Police get K20,000 to stop fighting

By CLIFFORD FAIPARIK
Telefomin MP Solan Mirisim has allocated K20,000 police to be deployed to the border of West Sepik and Hela provinces to quell fighting between people from these provinces.
He said yesterday that fighting between the Kunamap tribe from Telefomin in West Sepik and Agali tribe from Koroba-Lake Kopiago in Hela had resulted in Agali tribesmen capturing two men.
“I have put K20,000 for police in Telefomin to move to Kunamap and Agali to bring peace among the two tribes,” Mirisim said. “Police will be moving this week to these villages.”
He also brushed aside reports from West Sepik police commander Moses Ibsagi that eight women from Kunamap were held against their will in Agali.
Ibsagi had said these women were kidnapped after Kunamap villagers allegedly killed an Agali man.
Kopiago councillor Tom Pakale said the incident occurred last month when some men and women from Kunamap were kidnaped by Agali villagers.
“Agali villagers had kidnaped these people for the Kunamap villagers to pay compensation,” he said. “Kunamap villagers have already paid K11,000 and those people in captivity have already been released.”
Pakale said the people were kidnaped after an Agali man’s trade store was broken into and his store goods looted.
“The Agali’s man’s store was in Kunamap,” he said.
“He had demanded the Kunamap villagers to own up for the looting of his store.