MINING INVESTORS SHY AWAY FROM PNG by Jack Metta (The National 31/5/02) PAPUA New Guinea is at a lower end of attractiveness of countries as mining investment destination, the recent National Investment Planning Seminar in Lae was told. That assessment by a world-renowned group Frazier Institute in its 2001-2002 survey attributed the low rating to infrastructure costs, landowner compensation demands and investor perception of mining taxation. Mining secretary Kuma Aua said the general corporate opinion is that one of PNG's most significant deterrents to investment is the lack of infrastructure, that is, it costs more to operate here. Mr Aua said PNG has made conscious decisions to develop itself but it needs significant sources of money. "Loans and preferably grants are one source, but the most obvious is the country's own natural resources," said Mr Aua. He said the conclusion is that investment needs to be encouraged with a view to expanding the current limited base of large taxable entities to enable benefits flow to the State to be maintained at tolerable levels. "Other mineral projects are out there waiting to be developed to expand on the present base," said Mr Aua. PNG BLASTED BY MAGAZINE (Post-Courier 21/5/02) AUSTRALIAN miners have branded Papua New Guinea as one of five “riskiest’’ places in the world to do business. According to Australian website publication Miningnews, of 20 countries, PNG was second-worst after Zimbabwe, followed by Indonesia, India and Russia. According to the latest edition of Miningnews, published on Friday, the limitation of the survey to destinations regularly looked at by Australian miners ruled out more obvious basket cases such as Afghanistan, Pakistan or Sudan. The story said PNG is another country that miners regularly “dump into the basket-case category’’. “PNG hasn’t clinched the wooden spoon since 1998 but has finished second-last for three years running,’’ it said. “PNG has had its mining success stories such as Lihir Gold but that mine is on an island well removed from the troubles and strife in Port Moresby. “On the mainland, PNG’s volatile politics, urban violence and propensity for armed uprisings are scary thoughts for potential mine developers.’’ Investment in the mining industry has declined over the last 10 years to historical lows. The report said: “It is a great pity because PNG is well endowed with gold, nickel, copper, petroleum and many other goodies.’’ It said Indonesia “has only avoided the scandal of wooden spoon because of the atrocious scoring of Zimbabwe and PNG’’. 9 YEAR OLDS HELD IN WAU KILLING (Post-Courier 17/5/02) TWO nine-year-old boys are among seven youths who have been arrested in connection with the shooting death of a community school teacher in Wau recently. The seven are in custody at the Lae Central police station as investigations continue at the rural town. Morobe provincial police commander Giossi Labi said five of the seven youths surrendered to police on Tuesday, three at his office in Lae and two at the Wau police station. The other two were arrested at a home in Lae at 3am on Monday after a dawn raid on the house. “Since the start of this special police operations in Wau three weeks ago, 15 suspects, wanted for other crimes in the city and in Wau, were arrested by police,’’ Mr Labi said. “The operations have been very successful and I thank my men for a job well done. “In fact, there is only one suspect wanted for the shooting death of the school teacher still on the run. “We strongly believe he has escaped to (Port) Moresby and appeal to him to surrender himself to police there, simply because we know who he is.” The death of school teacher Anthony Pokahun three weeks ago left the small rural town in chaos as teachers and other public servants in the area walked out en masse, leaving more than 7000 school students with uncertain futures. Since the shooting, several meetings have been held to find solutions to the crime crippling the township. Mr Labi said yesterday that he had held talks with provincial education officers and teachers from the Wau/Bulolo area who have sent out strong warnings to the Wau community to resolve the troubles there before they resume teaching. “After all these meetings, I realise that there is a need for a forum and have taken it on myself to organise a law and order forum to be held in Wau next Tuesday,” he said. “I am inviting all stakeholders to this meeting so that we can find a lasting solution to this problem that is eating away at the core of our society.” COPS SHOOT GANG AT ROADBLOCK by James Apa Gumuno (The National 17/5/02) GOROKA police have shot death one and seriously wounded two of a five-men gang that set up a road block at Kasam pass on Tuesday, provincial police commander Wini Heano has said. Mr Heano said police were patrolling in a civilian car and were stopped at the road block set by the gang. He said that when the gang members come out of their hiding place with home made guns, the police open fire on them. He said one member was shot and died on the spot while others fled but two were shot in their legs and were later admitted at the Muzin hospital in the Markham valley. He said the gang was believed to have been operating in Lae and was travelling up the highway looking for greener pasture when they encounter the police attack. Mr Heano said police recovered two home made guns with live ammunitions in them at the scene. He said the patrol was part of the special elections operations conducted by his men starting from Watabung near the boarder of Chimbu all the way to the boarder of Goroka and Lae since early last month. Meanwhile, a mobile squad 12 