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| Gun-linked violence rampant: Philemon | |
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By KESSIE TADAP POLICE records show that many violent crimes in PNG are gun-related. Chairman of the coalition to stop gun violence in PNG Oseah Philemon said that many people had encounters with and were aware of violent crimes involving the use of illegal guns but these people were passive about the issue. Mr Philemon said this was not doing anything good for the country and as long as its people and leaders remain ignorant, gun-related violence would continue in their communities, affecting innocent people. “The issue of gun violence is prevalent and is a serious threat to the development of our nation,” he said, adding “when it comes to gun violence no one should be sitting on the fence as you could be the next victim”. Mr Philemon said the people are in perpetual imprisonment due to the threat of gun violence as evident from the barbed-wire fences around homes and business properties in major towns and cities. “The peace meal we are hosting next month should be a reminder for our leaders and parliamentarians that they need to return peace to our country,” he said. Mr Philemon said the Members of Parliament should take the lead in the fight against violence as the nation cannot move forward if they fail to do this. He said the gun control committee had done its part in submitting the by-partition report to Parliament which meant that it was accessible to both sides of the floor since September 2005. He said the Government had accepted the report but had not tabled it. “The report should be tabled by now as the Government of the day has the numbers to pass vote for it to be legislated and the Opposition is also in favour of the report. There should not be any problem for the delay,” he said. Mr Philemon said it would be better if the Government comes up with a report sooner as the illegal possession of guns is a big concern and it is the biggest contributing factor to most gun-related violence. |
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