The ugly side of Papua New Guinean elections has shown its face in the Western Highlands capital Mt Hagen with unknown suspects sabotaging one of the busiest airports in the country to protest against the appointment of electoral officials.

Using the cover of darkness yesterday, the suspects poured oil on the Kagamuga International Airport tarmac to disrupt flights, prompting the provincial police commander to describe it as an “act of terrorism”.

Chief Superintendent Joe Puri said the incident showed what people were capable of when they were frustrated.

“However, it does not give anyone the right to hold the whole province to ransom,” he said.

“Three different factions of supporters of candidates are suspected of being involved in this latest sabotage of the airport.

“The persons responsible gained access through the back fence near the Mt Hagen golf course and got onto the tarmac where litres of engine oil was poured onto the tarmac.”

This started in protest over the appointment of the Hagen Open Returning Officer, with two factions contesting the appointment of the official in court.

Commercial flights cancelled
Commercial flights were cancelled yesterday following a protest over the electoral official’s appointment.

The protesting locals wanted Willie Ropa to be reinstated as Returning Officer for the Hagen Open electorate.

Ropa’s appointment was disputed in court by Hagen MP William Duma, who challenged the decision of the Electoral Commission in light of two conflicting gazette notices over the appointment of two ROs for Hagen — Ropa and Amos Noifa.

This incident and others in just three weeks of campaigning and nominations should not be taken lightly, as the instances will only grow if nothing is done quickly by the authorities.

Just over the weekend, the Returning Officer for Kompiam-Ambum Open, Enga Province, was shot and had to be hospitalised.

Last week, the convoy of a sitting Member of Parliament (Okapa MP Saki Soloma) was stopped and attacked leading to several vehicles being torched and destroyed.

At the same time, former Nipa-Kutubu MP and now a candidate for Southern Highlands Provincial, Philemon Embel also narrowly escaped an assassination attempt on his life when his vehicle was shot at in the province.

While these incidents have taken place mainly in the Highlands region, it is no secret the syndrome of violence can quickly spread to other centres in the country.

Last month Police Commissioner David Manning called on the nation to help deliver a free, fair and safe election. Police are now maintaining a 24 hour presence around the airport.

Thierry Lepani and Miriam Zarriga are PNG Post-Courier reporters. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

A few shops and buildings in Papua New Guinea’s Western Highlands provincial capital Mt Hagen have been destroyed and looted in a riot that caused four deaths and left 20 people injured and hospitalised.

The violence was triggered by a fight between between Mt Hagen Secondary and Hagen Park Secondary schoolboys last Friday.

Provincial police commander Chief Superintendent Joe Puri said tension was high throughout the weekend but there were no further fights.

Tension continued yesterday forcing Mt Hagen police to set up a roadblock from the Komkui Building roundabout to the old tribes’ theatre roundabout to ensure normal business continued.

The roadblock was also to allow the relatives of the four victims to come forward to show their sorrow.

The fight last Friday occurred in the middle of the city and opportunists took advantage and destroyed Hagen Plaza, which houses a food restaurant, a Digicel shop, Trophy Haus and Fone Haus.

Bystanders said the opportunists ran in numbers into the plaza and grabbed whatever that was inside, including mobile devices, footwear, work wear and other valuable items.

‘Disappointed’ with the public
Chief Superintendent Puri said he was disappointed with the public for taking part in the fight where buildings were damaged and shops looted.

“The public is supposed to contain the fight when it first started among the boys rather than ignoring and joining in, as it went out of proportion and eventually led to deaths and injuries,” he said.

“We have taken the investigation very seriously since day one and have already engaged outside investigation teams so the situation is not compromised in any way, and after that, we will be able to identify who was involved.”

Chief Superintendent Puri also urged the public to maintain peace and look after properties and businesses in the province.

Service providers in the province have complained that students must not be involved in fights as opportunists often damage and loot their shops.

Other businesses that were targeted included Boroko Motors and Wamps Fuel Station.

Rita Peki is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Two deaths with two patients in critical condition is the status at one of Papua New Guinea’s leading hospitals as the covid-19 pandemic continues to create havoc along with an acute shortage of operational funds.

Mount Hagen Provincial Hospital in Western Highlands Province — owed K1.6 million  (NZ$650,000) by the central government in Waigani — struggles to maintain its ongoing clinical services as well as provide treatment and care to the escalating number of suspected covid-19 cases, said the Highlands Provincial Health Authority.

According to WHPHA acting chief executive officer Jane Holden, the hospital will definitely shut down come Christmas if funding is delayed further.

She said although the hospital was stretched to its limit, it tested 27 positive covid-19 cases in the last four days, bringing the number of new cases since Saturday to 109.

This left only five isolation beds unoccupied out of 20 available isolation beds.

“Two patients died last week and two are critically ill, Holden said.

