The current government is looking at establishing the Human Rights Commission in the country within this term.
Deputy secretary of the Department of Justice and Attorney General, Roselyn Gwaibo, says this has been talked about since 1991 and the current government is committed to making sure it is established in this term of government.
She made this comment when speaking at the inaugural judges workshop on human rights that is being run by the Pacific Judicial Strengthening Initiative.
Gwaibo explained the purpose of the commission, saying once it is established, it will mediate and consolidate human rights violations.
“It will also organise national, regional and sector base enquiries into allegations of violations of human rights and it will be mandated to provide public awareness of human rights in the country,” she said.
Gwaibo said the judiciary’s effort in establishing the human rights track in the country is actually an achievement that was highlighted in the recent international human rights workshop.
But the challenges in implementing human rights in this country remain.
For the government agencies, Gwaibo says effective coordination remains a challenge between the inter-agencies in terms of their communication.
“The inter-agency coordination in getting the information to report on human rights application is a major challenge. The main reason being also we don’t have a proper database and that is what we are working towards,” she said.
Last week magistrates from the magisterial service also underwent a similar human rights workshop, facilitated by human rights advisor, Dr Carolyn Graydon.
One of the main points highlighted by participants was the lack of awareness of human rights among those especially in the rural areas of the country.
This was supported today by Deputy Chief Justice Sir Gibbs Salika, who said many in rural PNG still do not know or understand their rights.