‘Minority group staged rally’

National, Normal
Source:

The National, Friday 30th December 2011

PEOPLE claiming to represent the people of Jimi district in Jiwaka, and who staged a rally in Mt Hagen, Western Highlands, earlier this month in support of the government are a minority, a transitional authority member says.
Jiwaka Transitional Authority member and Karap village community leader Thomas Galye said that rally had been staged by a minority group living in Mt Hagen.
He said those people in no way represented the views of the people of Jimi living in villages of the newly-declared province.
The rally on Dec 15 saw
participants with banners declaring the support for the O’Neill-Namah regime.
Galye said under the Somare-Abal regime, Jiwaka had been granted provincial status and that was why the people of Jimi and Jiwaka still had great respect for the previous government.
He said any such rally claiming
to represent Jiwakans should be staged in Banz or in Minj and not Mt Hagen.