Angry youths display weapons in public

THE fights between Bogia and Manam Islanders in Madang have reached its climax where young men and boys are openly brandishing weapons on the roads.
This was what The National saw while travelling with policemen to see the situation on the ground last Friday.
Since the fight began two weeks ago at the Tobenam Community School over a coconut between two boys, one from the Dugulamba care centre and the other a local, two deaths have been reported with six people injured.
Classes at both Tobenam and Asarumba have closed and the once-over-crowded care centre empty. Food gardens and houses have been either cut or burnt to the ground while the women, children and babies at the Bogia station care centre have nothing but the clothes on their backs.
Many islanders have fled to town and nearby North Coast villages for fear of their lives.
Many Bogia youths and women have expressed disgust at putting up with the islanders.
They have called on the Government to define what a care centre is and how long people should be kept there.