The Governor of Papua New Guinea’s Oro province has warned public departments are more atuned to facilitating corporate interests than protecting the rights of ordinary citizens.
Gary Juffa has reiterated his concern that a major land grab process is continuing in PNG despite a government order to halt the granting of new Special Agricultural Business Leases, or SABLs.
A news report on EMTV further emphasises how PNGs current development model, based on large-scale mining and other resource explotation is failing to raise the living stanadrds of ordinary people.
While we don't agree with the reporters characterisation of PNG as a third-world nation and challenge Western perceptions of poverty based merely on disposable income, the video does make clear that a change od direction is needed.
The government is carrying out a review of PNG's Mining Legislation.
As part of that process the Mineral Resource Authority is holding a series of regional workshops to gauge the views of stakeholders.
Below are the various background documents, reduced into slide presentations, from those workshops. The MRA advises that the actual draft review document will become available for final comments in 3 months time.
Last Thursday two groups of people came head to head over who really owns the land area on which the former Milinat plantation was on.
Mabonob villagers clashed with some settlers brought on the land by claimant Sali Tagau.
The villagers carried placards calling for the arrest of Mr Tagau and blaming the PMIZ for provoking this fight. The Mabonob villagers said, “this land ownership title is being disputed in court and several restraining orders have been issued to Mr Tagau but he continues to ignore these orders.”
