People from the Raicoast in Madang failed yesterday to get a court order to stop the export of logs which they say have been stolen from their traditional land.

Local leader, Fuguman Gau (brother of Madang governor James Gau) and his lawyer did not manage to get the court order they wanted in time to stop the shipment on Friday.

Fuguman Gau had got court order on 9th December 2011, stopping all illegal harvesting and exporting but logging company G&S Limited produced a court order two weeks ago which they claimed had been issued in Goroka on December 23rd which cancelled the earlier order and allowed logging to continue.

Fuguman then applied for a hearing to cancel the G&S Limited court order but was unable to get a hearing until 17th Feb.

Meanwhile G&S Limited had loaded a shipment of logs and tried to run away with them logs on 16th Feb, one day BEFORE Fuguman's court case

Luckily for Fuguman Gau, customs Madang refused to clear the ship on 16th to wait for the 17th court case.

Local people claim G&S Limited lawyers managed to pull a procedural trick to confuse the court and avaoid a further order. 

G&S limited lawyers claimed in court that there is a lot of confusion and uncertainty with Fuguman's 9th Decemebr court order and the G&S Limited 23rd December court order. This was rather ironic, because the confusion was caused by G&S Limited manipulation and backdating their court orders in the first place say the landholders.

But Fuguman's lawyer also accidentally gave Judge Cannings ammunition, by getting his dates wrong and claiming that Judge Cannings was not in Madang on 9th Dec 2011 when Judge Cannings was in fact in Madang on that date.

Because of this confusion and uncertainty Justice Cannings decided that the Goroka decisions should remain the way it is and he would not deal with the uncertainty caused in Goroka. Fuguman Gau should seek a fresh hearing in Madang if he wants his court order reinstated.

As a result, the court decision is as follows:

1. G&S Limited 23rd December court order remains. As a result, the illegal harvesting and logging is allowed to continue
2. Fuguman Gau can seek a fresh hearing in Madang (so that Judge Canings can deal with the matter himself)

Locals say this is a huge defeat for Fuguman, because the earliest date he can file a fresh application is 20th Feb 2012 and predictably, G&S Limited took their victory yesterday directly to customs Madang who, after legal advise have no choice but to let logging ship go.

The logging ship duly set sail yesterday evening.

However, locals say all is not lost as the shipment is only one of the many future illegal shipments that G&S Limited will be planning.

Read more about the Rai Coast logging operation - http://pngexposed.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/forest-minister-personally-pushed-for-illegal-logging-operation/