Australian officers to help lift security

 By ELIZABETH MIAE

FOREIGN Affairs Minister Rimbink Pato says the country needs to lift its level of security and law and order.

He yesterday welcomed the first group of 30 Australian Federal Police officers in Port Moresby. Twenty more will arrive next month to provide frontline advisory support.

Pato, pictured, told local police officers that the Australians were here not to replace them but to help lift the level of policing services in the country. 

“The arrival of AFP officers to beef up security is a reflection of the true friendship between the two countries which is long standing,” he said.

He said the deployment of the AFP officers was timely as the country was preparing to host major international and regional events such as the 2015 Pacific Games and the APEC Summit in 2018. “We need security and we need law and order,” he said.

Australian High Commissioner Deborah Stokes, pictured right, said an adequately resourced and professional police force would have a critical role to play in the success of those events. 

“The expanded police partnership between our two nations is a demonstration of our closeness and shared commitment to the rule of law and democratic values and institutions.”

Police Commissioner Tom Kulunga said the presence of AFP officers would increase the level of policing services in the country and win the confidence of the people. 

AFP commissioner Tony Negus said it was a privilege to come and work in PNG and share their experiences of working in other parts of the world as well.