Drive to evict PNG settlement communities runs into problems

Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades A Papua New Guinean anthropologist has warned that a campaign by authorities to remove communities from informal settlements in Port Moresby will not solve growing social problems in PNG's capital. The government is determined to end the role of settlements as what Prime Minister James Marape decsribes as "breeding grounds for terror" as part of its law and order reforms, but recent evictions have run into problems. Almost half of Port Moresby's estimated population of around 500,000 live in settlements, often without legal title or access to basic services. Some of the settlements have become notorious as crime hotspots. However, in late January, police moved into the settlement at 2-Mile, sparking clashes with residents that resulted in two deaths and numerous injuries. Police then moved to evict another settlement at 4-Mile, but this met with a legal challenge which led to the National Court placing a stay order on the eviction. While the campaign is essentially paused, Marape has said that his government would soon announce a permanent plan to replace unplanned settlements with properly titled residential allotments. He also apologised to residents affected by the evictions, in recognition that many law-abiding and hard working families have made settlements their home over the years. Photo: Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat Urban drift Previous attempts at evicting settlement communities did not exactly lay a template for the success of what authorities are trying to do in 2026. In numerous cases, homes were destroyed or razed to the ground, people were left homeless and then simply moved to other areas of vacant land or ended up living with wantoks in other parts of Morebsy. A PNG anthropologist who has done extensive work on settlements, Fiona Hukula, noted that settlements are long-established communities, stretching back decades. "Essentially, people came to work in the towns and the cities, like in Port Moresby, and so where there was low cost housing, or where people weren't able to afford housing, they started living in settlements, and some of the settlements on the outskirts, there's stories that they made some kind of connection and deals with the local landowners." Dr Hukula said over the decades, migration to the towns and cities had grown significantly, but the available housing had not kept pace. Photo: "People are just now coming into the city, really, to access better services, health and education. Some Papua New Guineans are coming to the city to escape various forms of conflict and violence. "And this is now where we've seen just an influx of people coming into the city, and obviously there's nowhere to live, and they live in settlements, and many of Moresby settlements are populated by families who have been there for several generations." 'Difficult thing I have to do' Many of Moresby's settlements are now populated by families who have been there for several generations. Removing people from these communities is a complex challenge. "An eviction is not going to solve the problem, because people will just go and find somewhere else to stay (in Moresby), especially if they're generational families who have lived in these settlements, who don't necessarily have the ties back to their rural villages and their connections to their people in their village," Dr Hukula said. Adding to the complexities of the eviction drive are social connections forged in the National Capital District (NCD) over the years. The head of the NCD Police Command Metropolitan Superintendent Warrick Simitab admitted that for him personally, leading the eviction exercises such as at 2-Mile had not been easy. "It's been difficult, because I grew up here. I grew up in NCD. For example in 2-Mile. Most of my classmates that I went to school together with, they live there. So for me personally, it's a difficult thing that I have to do," he told RNZ Pacific. Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades Simitab would not be drawn on when the evictions would start up again, saying things were paused while political leaders decide next steps. Criminal hotspot The local MP for Moresby South Justin Tkatchenko said the 2-Mile settlement had become a notorious criminal hotspot, and that the people of the city have had enough of it. "Hold ups nearly every night and every day, women have been raped, attacked, citizens have been held up, cars stolen, injured, abused for nearly 20 years," he said. Things came to a head when police were shot at and those living in 2-Mile refused an ultimatum given by police to hand over the criminals, he explained. Tkatchenko said the government was steadily working on resettling settlers with proper, legal allocations of land to live on. "We have already allocated land and sub-divided that land for over 400 families in the 2-Mile Hill area and other areas. Some have already been resettled and moved, and others will follow suit," the MP said. Photo:...

Drive to evict PNG settlement communities runs into problems

Continue Reading on RNZ

How do you feel about this article?

📝 Article Information

Author

Original Publisher

Published Date

Disclaimer

Drive to evict PNG settlement communities runs into problems

Continue Reading on RNZ

How do you feel about this article?

📝 Article Information

Author

Original Publisher

Published Date

Disclaimer

More from RNZ