Since the onset of its genocide, Israel has persistently pushed a narrative that the famine devastating Gaza is not of its own making, but the result of “Hamas looting aid”.

This claim, repeated across mainstream media and parroted by officials, has been used to deflect responsibility for what many human rights experts have called a deliberate starvation campaign.

Even after Israel fully banned the entry of food, water, fuel, and medicine on March 2, Tel Aviv continued to maintain that Hamas looting, not Israeli policy, was to blame for the humanitarian catastrophe.

• READ MORE: Israel kills dozens of Palestinians at US-backed aid hubs in Gaza
• Other Israel’s war on Gaza reports

But that narrative has now been discredited by Israel’s internal reporting. Last week, the Israeli military admitted internally that out of 110 looting incidents they documented, none were carried out by Hamas.

Instead, the looting was done by “armed gangs, organised clans” and, to a lesser extent, starved civilians.

Those very gangs and clans are backed by Israel; they enjoy full Israeli army protection and operate in areas Israel deems “extermination zones”, where any Palestinian trying to enter would be killed or kidnapped on the spot.

The gangs had vanished during the two-month ceasefire but conveniently re-emerged as soon as Israel was pressured into allowing a limited trickle of aid to enter. The timing is no coincidence; Israeli policy has deliberately weaponised anarchy to preserve the conditions for starvation.

This pushed even the UAE to strongly condemn Israel after the army forced an Emirati aid convoy to drive through a “red zone” where Israel-backed gangs looted 23 out of 24 trucks.

So why does Israel continue to cling to a demonstrably false narrative while openly engineering a looting crisis through its proxies? Because the myth of “Hamas looting” serves a critical strategic purpose: to whitewash and legitimise a new plan that institutionalises starvation for blackmail, ethnic cleansing, collective punishment, and mass internment through a shell Israeli organisation.

This is coupled with another alarming tactic of recruiting warlords, drug dealers, and criminals to create a puppet “anti-terror” force.

Israel’s looting myth
The “looting” talking point is devoid of any logic, as Hamas would be able to do very little with thousands of tons of looted aid.

Israel and US Ambassador Mike Huckabee both claim Hamas uses the looted aid to buy new weaponry. But where would they buy such weapons from when Gaza is fully sealed off by Israel, and Rafah — the city of smuggling tunnels — is under full Israeli control?

Israel claims Hamas sells looted aid on the black market. But, again, what would they do with the money? Virtually nothing is allowed into Gaza except a trickle of food.

Israel also claims Hamas uses looted aid to recruit new militants, but Hamas doesn’t operate this way. The group depends on utmost secrecy and discipline in its operations.

Each new member passes through a long process of vetting, training, and tests to minimise the risk of infiltration. It would compromise Hamas to recruit people openly, whose only attachment to the group is bread rather than ideological commitment.

Perhaps most damning is that Israel has never captured a single instance of Hamas looting aid, despite subjecting Gaza to the most meticulous surveillance on earth. Israeli predator drones cover every inch of the enclave every minute of the day, yet there is nothing to show for Israel’s claims.

Hamas is also aware that hijacking and looting aid trucks could lead to Israel bombing the vehicles and diverting them from their predetermined route.

The Israeli army has done this on countless occasions when it fired at or bombed humanitarian convoys under the pretext that Hamas policemen came near the trucks. Ironically, those law enforcement officials were actually trying to prevent looting when they were targeted.

Israel’s allies reject the narrative
Israel’s strongest supporters have refuted the “Hamas looting” claim. President Joe Biden’s humanitarian envoy, David Satterfield, admitted in February of last year that “no Israeli official has . . . come to the administration with specific evidence of diversion or theft of assistance delivered by the UN”.

Satterfield reiterated last Tuesday that Israel has never privately alleged or offered evidence of Hamas stealing aid from the UN and INGO channels. Israel’s ambassador to the EU, Haim Regev, said in mid-October 2023 that “there’s no evidence EU aid went to Hamas”.

Cindy McCain, World Food Programme’s chief and widow of one of the most pro-Israeli GOP senators, forcefully rejected Israel’s narrative on Sunday, saying that looting “doesn’t have anything to do with Hamas . . .  it has simply to do with the fact these people are starving to death”.

The Washington Post, meanwhile, reported last week that “Israel has never presented evidence publicly or privately to humanitarian organisations or Western government officials to back up claims that Hamas had systematically stolen aid brought into Gaza”.

An internal memo jointly drafted by UN agencies and 20 INGOs in April, and viewed by The New Arab, stated that “there is no evidence of large-scale aid diversion”.

Gangs and scarcity are responsible for looting
While Israel failed to show any evidence of Hamas stealing aid, the only documented organised systematic looting happening in Gaza right now is by Israeli-backed criminal gangs who enjoy full protection from the Israeli army, according to the Washington Post, Financial Times, Ha’aretz, and the UN.

A UN memo said these gangs established a “military complex” in the heart of Rafah after Israel fully depopulated the city. Humanitarian officials say the looting often happens right in front of Israeli troops and tanks, less than 100m away, who take no action until the local police arrive, with Israeli troops then opening fire at them.

Israel not only provides protection and backing to these criminal gangs but has created the perfect conditions for looting to thrive through scarcity and a collapsing state of law and order.

Currently, a single bag of wheat flour sells for about 1,500 NIS ($425), which makes it profitable for gangs to loot and sell on the market. These astronomical prices are driven by scarcity after Israel banned all food from entering Gaza for nearly 80 days, then allowed less than 20 percent of what Gaza needs on a normal day for basic survival after intense international pressure.

During the ceasefire, however, when Israel was allowing 600 trucks to enter per day, prices went back to normal and looting disappeared because it was no longer profitable due to the abundance of food, and because the police were able to resume their work.

Manufactured crisis to advance genocide
The engineered looting crisis has long served as a convenient excuse to cover up the deliberate weaponisation of starvation against Gaza’s entire population, allowing Israel to distract from its restrictions on the entry of aid and the spread of famine by saying Hamas is to blame for stealing aid.

But now, this manufactured crisis is serving a second objective: to justify a dystopian ‘aid plan’ Israel is implementing in Gaza that has been condemned and boycotted by every UN agency and humanitarian organisation working in the enclave, as well as donor countries.

A joint UN-INGO memo warned that the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation would facilitate the use of aid for forcible expulsion, by telling Gazans the only way they can receive food is by moving south to Rafah on Egypt’s border.

GHF, which Israeli opposition leaders said was an Israeli shell funded by Mossad, began its operations last Tuesday after being rocked by two scandals in one day.

GHF’s CEO had resigned on Sunday in protest of the organisation violating the principles of humanitarianism, while the organisation shut down its registered headquarters in Switzerland as soon as Swiss authorities launched an investigation.

Images coming out of the GHF’s militarised aid distribution site were immediately likened to concentration camps, where hundreds of emaciated Gazans were crowded into metal cages like cattle under the boiling sun, surrounded by armed US mercenaries, Israeli troops, and sand dunes.

Alarmingly, people who received aid noted the presence of Arabic speakers in addition to American mercenaries. Last week, the Israel-backed Islamic State-linked gang leader Yasser Abu Shabab emerged in Rafah again after a long disappearance.

Abu Shabab, a drug dealer and wanted criminal previously arrested multiple times by the local police, was the primary suspect in the systematic looting of aid under Israeli protection. This time, however, he emerged in a brand new uniform and military gear and started a Facebook page promoting himself in English and Arabic to mark a new “anti-terror” force operating in Israel-controlled Rafah.

Additional pictures viewed by The New Arab showed multiple armed men dressed in the same uniform as Abu Shabab armed with M-16s standing in front of a humanitarian convoy.

The unravelling of Israel’s “Hamas looting” narrative lays bare a chilling truth: starvation in Gaza is not collateral damage — it is a calculated weapon in a broader campaign of collective punishment and displacement.

By cultivating chaos, empowering criminal gangs, and then manipulating the humanitarian crisis they manufactured, Israel seeks to maintain extreme restrictions on aid, while externalising blame and avoiding accountability.

It is the machinery of genocide disguised in bureaucratic language and carried out under the watchful eyes of the world.

Muhammad Shehada is a Palestinian writer and analyst from Gaza and the European Union affairs manager at Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor. The article was first published by The New Arab. On X at: @muhammadshehad2

“We want grants and not concessional loans,” is the crisp message from Papua New Guinea businesses directly affected by the Black Wednesday looting four months ago.

The businesses, which lost millions after the January 10 rioting and looting, say they need grants as part of the government’s Restock and Rebuild assistance — and not more loans.

This is the message delivered by the PNG Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Monday after news that the national government has so far given K7 million (NZ$3.2 million) in funding to several affected companies to pay staff salaries.

• READ MORE: The Black Wednesday riots

President Ian Tarutia said the business coalition representing impacted businesses would be meeting with the Chief Secretary and his inter-agency team this week to find out when the assistance will be given.

Their message at this crucial meeting will be the same — no loans!

“The real impact assistance that is truly beneficial is rebuilding and restocking,” Tarutia said.

“We will meet with the chief secretary hopefully this week to get an update on this component of the government’s relief assistance to affected businesses.

Concessional rate loans
Tarutia explained that an initial National Executive Council decision was to provide loans at concessional rates and managed through the National Development Bank.

“Business Coalition’s response was grants and not loans are the preferred assistance. Meeting with the Chief Secretary this week hopefully can resolve this.”

He also indicated that in the initial impact by businesses compiled in late January, the estimated cost for rebuild and restock covering loss of property, cost of clean up, loss of goods was K774 million.

“This was for 64 businesses mainly in Port Moresby but a few in Goroka, Rabaul, Kundiawa and Kavieng,” he said.

“Out of this K774 million, an amount of K273 million was submitted as needed immediately.

“Business Coalition met last Saturday morning. Business houses are looking forward to meeting Chief Secretary Pomaleu and his inter-agency team this week to find out when the assistance for rebuilding destroyed properties and restocking looted inventory will be given.”

Tarutia acknowledged that so far, the government had paid out approximately K7 million in wage support for businesses which includes eight businesses including CPL.

Businesses acknowledge the wage support to date and are appreciative on behalf of their affected staff.

Dale Luma is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

Academic Andrew Anton Mako says the Papua New Guinea’s systemic dysfunction was plain to see in the rioting and looting throughout the country’s main cities two weeks ago.

That rioting was sparked by a protest by police after unannounced deductions from their wages.

It led to a riot causing the deaths of more than 20 people, widespread looting and hundreds of millions of dollars damage to businesses.

• READ MORE: Marape ‘can’t pass the buck’ for PNG riots, says East Sepik governor

The government, which declared a two-week long state of emergency, put the wage deductions down to a glitch in the system.

Mako, who is a visiting lecturer and project coordinator for the ANU-UPNG Partnership with the Australian National University’s Development Policy Centre, said that the rioting would not have happened if the system was working properly.

“That information could have been transmitted through the system so that not only the police officers, but other public servants would have been assured that there was a glitch in the system, and then they would return the money in the next pay,” he said.

Symptom of major problems
“I think that information could have been made available to the officers quickly and the protests should not have happened.”

He said it was not an isolated event but a symptom of major problems facing the country.

“The government and the policymakers really need to take a comprehensive approach in addressing that,” Mako said.

He said that in the administration there were entire areas where little development or reform had happened in a generation.

The last attempt to look at the government machinery was more than 20 years, under Sir Mekere Morauta, but since then “there hasn’t been any sort of reforms to improve governance, improve public safety, efficiency, and all that.”

Mako believes if the work of Sir Mekere had been continued the country would not be facing the problems it is at the moment.

What reforms are needed
Mako said the government needs to know it faces major issues that cannot be resolved quickly — they will need to think in terms of years before reforms can be bedded in.

“It’s not going to be easy, they have to really work on it for a number of years. They will have to come up with a reform agenda work on it for the next four or five years.”

Up to now, Mako said, politicians have just dealt with the symptoms, rather than addressing the underlying issues, such as unemployment.

He sees the high crime rate as being closely linked to the lack of work opportunities, along with high inflation and the failure of wages to keep pace.

“The focus has to be on the sectors that create jobs. So over the last few years, over the last decade or so, a lot of focus has really been on the resources sector, the mineral, petroleum and gas sector.

“Those sectors are really called enclave sectors and they have really limited linkage with the broader sectors of the economy,” Mako said.

“So the mineral sectors do not create a lot of jobs. A lot of the jobs [there] are done by either machines or highly skilled workers. So it is the sectors like agriculture, like fisheries, like tourism, forestry, those are the sectors really, really create jobs.”

Mako added the government should be focussing on investing in, and developing policies, in these traditional sectors, enabling many of the unemployed, especially the young, to find work.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

East Sepik Governor Allan Bird says Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape must take responsibility for the Port Moresby riots two weeks ago.

The National reports Governor Bird saying the police cannot be punished for the looting and burning, the government is totally responsible for what happened.

“You can’t just pass the buck, we’ve got to take responsibility for that,” said Bird, a government MP.

• READ MORE: Marape reshuffles PNG cabinet – Treasurer demoted, Tkatchenko back
• Other PNG politics reports

He said the rioting — dubbed Black Wednesday — was a stain on PNG’s history, a stain on all members of Parliament, and a stain on all of decisionmakers, who for many years had failed to deal with the underlying issues in the country.

Governor Bird said the lack of employment and increases in living costs had contributed to the buildup of frustrations that led to the riots in which lives were lost, women raped, and businesses destroyed.

Last week, Morobe Governor Luther Wenge said a change in leadership would restore confidence in government, and called for Marape to put his leadership of the Pangu Party on the table.

Wenge said he was not going anywhere, that he was a Pangu Pati member, but a change in leadership was necessary.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

In the wake of last week’s riots and looting across Papua New Guinea’s cities, the government has announced plans to get the country’s youth working.

Prime Minister James Marape said efforts would be made to mobilise people aged 16 to 30, who were not in work or education.

Some of the blame for the rioting and looting has been put on out-of-work youth.

• READ MORE:  Port Moresby police chief suspended in latest fallout from PNG riots
• Masiu vows 10-day shutdown of PNG’s social media after capital riots
• Post-Courier: Draconian and dangerous move

The PNG Post-Courier quotes him saying the responsibility for doing this will be passed to provincial and district administrations, which will be expected to make use of the money from the intervention funds they receive.

“I want to appeal to every young Papua New Guinean child out there, I’m your father. As Prime Minister, I’m your father, listen to this.

‘Talk to your church’
“Go to your church somewhere, in your community, neighbourhood and you and tell them, I’m not in a class this year, or I have graduated in a college or university and have no employment,” Marape said.

“The entire 97 districts throughout the country will be asked to mobilise the youth.”

The prime minister urged the youth to make contact with their respective district education advisors and community development advisers, including district development authority chief executive officers.

He said the churches would link the youth to these district governments.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Last year, the Papua New Guinea government moved in a subtle way into the Fourth Estate.

It tried to — and is still trying to — find a way to curtail and restrict your access to mainstream and social media by trying to gag media organisations.

Obviously, this was an attack on media freedom. We were not going to take it sitting down.

• READ MORE:  Masiu vows 10-day shutdown of PNG’s social media after capital riots
• PNG political fallout from deadly riots stirs call for vote over Marape
• PNG’s Gerehu became a ‘ghost town in the blink of an eye’ after riot
• Marape accuses ‘rogue police’ of being part of Port Moresby’s riots
• ‘Uphold right to life’ says watchdog in aftermath of deadly PNG unrest

We met the government head-on to protect our country’s media freedoms, and to ensure the public — that’s you — are well informed on what is happening in our country.

Today, we report on a government endeavor, which we consider extremely dangerous and an affront to the intelligence of Papua New Guineans, which we also believe is impinging our constitutional freedoms.

The government, in introducing a State of Emergency, has gone to a dangerous level of invoking section 70 of the NICTA Act.

Section 70, according to our Prime Minister, gives absolute rights to government agents including police, soldiers and undercover agents, to enter any home and check private house and property.

Section 70 also gives these agents all the power to search your phone. This is in our view draconian and extreme.

What will become of democracy? Is this a test run for what is yet to come?

We will support any move to impose restrictions that will save lives and protect properties and ensure peace and good order.

But we do not promote laws that will instill fear, limit freedom and impinge on the rights of the common people.

No to draconian governance, no to dictatorial leadership.

While we support the State of Emergency as a deterrent to further violence, looting and acts of terror against businesses and citizens, we consider the power to search without a warrant as a direct attack on the freedoms guaranteed by the constitution to our people.

This Section 70 of the National Information and Communication Technology (NICTA) Act 2009 seems to be the same section used by government in its recent attempt to curtail the media.

While this action seems to have been sparked by the Black Wednesday looting in Port Moresby on December 10, one cannot rule out the perplexity of the first sitting of Parliament on February 13 where a Vote of No Confidence in the government is looming.

The NICTA Act allows the government to require operator licensees, such as telecommunication companies, to provide ICT services, restrict or delay certain communications, disclose the content of specified communications to the Minister, and coordinate with other government organisations if necessary.

The activation of Section 70 is likely to agitate citizens regarding privacy rights and the protection of personal information.

However, the government contends that these measures are necessary to address public emergencies and ensure public safety.

The government has yet to come clear on how this section 70 will be enforced and carried out.

Will the police and army use section 70 to conduct raids on suspected homes, communities, and people?

Will there be search warrants for these phone searches, home searches, bag searches?

What is the recourse for the public if they are caught in the crossfire of section 70?

The Prime Minister and his Minister for Internal Security must explain this clearly.

This editorial was published by the PNG Post-Courier on 16 January 2024.

The political fallout from the deadly riots in Papua New Guinea continues, including calls for a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister James Marape.

Seven MPs in Marape’s government have resigned following last week’s riots in Port Moresby and Lae — dubbed “Black Wednesday” — and the current death toll has reached 22

Belden Namah, representative for Vanimo-Green, is the latest government MP to resign.

• READ MORE:  PNG’s Gerehu became a ‘ghost town in the blink of an eye’ after riot
• Marape accuses ‘rogue police’ of being part of Port Moresby’s riots
• ‘Uphold right to life’ says watchdog in aftermath of deadly PNG unrest

Namah is a senior MP and a former captain in the PNG Defence Force. He was involved in removing Sandline mercenaries in 1997 after similar rioting and looting. As such, his resignation is a significant blow to the Marape regime.

Last Friday, Morobe Governor Luther Wenge called for an emergency sitting of Parliament to address urgent issues including a vote of no confidence.

Marape still has the majority and may announce a possible reshuffle in the coming days.

It is expected that there will be ministries that will be reworked so that the main base of power will still be contained.

Normalcy has returned on the ground the only tension is within political circles where people were preparing for a vote of no confidence or calling for a vote of no confidence.

Property returned
After several days of intense rioting in Port Moresby, Lae and other regions of Papua New Guinea the current death toll has reached 22.

However, it is suspected that the actual death toll, as order is restored, will be higher.

Acting Police Commissioner Donald Yamasombi asked people to return stolen property.

Yamasombi told looters to leave stolen items outside their homes for the military and police to pick up, on Saturday and Sunday.

His request was met with reasonable compliance.

A couple in Lae were arrested for abusing police over social media. The couple were “made an example of” for supporting the looters.

Videos of looter protests
There were also videos of looters expressing their dissatisfaction and telling the government why they were looting.

There is a feeling that something needs to happen. There are underlying frustrations among the population like the lack of opportunity for young people and the youth problems not dealt with.

The public’s frustrations are mirrored by PNG police, concerning their poor housing, work and pay conditions. Officers are expected to go into tribal fighting zones without body armour for protection.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Gerehu, the sprawling suburban township to the north of Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby, is now a “ghost town” for shoppers.

All major shops in the central business district in the city’s biggest suburb — Papindo, Gmart, Total Energy service station, Desh Besh Motors, Pharmacy, Supermarket and the bakery which serve a population of more than 50,000 — was set on fire by looters on last week’s “Black Wednesday” riot.

There is nothing left of the shops but debris and charred remains of buildings.

• READ MORE:  Marape accuses ‘rogue police’ of being part of Port Moresby’s riots
• ‘Uphold right to life’ says watchdog in aftermath of deadly PNG unrest

Many residents have expressed remorse that there is nothing left.

“Gerehu is now a ghost town,” said one emotional resident.

“We have nothing here anymore and the shops we grew up with are gone.

“Gone just like that at the blink of an eye.

‘I grew up here’
“I grew up here, this is my home.

“Oh my heart breaks.”

The busiest bus stop in the city was empty with no vendors in sight.

The main market was left with only a few food items and vendors.

One could guess mothers were chased out of the market as well while doing their usual marketing.

Only the thin smoke coming out from the walls and outside of the sheds was noticeable when the PNG Post-Courier visited the area at the weekend.

The Government has evoked a law that now gives government agents absolute rights to search your homes, vehicles and mobile phones during the State of Emergency.

Click the link to read more: ( https://t.co/5Ykkzwo0Rz )

— PostCourierlive (@postcourierlive) January 15, 2024

Gerehu General Hospital security supervisor Topo Dambe said the burning of buildings affected their area where they had received several casualties and the hospital was busy throughout the day.

“But when they set fire to the shops, the hospital staff and the lives of the people and properties were at risk and we were left to protect them and the hospital,” Dambe said.

“We had to close the gates allowing only emergencies.”

Republished with permission.

Rogue police officers have been alleged to be part of last Wednesday’s uprising of opportunists leading to looting and ransacking of more than 20 shops and loss of businesses in the capital of Port Moresby.

Prime Minister James Marape said last week’s “Black Wednesday” unrest had led the government to consider the Vagrancy Act and complete the national Census.

Marape said the 14-day State of Emergency orders included “no movement of large crowds”.

• READ MORE: ‘Uphold right to life’ says watchdog in aftermath of deadly PNG unrest

“There is no curfew and limited movement of large crowds will be stopped,” he said.

“Police will be supported by the PNG Defence Force and they will be allowed to stop anyone and check them.

“We are taking a soft approach to the SOE for the next 14 days,” Marape added.

Meanwhile, Brian Bell Group chair Ian Clough has made an impassioned plea to the government for assistance to rebuild its business because the company’s losses suffered in the Black Wednesday plunder were not covered by insurance, reports Claudia Tally.

He said that all businesses which suffered the “indignity of huge losses” through theft, arson and looting were not covered by insurance companies.

Brian Bell suffered losses of 50 million kina (NZ$21.5 million) million) after its warehouse in Port Moresby’s Gerehu Stage 6 was completely emptied by looters during the citywide plunder of businesses on January 10.

An emotional Clough said all businesses were not covered by insurance for civil unrest. This situation needed to be treated as a “natural disaster” where the government
must step in to assist.

Gorethy Kenneth, Miriam Zarriga and Claudia Tally are PNG Post-Courier reporters. Republished with permission.

Fires from the 24-hour spate of looting, rioting and mayhem in Papua New Guinea’s Port Moresby — the worst ever social unrest in the city — have all but subsided into skeletal remains of ash and buildings in National Capital District (NCD).

The smoke has cleared with six members of Parliament resigning from the Pangu Pati-led government, 10 people are dead in in Lae and NCD, 46 are wounded and hospitalised, and multiple people are suffering non-threatening injuries.

The government responded by declaring a State of Emergency in NCD and suspending Police Commissioner David Manning and secretaries of the Department of Finance Sam Penias, Treasury Andrew Oeka, Personnel Management Taies Sansan for 14 days.

• READ MORE: PNG’s Marape under pressure to resign as 6 MPs quit after Moresby riots
• At least 15 dead in Papua New Guinea rioting and looting – China lodges protest
• At least 10 dead after looting, fires on Port Moresby’s ‘darkest day’
• Violent riots in PNG leave 16 people dead, as PM declares state of emergency for 14 days
• Café Pacific’s report on the rioting as death toll rises
• Looting breaks out in PNG capital during police and military strike
• Contingent of Highlands Mobile Squad expected in Port Moresby
• Kavieng town under siege

The Post-Courier understands there was disagreement on the suspension and that the SOE was not the way forward. However, National Executive Council decided on going ahead with the SOE and suspension.

According to details released by Prime Minister James Marape, cabinet deliberated yesterdy afternoon and in a decision invoking Section 226 of the Constitution a a 14-day SOE was declared in Port Moresby only.

“14 days is the limit of the SOE, any longer period would require Parliament approval,” Marape said.

Meanwhile, according to the details released by Marape, Deputy Commissioner of Police-Special Operations Donald Yamasombi is now acting Police Commissioner and Controller of the country.

“Secretaries for Treasury, Finance and Personnel Management who are suspended for 14 days, their respective deputies are now acting.”

Prime Minister Marape reiterated his claim that Wednesday’s riots in Port Moresby had been organised, but declined to say they were political, instead saying his government would only be removed on floor of Parliament.

He said that Chief Secretary and others would undertake an investigation of what happened in Port Moresby.

In other coverage of the crisis by the weekend edition of the Post-Courier, Claudia Tally reports:

Few shops open
Port Moresby was in confusion yesterday following the aftermath of the worst ever civil disorder as reality sets in leaving people with no shops open to buy food and essentials from.

While the PNG Defence Force and members of the police patrolled the city’s streets in an attempt to restore normalcy many genuine city residents were queued at the only three service stations open to refuel their vehicles in anticipation of the weekend.

A-Mart supermarket at Manu Auto Port was the only shop open within the vicinity of Taurama and Boroko suburbs where angry shoppers crowded around the shop begging for entry which was heavily guarded by PNG Defence Force soldiers.

On Wednesday, more than 20 shops were looted and 8 others burnt leaving the streets of Port Moresby covered in papers and plastics from the items that were looted by hundreds of people who took advantage of the city polices strike over their salaries.

A mother of four who wished to be anonymous was worried where she would buy food for her children over the next couple of weeks as all the shops, she knows have been either looted, burnt or are closed for security reasons.

“I went to a shop at Hanuabada and waited for three hours for it to open to buy my children’s food but unfortunately, it was not open so I came back,” she said.

‘How are we going to survive’
“If these issues are not resolved, how are we going to survive.

“These shops are our gardens. They are where we get our food from.”

Meanwhile, many tucker boxes and canteens in the city were open today and their prices have sky rocketed only hours after Wednesday’s wild rampage.

For example, at Konedobu a 1kg packet of rice now costs K10 (NZ $4.50) — double the price prior to the looting.

Following the disorder, many clinics were also closed to the public over safety concerns.

Miriam Zarriga, Gorethy Kenneth and Claudia Tally are PNG Post-Courier reporters. Republished with permission.

A political crisis is starting to brew in Papua New Guinea as calls are made for Prime Minster James Marape to step down in the wake of deadly riots in parts of the country.

Violence broke out with shops and businesses being set alight late yesterday, after public servants, including police and army personnel, went on strike over a pay roll issue.

At least 10 people have been confirmed dead — eight in Port Moresby and two others in the northern city of Lae. [Al Jazeera reports 15 dead while ABC Pacific says 16 have been killed].

• READ MORE: At least 15 dead in Papua New Guinea rioting and looting – China lodges protest
• At least 10 dead after looting, fires on Port Moresby’s ‘darkest day’
• Violent riots in PNG leave 16 people dead, as PM declares state of emergency for 14 days
• Café Pacific’s report on the rioting as death toll rises
• Looting breaks out in PNG capital during police and military strike
• Contingent of Highlands Mobile Squad expected in Port Moresby
• Kavieng town under siege

On Thursday morning, Marape appealed to citizens not to take to the streets and “do anything and everything they feel”.

“Ill-discipline in the police force will not be tolerated, ill-discipline in the defence will not be tolerated, you can have one moment in the sunlight but this moment won’t last forever,” he said at a news conference on Thursday.

There has been widespread anger over Marape’s handling of the dispute as the violence and looting continues.

Police and defence personnel are trying to restore order, with 180 additional police flying into Port Moresby today.

‘Complete breakdown’
Six MPs have resigned from Papua New Guinea’s government. They are Sir Puka Temu, David Arore, James Donald, Maso Hewabi, Keith Iduhu and James Nomane.

Chauve MP James Nomane and Hiri-Koiari MP Kieth Iduhu made their resignations public via social media.

Both blamed Marape for the riots in Port Moresby, and which are now spreading to other parts of the country.

Nomane and Iduhu are members of Marape’s ruling Pangu Pati, and have called on him to resign.

“Today, I have tendered my resignation from the Marape-Rosso government due to my lack in confidence in the Prime Minister’s leadership,” said Iduhu in a Facebook post.

“I join the call of my colleague MPs in asking for the Prime Minister’s resignation based on the complete breakdown of our societal values and welfare,” he added.

Iduhu went on to accuse Marape of failing to address the grievances raised by Papua New Guinea’s police and military.

Core issue
“The core issue surrounding the grievances raised by the disciplinary forces was completely avoidable had it not been for bureaucratic negligence, and ensuing events even after the government was made aware of the situation displayed a lack of care for the potential for the situation to spiral of control,” he said.

Nomane’s statement of resignation was much harsher. He steps down from a senior role as PNG’s Vice Minister of National Planning.

He accused Marape of failing to run the country.

Violent riots in PNG leave 16 people dead, as PM declares state of emergency for 14 days https://t.co/AzxcX2MUXP

— The Pacific Newsroom (@newsroom_the) January 11, 2024

“I, now on this 11th day of January 2024, resign from the Marape-led government. I have no confidence in the prime minister,” Nomane said.

James Nomane, MP for Chuave District. Photo: Papua New Guinea Parliament

“Do the honourable thing and resign as the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea. Resign for being indecisive and weak … resign for the country slipping into a Banana Republic, and for this crisis happening under your watch.

“What happened in Port Moresby yesterday was absolutely unacceptable . . . and warrants the immediate resignation of James Marape as the prime minister.

“The time has come for James Marape to stop pretending and step aside as the prime minister to put the nation’s interest ahead of his own . . .  This facade must stop.”

RNZ has approached the prime minister for comment.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Soldiers and police were jointly patrolling the streets of the Papua New Guinea capital Port Moresby today as the country takes stock of yesterday’s unprecedented looting and rampage by hooligans and rioters.

Prime Minister James Marape confirmed that the National Executive Council had met and approved the army to be called out to assist police restore law and order after a day of total chaos in the capital city.

Five people were killed in Waigani while several more were injured and admitted to the Port Moresby and Gerehu hospitals.

• READ MORE: At least 10 dead after looting, fires on Port Moresby’s ‘darkest day’
• Violent riots in PNG leave 16 people dead, as PM declares state of emergency for 14 days
• Café Pacific’s report on the rioting as death toll rises
• Looting breaks out in PNG capital during police and military strike
• Contingent of Highlands Mobile Squad expected in Port Moresby
• Kavieng town under siege

Business leaders called the day the “darkest day” in the history of PNG where millions of kina in property and goods were lost.

As buildings lay smouldering in ruins last night, Police Commissioner David Manning confirmed that an additional 50 police officers from Lae had been flown to Port Moresby.

These police will provide backup for security personnel that have been on duty for extended periods, and will increase force strength if tensions increase, Manning said.

“Cabinet has approved a call-out of PNGDF personnel, and they are working with police to restore calm.”

Parkop calls for ‘normalcy’
NCD Governor Powes Parkop appealed for normalcy to be restored and for looting to stop.

He said: “What has happened is unacceptable, unforgivable, and unjustified under any circumstances.

Violent riots in PNG leave 16 people dead, as PM declares state of emergency for 14 days https://t.co/AzxcX2MUXP

— The Pacific Newsroom (@newsroom_the) January 11, 2024

“We cannot afford to allow this turmoil to persist another night or day. We must uphold our pledge to safeguard the people and the state. Let us restore order and stability in our city with the support of the PNGDF.”

What started as a simple standing down from duties because of pay cuts by disgruntled security personnel in the city turned into mayhem and chaotic scenes as opportunists ransacked shops and assaulted innocent bystanders.

A group of security personnel was seen descending into Parliament House demanding to see Prime Minister Marape. Several more personnel were also seen throwing
stones at the Central Government Office, breaking the gate and eventually burning the guard house at Manasupe Haus where PM Marape was holding a press conference.

In Konedobu, multiple gunshots could be heard outside the Post-Courier newspaper office after looters broke into Desh Besh supermarket.

The Port Moresby General Hospital CEO Dr Paki Molumi yesterday confirmed receiving the first wave of cases that included casualties of two chest, one thorax, one multiple wounds in shock and nine limb and abdomen wounds.

Razed by looters
In Gerehu, at Rainbow, the Stop and Shop was looted, while the main shopping centre near the market was razed. Waigani’s Stop and Shop also razed by looters.

Patients at Gerehu Hospital were also evacuated and taken to Port Moresby General Hospital amid the chaotic scenes.

Across the city reports of widespread looting of shops were coming in from Gerehu, Waigani, Tokarara, Konedobu, Manu Auto-Port, Badili, Hohola, Gordons and other areas.

St John Ambulances were called to many of the locations with multiple emergency calls relating to shootings and monitoring a number of fire incidents in the city.

Police vehicles drove by looters and rioters, some even giving a thumbs up and telling them to continue what they were doing.

The chaos yesterday was sparked by a simple technical glitch on the government’s Alesco Payroll System which paid public servants on a previously rescinded tax regime which resulted in workers including police and defence forces receiving heavily reduced pay packets.

This angered police to stand down from their duties and soldiers and police to march on the Parliament demanding answers to their pay cuts.

Strikers demand answers
At 10am, security personnel descended onto Unagi Oval in Gordons demanding answers as to why some of them were receiving 100 to 350 PNG kina (US$26-$80).

Minister for Internal Security Peter Tsiamalili Jr was shouted down with a thrown plastic container missing the minister as he left the oval.

The personnel drove into Parliament, and also shouted at acting Governor-General Job Pomat that they wanted to speak to PM Marape.

By 3pm, frustrated with the lack of response, the attention was now on Manasupe House. A vehicle and the guard house was destroyed and burned.

At 5pm, Assistant Commissioner of Police-NCD and Central Anthony Wagambie Jr confirmed that the PNGDF had been called on to support the police as they worked to bring peace and order in the city.

Miriam Zarriga is a PNG Post-Courier reporter. Republished with permission.

At least 10 people are dead and dozens injured after 24 hours of looting in Papua New Guinea, during which several buildings were torched.

Chaos broke out in Port Moresby as looters and opportunists took advantage of a protest by the country’s police and military.

People have been ordered to leave the streets of the capital after yesterday’s violent riots, and have been warned authorities will use “live rounds”.

• READ MORE: Looting breaks out in PNG capital during police and military strike
• Contingent of Highlands Mobile Squad expected in Port Moresby
• Kavieng town under siege

Looting has spread to at least four other towns, including Kavieng, reports the PNG Post-Courier.

Footage and images circulating on social media show crowds of people leaving shops with looted goods — everything from merchandise to soft drinks to freezers — as the National Capital District (NCD) descended into chaos overnight.

The national daily newspaper PNG Post-Courier labelled the events the “Darkest day in our city” and NCD Governor Powes Parkop appealed to the looters to stop.

Port Moresby General Hospital say eight people have been killed, and another two have been confirmed dead by police central command in Lae, the country’s second biggest city.

‘My heart goes out’
“The cost of the ensuing looting and destruction is substantial, and my heart goes out to all the businesses in the city that have been affected,” Parkop said according reports.

Unverified videos have also emerged of bodies of several men allegedly shot dead who were involved in the unrest on Wednesday and children and women wailing around them in Port Moresby.

RNZ Pacific is trying to verify the footage.

Police and the PNG Defence Force reinforcements have been called from outside the capital to restore order.

Emergency service providers have been working overnight attending to high numbers of people injured in the violence at various locations.

“The ambulance service has received a large number of emergencies calls in the National Capital District relating to shooting incidents and persons injured in an explosion,” St. John Ambulance Service said on their Facebook page.

“The ambulance operations centre are prioritising high-priority emergencies only at this point.”

Stretched to limit
The Papua New Guinea Fire Service has had its resources stretched to its limits as it struggled to contain fires in multiple locations.

The Port Moresby General Hospital had to close overnight while a smaller hospital at the Gerehu suburb, evacuated its patients as a nearby shop was set on fire.

Large businesses suffered big losses in just a few hours.

The City Pharmacy Limited (CPL) group, which owns one of the biggest supermarket and pharmacy chains in Port Moresby, had most its shops raided and burned overnight.

Looters also stole electronic appliances from warehouses and shops owned by the Brian Bell group of companies.

Police Commissioner David Manning called on all people in Port Moresby that to clear the streets and go home.

Mobile squad called in
Last night, additional police from the Highlands Mobile Group (HMG) were flown in from from Lae to help restore order.

The government also issued a call out for the military to assist police.

The events began on Wednesday morning local time, after about 200 police and the military personnel gathered at the Ungai Oval to protest over pay deductions from their wages.

They wanted answers from authorities about the “tax” in their most recent pay period, but a government minister who addressed them could not convince them why the deductions had been made.

The tax office said the issue caused by a “glitch” in the accounting system.

What triggered the chaos
In the last fortnight pay cycle, several service members saw a reduction in their pay, ranging from $100 PNG kina to $350 PNG kina (US$26-US$80).

It was not clear whether it was due to a tax, or a glitch in the system.

Many of them were told later, through a statement from the Internal Revenue Commission (IRC), and the prime minister’s office that there was a glitch in the payrolls system.

That triggered a gathering of about 200 policemen and women, military personnel and correctional services personnel in Port Moresby. They demanded an answer from the government, saying a “glitch” wasn’t a satisfactory answer.

They then moved from Unagi Oval to Parliament house, opened the gates of Parliament, and the Police Minister Peter Siamali Jr tried to address them. The security personnel then withdrew their services, and the city descended into chaos overnight.

Initially it was sporadic looting in various suburbs of Port Moresby. In the Gerehu suburb one shop was burned, and a few kilometres down to Waigani there was a shop that was burnt, and over the next three to four hours it became worse and several more shops were looted because there was no police presence there.

Policemen were there, but nothing could be done to the looters, so it has degenerated to a point where there is widespread looting.

The Finance Department and prime minister have tried to explain the so-called “glitch”, saying it was being fixed, but that has not gone down well with the service members.

The Northern Mobile Group, a mobile squad unit from out of Port Moresby which looks after one part of the region, has been flown into Port Moresby, and is expected to restore order.

The military has been called out to assist police.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Shops have been set on fire or looted in parts of Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby as unrest broke out during a police and military strike.

The protest over unexplained pay deductions to salaries of police, military, and correctional services has triggered sporadic looting in Port Moresby.

About 200 Papua New Guinea police and military personnel abandoned work for a day to protest.

• READ MORE: Papua New Guinea’s security personnel storm Parliament
• Other PNG security reports

At 10am (local time) yesterday, police and military personnel gathered at Port Moresby’s Unagi Oval in protest over what they say are hefty “tax” deductions in the most recent pay period.

According to service members, the deductions over the last fortnight range between US$26 and US$80 (K100 and K300).

The police union demanded answers from the government at the gathering and by 11am, a large group proceeded to Parliament where they demanded answers from the Prime minister and members of the cabinet.

The deductions come as Papua New Guineans experienced a noticeable rise in the cost of goods and services in the last three months.

Working to resolve issue
The Internal Revenue Commissioner released a statement saying that the government was working as quickly as possible to resolve the issue.

Prime Minister James Marape released a statement calling for calm while stating that the deductions were caused by a glitch in the government payroll system.

An earlier RNZ Pacific report said that Assistant Police Commissioner Anthony Wagambie addressed the protesters at Unagi Oval.

“Frustrations boiled over so they got into their vehicles and stormed Parliament . . . they opened the gates and went into Parliament,” reported Scott Waide.

“There was no real resistance to stop them . . . it was a rowdy crowd, the defence minister had attempted to speak to them outside of Parliament before they walked in.”

Police Association president Lowa Tambua demanded an answer about why there had been deductions.

‘Immediate answer’ demand
“We want an immediate answer from the Minister of Police and the Prime Minister,” Tambua said.

“We we’re all caught by surprise . . . come and address my members as to why this has happened.

“Don’t hide between the Parliament House . . . come over here and address our police men and women.”

IRC commissioner-general Sam Koim said “there has been no tax increase” to their salaries.

In a short statement, Koim said: “There was a technical glitch on the Alesco payroll configurations and hence the deductions.”

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Solomon Islands police have arrested 217 suspects connected to the three days of rioting and looting in the capital Honiara last week, but no alleged instigators so far.

Thirty three of the arrested people were juveniles — those under 18.

Police Commissioner Mostyn Managau appealed to members of the public to come forward and support police with evidence.

• READ MORE: Eleven NZ police bound for tense Solomons capital
• Other Honiara crisis reports

The riots and looting started on November 24 when a crowd of demonstrators broke into the Parliament grounds. They were then forced out from the Parliament area.

Their retreat into the city sparked three days of riots and looting that saw Chinatown razed, and several other properties in the eastern city set on fire, police stations attacked — one set ablaze, and Honiara High School torched to the ground.

The riots were subdued with the arrival of an international force led by Australia, PNG and Fiji with reinforcements from New Zealand arriving yesterday and over the weekend.

Meanwhile, Commissioner Mangau said there were two ongoing investigations — one into the looting and rioting, while the other probes the alleged perpetrators.

So far there have still been no arrests of key players allegedly behind the riot.

Robert Iroga is editor of SBM Online. Republished with permission.

Honiara residents walked for long distances to find shops and ATMs today with fewer or nor public transport available and the city shops were either closed or in ruins after two days of chaotic rioting and looting.

Today’s painful reality was what the city dwellers woke up to after a 36-hour lockdown following two days of heartless riots and looting that left shops, a school, police stations either looted or burned to the ground in the east and central of the city.

Among those who walked the distance was Lilly and her husband who toiled the road to Point Cruz from Vura only to realise the ANZ ATM had no money.

• READ MORE: Other Solomon Islands crisis reports

Next to the couple on the queue was another woman who looked so frail; she too had no money and was hurrying to withdraw her final SI$300 (about NZ$55) only to find the machine was empty. The mother was bitterly disappointed and I could see the agony in her eyes.

“I have nothing to eat. I needed to buy a small bag of rice for my kids who have not been eating since last night. We were never prepared for the lockdown,” she lamented.

“I don’t know, I am hungry, what’s going on,” she could be heard speaking in a soft-voice.

Weng Neili 翁内利 Solomons Fujian Assoc: “…all the shops in Chinatown have been burned & looted…The riots are more serious than in 2006, because they attacked indiscriminately this time, burning & looting schools, banks, & breweries” #honiarariots https://t.co/tT8PjV81DU pic.twitter.com/9BpMZ0NZiK

— Professor Anne-Marie Brady (@Anne_MarieBrady) November 28, 2021

The woman walked from Kukum only to be disappointed with an empty ATM at Point Cruz.

Expressing their grief
Even in their pain, the three were able to express their grief on seeing the burnt and looted face of Honiara — especially Chinatown — on their way to Point Cruz.

“I don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but surely we will suffer. Prices will go up and with the little wages our buying power will be further weakened,” said Lilly.

Across Point Cruz, there were countless people looking for shops and ATM machines. Long queues were experienced in the ATM machines and Bulkshops’ were packed with panic buyers.

“I am spending about $600 [NZ$110] on my shopping. This is the first time I have spent  huge money. It is like half of my fortnight[‘s money] but I have to use it because I don’t know what tomorrow will bring,” said a public officer who did not want to be named.

He added Solomon Islanders were known for buying what’s only enough for the day. But today he’s doing the unusual shopping for the first time due to the uncertain times “we are in”.

With Honiara’s shops closed and manned by private security guards, Bulkshops at Point Cruz and Rove were the only places that people went to for food and other household goods.

In one of their shops, rice was emptied within the first hours of opening.

Long lines of people
Down at White River, the Solomon Motors Refill Station had experienced a heavy turn out of vehicles and it developed long lines of people wanting to refill their vehicles. Regardless of that, everybody had their vehicles served.

Similarly, up in the east, long lines were also experienced at the Didao Refill station as vehicles filled up their tanks.

In the central Honiara, the market opened but with limited supply and prices were hiked by the few sellers.

With whatever Honiara residents could find, whether it was a packet of rice or a bag or even fruits from the market, they mostly walked home as public transport has stopped working most of the day.

Walking was not easy. Many had to navigate the dangers on the road – encountering smashed bottles and other harmful waste on the roads from the loot on their way home.

It is evident on the Kukum highway and even on the pavements that they were littered with fragments and the skyline, especially at Chinatown, was polluted with thick smoke discharging from the burnt buildings.

On my way back to Point Cruz from the east, I saw people walking to all directions.

Shedding tears over disaster
A mother whom I picked up on the way shed tears when we drove past Chinatown. When seeing the little town billowing smoke from the disaster and lying in ruins, she cried.

Within just three days, life in Honiara — which has been rebuilt steadily over the years since the ethnic tensions and the 2006 riots — has been turned into a nightmare.

Our public transport has been interrupted, shops are closing or burned down and life has been turned upside-down. Such is the new normal for Honiara, but surely more painful days are ahead.

Robert Iroga is editor and publisher of SBM Online. He filed this report on Friday, 26 November 2021. It is republished with permission.

The morning after #chinatown #riot #honiara #SolomonIslands pic.twitter.com/bcuvfWdebi

— mytagimoucia (@mytagimoucia) November 25, 2021

Solomon Islands police have arrested more than 100 suspects as Honiara townspeople clean up after three days of rioting and looting in Chinatown following a peaceful protest.

The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) confirmed this in a statement.

“I must make it very clear here that no one is above the law,” said Police Commissioner Mostyn Mangau.

• READ MORE: Wale calls for no confidence vote in ‘hiding’ PM
• Other Solomon Islands riot reports

“We are expected to live and make decisions within the principles of the rule of law regardless of our positions in our society. I therefore forewarned that if anybody is found in breach of such illegal activities, police will not hesitate to arrest and deal with him/her.”

Commissioner Mangau appealed to people to “stop the looting and burning”.

“Nothing will benefit you with such activities. Let me reiterate my call to those involved in those illegal activities to stop.

“These commercial infrastructures are the beating heart for the revenue of this country and that is where the benefits drift to service all our domestic services, even our wages and daily consumption.”

‘Respect each other’
The commissioner said: “My good residents of Honiara City, as we all know, Honiara City is a multicultural society. Therefore, I as your Police Commissioner hereby appeal to each one living in the city to respect each other, as well as our visiting friends from abroad.”

He asked people to ask themselves: “Is our actions fair to all concerned? Will our actions build goodwill and better friendships? Will our actions be beneficial to all concerned?”

Commissioner Mangau said police were working closely with the office of the Director Public Persecution (DPP) for possible charges to be laid against suspects.

SI$227m loss estimated
The Central Bank of the Solomon Islands has estimated the economic loss from rioting to be at least SI$227 million (NZ$42 million), the SBM Online reports.

Cleanup starts for some in Chinatown. Locals manning the shop can not control the mob that looted the hardware & plumbing shop. pic.twitter.com/kkjfItlaFe

— Georgina Kekea (@ginakekea) November 27, 2021

A defiant Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has vowed tonight that he will not resign and will defend Solomon Islands democracy with his life.

After two-days of looting with Honiara’s Chinatown in ruins and calls for him to step down, Sogavare declared he was not resigning.

“If I am removed as Prime Minister, it will be on the floor of Parliament,” he said.

• READ MORE: Solomon Islands riots push nation into slippery slide of self-implosion
• Solomon Islands PM calls for calm after looting and protests
• Other Solomon Islands riot reports

“I have faith and respect in our democratic process, and I will defend it with my life. I say this with deepest conviction.

“Our people need to and must understand that our actions in defending democracy is not merely a lip service. It is conviction in the principles and values that underpins our democracy and all democracies around the world.”

Sogavare said in a radio broadcast to the nation the past 36 hours had seen the country, especially, Honiara brought to its knees.

“I have been asked to step down and while I acknowledge that call I must also respect our democracy. I am elected as the Prime Minister of our beloved country by 35 members of Parliament who represent their people.

Politicians’ ‘hunger for power’
“The call for me to step down is premised on the hunger for power by certain politicians who do not have any respect for the principles of democracy and due process,” he said.

Sogavare said that in 2006 a precedent had been set when the then Prime Minister was asked to resign after a riot in Honiara.

“That event is the precedent for our current situation. If I am to step down, what message would that send to our people, children and generations to come?” he asked.

“Some of us are of the opinion that if I step down the protests and riots will stop. This is the easiest decision to make.

“However, the effect of this decision is what weighs heavy in my heart. Are we saying to our young children and youths that whenever we are not happy with those in authority we take the laws into our own hands?

“If we do this, it is a very dangerous message to our people and future generations.

“We are effectively saying to our children, take the law into your hands if [and] whenever you are not happy. This must never be the message we send nor the conviction we instill in our citizens if we are to progress as a peaceful democracy.”

Following the 2 day escalation of riots in Honiara, the #SolomonIslands Prime Minister, Hon. Manasseh Sogavare released an audio (voice) message on state broadcaster @NewsSibc.

His message was clear, he will not step down as PM esp. at the risk of setting a dangerous precedent. pic.twitter.com/9GisPuN9dv

— Jone Tuiipelehaki (@tuiipelehaki) November 25, 2021

‘Return to your homes’
Sogavare said in his appeal: “I call on all our people to please return to your homes. Our city has already been ransacked with properties burnt to the ground. It will take a lot of effort and money to rebuild it.

“I appeal to you all to respect our city, public and private properties and the safety of innocent civilians.

“Destruction, looting and violence is not how we address our grievances but instead through dialogue and consultation which the government has been advancing despite misinformation being circulated by certain individuals and leaders who have no regard for the collateral and irreversible damage caused by such unwarranted actions,” he said.

Sogavare asked the the churches to pray for the country and people.

Sogavare also urged all ministers and members of Parliament to “defend our democracy”.

He said the government had not been idle with its efforts to protect the country from covid-19, sustain the economy and progress crucial reforms in the best interests of the nation as a whole.

Regional support
“I have been in contact with the government of Australia and Papua New Guinea seeking their assistance to assist our country which is forthcoming. We cannot allow our country, people and our future to be held at ransom by very few people representing their own narrow interests,” he said.

“I am extremely saddened that people have been misled by politicians for their own agenda. Our unsuspecting people have continuously been misled and are victims in this sad and unfortunate situation.

“I do not blame the people who are protesting and rioting, they are citizens of our country, and unfortunately they have been used by certain politicians and individuals to further their own selfish and narrow agendas.”

Robert Iroga is editor of Solomon Business Magazine. This article is republished with permission.

The burning of Chinatown is moving westward one building at a time. View from my quarantine hotel. #Chinatown #Riot #Honiara #SolomonIslands pic.twitter.com/ejyglnSjxE

— mytagimoucia (@mytagimoucia) November 25, 2021

A police station and several shops were set on fire by looters in Solomon Islands today after what started in the morning as a peaceful protest turned ugly around mid-afternoon.

Videos on social media show police firing tear gas to disperse looters, and buildings on fire.

RNZ Pacific’s correspondent in the capital Honiara, Georgina Kekea, was in the Kukum area where the police station and shops were set alight, and said at least one building had been burned down.

Police she spoke to said the large crowds had been at the other end of town, and officers had not expected the crowd to attack their police station.

“So when they came out and they just saw all the protestors there and they had to run into a room and hide. There were about 10 of them,” she said.

“They were in the rooms when they started breathing in smoke and they realised that the building was being burnt, so they came out and the building has [now] burnt down.”

Earlier in the day a plume of black smoke was seen rising from Parliament’s grounds, where Kekea said a leaf hut used for coffee breaks was on fire, before firefighters from the fire station next to Parliament put the blaze out.

Kekea said local police were calling for calm as they tried to restore order.

They said much of the looting was being carried out by criminal opportunists, most of them young men.

Police station in Honiara burnt down by the protestors. Kukum traffic police station. Police continue to call on people to refrain from illegal activities & call on leaders to come down & assist in calming the situation down. pic.twitter.com/eqk88NvCdF

— Georgina Kekea (@ginakekea) November 24, 2021

The original protest at Parliament was led by citizens from Malaita province, who were voicing their frustrations with the national government and calling for Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to step down.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Rioters described by Papua New Guinea police as “opportunists” taking advantage of the death of Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare have looted shops and destroyed cars in three provinces – Morobe’s Lae, National Capital District (NCD) suburb Gordon and New Ireland’s Kavieng.

Shots were fired and people ran helter-skelter, scurrying for cover, as police were stretched to bring the looters under control on Monday.

Police Minister William Onglo sternly warned opportunists not to take advantage of the loss of PNG’s founding father to riot or cause public disorder.

• READ MORE: Tongan missionaries ‘in hiding’ in PNG as angry looters target Asian shops
• End of an era – Nation mourns passing of Grand Chief
• Other Sir Michael Somare articles

“Rioters and looters will be dealt with in the strongest term possible,” he said.

“Rioting and looting will never be the way the Melanesians resort, please show respect and honour during mourning.”

Onglo said the PNG and Melanesian way was to take the loss of Sir Michael Somare on Friday to heart.

Lae’s metropolitan commander Chief Inspector Chris Kunyanban said a crowd had gathered at 2-Mile outside Lae with the intention of marching to the Sir Ignatius Kilage Stadium.

Police confront crowd
“Police confronted the crowd at 2-Mile and told them they were not allowed to stage such a march,” he said.

“The crowd started pelting the policemen with whatever they could get their hands on.

“Several shots were fired from the crowd at the policemen and we had to fire tear gas into the crowd.

“The crowd was dispersed, however, another group started gathering at Bumayong and Bumbu.

“Both areas were contained by police.”

Across to Kavieng, the largest supermarket, Joe Tong, was raided by opportunists who waited for police to leave after an awareness programme on the public holiday.

A crowbar was used to open the doors and the rioters rushed in to loot the supermarket.

Raiders in and out
Station commander Chief Sergeant Gabriel N’Drihin said the raiders were in and out in seconds.

Policemen arrived when they had already left.

In Port Moresby’s Gordon, a shop was looted after it was alleged that the shop owner tried to open its doors and looting was also reported at 2-Mile.

Assistant Commissioner of Police NCD/Central command Anthony Wagambie Jr said citizens would have access to basic necessities throughout the mourning period.

“We will be out in full force to ensure people moved about peacefully,” he said.

Later in the afternoon, The National’s Lae reporter Jimmy Kabele reported several attacks on PMVs, private vehicles and stores in Lae.

Kalebe went to the area and said several roadblocks were set up by people and sticks and stones were strewn across the road.

The situation on the ground in Lae was tense and police were out on main roads to tell people to go home while vehicles were told to get off the roads for the day.

Chief Superintendent Kunyanban said some police vehicles were stoned.

Asia Pacific Report republishes The National articles with permission.

By Kalino Latu, editor of Kaniva Tonga

A group of Tongan missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) in Papua New Guinea has gone into hiding in a church in Lae as unrest and violence erupted in the country yesterday.

The chaos came after days of mourning following the death on Friday of the nation’s longest serving Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare.

Somare, 84, known as the “father of the nation,” died after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. He was a key leader in wresting the Pacific nation’s independence from Australia.

• READ MORE: Looting as PNG mourns former PM Michael Somare
• Looting follows death of PNG ex-prime minister

Police faced a mob at what appears to be a road in front of the LDS church in Lae, a Facebook live video seen by Kaniva News showed.

Shots were overheard as hundreds of people fled the scene before they stopped and attempted to reorganise themselves.

It was alleged the shots came from police who were trying to disperse the mob.

The crowd were attempting to rob a nearby Chinese shop, it has been claimed.

Looting in Gordon
The looting and chaos in Gordon as well as in Eastern Boroko in Port Moresby was also caught on camera and shared on Facebook.

Tongan president ‘Isileli Fatani of the LDS Mission in Lae, the second largest city in PNG, who was in a building few metres away from the scene, said the situation “was terrifying”.

Sir Michael Somare, 84, died on Friday. He was Papua New Guinea’s prime minister for a total of 17 years.

Fatani said he had just arrived at their accommodation after driving down the road seeing people looting shops and businesses and fighting in other parts of the country.

He was overheard telling one of the missionaries to lock the gate.

He said they were hiding inside the church property while he was livestreaming the incidents.

He was also overheard asking one of the PNG missionaries at the property whether it was safe for them to leave the church and move to town.

Motive behind the chaos
Fatani claimed the motive behind the attacks was a reaction by the locals after the death of Somare.

“He was a prime minister they loved most,” Fatani said.

His video had racked up 1300 comments and 1400 shares within 10 hours after it was published to Facebook yesterday.

In a post on Facebook a PNG commentator said the operations of the Asian businesses during a public holiday set in memory of Somare disappointed the locals.

“If all the PNG citizens can [whole]heartedly respect the great loss of our Founding Father Grand Chief Sir Michael Thomas Somare and the Prime Minister of the Day through NEC Declare Public Holiday today, which government law or order will these so called Asians be following or governed by?” the post read.

“I would suggest let there be a looting. Police must not deter any looting because these Asians must respect PNG law, respect our country’s Father’s mourning.

“Permitting looting will put a complete stop for any shop to operate.

“Let’s all respect our legendary father for the last time because he will never be seen again till we meet again in paradise.”

Agence France-Press reports that PNG security services called for calm as the incidents of rioting and looting followed the death of Sir Michael Somare.

Police Minister William Onglo warned officers would “step in to fully restore order” after disturbances in Port Moresby and the second city of Lae.

Several stores were reportedly ransacked during a national day of mourning for Sir Michael.

Kaniva Tonga reports are republished by Asia Pacific Report in partnership.

Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk

National District Governor Powes Parkop has pledged that it will be business as usual today in the Papua New Guinean capital of Port Moresby as normalcy has been restored in the city after yesterday’s rioting, looting and an assault on Parliament.

Parkop declared this after meeting members of the Security Force, together with National Parliament Speaker Job Pomat, Minister for Finance James Marape, Minister for Police Jelta Wong, and other ministers yesterday afternoon at Sir John Guise Stadium in Waigani, reports Loop PNG.

Security forces protested over the lack of payment of security allowances for the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders summit last week by storming Parliament Haus in Waigani and causing damage.

This triggered off rioting in parts of the city and looting in shops.

“Government has agreed to settle the allowances as soon as possible and we all agreed to return to duties to restore calm and normalcy to the city with immediate effect!”

Parkop said the issue of allowances for officers providing security during the APEC meeting is being resolved by the national government and relevant agencies.

He said that K10 million (NZ4.4 million) was released yesterday and was being processed to be disbursed as soon as possible.

Looting scenes in Port Moresby yesterday. Video: Camara Geita/Twitter

‘Purely administrative’
“This is a matter that is purely administrative.

“Schools should return to normal, shops should open and offices and business should operate as normal instantly. There is no cause for concern or worry.

“I call on everyone not to rely on rumours and fake news to cause an alarm and incite fear unnecessarily.

“The event was regrettable but it’s under control and there is no reason to be fearful anymore.”

Yesterday, business houses, schools and shops closed early due to the looting that occurred at different parts of the city, reports EMTV News.

This followed the rampage at the Parliament by frustrated Joint Security Task Force members over the non-payment of their APEC allowance.

• Earlier PNG APEC pay protest story
• Shops looted in Port Moresby
• Baki praises police efforts

The APEC pay dispute and why the PNG police protested. Video: EMTV News