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TITLE: PAPUA NEW GUINEA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1993
DATE: JANUARY 31, 1994
AUTHOR: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
PAPUA NEW GUINEA
Papua New Guinea (PNG), with some 1,000 tribes and over 800
distinct languages for a population of about 4 million, is one
of the world's most diverse societies. It has a federal
parliamentary system based on universal adult suffrage. There
have been five constitutional and peaceful transfers of power
since it achieved independence in 1975. The Constitution
resembles those of other English-speaking parliamentary
democracies and emphasizes respect for individual rights.
The Government has constitutional authority over the armed
forces (PNGDF), police, and intelligence organizations.
However, weak PNGDF discipline has led to human rights abuses
involving civilian communities near military bases and on
Bougainville island. Similar problems continue to plague the
Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary, the country's only police
force.
The economy is characterized by a relatively small but modern
free enterprise sector, heavily dependent on foreign
investment, and a traditional subsistence sector that supports
over 80 percent of the population. The modern sector produces
most of the wealth and, normally, slightly less than 80 percent
of government revenue, with the balance of the budget needs
made up by assistance, including a cash grant from Australia.
Prime Minister Wingti has given priority to resolving the
crisis in Bougainville Island, the last redoubt of secessionist
insurgents, and to reestablishing law and order. Despite an
increased commitment of financial and military resources and a
general decrease in violence on the island during 1993, a
political solution to the Bougainville crisis remained elusive
at year's end. During the year, the Government continued to
extend its control over Bougainville, partly because
Bougainvilleans called for a restoration of public services and
partly because of popular revulsion against human rights
violations perpetrated by members of the Bougainville
Revolutionary Army (BRA).
In 1993 efforts to control an exceptionally high crime rate led
Parliament to strengthen anticrime law and to pass the Internal
Security Act which legal experts attacked because of its threat
to internationally recognized rights, including those of
freedom of expression, association, and movement. The Prime
Minister has also taken the necessary first steps to amend the
Constitution to shift the onus of proof to the defendant in
cases of armed robbery, kidnaping, murder, and rape and to
establish a national identification system. At year's end, the
proposed amendments were awaiting parliamentary action.
In October the Ombudsman filed a suit against the Internal
Security Act, charging that it was unconstitutional. The
Supreme Court heard the case in November. The ruling had not
yet been issued at year's end. The major human rights abuses
continued to be extrajudicial killings by security forces and
insurgents on Bougainville, physical abuse of detainees and
prisoners by police, extensive discrimination against women,
and a culture of violence, including rape.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
Freedom from:
a. Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing
In Bougainville there continue to be credible reports of
instances where either the PNGDF or the resistance have
executed alleged BRA members or their supporters. In February,
as security forces moved into the former North Solomons
provincial capital of Arawa, they confirmed the removal of
three patients from the local hospital, including Ken Savia, a
member of the province's suspended government and a minister in
the "interim" government supportive of the BRA. Although
little is known of what happened to the other two persons (see
Section 1.b.), there are credible reports that either the
security forces themselves or the resistance forces associated
with them executed Savia, perhaps in retribution for the
killing of eight PNGDF soldiers during the Arawa operation. In
August, in Buka, BRA insurgent Moses Tseraha was also killed.
According to official sources, he was ambushed after slipping
into Buka from Bougainville to conduct operations against the
community's infrastructure and government representatives.
Other reports indicate that he had entered Buka to arrange his
surrender but was instead hunted down and executed by the
security forces.
A BRA spokesman claimed that security forces were responsible
for the August deaths of five men from Matukori village in the
Siwai area, three of whom were allegedly thrown into the sea
from a helicopter, and the deaths of five civilians in
September at the Tabago Care Center in southern Bougainville.
However, the three men allegedly thrown from the helicopter
appeared alive on national television in December.
The judiciary has so far taken few steps to investigate
allegations of security force atrocities relating to the
Bougainville conflict, although the magistrate system was
reestablished in Buka during the year and government control
extended throughout much of the island. No progress has been
publicly reported in an inquest ordered in 1991 by former
Attorney General Narokobi into the deaths of 11 persons in
North Solomons Province in 1989 and 1990.
