Police Minister leaves for Hela

Police Minister Bryan Kramer has traveled to Hela Province this afternoon to assess the situation following the killing of over 20 women and children.

The brutal massacre of 23 people in Tari on Monday has brought widespread condemnation.

The Police Minister will be on ground to get a full debriefing on the event that led to the senseless killing of 23 people. Two pregnant women and children were amongst those slain in ambush and retaliatory attacks in the Tagali Local Level Government area of the Tari-Pori District, in Hela Province.

“Some of these issues are deep-rooted,” said Kramer. “Some of these vicious killings; people are known to each other, it’s related and it’s very tribal.

“So it’s not something that we can fix overnight. The only way now is to ensure that there’s greater police presence and showing that there’s – in terms of law and order – real programs in terms of mediation, in terms of identifying issues before they reach this level. That’ll take a degree of time and planning.”

Kramer says their immediate concern is to ensure the safety of residents in Hela, as well as prevent the situation from further escalating.  

“The focus will also be, at the same time, is improving the efficiency and delivery of the Force and command and control in the Force. Because the frontline agency that deals with law and order is Police.

“So if we improve the policing, the situation of police and command and control, efficiency then they will naturally do their job and these issues will naturally be addressed.”

Meantime, the innocent lives were given a mass burial on Wednesday.

Author: 
Carmella Gware