PNG Immigration and Border Security Minister William Bando has warned foreign nationals involved in human trafficking and organised criminal activities that they face detention, prosecution, deportation and possible bans from entering Papua New Guinea.
The warning follows the arrest of four Chinese nationals in Port Moresby last week over an alleged human trafficking operation in which 39 Indonesian nationals were rescued from a three-bedroom house.
Related news: https://www.nbc.com.pg/post/40182/immigration-minister-warns-foreigners-over-human-trafficking
The suspects and victims are currently being detained at the Bomana Immigration Centre, according to the Minister.
In a statement Minister Bando commended the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary, including Commissioner of Police David Manning and Deputy Commissioner of Police-Specialist Operations Donald Yamasombi, for the operation.
He said the rescue of the 39 Indonesians and detention of the four Chinese nationals indicated that foreign organised criminal syndicates could be operating in Papua New Guinea.
The Minister announced plans to establish a special investigation task force to investigate the alleged network and identify all people involved.
“Such trafficking of large numbers of people and concealing them in residential areas and profiting from them, either by selling them to employers, using them as cheap labour, using them in underground organised brothels or transiting them to Australia or New Zealand, are all serious issues of concern,” Minister Bando said.
“PNG must not be seen as a transit point for transnational criminals in the region.”
He warned that foreign nationals found to have links to the alleged trafficking network, or who assisted in facilitating such activities, could have their visas cancelled and face immediate deportation and bans from entering PNG.
Minister Bando said Government intelligence indicated that criminal rackets were allegedly involved in organised prostitution, illegal logging, illegal alluvial mining, human trafficking and money laundering.
He also raised concerns about criminal networks allegedly attempting to infiltrate State agencies and collude with senior officials.
“I am warning all foreigners in the country, whether you are investing or working here, to respect our domestic laws,” he said.
“Failure to do so will result in detention, prosecution and removal.”
The warning also extended to Papua New Guinean citizens and public servants who may be involved in criminal activities or assist foreign criminal networks.
“This is also a warning to all PNG citizens, including public servants, immigration officers, customs officers and police officers, that if you are involved, you will be subject to criminal prosecution,” Minister Bando said.
He said weaknesses in PNG’s border-control systems, together with prevailing social and cultural practices, could create an environment where officials were vulnerable to bribery and criminal networks could operate.
“Given our lax border system and prevailing cultures, we are feeding into a system of exploitation where our officers are easily prone to bribes and harbouring of such activities,” he said.
Minister Bando described human trafficking as a serious issue that had attracted local, national and international attention.
He said human trafficking also posed national security concerns and could damage Papua New Guinea’s international reputation.
“The implications of human trafficking on national security in our country will cast a grey status on our international reputation,” he said.
The Minister said existing law-enforcement policies and practices used to counter human trafficking were not producing the required results and remained vulnerable to infiltration and integrity failures.
He said the Government would place greater emphasis on national security strategies focused on border control, stronger immigration controls and tougher penalties for people in positions of trust who conspired to facilitate trafficking and other criminal activities.
Related news: https://www.thepngsun.com/png-police-raid-uncovers-alleged-human-trafficking-ring-39-indonesians-rescued/
“As a Government, we will be pushing for a national migration policy and a comprehensive review and amendment of the Immigration Act 1978 to capture some of those missing links for the robust protection of our borders,” Minister Bando said.
He said the Government would continue working with law-enforcement and border-security agencies to identify and dismantle criminal networks operating across PNG’s borders.