The US ambassador to Papua New Guinea Walter North was in Lae, Morobe Province earlier this week discussing how US can assistthPNG economy to be inclusive, transparent and sustainable.
During his stay, North visited Lae secondary school, one ofthe seven secondary schools in Morobe province.
Amongstthe topic discussed wasthe issue of how Papua New Guineacan reduce violence committed against men and women.
“I have met people in Papua New Guinea who are real heroes, who know that something needs to be done to addressthese issue, who have giventheir lives to make things better”, North said.
Papua New Guineahas beenthe center of unwanted attention in recent months. The burning of a woman in Mount Hagen andthe rape ofthe nurse atthe Lae'’s ANGAU Hospital lead to public outrage and international condemnation.
Whilethe national government is onthe verge of imposing death penalty to containthese problems, North believes, to containthe problem isn't just about implementing tougher penalties.
“It'’s not just about punishments. It'’s about creating a whole climate so that people no longer think it’s acceptable to behave that way” North said.
However, while some Papua New Guineas wantthe death penalty to be introduced, many aren't sure if this will solvethe problem.
Edwin Fidelis, National EMTV News
Caption: Nurses atthe Lae'’s ANGAU Hospital halted all medical operations followingthe rape ofthe nurse in February.
