PMIZ Watcher

By Luana Paniu

The Department of Lands and Physical Planning has been given seven days to reconstruct 18 more title files to be submitted to the Commission of Inquiry into the Special Purpose Agriculture and Business Leases.

The files, which are part of the 75 SPABL cases now under investigation by the CoI, were reportedly destroyed or misplaced.

By MT

THE people in the rural areas want the government to thoroughly investigate the issuance of Special Purpose and Agricultural Business Leases (SABL).
 This issue affects more than 90% of the silent majority who live in villagers and remote communities.


These people do not even know that their customary land has been given to corporations with the backing of foreign-owned multi-national corporations. 
I was shocked to learn that over than 300,000ha of customary land in my area was given to a corporate entity.

By Martyn Namorong

The phrase “landowner issues” is a misnomer and gives the wrong impression that Papua New Guineas traditional land owners are somehow a deterrent to progress. Next week I travel to the Lower Ramu region to see for myself the land of a rainforest tribe of New Guinea being taken from them without proper consent.

By Evah Kuson*

Following on from the preliminary hearing on the Monday 8, August  Simon Ketan has now taken over duties from Davis Stevens as the new Council Assisting for the Commission of Inquiry. Chief Commissioner in his welcoming address thanked Ketan for his willingness to take this role.

By Evah Kuson*

The Commission of Inquiry (CoI) officially opened their investigations into the Special Purpose Agriculture and Business Leases (SPABL) yesterday (8/08/2011) with presiding Chief Commissioner John Numapo with Messrs Alois Jerewai and Nicholas Mirou.

PMIZ Watcher

By Joe Wasia*

SURE, IN THE MINDS of many Papua New Guineans, the liquefied natural gas (LNG) project will bring a lot of changes into our country.  Yes, if revenues are managed and used well it will be a pillar of the economy. Or otherwise.

The question is: will our so-called leaders and bureaucrats manage the revenues from this project with the mindset of developing this nation?

More than 2 million people in Papua New Guinea stand to be affected by severe food and water shortages unless serious steps are taken to ease the effects of a possible drought in the next 12 months.

The warning came from Papua New Guinea’s National Agriculture Research Institute (NARI) which says there has to be a collective effort by government agencies as well as communities to deal with the effects.