Use common sense, tribes told

TRIBAL leaders from Silku and Gena tribes in Kerowagi district, Simbu province, were called on to exercise common sense to end a current tribal fight that claimed five lives and destruction of thousands of kina worth of properties.
Simbu provincial police commander Supt Joseph Tondop made the call over the weekend in Kundiawa after Silku tribe raided the Gena tribe last Wednesday.
The Silku shot and killed a 30-year-old father of two, torched several houses, and destroyed a motor vehicle.
The father was shot in the forehead and died instantly while two others sustained bullet wounds and were treated.
There were unconfirmed reports late yesterday that two Siloku tribesmen shot by the Gena tribe during the attack had died.
“Respected and educated leaders from both sides must control their tribesmen,” Supt Tondop said, adding that leaders were encouraging the fight by supplying them with firearms and ammunition.
Supt Tondop said police and Simbu provincial government had talked to the warring tribes during an initial mediation at the Kundiawa police station but members of the two tribes were provoking each other which eventually flared up late last month where a pregnant mother of four and a pastor from Silku were killed.
The Silku retaliated last Wednesday and raided Ganbugl village in Gena.
Supt Tondop said Kerowagi policemen on patrol intervened and stopped the fight but the tension was still high.
“I call on leaders from both sides to take control of their tribesmen to stop the fight,” he said, adding that Silku and Gena were traditional enemies.
The current fight stemmed from a traffic accident involving an ambulance from Kendine health centre in Gena which ran over a small girl from Silku tribe last month.