Transcript
MICHAEL HENAO: We provide free legal advice, advocacy and representation to the key affected populations. It is not only people who are diagnosed as being HIV positive but also Papua New Guineans who are accused of being HIV positive and also anyone who is generally affected by violence and gender-based violence, sorcery-related violence, so it is quite a broad range of legal advice and advocacy that we do.
DON WISEMAN: And there is a big call for your services?
MH: Yes there is absolutely, regrettably because of the geography in Papua New Guinea we haven't been able to open any additional offices outside of Moresby but our office in Moresby has certainly been kept busy since we commenced operations and in about 2011.
DW: What sort of numbers have you been dealing with say on a daily basis?
MH: It really depends generally we haven't really been able to, I suppose because of the demographic as well and the amount of stigma that is faced by a lot of our clients, but in terms of the number we are talking about definitely over a hundred, two hundred cases in anyone year. Those are the recorded formal matters that are registered and are taken up through the courts. We also address a numerous one off advices or issues that we have been asked to give advice on and those are generally clients who have just been walking in off the street and who have asked for advice about one or two matters. We have been issuing those. So we haven't really been keeping track of those particular numbers because of the, just the quantity and the amount of matter that has been coming through.
DW: And the demand for these services is continuing it is still as high as it was?
MH: We actually have had to issue a close out notice, so we have informed all of our existing clients to come and give us their final instructions about what they want to do with their files, whether they want us to brief other counsels here in Papua New Guinea to take them forward. So because of that close out notice we have had to turn a lot of people away. But the demand is still there.
DW: The close out notice of course is because your prime funder was the Australian Aid Programme and as far as they are concerned they have come to the end of their programme and that is it, the plug is pulled.
MH: Yes that is, it has just been pulled regrettably we weren't given a transition plan or any funding assistance for a transition. So the 31st of December is D-day. Regrettably we haven't been given a transition plan but we are making the best out of a very unfortunate situation.
DW: How much money were you getting from Ausaid?
MH: The Australian government and the Australian people have been tremendously supportive toward our organisation and what we have been doing. Over the years we have been very luck to receive from them about, you know maybe between three and four hundred thousand Australian dollars a year. Those monies have been expended in our programs which haven't only included the filing and taking through of court matters through our court system but also general advocacy and awareness on issues affecting gender based violence, sorcery related violence and HIV people and their access to justice.
DW: There have been a number of reports over the last few years suggesting that the extent of the AIDs, HIV problem in Papua New Guinea was substantially less than it had been. But it is still a very serious issue isn't it? Do you think that this action that has been taken by the Australian Aid Programme is, they are moving to early?
MH: I can't speak for the Australian Aid Programme obviously, but I can say that we at the Papua New Guinea Law Development Association are of the firm belief that part of a meaningful and productive response to the HIV situation in the country is by giving people access to justice. By allowing them to enforce and exercise their rights which our constitution provides for and we regret that the lack of funding has now caused us not to be able to provide those services. In fact we are the only organisations in Papua New Guinea that provide these kinds of services to our people. So the fact that it has been pulled as it were has made us even more determined to try and source alternative funding to ensure that we are able to open up again next year.
DW: What are the other alternatives?
MH: For some time now we have been aware that it is unsafe for us to have all our eggs in one basket. So we have been meaningfully attempting to source alternate funding. Regrettably we haven't been successful and we are going to continue doing that next year. There are two potential sources that we are going to be putting in submissions for unfortunately if we are successful those fundings wont be available for drawdown until October next year at the earliest but we are of the view that at least if we put in the submissions that will enable us to restart again in 2017 at some stage. Those to potentials that we are looking at are foreign funding partners. We have also been asking the Papua New Guinean government particularly the national capital district commission to assist us to do that. And to try and coax them to a favourable response we have remodelled ourselves and we have proposed a coalition with the key population groups so Friends Frangipani which are the association of sex workers as well as Couple Champions which is the Papua New Guinean Association for men who have sex with men and that coalition proposal has already gone to the National Capital District Commission and we are yet to receive a meaningful response. But we understand that it is being considered favourably and we hope that we get a good response by the 31st of December.
