The production and trafficking of methamphetamine (meth), cocaine and now heroin is on the rise with Pacific countries now becoming what many are calling the “Pacific drug highway”.

And Papua New Guinea has over three years seen a plane crash, a hotel laboratory, a shipment in postal services, arrival via a container ship, manufacturing in apartments and now a black flight — all to do with cocaine and meth.

Police have had Operation Weathers, Operation Saki Bomb — and now Operation Gepard.

From Operation Gepard, a pink duffle bank was stuffed into the nose of the flight from Bulolo filled with 17 packages of meth. These were transported across the border into Australia.

With the lack of border security, the country has fast become a transit point for the movement of illicit drugs into Australia.

Locals are becoming part of the movement of the drugs playing a key role in ensuring the drugs are hidden and then moved across the border.

Police Commissioner David Manning has on several occasions said “PNG is becoming a transit point for illicit and synthetic drugs”.

New law not implemented
His Deputy Commissioner of Police-Special Operations and acting Director-General of the Narcotics Office, Donald Yamasombi, says the laws under the new Controlled Substance Act 2021 have yet to be implemented.

In total, 337kg of methamphetamine have been found in the country, conveyed, or in possession of people in PNG — worth K164 million (about NZ$75 million)

And the laws? They have been passed but yet no one has been sentenced under the new Controlled Substance Act 2021 and Dangerous Drug (Amended) Act 2021 pertaining to the illicit drugs.

Now another 52kg has been allowed to leave the country and travel into outback Australia where five men were arrested by the Australian Federal Police (AFP).

Commissioner Manning said the positive outcome was a result of close collaboration between the Royal PNG Constabulary (RPNGC) and Australian law enforcement partners and air traffic control agencies.

He said the RPNGC, since working with the Australian authorities, have enabled a wider net to be cast, resulting in the apprehension of transnational offenders in PNG and across the Pacific.

“With our partners we are committed to make our pacific region a hostile and disruptive environment for the transnational criminal element,” Commissioner Manning said.

Strengthening drug laws
“We are also committed to strengthening our drug legislation to ensure that penalties reflect the severity of offending here in PNG.”

According to Minister for Transport and Civil Aviation, Walter Schnaubelt, the airplane was able to get into PNG airspace by flying low.

“When an aircraft is operated with a criminal intent, the pilots deliberately turn off the transponders to avoid detection by radar or ADS-B,” he said.

“If these surveillance tools are turned off, our systems cannot pick them up on the screen.

“Also they deliberately do not submit flight plans or talk to our controllers for the same reason (they don’t want us to see or know about their illegal operations).”

In PNG, after the arrest of the five in Australia, a 42-year-old male Chinese national was arrested at Lae airport last Wednesday.

In terms of investigations, the response has been swift. However, the investigations are prolonged and it becomes a forgotten topic.

Swept under the rug
It remains swept under the rug until judgment is passed and the suspects are charged and sentenced.

So far, only David John Cutmore has been sentenced to 18 years for his part in the black flight that crashed with 644kg of cocaine on board and he was charged under the old laws.

Another seven locals and expatriates are facing court for conveying and being in possession of methamphetamine since 2022.

In total, 18 persons of interest have been arrested or apprehended over their involvement in the methamphetamine trade.

For cocaine, only one person has been sentenced with another four still facing court.

Miriam Zarriga is a PNG Post-Courier journalist. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

The retraction of Kerwin Espinosa, one of the main accusers in the Philippines Bilibid drug trade allegations, has drummed up calls from different sectors to free jailed opposition senator Leila De Lima, but the Department of Justice (DOJ) is not budging.

The difficulty with this development is that Espinosa is not involved in the remaining two drug cases against De Lima in the Muntinlupa Regional Trial Court (RTC), either as a respondent or an official witness.

De Lima was earlier acquitted of one of the original three cases.

The controversy emerged as the Philippines entered the last week of campaigning for the presidential election next Monday, May 9.