has confiscated two factory made guns inside a Toyota Landcruiser during a road block at Faniufa, outside of the Goroka town on Wednesday afternoon. Mr Heano said one was Winchester five round while the other was pump action short gun. He said two crew including the driver were arrested and charged adding, the driver was charged for transporting firearms while his crews were charged for being in possession of unlicensed firearms. Before last week his men also confiscated 14 live rounds of M16 along with 18 kilograms of 'A grade' marijuana at a police road block in Asaro. The provincial police commander was very happy with the operations and urged his men to keep up the good work. He said these operations would continue until late July to ensure peace and normalcy prevail in the province during the election period. TEACHER SHOT DEAD IN COLD BLOOD by Sampson Bonai (The National 7/5/02) POLICE are working round the clock with 'shoot-to-kill' orders to apprehend criminals who shot and killed a schoolteacher on Thursday in Wau, Morobe province. In a special police operation that started on Friday, police have arrested one suspect in the brutal murder of teacher Anton Pokahun. Four suspects, who are known to police, are still on the run. Morobe provincial police commander Chief Superintendent Giossi Labi confirmed the killing at Marianhill Primary School in Wau. The shooting occurred at close range as the teacher, his family and other Catholic Church members gathered for a prayer meeting. Chief Supt Labi said local police, combined with men from Mumeng, Bulolo and Morobe Rural Patrol Post units, and a section from Mobile Squad 13 from Lae, were deployed to Wau on Friday night to help track down the killers and bring them to justice. "I condemn the cold-blooded killing and I have issued shoot-to-kill orders to policemen. If the suspects fail to surrender to police within 24 hours, policemen have the orders to shoot to kill," he said. "Enough is enough. The community is fed up with criminals going around terrorising and killing innocent law-abiding citizens in cold blood. The policemen will not rest until the suspects are caught and brought to face the full force of the law. "I call on law-abiding citizens in Wau and Bulolo and the 40 candidates contesting the elections to help police with any information on the whereabouts of the criminals so that they can be caught. They are considered dangerous to live in the community and they must be handed over to police," Chief Supt Labi said. According to Chief Supt Labi, the teacher and his family were preparing for a fellowship night at their house at around 7pm when they were confronted by five armed youths who entered the school grounds through a hole they cut in the perimeter fence. "The youths held up the family, threatened them with a home-made shotgun and tried to abduct their teenaged daughter. The daughter cried out for help and her father went to her rescue and fought with the gang members. During the struggle, he was shot at point blank range and died instantly," he said. The killing of the teacher forced the closure of Marianhill and Wau primary schools on Friday for an indefinite period. Meanwhile, the Catholic Church Bishops in PNG are again angered at the killing of yet another of its workers and ashamed that the Government is unable to protect the people. In a strongly worded statement released at the weekend, they said that through an act of despicable violence, "the community has lost a member, a husband, a father and a teacher." "From the information we have, the murdered teacher was part of a group of Wau residents who had gone to a prayer meeting in the town. The group was robbed by criminals who then decided to assault the women. The teacher heard his teenage daughter calling for help and attempted to help her. "Anton Pokahun could have done nothing as the women were attacked. Instead, we are told, he attempted to assist his daughter and was shot dead, leaving his family fatherless. Another Catholic schoolteacher suffered the same fate in the Southern Highlands last year when he too protested an attempted assault on his wife, during an armed hold-up," the Bishops said. "Catholics, throughout PNG and SI, will again pray for a deceased teacher and his grieving family," they said. FILIPINO WOUNDED IN HAGEN (Post-Courier 1/5/02) FILIPINO man was shot through both thighs by armed criminals and is recovering at the Mount Hagen Hospital. And two women are being questioned over the shooting by the Mount Hagen police. Police said the two women were picked up soon after the shooting on Monday and were currently being questioned. Rogelio Sonza told the Post-Courier from his hospital bed at the intensive care unit that the criminals shot him when he stopped them from trying to get into the house. Mr Sonza, the husband of private doctor Daisy Sonza said he was showing their casual worker the spot where an earlier attempt had been made by some criminals in trying to break into their home when two women and a man came through the door at about 12:30pm. He said: “I presumed they wanted to see the doctor and I said, come back at 1:30. She is on lunch.” Just as he finished speaking two men rushed through the door. Mr Sonza said he did not think they were criminals and that they were companions of the first three people because the man who came with the women talked to the other two men. He said he repeated that it was lunch and the doctor was on lunch and they should come back later. It was than that he realised that they were eyeing the open door and one of the man who ran in later tried to go inside. Mr Sonza said he beat that man to the door and tried to close the door. Moments later he heard gunfire and his left leg went limp. Mr Sonza said the criminals must be locked up and the penalties must be tough so that others resorting to crime as a way of life would be discourage. The couple have been living in the Province for the last 10 years. DESTRUCTION OF POWER PYLONS (The National 1/5/02) Destruction of power pylons causes disruption to production at Porgera. Production at the giant Porgera gold mine in the Enga was disrupted at the weekend after vandals felled a power pylon in Tari. Operations at the mine are powered by electricity generated from the Hides gas field in Tari in the Southern Highlands. The pylons carry the power to the mine. Mine general manager Peter Neilans told The National that a pylon was brought down at about 8pm on Saturday. Mr Neilans said that as a result about 45 hours of production time was lost at the mine. He could not put a monetary value to the loss except to say it was substantial. He said workers were flown to the area to erect a new pylon and also repair another one that needed repair. Production at the mine is now back to normal. Gold production at the mine has been disrupted in the past with similar attacks on the power pylons. SCIENTIST SHOT FOR TRUCK (Post-Courier 29/4/02) Scientist shot for truck WITH moist eyes and excruciating pain in his head, one of Papua New Guinea’s top agricultural scientists made an impassioned plea for help. The plea for help is no ordinary plea; it is for authorities to do something about anarchy which reigns between Aiyura and Kainantu in the Eastern Highlands. Anis Kuri, senior research scientist at the Coffee Research Institute in Aiyura made the plea after he was shot in the back of the head by unknown gunmen. Mr Kuri was shot at as he was driving past Kingston market on the outskirts of Kainantu town on the night of Friday, April 19. While off the road after losing control of the vehicle, the gang showed no mercy, chopping him in the face with a bushknife. They took his white Toyota Landcruiser. Two colleagues and a local man who accompanied him were bashed badly by the gang. The vehicle was used that night in an orgy of stealing and armed hold-ups which included the shooting of another man at a club outside Kainantu. Mr Kuri was taken to the intensive care unit at the Goroka Base Hospital for the past week, and although still weak with four lead pellets still lodged in his head, managed to sit up and share his concerns. Mr Kuri’s shooting has sparked outrage, especially in the Aiyura Valley — which houses important national institutions like the CRI, National Agriculture Research Institute, Inland Fisheries Project, Aiyura National High School and the Summer Institute of Linguistics. Residents of this once peaceful valley have at one time or another fallen victim to the lawlessness and disrespect that now reigns. Kainantu residents, including the Chamber of Commerce, have appealed to police to do something about the increasing lawlessness in the “cowboy town”. Mr Kuri, who has lived and worked in Aiyura for the last five years, said the incident happened between 8 and 9.30pm as he was driving to Kainantu from Aiyura. As he approached Kingston market, he saw a crowd moving towards the vehicle, forcing him to stop briefly. As he moved again, a gunshot rang out from the darkness. “After I was shot, I tried to get out of the car, but I got giddy and I fell down. That was when they came at me with knives to finish me off,” he said. IRKED BY WORK PERMIT DELAYS (Post-Courier 19/4/02) THE newly elected Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce has come out strongly on the problems being encountered by businesses in securing work permits for employees . The matter has been raised at the Papua New Guinea Chamber of Commerce annual general meeting and is a regular item at a policy formulation group of peak bodies which has been meeting to prepare a statement for the incoming government . “This has been going on for far too long and the promised two week waiting period is now stretching out to six to eight weeks,’’ chamber president David Conn said this week. “Often the delays being faced are due to officers not attending work regularly and applications sitting on the desk of the one officer handling that issue. “Lack of response from senior officers and absence from the office are only exacerbating the situation. Now we are advised the office will close for two days a week, depriving customers of appropriate service. “Something needs to be done. Clearly, the system is not working when there is so much dissatisfaction out there. “This excessive regulation when the business environment is already extremely hard, is imposing unnecessary and unfair costs on companies.” Mr Conn said long delays could mean recruited employees give up coming to PNG and accept other offers. “The costs of recruitment are then lost and yet another blow to the bottom line is felt,’’ he said. “In a world where labour is becoming increasingly more mobile, PNG needs to catch up and give us a system which is workable and achieves what it intends to achieve. “The application of our current work permit system is a disincentive to investment. “There seems to be no problem securing permits for those working in the supposedly restricted kai bar sector, yet genuine investors are forced to wait inordinately long periods to get staff on deck. “The government can talk long and loud about encouraging business but when their efforts are stymied by bureaucrats who are not behaving as servants of the public, this is merely rhetoric. “Far too many of these departments become defensive when challenged on these issues. “They have a job to do for which they are paid and all we expect of them is a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay. “Who is monitoring the work of these officers, are they working to any reasonable performance standards? “This is another prime example of the dead hand of bureaucracy chocking business.” This is the strongest statement yet to come on the subject of delays which has been talked about for some time. MORAN CLOSURE COSTLY (Post-Courier 22/3/02) THE joint venture partners in the Moran petroleum project in the Southern Highlands Province have lost more than $US1.1 million in revenue since the closure of the project on Tuesday. Operator Chevron Texaco shut the oil wells after representatives of landowner clans moved onto the drilling site of the Moran exploration well. The landowners’ actions have also forced the operator to temporarily suspend the construction work on the Moran project. The developers are losing 16,0000 barrels of oil per day, which at Wednesday’s closing West Texas Intermediary price of $US24.90 cents amounts to $US1.1 million for the last three days. The Kutubu and Gobe fields had not been affected by the closure and oil reserves in the Kutubu project storage tanks were more than adequate to meet export demands. “Representatives of landowner clans moved onto the site of Moran exploration well on Tuesday and Chevron Niugini reportedly took the precautionary step of closing down production from the Moran Field,” an industry source who did not wish to be named said. Huli landowners of the newly licenced Moran project said they had asked for the demarcation of the land between them and the Hewa people and also to have access to a share of business development opportunities previously taken up by the Fasu landowners of the neighbouring Kutubu project. “Included in the exchange of views was a telephone conversation between the landowner leaders and Southern Highlands Governor Anderson Agiru,” the source said. An official from the Lands Department also visited Moro, a Chevron base used to service the Moran project to address the grievances. AMERICAN TEENAGER PACK-RAPED IN EHP by James Apa Gumuno (The National 6/3/02) AN American teenager who is undergoing training in Goroka to become a missionary was pack-raped at the weekend. Police said the 18-year-old, whose name is being withheld, was allegedly raped by three men during the early hours of Sunday morning at the New Tribes Mission in Bena district of Eastern Highlands province. The victim is a student at the Summer Institute of Linguistics (SIL) in Aiyura. She was in Bena for the weekend. According to Provincial Police Commander Wini Henao, the victim was returning to the house she was staying in after a meeting when three men held her up with a bush knife and raped her in the house. Mr Henao said the suspects threatened to kill her if she resisted or made any noise to attract attention. The incident was later reported to police, who launched a full-scale search in the villages near the New Tribes Mission station, which led to the arrest of three suspects on Monday. The three are being held in custody pending further investigations by detectives. The incident is the first such attack at the mission station and Mr Henao described the act as barbaric. He praised the community for assisting with information leading to the arrest of the three suspects. The New Tribes Mission was set up by American missionaries to train students coming in from other countries to become missionaries in PNG. HOLD-UP DRAMA by Sampson Bonai (The National - Weekender) SAMPSON BONAI recounts his personal experience of being held up and robbed while travelling in a PMV vehicle from Wau to Lae. THE COLD barrel of a homemade shot gun was shoved against my throat and a bushknife held behind my back. I was ordered to remain still. One of the gang members emptied my bag and checked my trouser pockets for cash and valuables. I remained motionless and heard the same command being given to other passengers in the PMV. The gang members helped themselves to whatever they could get hold of. I could hear an infant crying as passengers crowded around a baby and the mother who were lying on the floor. A teenage girl sitting next to me was sobbing. I tried to reassure her that there many of us on board the PMV and the gang members would not do anything serious unless they faced resistance. Nevertheless, shivers ran down my spine and sweat began to form on my forehead. I thought to myself that if anything happened to me, at least I had two children to carry on my legacy. The gang members used abusive language and threatened to shoot us if we tried to resist. Two gang members positioned themselves at the doors of the vehicle and ordered the driver to turn into a forest track. There were around 40 passengers, including women and children, who were travelling on the first PMV to leave Wau at around 6.30 am. It normally takes around three to four hours get to Lae. I had decided to get on an early PMV in order to arrive in Lae before lunch, attend to some business and return the same afternoon. It was about 7am when I dozed off while we were climbing a small hill. I was caught off guard when the hold-up took place. The incident happened so fast it caught us by surprise. First, I heard the warning shout, "rascals", coming from one of the passengers in front. This was a warning for us to lie down in case they opened fire. The PMV vehicle was moving slowly up the hill and was turning a corner when the gang ambushed us. By the time we realised what was happening, they had climbed onto both sides of the vehicle. Armed with