PNG: damning report released
WELLINGTON: A human rights organisation has released a damning report on the state of Papua New Guinea, where a change of prime minister has done little to tackle rampant violence and corruption.
Human Rights Watch’s annual report reveals rates of violence, domestic abuse, corruption and foreign debt have not improved over the past year, during which weak enforcement and a lack of accountability fostered a culture of impunity and lawlessness.
Its deputy director for Asia, Phil Robertson, said despite a change in prime minister, progress was still slow and the key findings were dire.
"We are talking about a very desperately poor country. One where there is a lot of violence that’s committed with impunity . . . where women are particularly affected, as well as children.
"40% of the population still lives in poverty, and this is a very resourcerich country. 25% of the children are not in school, and our estimate is that one in 13 have died of preventable disease."
The report found more than twothirds of women and girls were subjected to domestic violence, and 75% of children surveyed across 30 communities experienced violence at home.
‘‘PNG has an underfunded health system and children are particularly vulnerable to disease.’’ it said.
A new prime minister, James Marape, had done little so far to rein in corruption, and the unequal distribution of revenue from the country’s natural resources was creating friction and eroding land rights in rural areas, the report found.