Pacific Media Watch

Papua New Guinea’s Police Minister Bryan Kramer has published an extraordinary attack on two leading journalists over their reporting of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, accusing them of “misrepresenting” a financial update this week and suggesting they ought to be sacked.

He claimed in an Easter weekend posting on his Kramer Report – a Facebook publication dedicated to being the “inside story through in-depth investigative reporting and critical analysis” with more than 124,000 followers – that Loop PNG political and business editor Freddy Mou and senior PNG Post-Courier journalist Gorethy Kenneth “can’t be trusted”.

“Both journalists have close ties to the former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill. Both have also been accused of publishing biased and misleading reports,” Kramer alleged.

The commentary was headlined: “Who got it wrong? PNG Loop or the Treasurer?”

Kramer accused Mou of misrepresenting a one-on-one interview with Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey in alleging that the bulk of the 23 million kina released by the government for Covid-19 operations was being used to hire cars and media consultants.

According to Kramer, the Treasurer said the reporter had contacted him to get his response to a claim by Opposition Leader Belden Namah that the government’s recent announcement of a K5.6 billion stimulus package was illegal and that the needed to recall Parliament to pass a supplementary budget to give effect to any additional spending.

While acknowledging some criticisms of the funding, Kramer transcribed a video of the interview released by journalist Mou to Kenneth that she had purportedly shared on the Covid19 Whatsapp network, claiming: “The article is mischievous and misleading by including certain words the Treasurer said with additional words that he didn’t.”

Loop PNG responded with an online editorial today saying that it stood by the “key facts of the story published on 9 April 2020 about the K23 million of taxpayer funds earmarked by the National Government for the Covid-19 response.”

It added: “Any misunderstanding, though regrettable, was not deliberate or intentional, and Loop PNG rejects all assertions to the contrary.

“Loop PNG also rejects any attempts to interfere with its editorial independence, which is a cornerstone of Papua New Guinean democracy.”

“Loop PNG has a proud history of journalistic integrity and independence which it strives to uphold in every story. This is consistent with the fundamental role of the media in our democracy, which is to hold the government of the day to full account without fear or favour. Loop PNG will continue to play that important role throughout the state of emergency and beyond.”

The online news website added that it welcomed the detailed breakup of how the funds had been spent so far, which the Police Minister had posted on social media.

Amid hundreds of comments in response to the online furore, a leading independent media commentator and training consultant, Bob Howarth, a former publisher and general manager of the PNG Post-Courier, described it as a “disturbing situation” when the Police Minister “makes serious ethical allegations against two senior journalists”.

“[A] case for adjudication by an effective media council rather than a court of law?” he asked.

In his detailed online posting on Kramer Report, the minister said: “Though the Treasurer raises some concerns about some of the priorities in the spending, nowhere in the interview does the Treasurer say there are allegations that the ‘bulk’ of the 23 million kina released by the government for Covid-19 operations, was being used to hire cars and media consultants.

“Nor did he say the Prime Minister has been notified, [n]or that there was a call for a proper audit before the government releases the balance.

“It begs the question: What action would a reputable media company take against a journalist who caused significant damage to its reputation?

“If it were me being misrepresented in the media, I would take immediate action against the journalist and media company.”

Minister Kramer made a reputation for transparency and use of online media communication when an opposition MP for Madang. Since being part of the government led by Prime Minister James Marape, he has enhanced his reputation for straight talking and making information available on the internet.

Among responses online, one writer said: “Please enact laws to deal with journalists who publish or reports false and misleading information to the public. Kramer you’re in the government now so push for new policies or amendment of the act to cover these. Let the law deal with those liers once and for all rather than we argue amongst ourselves and the liars ride away freely.”

Another said: “This is not their [journalists] first time to report such [biased] information. They are misleading the 8 million plus population of this country. Those culprits need to be investigated and prosecuted by the law of this country.

“If you don’t do it now, then when are you going to do it? We need to see them facing the law of this sovereign nation.”

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk

Both the Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea governments have signalled changes to make their forestry industries more sustainable.

According to Loop PNG, the Papua New Guinea government will be putting a stop to the issuance of all new logging licences to foreign companies.

Forestry Minister Solan Mirisim who resigned as Defence Minister under the O’Neill led government, said licenses will only be issued to landowning companies.

READ MORE: Tarcisius Kabutaulaka: Logging bonanza hasn’t helped Solomon Islands landowners

“The Minister is charged in ensuring that no more new licence is given to foreign companies, all existing players in the country go down to downstream processing by 2020,” he said.

He said that more needs to be done to ensure the forestry industry is sustainable.

“But what we can absolutely do about logging is this: We can replace the tree that we cut. But we are not doing that. You go anywhere in the logging area in PNG, are they doing reforestation? No. But the authority that’s supposed to do this is slack.”

Illegal deforestation
Deforestation is rife in Papua New Guinea, with 640,000 hectares of forest felled in the last three years. Much of the logging is illegal, prompting conflict between offending companies and indigenous landowners.

According to The Guardian, millions of tonnes of illegally felled logs are sent to China and PNG is China’s single largest supplier of tropical logs.

Illegal logging activity is often enabled through corruption typical of the previous government under Peter O’Neill.

Prime Minister James Marape has since pledged to stamp out such corruption and work more in the interests of indigenous landowners.

The Solomon Islands government has also discussed changes to the logging industry, with Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare looking to halt all round log exports by 2023, reports SIBC news.

Sogavare will encourage a shift from round log exporting to downstream processing with more factories set up to process the timber onshore.

Twenty times the sustainable rate
According to environmental news website Mongabay, logging companies are clearing Solomon Islands forests at nearly 20 times the sustainable rate.

While Sogavare’s announcement appears to be a step in the right direction, there are concerns that any changes will be hindered by a majority of pro-logging MPs, many of whom are being paid by foreign logging companies.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz