Wapunai calls on Manning to act against barbaric crimes

SHADOW Minister for Police Johnson Wapunai has urged Police Commissioner David Manning to do more to stop barbaric crimes committed in the country.
Wapunai made the call after numerous videos of barbaric crimes committed in various parts of the country continue to be circulated on social media but those responsible had not been arrested and the incidents investigated.
“Just in the past week, an unverified video of three women being tortured and brutally assaulted by a pack of people somewhere in the upper Highlands was circulated widely online,” Wapunai said.
He said another video of a man being slashed, cut and tied up, with the attackers indicating in the video they would burn the victim was recently posted.
“I know these two incidents have their own back stories but these barbaric acts should be condemned and prosecuted to show this country does not tolerate this obscene behaviour,” he said.
“Regardless of what is alleged to have been committed by those being tortured or attacked, further extreme violence only normalises this disgusting behaviour in the country.
“From the moment a crime has been committed, authorities need to be present to step in and establish law and order before mob mentality, payback and revenge take over.
“Our country is currently in a deadly cycle where killings, rapes, attacks and tortures are normalised, which has led to relatives, friends, and families taking matters into their own hands for payback. The cycle only continues when the authorities do nothing.
“Because our authorities are not quickly addressing this situation, it is spiralling out of control, and making it acceptable behaviour for bystanders to video these acts without any care for the victims,” Wapunai said. He called on Manning to focus on curbing these crimes as a matter of urgency.