Government sources hold the BRA responsible for 13 deaths of
PNGDF personnel and the deaths of at least 2 policemen. There
are also credible reports that the BRA killed civilians. In
one case, the Government reported that in a 6-day period in
January, the BRA killed 17 civilians as they traveled to and
from their garden plots.
Outside of Bougainville, a national court in Rabaul sentenced
four policemen to 14 years each for the 1992 murder of a
plantation worker. In October a PNGDF soldier was formally
charged in the death of another soldier.
b. Disappearance
Security forces are believed responsible for the February
disappearance of two patients removed from the Arawa hospital
along with Ken Savia (see Section 1.a.). There were also
credible allegations of BRA-perpetrated disappearances in
rebel-held areas.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution forbids torture and other cruel or degrading
treatment or punishment. Reliable reports nonetheless continue
to suggest that PNG security forces (PNG soldiers, police, and
correctional personnel), as well as BRA insurgents on
Bougainville, engage in such practices. Reports of torture or
other abuse by the PNGDF on Bougainville originating with BRA
rebels or sympathizers are frequently exaggerated. Such
reports, however, cannot be dismissed out of hand, given the
PNGDF's difficulty in maintaining discipline. PNGDF soldiers
were implicated in the burning down of a Port Moresby club,
apparently in revenge following the death of one of their
members.
Instances of torture and abuse by PNG police were reported from
regions throughout PNG in 1993, reflecting continued weakness
in Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary discipline and lack of
respect for human rights. Villagers in the Yangora region of
East Sepik Province, for example, complained of police
brutality during a raid early in the year when police also
allegedly burned their homes. In July police were also accused
of staging revenge raids against squatter settlements and
villagers near the Porgera gold mine, including burning of
homes, following the death of one policeman. Such attacks are
frequently used by the police as a form of collective
punishment. In July police in Western Highlands Province
allegedly fired into a crowd while trying to restore calm
during a land dispute, killing a schoolboy. Credible reports
of police brutality were widespread and were frequently related
to alcohol. In October, in Port Moresby, police allegedly beat
a government minister during an arrest for traffic violations.
The courts do address cases of police abuse that are pressed
through the court system, although many cases never reach the
courts for lack of evidence or financial resources. In April,
in Rabaul, a court sentenced two policemen to 3 months in jail
for assault. A court also ordered the state to pay
approximately $230,000 as compensation for damage caused in
1991 by a police raid in Sepil in the Western Highlands.
Police announced they would conduct an investigation of the
incident near the Porgera mine. They conducted an
investigation into the alleged mistreatment of the Government
minister but did not make the results public, reportedly to
protect the minister.
Prisons are severely overcrowded and understaffed. Jailbreaks
are common. Family members are allowed to visit and supply
food to supplement the prison diet, although at Goroka's Bihute
prison visits and privileges were curtailed for 2 months
following a breakout.
Judicial redress is available to victims of official
misconduct. Nevertheless, the case brought by a Member of
Parliament from Bougainville seeking compensation for injuries
suffered at the hands of security force members in 1989 was
still pending at year's end. The Supreme Court introduced a
simple form in 1989 enabling citizens to file human rights
complaints with the National Court, but this innovation seems
to have had only a marginal impact on the enforcement of
constitutionally guaranteed human rights.
The Ombudsman Commission is empowered to investigate official
abuse of authority and to refer cases to public prosecutors.
Because of the expense involved in proceeding through the
judicial system, however, few cases result in actual charges.
PNG's free press frequently publicizes allegations of human
rights violations by the uniformed forces. At year's end, the
Government had not established the human rights commission it
had announced at the June World Conference on Human Rights.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
The courts strongly enforce constitutional protections against
arbitrary arrest and detention. Those protections have,
however, been weakened by the passage of the Internal Security
Act and amendments to existing anticrime legislation.
Judicially issued warrants are no longer required when the
authorities suspect that a person has committed any offense
against that act or in the case of certain, largely
white-collar offenses. The act further permits a person to be
classified as a member of a proscribed organization solely on
the basis of an affidavit filed by the police commissioner,
without further proof. Those under arrest have the right to
legal counsel; accused persons are informed of charges; and
their arrest is subject to judicial review. Under legislation
passed in 1993, only National or Supreme Court judges may grant
bail in certain criminal cases involving a firearm. In all
other cases, bail may be granted unless a judge rules otherwise.
Exile is not practiced.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The law guarantees a public trial, and the Constitution
provides for due process; an independent court system enforces
both.
Defendants have the right to an attorney. Legal counsel is
provided either by the public solicitor's office, or by the law
society on recommendation of the solicitor's office, for those
accused of serious offenses and unable to afford counsel.
"Serious offenses" are generally defined as felony charges or
any case heard in either the national or district court (as
opposed to village or magistrate courts). Defendants and their
attorneys may confront witnesses, present evidence, plead their
cases, and appeal convictions. Given the relative shortage of
police and judicial resources and an exceptionally high crime
rate, periods between arrest and trial can be long. Such
periods of detention, however, are subject to strict judicial
review. The courts are completely independent of executive,
political, or military authorities, and the Government does not
hold any prisoners on purely political grounds.
A lack of access to Bougainville Island proper continues to
hamper the judiciary's ability to investigate human rights
violations there. Nevertheless, in September a former BRA
rebel was charged with the 1990 kidnaping of five government
officials and businessmen. BRA activity continues in some
government-controlled areas, discouraging the restoration of
judicial services in all areas except Buka. Because of the
passage of time and lack of reliable evidence, it is not clear
if and when the National Court in Rabaul will be able to
adjudicate the 66 claims of human rights abuses filed by
Bougainvilleans against the Government that have been pending
since 1991.
f. Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
Privacy rights are not widely abused, but police are known to
burn homes in the highlands to quell intertribal conflict and
punish communities suspected of harboring criminals. There
have also been reports of forcible entry into homes by police
searching for criminals or stolen goods.
g. Use of Excessive Force and Violations of Humanitarian
Law in Internal Conflicts
Armed conflict on Bougainville Island decreased in the last
half of the year. Nevertheless, both sides claim the other
committed abuses against civilians. In January the PNGDF
reported killing nine BRA rebels at sea as they returned to
Bougainville from the Solomon Islands. The BRA claimed the
victims were unarmed civilians. The Government also reported
that in the last half of the year in central and southern
Bougainville, increasing numbers of civilians left BRA-
controlled areas seeking food, shelter, and health care. There
were widespread reports of BRA attacks against civilians, both
to hamper economic activity and to intimidate them to remain in
BRA-controlled areas. The BRA allegedly has burned homes and
villages throughout Bougainville in retaliation for cooperation
with security forces and to deny opponents their use. In
August a Bougainville citizen who had lived for 4 years under
BRA control claimed that the BRA had beaten him on four
separate occasions, ostensibly because they suspected him of
being an informer. He also charged that the BRA had murdered
his three brothers.
In September the Government authorized the PNG Red Cross to
reestablish a humanitarian assistance office in Wakunai on
Bougainville Island after resisting earlier requests.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
The Constitution provides for freedom of speech, including
freedom of the broadcast media and publications. A tradition
of independence in the news media, an effective judiciary, and
a functioning democratic system of government have helped
promote these freedoms in society.
The Government has been actively debating an enhanced role for
the Department of Communications in regulating the media. The
Government also holds a majority share of the second daily
newspaper, which started publishing in November. This
increased government interest in the media, which are
traditionally independent and privately owned, has provoked
some concern, but there have been no overt efforts to censor
the press. There have been subtle efforts on the part of
government officials to pressure the host of a popular radio
talk show, but these threats dissipated in the face of strong
public support for the radio host. There were credible reports
that the Government also used subtle pressure to keep reports
of the proceedings looking into the legality of the Prime
Minister's September resignation and reelection off the front
page, although the reporting was not censored. The
restrictions on access of journalists to Bougainville remain
another controversial issue, but more reporters have been able
to cover the court proceedings than in the past, and the
Government does not attempt to censor their coverage.
