Murder over 20t

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By MARJORIE FINKEO

Relatives at the haus krai Joshopine John (left), Lucy Damu, Pasa’s eldest aunty and Pasa’s mother Moire Damu.

THREE days after a man was slashed to death with a bush knife over a K100 dispute in Moresby North East’s 9-Mile settlement, a 20-year-old father of a 20-month-old baby boy was also similarly killed in the Kaugere settlement roadside market on Saturday.
This time, Biou Pasa, from Western, was murdered over a 20t dispute that followed with a “kill him” joke, sparking a horrifying bush-knife attack that almost severed Pasa’s neck.
Pasa was walking home at about 2pm when he stopped to buy a cigarette. He then argued with three women who demanded that he paid another 20t for the K1.20 stick.
But the man walked off and the women started jokingly calling out “kilim em” (kill him).
An Engan man, believed to be under the influence of alcohol, then stepped out of a canteen with a bush knife and asked the women what the commotion was about.
The woman then told the Engan that the Western refused to pay another 20t for the stick of cigarette.
The Engan man then asked the women what they wanted him to do and they jokingly responded by saying “kill him”.
The armed assailant then ran after Pasa and slashed him on the neck, almost severing it.
The Engan is reported to have surrendered to Boroko police and Pasa’s body is in Taurama’s Dove Funeral Home.
The killing sparked community tension and unrest with relatives and families burning down the house of the Engan and an empty canteen belonging to an Engan.
Police had to, again, move in numbers to quell the unrest, tension and emotion.
The settlement where the Engan lived is now a no-entry zone.
The National reported on Thursday that a 40-year-old man with two wives and seven children was also slashed to death with a bush knife over a K100 dispute in Moresby North East on Wednesday.
The murder also sparked community tension and unrest with relatives and families burning down the house of the killer who fled with his wife. Only 19 days into 2020, 12 murders have been reported in Papua New Guinea.
Kaugere 1 community leader Endie Ipira told The National that the women were only joking but the killer took it seriously, walked up to Pasa from the back and slashed him in the neck with a bush knife.
He said police would be arresting the three women and the witness to help in investigations.
Pasa’s mother, Moire Damu, said: “It is so painful and unbearable to lose my favourite son.
“I will not wash my son’s blood on my skin until he is laid to rest.
Damu is a mother of 12 children and Pasa is her were fifth born with a twin brother.

Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko consoling Ekai at his twin brother’s haus krai. Inset: NCD/Central Acting Asst Comm Anthony Wagambie Jr. – Nationalpics by JASON KAVAN

Moresby South MP Justin Tkatchenko, who is also Housing and Urban Development Minister, described the killing as “barbaric, animalistic and a very primitive act that has now divided the community”.
“The killer should be one of the first to be put to death under the death penalty law formalised by Parliament,” he said, adding that he had a dialogue with National Capital District (NCD) Governor Powes Parkop to formalise a ban on alcohol consumption in his constituency.
“If we have alcohol, home brew and marijuana-free in our community, such horrifying incidents will be curbed,” he said.

Anthony Wagambie Jr

NCD/Central Acting Asst Comm Anthony Wagambie Jr said police had attended to the murders swiftly to curb prevent violence from escalating.
“The two murders, though isolated cases, depict a far more bigger problem that requires the full attention of the Government.
The nation’s population has increased rapidly over the past few years making our society more prone to crime and violence.
“Illiteracy remains high and more people are drifting from the rural settings into NCD in search of a better life but many of them end up
disappointed and are stuck with
relatives in the settlements,” he added.
Acting ACP Wagambie said illegal land grabbing is also causing illegal squatter settlements to mushroom, giving rise to all forms of social ills, including crime and ethnic violence in the city.
“This scenario also reflects a breakdown of moral values in our communities.
“The leaders, the churches and relevant State agencies must take ownership and devise a plan on how to contain such violence,” he said, adding that police will continue to work closely with communities enforce law and order.
Acting ACP Wagambie said: “We are however, stuck with this issue as people are already here.
“People have got to learn how to live together in one community.
“Respect for each one another has diminished.
“Many times when police go into certain areas to quell ethnic clashes, we are either obstructed or attacked.
“Communities will have to take ownership for their wellbeing and we will find ways to enhance policing accessibility into settlements,” he said, adding that police fully recommend that the NCD Commission revoke all liquor licences in all settlements.

 

28 comments

  • This is unbecoming of primitives living among the civilised elites and carrying out man slaughter. such actions should be condemned.

  • Ban liquor in all settlements in NCD, Liquor must be sold in Supermarkets, Night Clubs, Restaurants and Hotels. Easy to catch those producing home-brew.

  • Now people are not afraid of staying behind the bars for years due to killing because they take it as another place to live. Thus, I think PNG should exercise death penalty which can scare them (people) in killing other innocent citizens.

  • It high time death penalty should be legalized immediately, life lost in such a manner is just barbaric.

  • Death penalty should now be introduce and cold-blooded murders deserve death penalty.

