‘Public turning against police’

SEVERAL settlers and community leaders in Madang province are blaming the police for all the law and order problems in their communities.
The community leaders claimed that police were too harsh on them – rounding up unemployed youths and women involved in the informal sector businesses for no good reason.
These police actions are turning the public against them to the point of refusing to co-operate in arresting the real culprits in major crimes in Madang.
They said those who tried to sell things on the streets or near their homes want to earn something to keep them, going but police continue to harass them forcing the youths to turn into criminal activities to survive.
The leaders say that not all youths are bad and not all are employed and therefore, the youths should be encouraged to look for opportunities to make ends meet during the difficult economic times when the prices of goods and services are high.
“How can one expect to have food on the table when there are no income  to sustain their daily needs?”
“If authorities continue to stop people from selling things on the streets, then the only way they could get something to sustain their lives is to engage in criminal activities,” the sources said.
Another youth, who has been involved in the informal sector business, asked how one could survive when the Government could not even support the youths and help them become self-reliant.
He said the Government should not blame the people if it continued to deny people their rights to become self-sufficient.