and tell his people to behave or go back to Central.
“We do not need them here in Central or Moresby South.
“The reason why the Central people are coming to Moresby South is because we have all the facilities here for them, we have the transit centre, we have the markets, which they all utilise because they have nothing in Central,” Tkatchenko said.
“The people of Central have no infrastructure, no markets no nothing.
“That is why they are coming to the city to make money, to get employed and to get health services.”

CCTV will be used to assist police, says Parkop

May 3, 2021The NationalNational

POLICE work will be greatly assisted with the use of the closed-circuit television (CCTV) facility available in the city, says Governor Powes Parkop.
“CCTV played a part in ensuring the two suspects who killed a man on Friday morning have been identified,” he said.
The CCTV cameras were installed during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Summit in Port Moresby in November, 2018.
“They are still in place and we had some outstanding issues with them.
“We have dealt with that and we are now pushing to have the CCTVs working properly,” he said.
“The CCTV will help us to (tackle) crime, and we need those type of technology.
“Police manpower remains the same.
“I have been raising this issue in Parliament.
“I don’t blame them (police).
“They are doing their best in very trying times.
“The population is booming in NCD and we need to assist the police where we can.
“It is a very tough situation.”
Police have started operations in the Moresby South electorate to ensure no more ethnic clashes happen.
A fight which flared up again yesterday was quickly stopped by police in Koki.