Papua New Guinea and Indonesia say the economic and social ties between them are closer than ever.

Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo visited Port Moresby last week with trade, border arrangements and education foremost on the agenda.

Widodo agreed to sponsor 2000 Papua New Guinean students to attend university in Indonesia, and pledged about US$15 million to upgrade Port Moresby’s hospital.

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“This is a very, very warm, in fact, one of the warmest meetings I’ve ever had as head of state,” Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said at a joint media conference.

“We [Papua New Guinea] have not been utilising the powerhouse economy that is on the other side — the world’s 16th biggest economy right now . . . they’re our link to commerce and trade in Asia.”

On the day following the visit, Indonesia state news agency Antara reported Trade Minister Zulkifli Hasan stating that Indonesia would offer training to 1000 businesses in Papua New Guinea.

Marape welcomed Widodo at Jackson’s International Airport in Port Moresby last Wednesday with a gun salute from the Papua New Guinea Defence Force and a cultural blessing from traditional dancers

Elephant in the room
But one topic that wasn’t discussed was West Papua which weighs heavily among many Papua New Guineans, unsettled by the widespread reports of mistreatment of their Melanesian brethren across the border.

One media report said the authorities in Papua New Guinea had clamped down on displays of the West Papuan independence flag ahead of Widodo’s visit.

Last week, at the 53rd session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Human Rights Council special adviser on the prevention of genocide, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, called for a humanitarian assessment in West Papua.

“The human rights situation in West Papua remains deeply concerning,” she said.

“This includes alleged harassment, arbitrary arrests, and detention of Papuans . . . that has resulted in the alleged appropriation of non-indigenous lands.”

However, many pro-independent West Papua advocates in Papua Guinea also supported the visit.

Port Moresby Governor Powes Parkop, a vocal critic of Indonesia and long-time advocate for indigenous West Papuans, said in a video statement last week that the visit was an opportunity for dialogue.

“I would like to advise the President that we, on the side on the advocacy for West Papua, are ready for talks — we want to move forward in terms of addressing this decades-long issue.

“We are open to talks and I want to invite him [President Widodo] in regard to this, to think about the future and not be defined by the past,” Parkop said.

“The past we can’t change, there is a lot of pain and there are a lot of issues and history that we are not proud of, but in the future we can redefine and make it better.”

It is a sentiment shared by fellow Papua New Guinean activist Jacob Marcos, who has participated in demonstrations against Indonesia’s role in West Papua in the past.

“Diplomatically, the PNG government has to maintain its line and discuss only the issues the Indonesian President arrives for . . . about the needs of the country,” Marcos said.

But for Papua New Guinea’s West Papuan community, the visit and generous economic agreements were a blunt reminder of Indonesia’s foreign relations prowess.

An estimated 10,000 West Papuan refugees live in Papua New Guinea, escaping a bloody conflict between armed pro-independence fighters and the Indonesian army.

The conflict has escalated over the last few months following the kidnapping of New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens by a rebel group last February 7.

Mangi Lufa-Apo is one of those refugees. He arrived in Papua New Guinea as a child after his parents fled the territory.

Lufa-Apo said he was frustrated by the sight of Pacific nations fostering ties with Indonesia, saying believed the Pacific nations should be emulating the regional solidarity that European countries were displaying with Ukraine.

“We’ve seen how European countries have rallied for Ukraine,” he said.

“The Pacific Island countries are not doing that, why are they so silent?

“There’s a genocide on their doorstep . . . I don’t know why Papua New Guinea and Pacific Islands can’t just take this to the UN and tell them that there’s a genocide going on and something needs to be done about it.”

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

The University of the South Pacific’s regional journalism programme has penned three milestone Memorandums of Understanding that will usher in greater collaboration with media industry partners over student upskilling and training, joint workshops and seminars, and publication of the award-winning training newspaper Wansolwara.

Papua New Guinea’s National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) and the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) have formalised three-year MOU partnerships with the region’s longest running journalism programme at Laucala campus.

They were signed by NBC managing director Kora Nou and PINA managing editor Makereta Komai respectively.

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The signing ceremony was witnessed by PNG’s Minister for Communication and Information Technology Timothy Masiu — a former journalist — and USP’s deputy vice-chancellor (regional campuses and global engagement) Dr Giulio Paunga.

“It is indeed history because we have never had such an MOU between this prestigious university and our National Broadcasting Corporation, which is a flagship of PNG,” said  Masiu.

“The intention of this MOU is basically threefold — student training, staff exchanges and joint workshops, seminars, research activities. We are really looking forward to this; very interesting times ahead for NBC and your university.”

To further strengthen the MOU, Masiu announced a F$10,000 funding support for the journalism programme through the PINA office. NBC’s managing director is also current chair of PINA.

Masiu as a journalist
Masiu also shared his excitement and delight at being part of the signing ceremony and reminisced about his time as a broadcaster for NBC, and later a journalist for The National daily newspaper in Port Moresby.

Dr Paunga said the university was also currently working closely with the PNG government and the progress of this collaboration demonstrated great things to come between the two countries, its people and future students.

USP Journalism programme coordinator Associate Professor Shailendra Singh said the programme was doing some good work in journalism in Fiji and the region. He commended Komai and Nou for their cooperation and vision over the MOU.

“The MOU we have signed is going to take the training and development of our journalists to another level,” he said.

“We have been training journalists for a long time. Under this MOU, we will be able to decide our own agenda when it comes to training and research, instead of everything being designed from someplace else and us merely implementing it.

“We know PNG will be sending students to study at USP. Talks are underway and if that happens then there will be greater collaboration and interaction between students coming from PNG.”

Dr Singh said USP had 12-member countries and PNG was set to become the 13th member if talks went according to plan.

Fiji Times partnership

Earlier, on May 3 — World Press Freedom Day — USP Journalism signed the first MOU with Fiji Times Limited. The partnership includes, among other supportive initiatives, the publication of Wansolwara, twice a year.

The first Wansolwara edition for 2023 was published in The Sunday Times last week and featured 32 pages of news, sports and special reports written and produced by USP journalism students across Fiji and the region.

Dr Singh said the partnership with Fiji Times Ltd was also a boost for the programme.

“This is a historic moment, not just for us but also for our students, as this will give them the exposure they need to contribute and improve the standard of journalism in our region,” he said.

“Fiji Times Ltd has been supportive of the USP Journalism Programme for many years, and this partnership will strengthen their commitment to promote a free and fair environment for journalists.”

Fiji Times Pte Ltd general manager Christine Lyons said the company would cover the printing of Wansolwara twice in the academic year. This amounted to one publication per semester.

“It will be circulated as an insert in The Fiji Times as part of its corporate social responsibility,” she said.

Fiji Times Ltd was represented by editor-in-chief Fred Wesley at the May MOU signing.

Viliame Tawanakoro is a final-year student journalist at USP’s Laucala Campus. He is also the 2023 student editor for Wansolwara, USP Journalism’s student training newspaper and online publication. Republished in a partnership between Asia Pacific Report and Wansolwara.

Students at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) marched to Parliament House in in the capital Port Moresby today in protest over offensive comments made by Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko.

Tkatchenko was responding to a public backlash over a TikTok video — depicting luxury travel and high end shopping — posted by his daughter, Savannah, during a taxpayer-funded trip to King Charles III’s coronation in London.

In an interview with ABC Pacific Beat, he called the critics “useless” and “primitive animals”.

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His comments have been condemned by PNG’s opposition leaders, but Prime Minister James Marape said Tkatchenko had apologised for his comments. Marape has asked people to forgive the minister.

University students began gathering today around a banner hoisted outside the campus and began marching to Parliament.

“It is not just about the offensive comments,” UPNG student Michael Pais said.

“The primary reason is the manner in which money has been spent on this trip and the extravagance displayed while our people lack the most basic services,” he said.

‘Blatant disrespect’
“The minister’s response shows a blatant disrespect for PNG.”

The Papua New Guinea Trade Union Congress (PNGTUC) held a news conference this afternoon and issued a strong statement calling for Tktchenko’s removal as foreign minister.

“We will not accept the apology given to the Prime Minister [Marape],” Police Union president Lowa Tambua said.

“It is not a matter for the Prime Minister to decide if we should forgive [and] forget. It is a matter for the 10 million people of this country to decide,” he added.

Earlier, the PNG Post-Courier’s Miriam Zarriga today reported that former metropolitan police commander Andy Bawa had confirmed he was putting together necessary documents in response to opposition spokesperson Belden Namah’s call for Tkatchenko’s resignation and the stripping of his PNG nationality.

Bawa said he would make a formal complaint.

“The media will be advised,” he added.

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

Leaders call for Minister’s sacking and referral to Ombudsman Commission

Papua New Guinea police have warned the public to take precaution with criminals now operating in large numbers in some suburbs of the second city Lae after an attack on University of Technology students.

Metropolitan police commander Chief Superintendent Chris Kunyanban issued the warning following the attack on Unitech when more than 30 armed criminals entered the female dormitory and robbed the students.

He warned such crimes were taking place at particular areas of Igam block, Stone Gat and East and West Taraka.

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“These are the areas that criminals are operating in large numbers to steal small things such as household items to breaking and entering a store,” Chief Superintendent Kunyanban said.

According to police reports, the criminals stole mainly personal belongings such as laptops, phones and bags.

A female student was injured during the robbery when she tried to scream for help.

The student was admitted to hospital and police are continuing investigation.

‘Serious security breach’
“It is a serious security breach and the institution must be very considerate with the safety of its students, especially with female students or employees living in the campus,” Chief Superintendent Kunyanban said.

“Security should be sufficient to guarantee the students’ safety.”

He said police investigations were still underway to determine what really happened and how many things were stolen.

“It is also dangerous when you have a large number of people going around causing damage in the communities because the impact can be great and people can get injured like the recent incident,” he said.

Chief Supt Kunyanban said security measures on campus were internal matters of the institution.

According to police, more than 30 criminals went into the dormitory on early Friday morning and held up the students.

A student victim, who requested anonymity, said there were more than 10 men who broke into her room as she could not count.

‘Pointed guns at me’
“They pointed guns at me and were asking for my laptop,” she said.

She described the guns as brand new and almost all of the men had one.

“We couldn’t scream or call for help as we had guns pointed at us,” she said.

“One of the burglars asked for my phone and I told him that it was outside and he hit me on my side with a crowbar.”

She said the Uniforce arrived about 20 minutes later.

Men from the staff residential area arrived earlier and tried to pursue the robbers but without success.

Republished with permission.