Espinosa submitted a counter-affidavit to the DOJ last Thursday retracting all his allegations, including paying drug money to De Lima. It was for a separate case, but still related to the Bilibid drug trade, involving the same cast of convicts.

“The previous statements/affidavits of Mr Espinosa which he now recanted were never utilised and will not be used by the prosecution as evidence in the two pending drug cases vs Senator Leila De Lima,” DOJ said in a statement.

Manipulation against staunch critic
While De Lima’s lawyer Filibon Tacardon acknowledges the complication of using to their favour a retraction from Espinosa who is not an official witness, the lawyer pointed out that it still implies illegal maneuvering by the government to jail President Rodrigo Duterte’s staunch critic.

Records show that when the DOJ charged De Lima in 2017, it dismissed the complaint against De Lima and Espinosa “for lack of merit”.

Back then, Espinosa faced what could have been De Lima’s fourth charge after claiming he had paid the senator drug money through Ronnie Dayan.

Although the DOJ dropped Espinosa from the charge and as their witness, the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) filed a new case against him in December 2021 over a similar story of drug trade in Bilibid. This is the case where Espinosa submitted his latest affidavit retracting his claims against De Lima.

Espinosa said he was coerced and threatened by police and NBI to cooperate with their narrative.

In a dispatch from Camp Crame, De Lima said: “As I have always been saying, all allegations against me invented by the Duterte machine of lies and fabrications would ultimately unravel.”

Perjury against Espinosa?
Groups called on the DOJ to investigate motu proprio, or on its own initiative, Espinosa’s claim of coercion, but Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra had a different idea in mind —  pursue a perjury charge against Espinosa.

“We will determine that when he faces perjury charges … I will discuss this matter with the panel of prosecutors. Whether or not his testimony is material to the prosecution’s cause, making false statements under oath is a criminal offense,” Guevarra told reporters.

If the prosecution will not use Espinosa’s retraction, the Muntinlupa courts can call him as their own witness, said criminal law professor Ted Te.

“That’s always within the plenary powers of a court — to get to the truth. Can the court ask about context? Yes. Is it relevant? Of course,” said Te.

Tacardon said that it was the defence turn to present in the one case, while the prosecution is wrapping up in the second, which means the defence will present soon.

“As to whether Kerwin Espinosa will be a defence witness has yet to be discussed,” said Tacardon.

Te suggested De Lima’s team should.

“If the defence were to call Espinosa that would be more than enough for reasonable doubt. The question is why should the court allow it to drag on any further?” Te said.

De Lima has been in jail for five years, her trial attracting global political attention, with the United States even mulling a travel ban against her accusers.

Robredo returns to Central Luzon
Meanwhile, Rappler reports presidential candidate Vice-President Leni Robredo has returned to vote-rich regions Central Luzon and Calabarzon with just over a week until the May 9 elections.

In the first leg of her return to these regions, Robredo will barnstorm Bulacan, the fifth most vote-rich province in the country where 2 million votes are up for grabs.

She had earlier secured the endorsement of Bulacan Governor Daniel Fernando.

Lian Buan is a Rappler reporter. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

The Tongan legislature is now considering the Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Bill 2021, which was introduced as a private members’ bill by the Speaker, Lord Fakafanua.

He wants a mandatory death sentence for offenders who traffic 5 kilograms or more of a Class A drug.

Matangi Tonga reported Fakafanua as saying “drugs offences are on the rise and at a very alarming rate in Tonga”.

Fakafanua also said most reoffended.

Several other pieces of legislation aimed at getting on top of Tonga’s drug problem, were now before Parliament.

They include the Intoxicating Substances Bill 2021 and the Therapeutic Goods (Amendment) Bill 2021.

The Illicit Drugs Control (Amendment) Bill 2021 proposes:

Tonga is one of just two Pacific states — the other being Papua New Guinea — that still has the death penalty on its books.

But it has not used it in 40 years.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz