Progress being made in PNG’s Hela province after violent attacks

4:09 pm on 25 September 2019

The United Nations Resident Co-ordinator in Papua New Guinea says progress is being made to restore normalcy in Hela Province after violent attacks in July.

PNG soldiers who have been sent to Hela Province

Soldiers sent to Hela after the violent attacks Photo: Scott Waide

Twenty-four people, including pregnant women and children, were killed during the violence.

The UN has been helping the government and other agencies to overcome the factors that drive the violence.

Gianluca Rampolla said the violence was deeply disturbing but not unexpected in a region that has been volatile for a number of years.

He said they were working to build community peace building processes in Southern Highlands, Hela and Enga.

"And the objective is to bring in a package of support that would assist peace processes at community level and at the same time provide for community development supports while providing incentives to stop fighting, make peace and allow for those displaced populations to come back to their own lands and restart livelihoods."

UN Residential Co-ordinator in PNG, Gianluca Rampolla

UN Residential Co-ordinator in PNG, Gianluca Rampolla Photo: RNZ Pacific/Melvin Levongo

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