Help given to victims of police raid at village

By JUNIOR UKAHA
MORE than 100 people, including 70 students, have moved into a care centre at Hobu Primary School after their houses were burnt down by police two weeks ago.
Policemen from the Morobe police command went to Hobu in the Nawaeb district on June 7, burnt down houses and shot dead a suspect following the killing of a policeman.
The victim and his unit were attending to a complaint in the area when he was stabbed to death by a man.
Provincial police commander Supt Alex N’drasal confirmed that police reacted angrily to the situation by assaulting people and damaging properties.
Pastor Matrus Tongoriong, on behalf of the affected residents, said they had lost everything.
“We have lost properties estimated to be close to K1 million,” Tongoriong said.
“Houses, trade stores, market stalls, chicken and pig sheds and household valuables were all burnt.”
“People fled into the bushes. They were not able to save their valuables because police made a surprise raid.”
He said the victims, who included women, children and elderly people, were scared for their lives and were hiding in bushes.
“The education of 70 children who attended elementary, primary, high and secondary schools were affected because their uniforms, bags and books were burnt with the houses.
“Fathers and mothers have also lost their household goods, money, chicken sheds and stores – burnt to the ground, police burnt everything.”
Tongoriong said Nawaeb MP Kennedy Wenge heard of the villagers’ plight and tarpaulins to where some of them were camping in a care centre at Hobu Primary School.
Wenge and Leo Kautu, a project officer with the provincial disaster office, visited the victims at the centre on Saturday and gave them basic household kits.
They gave the people bed sheets, cooking utensils, mats, mosquito nets, water and food storage containers.
Kautu said the provincial disaster office stepped in to assist the people after the office was approached by Wenge.
“We are really sorry about what happened here,” he said.
“Sorry that we came late but it is a man-made disaster, so we’ll assess it carefully before we respond.”
Wenge urged the affected people to forget about what had happened and focus on rebuilding their lives.