By Kirsty Needham
SYDNEY (Reuters) – Papua New Guinea will give arrest powers to its military amid an outbreak of tribal violence in the remote highlands that has seen at least 26 men killed in an ambush, Prime Minister James Marape said on Monday evening.
Papua New Guinea Police Commissioner David Manning is traveling to the scene of fighting in Enga province after shocking images of bodies piled on a truck circulated on social media in the Pacific Island nation, the toll of an inter-tribal ambush occurred in a remote region on Sunday. Wapenamanda.
In a statement, Manning said it was a “shameful act of cruelty” and that the number of dead and injured was still being assessed. An earlier police estimate of 26 was likely to be revised upwards.
Broadcaster NBC said most of the dead were from the Sikin and Kaikin tribes, involved in long-running fighting with the Ambulin tribe. Last year 60 people were killed in tribal fighting in Enga.
Marape urged highland tribes to find other ways to deal with communal disputes instead of killing.
“There is no reward in engaging in tribal fights… lay down your weapons,” he said. “Young people with firearms” would be arrested and face life imprisonment, she added.
“Losing one life, let alone many lives, does not escape our conscience and our concern. As prime minister, I am deeply moved by this and very, very concerned. I am very, very angry,” he told reporters in a press video. conference.
Police and defense forces were on site, he said, but were reluctant to act out of concern for their safety as the tribes used illegal high-powered weapons.
The government will make legal changes to give the military the arrest powers possessed by the police, he said.
“Some of these places require severe measures, especially when the police are on site, they need to be protected,” he said.
A special police unit of up to 200 officers is being formed to deal with “domestic terrorists”, and will be trained in Australia, he added.
“These tribesmen were killed all over the countryside, all over the forest,” George Kakas, a senior officer in the country’s police force, previously told the ABC.
The Pacific nation is home to hundreds of tribes, speaking 800 languages, and many still live in inhospitable and remote terrain.
Japan on Monday pledged to finance the purchase of dozens of police vehicles for PNG.
“The news coming out of Papua New Guinea is very disturbing,” Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Monday. “We are providing considerable support, particularly for police officer training and security in Papua New Guinea.”
In December, Australia pledged to provide A$200 million for police training.