Violence forces UN to pull earthquake workers out of Tari

THE United Nations has suspended relief efforts in areas of Papua New Guinea worst hit by February’s earthquake after violence and instability made it unsafe for its workers, a report says.
Dr Luo Dapeng, on behalf of the UN in PNG, said: “The UN has temporarily relocated 12 UN non-essential relief workers from Tari to other locations due to the current security situation in the area, which is compromising our ability to implement relief activities. We aim to resume relief work as soon as the security situation allows.”
The report in The Guardian yesterday said New Zealand, which had so far committed NZ$3.5 million (about K8mil) in aid funding as well as aircraft and personnel, said violence was adding extra pressure to relief efforts.
Orlena Scoville, head of Care Australia’s earthquake emergency team, who visited the villages of Huya, Walagau, Mougulu and Dodomona, said aid delivery had “stagnated”.
According to the UN, close to 20,000 are living in informal care centres, many of them no more than tarpaulin sheets pulled across wooden frames. Scoville said: “Food is definitely a major issue. There is not enough food.
“The villages I was in are mostly dependent on aid drop-offs. They have been saving food, because they don’t know where the next supply is coming from. It is definitely still an insecure situation.”