  • Seven months into the formation of the new National Government has increasing statics of law and order issues nationwide go unresolved. There is hardly any clear guidelines how the government is attempting to curb law and order issues so far. Port Moresby city leads with more deaths and criminal activities, where law enforcement authorities trying their very best to address but just getting our of hand.
    Can Prime Minister James Marape take the lead with his provincial Governor Philip Undialu to address their Tari people here in the city causing all the mayhem. After all, the right to exist and seek better life is a human need and right. Pom city belongs to all PNGns and Taris have to learn to respect others living in their neighbourhood.

  • So shocking!
    No fear of human life as sacred being God’s creation.
    Bring on the capital punishment, and make intoxication by alcohol not an excuse to commit such a serious crime.

  • It is human nature to urge to kill. Ordinary killings also confirm that something is wrong with society.

  • These sorts of barbaric acts are caused by Unemployed, good-for-nothing, non-taxpayers just living in settlements and benefitting from the services provided by us taxpayers and causing a niusance;animals belong in the wild, Vagrancy Act needs to be enforced,pulled down these settlements in the heart of the city. GoPNG, whose interest are you serving?

  • This is an uncivilized human living there in the City. Why such an uncivilized human migrate from his home land and reside here in Pom.
    It’s more better Government work strong to look more deeply.

  • Look at the way killing is going on in the capital city of PNG and around PNG. It seems to be from Taris and Souths and engans only that create such unacceptable activities.Very low educated people with little brain. Can the government impose a travel passport for them to travel and live in other parts of PNG.

  • We just can’t let all this continue. I appeal to our leaders to start getting down hard and make some tough decisions like Imposing the death penalty, imposing the vagrancy act and review the informal sector and the issue of settlements in urban centers

  • This killing is becoming a norm in PNG esp in POM- PLEASE Impose the DEATH PENALTY ASAP.. We cannot become spectators watching our country men and women slashed to death like PIGS – So sorry , MAY their Souls rest in Peace

  • This is very inhuman. Who are you to kill another human being. You don’t deserve to live in a human society.
    Better you were not born.
    Very sad to hear and see in the news everyday of such merciless killings.

  • The Papuans should re-think their actions when they want to sell their land to Non Papuans. The government should discourage Squatter settlements. The vagrancy act should be activated. Some of us converged to the city with purpose in life. To Live, work and enjoy life and live and abide by the law. We have to buy a decent house in a well planned suburbs, or rent a house in a planned suburb.

    Some people come into the city by fleeing tribal war back home, some came looking for opportunities. They squat on Stage land and no body cares who they are or the lethality of them residing in that piece of land. The problem of squatter settlement goes back to the government, authority and the land owners of NCD and Central Province

  • There has to be a decisive action to be taken by our Politician, local members of this urban communities and every right thinking human being in PNG. There has to be a strong Law and Order Committee set up in this settlements or in a place like Kaugere which is a Suburb but looks like its turned into a settlement because of influx of migrant people who set up camp and have little respect for anyone. WIth a evergrowing settlement boom within and on the fringers of POM city with mixture of ethnic groups and lack of proper community law and order structure, it is a recipe for disaster. PNG has been viewed world over as a blessed country with unique diversity, including its people. BUT IT SEEMS THIS DIVERSITY OF PEOPLE IS A CURSE IN ITSELF DESTROYING SOCIETY AND ULTIMATELY THE COUNTRY.

  • It poses great challenges on leaders of those provinces in which the hooligans come from as to how they could convince their people to live respectfully among civilized citizens. These animalistic minded and of human junks are been allowed to prey their trades in the pretext for survival around the city just to attached and kill innocent citizens thus a combine efforts is immediately required to eliminates these emerging warriors. These warriors do not have the sense of humanity and do not value human lives. They have semi-human sense but fully animalistic minded beings and are unfit to dwell among civilized citizens. They were pushed by serious factors from their societies which other citizens do not know and of course they don’t have permanent homes to return to after their lives in city.

  • booreq don’t include all highlanders just specify to that province who commit crimes only, we highlands provinces are ok but especially Engans and Tarians are very bad to city and these two damage county’s image. Just simply evict them and send them back to their villages.

  • Those women who instigated this killing should also be charged with second degree murder, because they have ordered a drunkard with a bush knife to kill. It is not a joking matter as mentioned by those women, they are lying. The murderer is under the influence of alcohol and had a bush knife in his hand and was ordered by those women to go after the victim and chop him, they had a chance to stop that drunkard but knowingly allowed it. Can the police also have the women arrested charged. If a person with a normal mind orders a mentally ill person to go and stab somebody and he does as ordered, who is to be blamed? Something to think about.

  • It’s really terrible news innocent lives are in danger now a days, so the government have to do something at least the government have to burn alcohol and drugs especially marijuana in our capital city first and if it works than they can implement it to the rest of the provinces.

  • I strongly call on the Government to implement the DEATH PENALTY. IT’S NO USE MAKING A LAW AND NOT IMPLEMENTING IT. DISPLEA DEATH PENALTY LAW EM WINDOW CURTAIN TASOL BILONG GAVMAN AH? We can no longer tolerate to have a sick society like this. What’s the matter with Death Penalty, for goodness sake? When are we going to implement it? We have to action it now or we never will, tomorrow will never come and the society will have worse problems in lawlessness, particularly murder and rape.

  • In my opinion liquid, hoomebre or marijuana does not cost this , this is attitude or rather imitating from what they’ve seen from videos, friends, 1tok and frustration so consider this style of action before blaming the resource…

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