“Although we cannot get the results for the whole genome sequencing, we must assume we are dealing with the delta variant, given the rapid increase in numbers and severity of their illness.

Funds for two weeks
“We only have enough covid-19 funds to support another two weeks work despite sending a request in late June to the Department of Health.

Holden said if there was no funding, the hospital would shut down its services before Christmas.

“This will commence next week with the closure of consultation clinics for any new patients and the discharge of others over a couple of weeks.

“We will also need to ask patients coming from other provinces to seek support locally rather than come to Mt Hagen Hospital.

“Over the next four to six weeks, beds will be closed as patients are discharged home.

“Further reducing services at the hospital just puts increased pressure on rural health services, and we know that they are also stressed.

“Church Health Services have not had funding support this year either and are under significant pressure as well,” Holden said.

“This is a very difficult time.”

According to statistics from National Control Centre, Papua New Guinea is reporting 1000 new cases a month — an increase of 50 percent, averaging 500 new cases a month.

In the last three weeks, 649 cases were confirmed, with 18 deaths reported in the same period. Of this, one medical doctor had died out of the 53 health workers who tested positive with covid-19.

‘Biggest’ threat to Pacific in century
Meanwhile, in New York, US, Prime Minister James Marape told a Pacific Islands Forum meeting last week that covid-19 presented the biggest threat to the health and wellbeing of Pacific people and the world in more than a century.

He told a virtual PIF Leaders Meeting with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly (UNGA): “Never before, has the full Forum membership simultaneously been in a crisis wherein members face significant challenges to prepare, respond and mitigate the immediate and associated threats posed by the covid-19 pandemic.”

Marape said a unified collective regional approach to address covid-19 through the Pacific Humanitarian Pathway had ensured countries remained relatively unscathed from the health impacts of covid-19, with six countries still covid-free.

“The emergence of the more transmissible strains of the virus is concerning, with clear evidence that the coping capacity of some of our members’ health systems is struggling to keep up with the rapid spread of the virus,” he said.

“There are some assurances provided through vaccine-powered recovery, however, in places where vaccines are not yet widely available, or in communities where people have not been vaccinated despite availability, the virus could still spread rapidly.

“When forum leaders met last month, we re-emphasised the importance of ensuring the distribution of safe and effective vaccines in the Pacific region and reiterated our call to global leaders to support the equitable and affordable distribution of safe and effective covid-19 treatments and vaccines to all Pacific peoples, facilitate early economic recovery and to call for a WTO TRIPS waiver for covid-19 vaccines.

“We also committed to collectively ensure comprehensive vaccination coverage is achieved for our Pacific peoples by setting a target of 80 percent of the eligible population for the Pacific region subject to country readiness by the first quarter of 2022.”

Rita Peki is a PNG Post-Courier reporter.

Covid surge threatens PNG’s Mt Hagen hospital with ‘closure by Christmas’https://t.co/KT37BGLGeP
Mount Hagen Provincial Hospital in Western Highlands struggles to maintain its clinical services and provide treatment and care to the escalating number of suspected covid-19 cases pic.twitter.com/KbnPWEuFgo

— Pacific Security Hub (@PacSHub) September 28, 2021

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Watch Newdesk

A Kiwi photographer was stabbed last week during a roadside robbery in Papua New Guinea.

Colin Monteath, 71, and Australians Chris Hoy and Greg Mortimer had all their belongings stolen near the city of Mt Hagen while on their way to visit the popular destination Rondon Ridge Lodge, reports the Otago Daily Times.

Their car was stopped at a road block by six people armed with knives and axes.

READ MORE: PNG police minister to use social media to keep citizens safe

Monteath sustained machete wounds to his wrist when he refused to hand over his camera gear.

He survived because the weapon directly struck his wristwatch, which shattered upon impact, reports stuff.co.nz.

After the attack, a local woman helped find their car keys which had been thrown in the jungle.

They then drove to Mt Hagen Hospital where Monteath received surgery on his wrist and was discharged that same day, June 5.

At least six men have been arrested after the local community helped track them down.

Most of the stolen equipment was also recovered and returned.

Monteath told stuff.co.nz that the locals were very helpful and apologetic and he still loved Papua New Guinea despite what happened.

Australian Greg Mortimer said the incident was unfortunate but there are bad people all over the world, reports the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier.

Trans Niugini Tours owner Bob Bates, who runs Rondon River Lodge where the victims had been heading, said nothing like this attack had ever happened in the 13 years of their operation.

“It is just disgusting that the elderly tourists would be attacked the way the three men were,” Mr Bates said.

Monteath is a Christchurch based polar and alpine photographer who has been taking international geographic photos for magazines and books since 1973.

After returning to New Zealand, he told his family, “Unless you’re defending your family, never ever defend any material goods,” reports stuff.co.nz.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz