Woman adventurer defers Madang arrival to tomorrow

By MALUM NALU

 

British woman adventurer Roz Savage has deferred her arrival in Madang to 8am tomorrow (Friday) because of headwinds on Wednesday night which slowed down her progress.

Savage was initially expected to arrive in Madang at 2pm today (Thursday) after an epic rowing voyage across the Pacific from Kiribati, however, was dampened by the headwinds.

Her new expected time of arrival was 6pm today, however, after consultation with Sir Peter Barter of Melanesian Tourist Services, decided to defer to tomorrow.

This was mainly because a warm welcome by hundreds of Madang school children, a flotilla of canoes, banana boats and fishing boats was planned for daylight hours today.

“We have spoken with Roz Savage and it has been agreed that she enter Madang around 0800 on Friday,” Sir Peter said.

“She could have arrived around 1900 on Thursday, but it would be dark and it would be a shame for her not to get a welcome in daylight.

“So she will potter around outside and hopefully we can arrange the kids to paddle out around 0700 and escort her back to Madang.”

Savage wrote in her blog (http://rozsavage.com/blog/) and Twitter sites on Wednesday night that the lively wind which had pushed her through the Vitiaz Strait had died down as she neared Madang.

“A slight hitch there is that the conditions here have really calmed down,” she said.

“The winds and the currents have died away since yesterday, so far from having to drag my oars metaphorically to delay my arrival until Thursday afternoon; I am now actually having to row through the night in order to get there in time!

“But from what I’ve seen of the Madang Resort (through brochures airdropped by Sir Peter), it is going to well worth the extra effort.”

 

APEC Trade Ministers review progress on free trade

Singapore, 3 June 2010 – APEC Trade Ministers are set to review members’ progress in achieving regional free trade goals; and will receive an update on global trade negotiations from the World Trade Organisation’s Director-General, Mr Pascal Lamy.

The meeting of Asia-Pacific Trade Ministers will be held in Sapporo, Japan on 5-6 June and will conclude with a press conference on 6 June.

In 1994 APEC set the ‘Bogor Goals’ of free and open trade and investment by 2010 for industrialised members and by 2020 for developing members. Trade Ministers will now discuss members’ progress based on an interim assessment report which combines input from: member economies, the APEC Business Advisory Council and relevant international organisations.

Existing figures show that substantial progress has already been made. Average tariffs in APEC member economies are now more than 60 percent lower than when APEC was established in 1989.

Mr Lamy will brief Trade Ministers on progress in the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations and on the WTO’s efforts to monitor and counter protectionism. APEC Trade Ministers will then discuss how to give impetus to the DDA and maintain APEC’s standstill against protectionism.

Trade Ministers will also focus on APEC’s key agenda items for 2010. They will consider ways to accelerate regional economic integration, including possible pathways to a Free Trade Area of the Asia-Pacific.  In addition, the Ministers will review APEC’s work to formulate a new Growth Strategy for the region that achieves more balanced growth, attains greater inclusiveness in societies, better sustains the environment, and raises growth potential through innovation.

The meeting of Trade Ministers will be preceded by meetings of APEC Senior Officials and working level groups from May 24 to June 4.

For more information please contact: media@apec.org

 

 

Port Moresby airport killing

Personnel from a security firm in Port Moresby standing guard at the Jackson Airport domestic entrance soon after a passenger was shot and bled to death yesterday as he was about to board for New Ireland, on his way to Simberi to buy gold. Suspects made off with the victim’s bag allegedly containing more than K500,000. Two suspects have been arrested as police investigations continue.-Nationapic by AURI EVA in The National

Passenger shot dead, K500,000 stolen in daylight robbery

A PASSENGER bled to death at Port Moresby’s Jackson Airport domestic terminal yesterday morning after he was shot in the waist and robbed of more than half a million kina, The National reports.
Witnesses said the passenger, believed to be gold buyer, lay wounded in a pool of blood inside the domestic terminal second security check area for a long time before an ambulance arrived to rush him to the hospital.
“Why call the ambulance? Where were the airport medical centre staff who should have attended to his wounds on the spot and then rush him to hospital?” an irate regular traveller said at the scene.
Jackson Airport managers, National Airports Corporation, released a brief media statement about the killing but did not say how firearms were smuggled through the outside security check-point. The metal detector there should have picked up the gun, or guns, then.
According to police, the victim was pronounced dead on arrival at Port Moresby General Hospital.
The hospital confirmed that the man died from heavy loss of blood.
Relatives of the dead man, believed to be from the Highlands, went to the hospital during the day and removed the body.
This is the first major armed robbery of a passenger inside PNG’s largest airport where a victim has been shot and killed.
NCD police chief of operations Supt Andy Bawa said yesterday two people, who had driven the gold buyer to the airport, have been arrested and are being questioned.
Police are still hunting for two more, one of whom who may have pulled the trigger.
Bawa said the Port Moresby-based gold-buying employee was carrying K530,000 in cash and was due to fly to the gold-mining island of Simberi in New Ireland when he was attacked, probably by two people who had escorted him to the airport.
He was shot in the waist as he struggled with his assailants who were trying to snatch his travelling bags.
“We have not yet recovered the money but my men are out in full force to capture the suspects,” he said.
Bawa appealed to intending passengers and members of the public, who were at the scene of the crime, to come forward with information.
National Airports Corp managing director Joseph Kintau confirmed in a statement that “a man was shot by criminals and died on the way to the hospital”.
“It is understood the criminals were after bags containing significant amounts of money and, in the struggle, they shot the man.”
Kintau said it was now a police matter and investigations had started.
“Extra security measures are being taken and the public airport premises will be subject to additional checks and screening.”
According to several witnesses, five armed men were seen rushing from the scene of the shooting.
Everything happened so fast that it was hard to tell what really happened, but two men appeared to grab bags from the man and fled through the exit sliding doors to a waiting white Nissan Sunny motor vehicle which sped off.

