Papua New Guinea to deploy jets in APEC security crackdown
PORT MORESBY: Papua New Guinea will deploy foreign fighter jets and special forces to protect world leaders attending a major Asia- Pacific forum next month in the crime-plagued capital Port Moresby, officials have said.
The government is planning a massive security operation for the Asia- Pacific Economic Cooperation summit from Nov 17, which will attract representatives from 21 nations.
Attendees will include China’s President Xi Jinping and US Vice President Mike Pence, who is not even expected to sleep in the city, but stay overnight in Australia.
Due to a shortage of hotel accommodation, many of the 15,000 delegates will bunk down on three cruise liners docked in the port, presenting additional security complications.
Although the threat posed by terrorism in PNG is considered minimal, the Melanesian country’s reputation for lawlessness and violent crime precedes it.
To ensure delegates are safe from crime and potential terror attacks, the government has enlisted military help from Australia and the United States to ensure the capital’s streets are safe.
“It’s a major undertaking, but it’s very, important when it comes to promoting the country economywise,” said Justin Tkatchenko, the minister responsible for planning the summit.
“We’ve never had leaders like this before ever come to this area,” he added.
“The whole world will be watching.”
More than a third of Papua New Guinea’s 8.5 million population lives below the poverty line, while tribal and political violence is a recurring problem, particularly in the Highlands region.
Notorious street gangs known as ‘raskols’ have made car jackings common and the country has among the highest rates of rape and domestic violence in the world.
About half the capital’s population live in squatter settlements.
“Tribal violence, street violence, gender- based violence – it’s just eating the fabric of our society,” said the capital region’s governor Powes Parkop.
The Economist Intelligence Unit this year ranked Port Moresby 136th out of 140 on its list of the world’s most liveable cities.
Australia is bankrolling much of the security operation and has deployed about 1,500 military personnel, including special forces, to Port Moresby.