PNG PM congratulates Rudd

By Eoin Blackwell, AAP Papua New Guinea Correspondent

PAPUA New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill has congratulated Kevin Rudd on his return to the Australian prime ministership, and says the strong relationship between the two countries will continue.

Mr O'Neill has also thanked former prime minister Julia Gillard for her commitment to the PNG/Australia relationship over the past three years.
"On behalf of the government and people of Papua New Guinea, I congratulate Kevin Rudd on his election as Leader of his party, and on returning to the high office of Prime Minister of Australia," he said in a statement on Thursday.
"I am sure the mutually beneficial and strong relationship between Papua New Guinea and Australia will continue."
Mr O'Neill also wished Ms Gillard "every happiness and success in the future".
Ms Gillard made her first visit to PNG as prime minister in early May and pledged to redefine the relationship beyond its traditional setting of donor/aid.

"When she visited recently we had wide ranging discussions on bilateral and wider issues, and we appreciated the additional commitments she made under our development co-operation agreement," Mr O'Neill sai

PNG leader slams opposition's race attack'

By Eoin Blackwell, AAP Papua New Guinea Correspondent

PAPUA New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill says a racially motivated attack on him by the nation's opposition leader is disgraceful.

Mr O'Neill on Monday responded to a weekend attack by Belden Namah in which the opposition leader accused the prime minister of not being Melanesian after he signed an extradition treaty with Indonesia.

PNG's leader says a racially motivated attack on him by the nation's opposition is disgraceful. Source: AAP

PNG shares its only land border with the restive Indonesian province of West Papua, and many West Papuans have fled east to escape Indonesia's rule.
"I just find it absolutely disgraceful that someone who claims to be a 'leader' can resort to race-based abuse and name-calling without provocation or justification," Mr O'Neill said in a statement on Monday.
"His vicious and uncalled-for attack on me while trying to justify his newfound position on Indonesia and Papua is disappointing, but sadly, it is also not unexpected.
"Mr Namah's disgraceful behaviour is one reason why the opposition numbers have dropped from around 20 to five or six since he became opposition leader last August."
Mr O'Neill last week visited Jakarta with a large business and ministerial delegation to sign the extradition treaty, and a series of commercial and civil agreements.
Mr Namah directed his response to the bilateral talks at Mr O'Neill personally, and said the O'Neill government would use the extradition treaty to send West Papuans fleeing Jakarta's rule back to Indonesia.
"Peter O'Neill is not a Melanesian," Mr Namah said.
"If he is Melanesian, he will feel the pain and the suffering of the West Papuans."
Speaking directly to the attack, Mr O'Neill said he was proud of the contributions his father - an Australian-born magistrate, or "Kiap" in Tok Pisin - had made to PNG.
"I am a proud Papua New Guinean," he said.
"I am proud of the contribution my late father made to Papua New Guinea before and after Independence. I am proud of my heritage, as are my children."
He urged Mr Namah to put up policies, adding there was no place for race-based politics in PNG.
Mr O'Neill is already suing Mr Namah for defamation after the latter publicly accused the prime minister of personally benefiting from government contracts.
The political falling out between Mr O'Neill and Mr Namah came after the 2012 national election that saw Mr O'Neill become PM and Mr Namah head a rapidly diminishing opposition.
For a year leading up to the election, Mr Namah was Mr O'Neill's deputy prime minister.
Now Mr O'Neill commands a large majority in parliament - about 95 out of 111 seats, while Mr Namah has seen his numbers shrink from 12 to just seven.
The pair's relationship soured during the lead up to the election, with Mr Namah publicly declaring during the campaign he should be the nation's prime minister.
Mr O'Neill last month reportedly took a page out of former Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating's play-book, telling Mr Namah in parliament he wanted to "undo [him] slowly".

PNGSDP supports water upgrade in Southern Highlands

Clean safe water will soon become a reality for the 15,000 people of Kape, Longo 1 and 2, and other Kambe Yakipu villages on the outskirts of Mendi, Southern Highlands.

A project involving the construction of a dam, a filtration system, an 80,000 litre Southern Cross tank and the installation of water pipes and taps is about to be implemented by the Baptist Union of PNG Health Services.

This will all be made possible thanks to K291,770 from PNG Sustainable Development Program Ltd  and K300,000 from the Member for Imbonggu, Mr Francis Awesa (Minister for Works), and the expertise of the church.

The signing of the funding agreement took place on Monday, June 24 between PNGSDP and Baptist Union Health Services. 

Officials from Baptist Union PNG Health Services signing the funding agreement on Monday

A community water and sanitation committee consisting of six men and four  women will be set up to support the project team during the implementation phase. This is to ensure the communities are involved in decision-making and ownership from start to the finish.

“PNGSDP’s contribution to this project is backed up by trusted project implementers, financial support from the local Member of Parliament and the community’s contribution through sweat equity,” chief executive David Sode said.

"This sort of commitment, in PNGSDP's experience, makes all the difference to whether a project goes ahead or not, and whether it ultimately succeeds or not.

“Once completed, the project will provide clean water and improved health and hygiene for locals. It will also relieve women and children of the laborious task of walking long distances every to fetch water for their households.

“It will also make a big difference in terms of people’s health – water-borne diseases are a major problem in villages and as the population increases throughout the country, traditional water supplies are becoming inadequate and unsafe.

A safe and reliable water source has been identified in the hills behind the villages, away from human activity.

The system will be gravity fed and has the capacity to supply 200 litres of water per second from the dam to the reservoir tank, from where it is then piped to the villages and schools.

Water points will be erected at selected locations for people to access.

PNGSDP is a 63.4% shareholder in the Ok Tedi mine. The dividends from its shareholding are used to support development work across the nation, including community-based projects.

US Pacific Partnership provides medical support and training in Wewak and Vanimo

More than 50 members of the U.S. Navy joined Australian and Japanese naval personnel in Vanimo on June 25 for Pacific Partnership 2013 (PP13) in Papua New Guinea.
A U.S.-sponsored annual humanitarian and civic assistance mission aimed at strengthening international relationships with partner and host nations in the Asia-Pacific, Pacific Partnership arrived in Vanimo from Wewak, where the exercise was based for the last 10 days.
“This is an awesome mission that has two big benefits: It directly helps improve health and education services in communities and it fosters two way learning between civil and military professionals from across the Pacific,” said Carlos Williams, U.S. Health Attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Port Moresby. “This exercise is a true partnership, bringing together the PNG Defense Force, the Department of Health, provincial government leaders, disaster relief agencies, hospitals, NGOs, and schools.”
“Pacific Partnership is an excellent program,” said Elias Kapavore, CEO of the Vanimo Provincial Hospital.
"We will support this program enthusiastically."
The Australian ship, the HMAS Tobruk, is anchored prominently just off the Vanimo coast, and will be joined tomorrow by the Japanese destroyer, the JDS Yamagiri. More than 100 medical professionals from Papua New Guinea, Japan, Australia, and the U.S. are providing surgical, diagnostic, and medical expertise.
Pacific Partnership cooperates with regional governments and military to improve response during disaster relief operations while providing humanitarian, medical, dental, and engineering assistance. This year, the Australian Defense Force has taken the lead for the operation in East and West Sepik.
Supporting Inclusive, Sustainable, and Transparent Economic Growth in Melanesia
"More than 4000 people attended medical training workshops and attended health fairs," said Regina Chinsio-Kwong, a US Navy physician, who participated in the Wewak exercise.
At health fairs in Wewak, local community groups promoted preventative health care, disaster preparedness, and provided information to stop sexually transmitted diseases and Gender Based Violence.
The Wewak Disaster Management Task Force was also launched during the Pacific Partnership.
"One of the greatest legacies of Pacific Partnership is the countless number of friendships that are forged with all Papua New Guineans," said Lori Christensen of the U.S. Navy. "We're ultimately here to learn from and support each other."

Australian Navy Medical Officer in Charge, Captain Greg, East Sepik Deputy Provincial Administrator Elizabeth Kaprangi, officials from the Provincial Health Department and the U.S. Navy’s Lori Christensen at the official opening of the Pacific Partnership Mission’s Health Expo in Wewak, East Sepik Province on June 15, 2013.

In addition to health programs, Pacific Partnership is contributing to engineering projects.
 "The response from the schools was overwhelmingly positive," said Australian Army Lieutenant David Bellas, overseeing engineering projects at two schools and a health clinic in Wewak.
"Students are still texting us thank you notes for refurbishing their classrooms."
 He is now leading four construction projects in Vanimo.
"We're privileged to have the Pacific Partnership in Vanimo," said Ashley Wayne of the PNG Defense Force.
 "Our medics look forward to joining you in the hospital, and we look forward to joining the construction effort."
Taking advantage of professional Rugby talent on the HMAS Tubruk, the Australian Navy will also conduct a three-day rugby clinic at Don Bosco School in Vanimo.
The last Pacific Partnership exercise in Papua New Guinea was in 2011, led by the U.S. Navy, working with local and regional partners to provide humanitarian assistance in Madang and Lae. Pacific Partnership formed following the massive 2004 Asian tsunami in which more than 230,000 in 14 nations died.
Since 2006, Pacific Partnership has visited 15 countries, treated more than 300,000 patients and built over 130 engineering projects.

Travel Air helps needy

 LOCAL airline Travel Air, owned by East New Britain businessman Eremas Wartoto, is stepping up to help needy air travellers with free tickets.

“There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up,” Wartoto.

Lucy Elphis, an elderly mother of four from Southern Highlands, was so grateful that Wartoto was at the right place at the right time to aid her.

Elphis had encountered problems with airfares for her return trip from Port Moresby to Mt Hagen.

Founder and chairman of the newly established domestic airline dubbed as Mangi Lo Peles, Wartoto gave away a free ticket to the young mother as part of the new programme called the Mangi Lo Peles Halivim Fare.

Ready to board…From left are First officer Suhaimi Ibrahim, cabin crew Carol Kilik, Mrs Elphis, Mr Wartoto, Capt Adrian Joseph , cabin crew Georgina Mariwanjik , and Hagen Port Manager Mr James Kops

Elphis was the first recipient of the free ticket under this new programme.

The programme will help ordinary citizens who, because of unfortunate situations cannot afford their own fares to destinations of their preferences.

“The Mangi Lo Peles Halivim Fare will be prearranged for those in the category that has been seen for such assistance to change their lives for the better, providing hope where there seems to be no other way to,” Wartoto said.

“The underprivileged individuals must present their case with evidence to port managers on each domestic hub and they will only be considered eligible after their problems are wisely assessed.

“Travel Air management, upon evaluating their problem, will offer assistance to those individuals with criteria that will be fitting for that cause.

“A year has passed and Travel Air is generating remarkable favours with the ordinary citizens of this country.”

Four Chinese killed in PNG stabbings

Global Times | 2013-6-27 0:23:01 By Wang Fei

A view of a bakery where four Chinese expatriates were murdered in Port Moresby on Wednesday. Four Chinese nationals have been hacked to death in Port Moresby, with one reportedly beheaded in an attack condemned as "brutal and cowardly" by Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Peter O'Neill. Photo: AFP

 Four Chinese expats were stabbed to death in a store on Monday in Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea (PNG), and one of them was beheaded, embassy officials confirmed to the Global Times.

Cao Junjun, a diplomat with the Chinese embassy in PNG, told the Global Times that three men and one woman, all in their 50s, were killed at about 9 pm local time on Monday. The four victims came from Shanghai and had been living in PNG for over a decade.

The store owners, Wang Chuanhai, male, and Jiang Qin, female, were both killed, while one of the store employees, whose identity is still unknown, was beheaded, said Cao.

China has urged PNG to take strong measures to protect the lives and property of the Chinese, and bring the criminals to justice as soon as possible, said Hua Chunying, spokesperson of the foreign ministry in a press conference Wednesday.

The store is a small supermarket and bakery located in the center of the capital. It was closed and eight Papua New Guinean employees were baking bread on the first floor when the attackers broke in.

A total of five Chinese staff members were on the second floor when they heard the noise.

Two went downstairs but didn't return, and the other three went down only to find the others had been killed.

The owner's young brother, Wang Chuanjiang, rushed back upstairs and shut the door. He was the only Chinese survivor.

Wang Chuanjiang saw one masked suspect, while the local employees, who all escaped unharmed, said they saw more than one. Only some of the cash in the store went missing, said Cao, adding that Wang Chuanjiang remains in good health.

Cao rushed to the scene one hour after the attack. All eight local employees had gone before he arrived.

They have now been located and are being watched by the police. An investigation is underway, said Cao.

Some relatives of the deceased flew to the city the next day, and more are applying for visas. The bodies are being kept in a local funeral home, Cao said.

PNG Prime Minister Peter O'Neill Wednesday condemned the killing in a statement, saying "I want to assure the government of China and relatives of those killed that police will get all the help necessary to track down and bring the perpetrators to justice."

Li Baohui, a staff member with the Economic and Commercial Counselor's Office of the Chinese embassy, told the Global Times that the office has informed all Chinese expats and the staff of Chinese enterprises and China-aid projects to try not to go out for the time being.

The incident has shocked Chinese residents in PNG. However, their business dealings are proceeding as normal at the moment, said Li.