Transcript
Tribal fighting is not new in PNG's Highlands region, particularly in Hela. But Hela is a newly-created province and problems around tribal enmities are surging. A local community worker, Isaac Pulupe says that there's recently been a lot of lawlessness in Hela.
"There's tribal fighting. We have about ten fresh conflicts which have involved people losing a lot of property. Out of that ten, some conflicts have about 111-12 lives being lost. It's not really good, and people have to taking extra precautions when they want to travel around Hela"
The provincial police commander Michael Welly concedes Hela has had its fair share of tribal fighting this year.
"It's nothing to do with political, it's all tribal fighting. Mainly due to disagreements in the community about land issues and other various domestic issues that then turn out to (become) tribal fights as well."
Hela's Komo region remains tense after an ambush on a convoy at a roadblock two weeks ago left two people dead. The next day, in pursuit of the suspects in the shootings the police mobile squad, a highly trained yet notorious group of armed police from around the country went to Ligamne Village. Ligame locals say the squad burnt down many homes, something which Michael Welly played down, but stopped short of denying.
"To go in search of the suspects, obviously they went there (Ligame) and everybody hid them and so obviously one or two houses were put up in flames."
The mobile squad has been linked by various locals to the LNG Project, with some describing these police as LNG Security. However, a statement from an Exxon spokesperson denies this.
"Exxon Mobil PNG plays no role in the conduct of police operations, nor do we "hire" the police or employ what was described as "LNG security police". Under the Project Gas Agreement, the State is responsible for protecting Project operations in a lawful and reasonable manner that respects human rights."
Under a Memorandum of Understanding with the PNG police force, the LNG project can "offer support such as transport, fuel, lodging and stipends for the police away from their normal work locations". However Isaac Pulupe says the community feels the police are not working on their behalf to stop tribal conflicts such as that in Komo.
"Tribal fighting has been going on in Komo, one that was leading to the shootout, and it is right in the heart of where the LNG project is operating. And it is one of the PNG Police Constabulary's mandates to intervene and stop tribal fighting and that sort of conflict, but to them they didn't do that."
Meanwhile, local media is reporting that the roadblock at Komo has been cleared, opening up cautious hopes for peace between the conflicting tribes involved.