The nation's only television station has been engaged in a
running battle with the censorship board over alleged
pornography in some of its programs. While this dispute has
provoked general debate over media freedoms, it is not
political in nature but rather concerns the right of the
censors to define and ban what they consider to be
pornography. Two Australian television news show programs were
banned in 1993, one on the singer Madonna and one on child
abuse by Australian priests.
Citizens and foreigners are also occasionally convicted of
possession of pornography under the Censorship Act. Freedom of
expression, both in public and in academia, is not restricted.
The courts and the Ombudsman Commission have supported the
right of free speech over government prerogative in most of the
cases that they have been asked to address.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
Private associations and public assemblies are legal.
Associations do not require formal registration. International
affiliation of church and civic groups is also freely
permitted. Public demonstrations require police approval; this
is frequently denied on the grounds that such activities
encourage bystanders to engage in vandalism and violence.
Police in the National Capital District did, however, grant
permission in September for a protest march on Parliament
organized by university students following parliamentary
maneuvering in which the Prime Minister engineered his own
reelection. They successfully discouraged another protest
rally several days later organized by unknown persons.
c. Freedom of Religion
There are no restrictions on and no discrimination against the
practice of religion, which is protected by the Constitution.
Many indigenous and Christian denominations flourish side by
side with small Buddhist and Muslim groups. Expatriate
missionaries have traditionally moved freely throughout the
country and provided most social services in many remote areas.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation
PNG security forces continue to require travelers to Buka and
Bougainville Islands to obtain permits. Even when their visits
have been authorized by the Prime Minister, visitors have been
turned back by the security forces. The Government prohibits
unauthorized vessels or aircraft from calling at or landing on
either island. Otherwise, freedom of movement within and
outside the country has not been restricted in practice.
However, the Internal Security Act, which came into force in
midyear, authorizes the Government to exclude from any part of
the country anyone convicted under the act or likely to commit
an offense under the act. In addition, the Government has
announced its intention to introduce legislation establishing a
national system of registration and identification cards.
Provincial politicians continue to encourage squatters from
other parts of the country to return to their home regions.
The Government hosts between 9,000 and 10,000 Melanesian
refugees from Irian Jaya, the neighboring province of
Indonesia. Approximately 6,000, many of whom have land or
kinship ties with Papua New Guineans, live along the border
just inside Papua New Guinea. They are not provided services
by either the Government or by the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). While Papua New Guinea
recognizes Irian Jaya as an integral part of Indonesia, the
Government nonetheless grants asylum to qualified refugees, and
regulations allow foreign citizens who meet the 10-year
residency requirements to take up PNG citizenship. The
Government administers UNHCR assistance to about 3,700 refugees
at the sole remaining camp at East Awin.
There were no known forced repatriations of Irian Jayan
insurgents to Indonesia during 1993. Over 200 were voluntarily
repatriated.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens
to Change Their Government
Citizens freely exercise the right to change their government
through direct elections with a secret ballot and universal
adult suffrage. The voters elect a unicameral Parliament made
up of 109 members from all 19 provinces and the Port Moresby
National Capital District. Any citizen can stand for election,
and several foreign-born citizens sit in Parliament. With a
multiplicity of small parties, coalition governments tend to be
weak and shifting; none has yet survived its 5-year electoral
mandate, although in September Prime Minister Wingti took steps
to ensure that his coalition remained in office for the entire
period, provoking a constitutional crisis.
In Henganofi, new elections for Parliament ordered by the court
following disputed 1992 by-elections were contested by 10
candidates and conducted peacefully. Postelection violence
caused by disgruntled supporters of losing candidates continues
to occur, however. In July, in Simbu Province, such
disturbances reportedly caused at least 19 deaths following
provincial elections.
Although there are no legal barriers to their participation in
political life, women are not found in significant numbers in
senior positions in government or in politics (see Section 5).
No women sit in Parliament or in the Cabinet.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
of Human Rights
There are no official barriers to the formation of human rights
groups. The PNG Association for Human Rights, formed in 1992,
has been relatively inactive. A second nongovernmental
organization focused on human rights and the environment, the
Individual and Community Rights Advocacy Forum (ICRAF), was
established early in the year. Numerous localized
nongovernmental organizations--some dealing only tangentially
with human rights issues, others focusing almost exclusively on
women and children--exist throughout the country.
Nongovernmental organizations have exercised their right to
comment on human rights issues in PNG media without any known
government interference or retribution.
The U.N. Human Rights Commission adopted a resolution in March
urging the Government to permit international factfinding
missions and calling on the Government to negotiate with all
factions of the Bougainville peoples. While the Government has
invited potential donors, including the European Community and
participants in the Lome convention, to visit Bougainville, it
has not extended invitations to human rights nongovernmental
organizations that have expressed interest in conducting
investigations into alleged human rights abuses.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
Disability, Language, or Social Status
Extreme ethnic and geographic diversity prevents domination by
any one tribe or clan. The democratically elected government,
based on loose coalitions, cannot afford to favor one group
over another consistently.
Women
Despite extensive rights for women provided by the Constitution
and law, traditional patterns of discrimination against women
result in a significant denial of human rights. Some women in
the modern sector have achieved senior positions, serving as
doctors, lawyers, business executives, civil servants, and in
high government positions. Despite constitutional and legal
guarantees regarding family law, marriage, and property rights,
most women, even those in urban areas, still live in a system
that relegates them to second-class status. Village courts
tend to enforce traditional attitudes and values that oppress
both women and youth. Violence against women, including
domestic violence and gang rape, is prevalent. Some tribal and
clan cultures emphasize antagonism between the sexes. While
women are ostensibly protected by their family and clan, they
are nonetheless often victims of violence and force.
Traditional village deterrents, such as requirements for
compensation, are breaking down. Attacks on women remain
common in intertribal warfare as well.
Fear of rape, especially gang rape, is justifiably common among
women and constrains not only their movements and social
activities but also their ability to exercise authority and
discipline in business and professional activities. Rape is
punishable by prison sentences, but assailants are seldom
apprehended. Most areas without access to law enforcement
services rely on "payback," a traditional form of revenge,
directed at the offender's tribe or clan, to deter or punish
rape. Domestic violence such as wife-beating, also common, is
usually viewed by police and citizen alike as a private, family
matter. Such violence is often related to alcohol.
Village court justices tend to be overly severe on women, for
instance, by imposing jail terms on women found guilty of
adultery, while letting men off lightly. There is no pattern
of similar discrimination against women by circuit-riding
National Court justices. Indeed, the latter frequently annul
village court sentences and free unjustly imprisoned women.
Both the Government and public organizations are working to
upgrade the status of women, so far with limited results. The
Government provides a grant to the National Council of Women
and has instituted an Office of Women's Affairs in the
Department of Home Affairs and Youth.
Children
Approximately 44 percent of PNG's population is under the age
of 16. In PNG's traditional clan system, children are
generally cared for within the extended family, in accordance
with financial resources and the tribe's access to services.
Because of the geographic isolation and remoteness of many
villages, an estimated 38 percent of children under 5 are
malnourished. Though infant mortality rates for children under
5 have declined, they remain extremely high at 114 per 1,000
live births. Maternal mortality is the fourth highest in the
world, at 900 per 100,000 births. Pneumonia and other acute
respiratory infections, together with childbirth, diarrhea, and
malaria, are the main causes of serious illness and death.
Although statistics are not available, child abuse does occur
but does not appear to be as prevalent as wife-beating.
Education, a government priority, takes approximately 15
percent of the Government's budget. While the percentage of
eligible students enrolled in primary schools has increased
substantially, only 38 percent complete primary studies. Only
15 percent of secondary age children are enrolled in school,
due in part to high costs and limited availability. Vocational
schools are limited and underfunded. In 1991 the Government
adopted the National Youth Service Act, aimed at increasing
youth involvement in agriculture, tourism, and civic action,
but it has not been implemented. Most programs to protect and
develop youth are operated by nongovernmental organizations and
religious organizations. Many government programs are severely
underfunded. Within its limited resources, the Government is
committed to the welfare and protection of the rights of
children.
People with Disabilities
Through the National Board for the Disabled, the Government
provides limited funding for the disabled to approximately 14
nongovernmental organizations which provide services. The
Government does not provide programs or services directly.
Services and health care for the disabled, except for that
provided by the traditional family and clan system, do not
exist in several of the country's provinces. No legislation
mandates accessibility for the disabled.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
The right to form and join labor unions is protected by law,
subject to registration by the Department of Labor. While the
Government does not use registration as a form of control over
unions, an unregistered union has no legal standing with the
Department of Labor or before the courts and, accordingly,
cannot operate effectively. Unionized workers account for
one-half of the 250,000 wage earners in the formal economy and
are organized into some 50 trade unions, most of which are
associated with the Trade Unions Congress. Unions are
independent of the Government and of political parties. They
may freely affiliate with international organizations.
Both public and private-sector unions exercised their right to
strike in 1993. Concerned over perceived politicization of the
appointments of departmental heads, approximately 100 attorneys
and staff in the Office of the Attorney-General, with support
from the Public Employees Association, struck to revoke a
controversial appointment as Secretary of Justice. After a
week, the strike was abandoned in favor of a legal challenge,
which was ultimately accepted by the courts. Mining workers
have been responsible for the most visible union activity in
the private sector. Laborers at the Ok Tedi Mine struck three
times in 1993--first over wages, then management activities,
and finally work-related conditions.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
The Constitution provides for the right to engage in collective
bargaining, to join industrial organizations, and to seek
employment. These rights are exercised freely. In past years,
the International Labor Organization (ILO) has admonished the
Government to amend the law that gives it discretionary power
to cancel arbitration awards or declare wage agreements void
when they are contrary to government policy. This has not been
accomplished because of a lack of resources. The ILO has now
offered its technical assistance.
The law prohibits antiunion discrimination by employers against
union members and organizers. The Department of Labor and
Employment, as well as the courts, resolve complaints. There
are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
The Constitution forbids slavery and all forms of forced or
compulsory labor, and there were no reports of their practice
in 1993.
d. Minimum age for employment of children
The minimum working age, as established in Chapter 373 of the
Employment Act, is 18. However, children between the ages of
11 and 18 may be employed in family related work provided they
have parental permission, a medical clearance, and a work
permit from a labor office. Such employment is rare, except in
subsistence agriculture. The Department of Labor and
Employment and the courts take steps to enforce the minimum age
law, but they are hampered by a lack of resources.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Minimum wages for the private sector are set by the Minimum
Wage Board, a quasi-governmental body with worker and employer
representation. The most recent determination, which became
effective in October 1992, dramatically reduced the minimum
wage to $22.50 (kina 22.96) per week. Approximately 10 percent
of private-sector wage earners are subject to the minimum wage,
and the determination represents a setback, particularly for
new and unskilled workers. The minimum wage would not support
a decent standard of living for a worker and family who exist
solely on the cash economy. There is no means to judge
statistically the effect of the new minimum wage, though
employment in the formal sector continued to decline slightly.
The Department of Labor has received no formal complaints that
higher wage workers have been fired in order that a lower cost
replacement might be hired, although union leaders claim that
this has occurred. Minimum wage levels, allowances, rest
periods, holidays, leave, and overtime are regulated by law.
The workweek is limited by law to 42 hours (44 in rural areas).
Enforcement of the Industrial Health and Safety Law and related
regulations is the responsibility of the Department of Labor.
The law requires that inspections take place on a regular
basis, but, due to a shortage of inspectors, they occur only
when requested by workers or unions. In 1992 businesses have
been closed on several different occasions due to violation of
safety laws. Health and safety regulations are still under
revision.
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