Picture: A cultural carving from East Sepik, Papua New Guinea
Source: "Red Soil"
Carvers of the East Sepik Province are greatly very saddened and disgusted to learn of the PNG Government’s facilitation of the theft of 5 million hectares of land, under the Special Agriculture Business Leases (SABL) scam.
The International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes has ordered Papua New Guinea's government to stop interfering in the management of PNG Sustainable Development Program.
The dispute arose in late 2013 when the Peter O'Neill-led government moved to assume complete control of the 63 percent share of the lucrative Ok Tedi mine that SDP had held until then.
Picture: Prime Minister Sogavara and China Habour GM in Honiara
Source: PNG MIne Watch
A crooked Chinese company based in PNG is reaching out to the Solomon Islands government in search of new contracts. The General Manager of China Harbour Engineering Company recently met with the Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare - see news report below.
A government report on logging operations in the Yema Local Forest Area (LFA) in Ioma sub-district, Northern Province, has highlighted shortcomings in the implementation of forestry, environment, water resources and logging practices.
Although preliminary, the report said there were indisputable and undeniable evidence of inconsistency and negligence in the management of the Yema forest project.
On the 15th of January the Post-Courier reported it is full steam ahead for the controversial Torokina Oil Palm plantation on Bougainville. But now evidence has emerged that the necessary landowner permissions have not been obtained and local people are not happy.
The Land Theft of more than 5 million hectares of Papua New Guinea is a huge deal overseas, but not in Papua New Guinea. It’s funny how foreigners walk into the country with that knowledge at the back of their minds but upon spending some time realize, no one’s serious, as seriousness should have gotten.
A young Papua New Guinea girl holding a poster: Land is Life.