Kapris names MPs in MRO's guilty plea

PRISON escapee William Nanua Kapris yesterday pleaded guilty to robbing cash and gold bars from the Metal Refining Operations (MRO), and named three politicians as having benefited from the proceeds of this crime, The National reports.

He named the three politicians as recently suspended Treasurer and Finance Minister Patrick Pruaitch, Correctional Services Minister Tony Aimo and Deputy Speaker of Parliament Francis Marus.

Stolen from the MRO on Feb 14, 2007, were cash totalling K78, 000 and gold bars worth K2, 060,115.56.

Kapris claimed that the leaders used what he stole to buy properties along Orchards Street in Singapore in 2007.

He said the three MPs and a Malaysian businessman in Port Moresby, William Lee, had assured him not to worry about the MRO robbery proceeds in a restaurant in Gordon which they claimed they also owned.

Kapris pleaded guilty to the charge of armed robbery, but told the court there were no violence involved because insiders were involved.

He also told the court about his childhood background and upbringing in Kimbe, his initial jailing (for 15 years) in November 1997 for armed robbery in Kimbe, his transfer to Bomana, how he escaped and met his wife.

He said the MRO robbery was organised by a Alphonse Silas, or Alfie. Others he named as being involved included a Tom Gabi, who he said was a smelter; a Fiona Augerea, MRO’s marketing and sales representative; another MRO driver named Eocio; MRO security guard Joseph Tau and Jackson Sandy, who later drove the MRO bus with the loot from the robbery to a place in Waigani.

He said from the K78, 000 cash, 10 of them each got K7, 500.

He said Alfie and Lee took care of the sales of the gold bars.

In April 2007, Kapris flew to Lae and stayed there for four month.

He said he rang to complain about why he did not get anything from the sales and proceeds of the stolen MRO gold bars.

Then, in August 2007, Lee arranged for him to fly to Singapore for a month, returning on Sept 10.

He said while he was in Singapore, he was shown some properties bought from the use of the gold stolen from MRO.

He also questioned why others heavily involved in the MRO robbery, such as Alfie, remained free. 

The hearing on the matter continues today.

Meanwhile, Police Commissioner Gari Baki said last night police would investigate all the allegations made in court yesterday by Kapris.

Baki said police would leave no stone unturned in their investigations.

He said the claims were made before and were not new.

 

Denials forced me to escape: Kapris

SUSPECTED bank robber William Kapris said he had escaped from prison on Feb 8, 2008, and on Jan 12 this year because his family was not allowed to visit him and was not allowed access to medical attention and legal aid, The National reports.

Kapris had pleaded guilty to both charges of escaping from lawful custody and was yesterday at the Waigani National Court for his submissions on penalty to be presented to the judiciary.

He was represented by private counsel David Dotaona who, while making submissions on sentence, also made references to Kapris’ remorse and plea for forgiveness.

Dotaona also offered that his client had revealed that during the Jan 12 escape, the opportunity to do so presented itself during a mass breakout at the Bomana facility.

He said in the days after the escape, Kapris had decided against going into hiding and could have surrendered to police had he not been recaptured at the Afford Lodge at Gordon.

Presiding judge Justice Panuel Mogish took into account Kapris’ earlier concerns of why fellow escapee and BSP robbery suspect, Oliver Ben Gawi, was charged under the Summary Offences Act while he (Kapris) was charged under the Criminal Code Act.

Gawi appeared before a district court hearing and was sentenced to six months imprisonment, when the maximum penalty for such crimes was five years.

However, lawyer acting for the state Nicholas Miviri clarified that Gawi was charged under the Summary Offences Act because he was on remand when he escaped while Kapris was serving a sentence at the time he dashed to freedom.

Miviri also submitted that the prisoner had defied his convictions and the law by escaping while serving 15 years for rape and attempted murder.

He said Kapris had escaped, not once but, twice; an obvious display of deterrence.

Mogish will rule on the sentence today.

 

Momis looks set to win

FORMER Papua New Guinea ambassador to China John Momis is confident of becoming president of Bougainville, The National reports.

As of last night, Momis was leading incumbent President James Tanis by a comfortable margin.

When The National went to press, Momis polled 25,134 votes to Tanis’ 13,875 votes, a difference of over 11,000.

The five other candidates were not polling well enough to pose any threat to the two.

He told Radio New Zealand that baring any foul play, he would win because he had wide support.

Momis said once elected, he would get straight to work to ensure Bougainville moved away from dependency on aid, and ensure weapons disposal was completed quickly.

“I have a two-pronged approach to reconstruct the economy of Bougainville. One is to find ways and means of enabling the people to raise income for themselves and their families.

“We must not be made to be dependent on the government.

“The other approach will be to find ways and means of enabling the government to go into big projects which would involve joint venture businesses with good credible foreign partners, to generate revenue for the government.”

He said his government would use the increased revenue to provide badly needed services like education, health and infrastructure.

“Bougainville is rich with natural resources in many, many areas. That is something that we must do. We can’t be forever dependent on handouts,” he said.

He said the Tanis government had failed to tackle the problem of weapon disposal in a meaningful way, and that would be one of his first priorities.

 

Latest pictures of woman adventurer Roz Savage nearing Madang

By SIR PETER BARTER

 

These are a few pictures taken from helicopter afternoon 40 miles out to sea approaching Madang. 

We dropped a bucket of beer, fruit, sandwiches newspapers, various emails exhanged and a map of Madang showing her where she will be escorted to the Marina. 

Higher res pictures were sent to media this afternoon.

 Roz looks very excited; we spoke on the radio and is looking forward to her arrival in Madang.