Perpetrators need to be brought to justice.

Chairman of TIPNG, Lawrence Stephens said amongst the students that had been sent back home were students of neighbouring countries cajoled into believing that Papua New Guinea offers a good environment for study.

“But we must not forget the reason behind the students' protest and the ongoing civil unrest," said Stephens.

Stephens said the reasons are:

• A Commission of Inquiry that highlighted theft and misuse of public office and named individuals who should be investigated. The law firm most seriously implicated plays a lead role in delaying justice and public officials named in the inquiry continue to hold public office.

• The law firm gets paid during the hiatus caused by each of us not insisting on justice being seen to be done. Efforts to investigate even that payment are disrupted by unwillingness to cooperate with the investigation and a willingness to believe or allege that the investigation is politically motivated.

• It was alleged that the previous government, which also includes members of the current government, lost K8 billion from public trust funds but not any one Member of Parliament is taking action to recover the stolen funds or hold anyone accountable.

“The students pointed out failure and protested. They were told that they were being manipulated by others in a patronizing display of our refusal to believe that the education we have encouraged the students to get qualifies them to diagnose illnesses from which we already know we suffer.

“PNG is in denial and in a state of denial we have allowed students in their thousands to become victims,” said Stephens.