home-made shot guns and bushknives, they ordered us not to move. I later found out that there were ten men armed with five home-made shotguns and five razor-sharpened bushknives. Concerned about our safety, the driver obeyed their orders and drove into a bush road about half a kilometre away from the main road where he was ordered to stop. "We are frustrated youths and have been neglected for too long by the government and now we will do anything to show our frustrations. If any of you want try to do anything we will shoot you," shouted one of the gang members, waving his homemade gun at us. I could tell from their voices that they were very young men between the ages of 13-17 years. We were forced out of the vehicle and ordered to lie face down on the grass. They quickly went through the bags and made a clean haul of K4,500 in cash before escaping on foot into the nearby hills. After about five minutes they were all gone. The morning stillness crept back upon us as we gathered our strength and checked our personal belongings. I had my camera, a notebook, K5.50 cash and clothes in my handbag stolen. Luckily, I still had my shoes on and my jacket containing the Save Card and my PMV fare. We composed ourselves and reported the matter to Bulolo police. A search party was launched to track down the gang members. Three of them were caught that same morning and charged. But the money and personal belongings they had stolen could not be recovered. Many passengers cancelled their trip and returned to Wau. I continued to Lae. This is just one in the many armed holdups people have regularly suffered over the years. Passengers sometimes are ordered to strip naked and women are raped. "Many women, children, young and old people suffer silently from all forms of crimes inflicted on them by criminals. As citizens, they deserve protection from the government," said Wagi Kukubol a concerned citizen from Wau. "Four murders took place in Wau during the last six months. Yet, the authorities have turned a blind eye to the plight of the people and business houses," he said. In other incidents, a gold buyer was gunned down at the market place while trying to apprehend four suspects who had robbed a gold miner. A security guard was shot dead when he went to investigate a stolen vehicle. A high school teacher was beaten to death and recently another schoolteacher was shot dead in front of his wife and children. In an incident that shocked local residents, a woman was dragged out of her brother-in-law's house at gunpoint and raped. Two teenage girls who had gone to visit relatives at Wau were also abducted and raped. Two elderly women returning from the market after selling their vegetables were held up and their money stolen. These are just a few of the serious crimes committed over the last few months. The incidents were reported to police but to date no arrests have been made. The police do not have the requisite manpower and logistical support to effectively maintain law and order in town. The redeployment of staff elsewhere has also placed a serious burden on remaining policemen. Only eight have remained behind to police the town. The recent visit by Morobe Provincial Police Commander Chief Superintendent Giossi Labi and Border/Coastal Commander Assistant Commissioner Raphael Huafolo has been welcomed by business houses, women, youth and church groups. Mr Labi assured the community that six more policemen would be sent to Wau within the next few weeks to help restore public confidence. Mr Huafolo took time off from his busy schedule to travel to Wau to assess the situation on the ground. He said the miserable condition of the Wau barracks had badly affected staff morale and that he would do everything possible to have maintenance work carried out on the barracks. "Wau and Bulolo have been considered hot spots and more police resources will be stationed in the area during and after the national elections,"said Mr Huafolo. Mr Labi said all the policemen serving under his command in rural areas would be rotated after every one or two years to another station. "Policemen will be rotated around the province after serving in an area for one or two years to stop them from becoming too friendly with the community," he said. The police chief also strengthened the community-policing network with the appointment there of the former Wau station commander, senior sergeant Mathew Kawa. He will team up with the OIC Community Policing Unit in Morobe. Senior Inspector Joseph Noah and Samson Hiogai from Morobe Goldfields Ltd will also work closely with the community to educate the youths about drug abuse, domestic violence and the role of police in working together with the community. People of Wau are now helping the police to apprehend suspected criminals. Six were handed over to police early this week. "The five prime suspects have been given a deadline to surrender to police and if they fail, the long arm of the law will deal with them," said Rex Mauri, a community leader from Biangai. They have also appealed to the PEB (Provincial Education Board) to rescind its earlier decision and re-open schools in Wau and Bulolo. The Alpha section from Mobile Squad 13, Rural Patrol Unit and Bulolo police are currently conducting special operations to round up criminals and to help restore law and order in the former mining townships of Wau and Bulolo. The pre-election operations will be in force for an indefinite period until after the elections. |
|
[ Front Page | Mission Statement | Technical | Search | Contact ] © Copyright 2001-2006 Peter Salmon and other web site content contributors. All rights, whatever they may be, reserved. |