Sorcery killing

The killing of a young woman accused of witchcraft has brought PNG to the attention of the international media for the wrong reasons in the past week, with the United Nations and Amnesty International speaking out on the issue. Writing in The Australian (9 Feb) Rowan Callick compared the case to the widely-publicised rape and murder of an Indian student in New Delhi and wondered if it might be the trigger for ‘legislative and educational reform and … a tough response from the police and courts?’

ANZ CEO’s call for policy

Australian Financial Review (AFR) columnist Matthew Stevens (5 Feb) found ‘messy irony’ in Mike Smith’s recent presentation to the Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Pondering the ANZ CEO’s call for the PNG Government to devise a ‘well thought-out and measured policy document’ to map out the future of PNG’s resources sector, Stevens reasoned that the best-qualified person to produce the report was none other than … Ross Garnaut.

Westpac fails in Asia bid … for now

In the same edition of the AFR, John Kehoe said that Westpac’s (unsuccessful) bid for a 5% stake in Hong Kong’s Bank of East Asia, made in December but revealed last week, ‘highlights it intends to increase its footprint in Asia in the long-term.’

BHP vs PNG

Finally, The Diplomat sees the current dispute between the PNG Government and BHP over the future of Ok Tedi as part of a regional narrative:

How these two resolve this dispute should become a focus for governments around the region who are obviously attracted to the wealth a mine can generate, but who also fear a voter backlash over environmental and wealth distribution issues.