Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 09:18:56 +0100 (MET)
Subject: M-G: Bougainville Update & Comments 6/2/97


>From: "Vikki John" <VIKKI-AT-lexsun.law.uts.edu.au>
>Organization:  Faculty Of Law, Uni. Of Tech., Syd.
>To: Bougainville.Updates-AT-lexsun.law.uts.edu.au
>Date:          Thu, 6 Feb 1997 11:37:37 GMT-1000
>Subject:       Bougainville Update & Comments 6/2/97
>Reply-To: v.john-AT-uts.edu.au
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>Priority: urgent
>
>TROOPS TOLD: ARREST FOREIGN JOURNOS
>Postcourier (PNG) 5 February, 1997
>
>DEFENCE Minister Mathias Ijape said yesterday he had ordered the 
>security forces to arrest two foreign journaists on Bougainville and 
>destroy all their equipment.
>
>The two an Australian photo-journalist and a Bangkok-based British 
>correspondent for Esquire magazine crossed into Bougainville from 
>Solomon Islands last month and Mr Ijape said he believed they were 
>still there.  "They are finding it hard to get back to Solomon 
>Islands because we have increased surveillance on the border," he 
>said.
>
>The security forces had been instructed to detain them, destroy their 
>equipment, and transport them to Port Moresby to face charges of 
>having entered the country illegally.
>
>At the same time, Solomons police had "responded positively" to a 
>request for them to detain the two if they made it back to the 
>Solomons.
>
>Mr Ijape said the people of Bougainville had had enough of suffering. 
> Good progress was being made towards restoring total peace on the 
>island, and "foreign correspondents should not come and report 
>negatively on the island".
>
>Commentary from Bougainville Freedom Movement 6/2/97
>===================================>This once again underlines one of the real functions of the blockade 
>of Bougainville; not only is the blockade supposed to prevent 
>medicines and humanitarian aid from reaching "free" Bougainville but 
>also it is supposed to stop "foreign correspondents from coming in 
>and reporting NEGATIVELY on the island of Bougainville"as the 
>PNG Defence Minister Mathias Ijape confirms.
>
>Information received from Bougainville states that, indeed, on the 
>evening of 21 January 1997 at 7.30pm, one or more Iroquois 
>helicopters machine gunned two Bougainvillean boats carrying - not 
>journalists - but sick children to hospital in the Solomon Islands.  
>No-one was killed during the attack, but the delay in transporting 
>the sick caused the unfortunate death of a ten (10) year old boy who 
>died from malaria shortly after arrival in Gizo, now buried at the 
>Catholic Mission there.
>We hope Mr Chan, Mr Ijape and the - probably Australian - pilots of 
>the Australian-supplied Iroquois helicopters are proud of themselves.
>
>This statement by a senior PNG Minister shows that Prime Minister Sir 
>Julius Chan is either lying when he says "He had ended the blockade" 
>or that Sir Julius is unable to control his own government and 
>military.  Will Prime Minister Sir Julius Chan please explain?
>
>Bougainviile Freedom Movement
>PO Box 134, Erskineville.  NSW.  2043  Australia
>Tel: 61-2-9558.2730
>
>
>





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