The holdup of Rabaul Provincial Hospital Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dr. Ako Yap in his home as well as the assault and attacks cases on medical specialists in the East New Britain (ENB), has shocked the medical community in the Province. This saw the National Doctor’s Association ENB Branch presented a petition to the Provincial Authorities to respond to lawlessness and attacks on doctors. The three main demands listed in the petition were: 1. Suspects of crimes committed against doctors to be arrested and charged by November 20. 2. Guaranty of staff safety. 3. Investigation results of crime committed against two senior medical doctors to be presented by police. Acting and outgoing ENB Provincial Police Commander (PPC) Januarius Vosivai met with the Union to respond to their petition. The responses given, pointed out that petition points 2 and 3 could not be met, as they require the collaborative efforts for various sectors within the Province. The Provincial Authorities have however, agreed to Point 1 of the Union’s petition, to carry out an independent investigation into the known suspects responsible for the holdup of Dr. Yap, to ensure a fair and unbiased process into the arrest and charging of the suspects. The Union has further extended the deadline to November 28th, with the next course of action to be taken on November 29th. The Union has urged the local law enforcement officers to prioritize this case and expedite the investigation to ensure that the medical service delivery in the province is not affected. ENB residents are anxious about how this situation will unfold, but they are hopeful for a swift resolution to this matter.

Amako Art Gallery’s (AAG) founder, Mr. Warren Veyane, is a persevering Artist who throughout his career fought for the implementation of a Policy for the rights to Art to be recognized nationally and internationally for Papua New Guinea (PNG) Artists. Veyane is 33 years of age and comes from a mixed parentage of Eastern Highlands (EHP) and Milne Bay Provinces and was an Art student for three years at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) School of Arts in 2010 before leaving school to take care of his siblings. “Due to the passing of both my parents, I was forced to withdraw from school and open a studio to help sustain my younger siblings.” With his passion for Art, he founded the Amako Art Gallery (AAG) home studio located in June Valley (JV) Port Moresby and created a Facebook page to showcase and help sell the inspiring artists artwork in 2017. "I wanted a special name for my studio, and I couldn’t use Warren because there were already artists with that name, so I chose to use my grandfather's name.” “Amako in Henganofi language means warrior and it represents my heart and how I feel about Art in PNG.” AAG, according to Veyane, creates a platform for struggling artists to showcase and sell their paintings and offers exposure by participating in Art exhibitions and the arts theatre through visual arts and musical arts. Veyane added that he had taught free art classes over a three-month period on the basic principles of visual art to help the young artists, who also shared similar interest. “In 2018 when I started the classes, there was a total of 167 students and most of them were in primary school. Most of these students are now in secondary school and they are the top artists in their classes.” Warren’s journey started when a couple from Switzerland found interest in his illustrating skills and decided to hire him to do illustrations for their books, as they also funded libraries and computer labs. “These international associates expressed the potential for artists in the world and I was hooked at that point. However, this was impossible without the Right for Art Policy in place from the government.” “Without the Right for Art Policy in place, I barely recovered an adequate fee from our business agreement.” Veyane further added that the inexperience to international associates became an obsessive motivation to seek out the Policy to be implemented for local artists in PNG to protect their gifts. Mr. Veyane believes that the experience outside of school brought challenges and also brought him opportunities to help identify his passion and goals in life. Meanwhile, he set out to implement the Rights to Art policy, working closely with the National Capital District and the National Parliament and was fortunate to be a part of the first Art Exhibition after 50 years, back then in 2019. That exhibition was hosted at the NCD Governor’s Office, bringing government attention to the primary matter.

Samoa was the biggest mover on the 2023 Pacific Games Medal tally after end of competition on Tuesday in Honiara, but New Caledonia remains in control at first place. More medals will be decided on Wednesday as the different competitions continues, including archery, basketball, golf, rugby league 9s, sailing, swimming, table tennis, tennis, volleyball and weightlifting all continue their competitions. Team Samoa jumped from ninth position on the tally after Monday's rounds of different matches to third into the second day of medals challenges. They now sit with eight gold medals, one silver and one bronze for a total of 10 medals, two places behind leaders New Caledonia. Gold medals from the weightlifting competition gave the Samoans enough to jump the ladder, with weightlifting sensation Vaipava Nevo Ioane leading the show. Nevo made his return to the Pacific Games on Tuesday and showed just why he is among the best weightlifters in the region, sweeping all three medals in the men's 67kg division at Maranatha Hall. He lifted166 kilograms in the clean and jerk, adding 120kg in the snatch, while setting a new Oceania record. "I feel great and happy to represent Samoa and I'm just thankful to the father above for the strength and also for all these victories in my career," he told Pacific Games media after his win. He also set a new Oceania record in the process. His fellow countryman John Tafi also added three gold on the day in the 73kg category and set a new Games and Oceania record as well. New Caledonia still leads with 17 gold, following wins in weightlifting, judo and swimming. Australia are now placed second with 11 gold medals. Australia shared two gold medals each with Tahiti and New Caledonia on Tuesday's final day of judo. Anneliese Fielder came out victorious in the women's 52kg, beating New Caledonia's Joy Quemener to win Australia's first gold of the day on the mat. [caption id="attachment_47510" align="aligncenter" width="1081"] Tonga women's football team (red) drew 2-2 with Tahiti. Photo: Pacific Games News Service[/caption] Tonga comeback in women's football A dramatic comeback from the Tonga women's football team saw them record a 2-all draw against Tahiti in their opening match at the 2023 Pacific Games at the Lawsom Tana Stadium in Honiara on Tuesday despite playing with only 10 players. While Tahiti had taken a 2-0 lead at halftime and Tongan goalkeeper Madison Tenifa given the marching order in the fifth minute of the game, the Matalupes fought back to level terms before the end of the match. The star for the team was Ana Polovili, who scored a double towards the end of the match, keeping her team's hopes alive of qualifying for the knockout stages. Goalkeeper Madison Tenifa was sent off after she was ruled to have obstructed a clear scoring opportunity for Tahiti. Tahiti scored first half goals through Kiani Wong and Kohai Mai. Tonga coach Mark Bell told the Pacific Games Media he was satisfied. "Finishing with a draw and with only ten players is a good result. We were trailing by two goals but I encouraged the girls to keep fighting and our efforts paid off with two goals, to earn one point." In the other women's match played on the day, Fiji defeated Vanuatu 3-2 and kept their chances of finishing in the top two from their pool with the hosts Solomon Islands. In the men's competition Fiji and Tahiti played to a goal-less draw. Fiji finished the game with 10 men after Tevita Waranaivalu was sent off the field for two yellow card offences. [caption id="attachment_47511" align="aligncenter" width="1084"] Nauru's Ditto Ika Photo: Nauru Media News - NTV[/caption] Weightlifting Nauru Nauru's Ditto Ika scooped three silver medals for Team Nauru in the men's weightlifting competition on Tuesday. Ika also claimed a silver medal in the Oceania Championship also being held together with the Games competition. The Nauru weightlifting team is in a rebuilding phase with any of their team members new to the Pacific Games. They are still chasing a gold medal in the competition. Past medal winners for the country include Marcus Stephens, who won gold medals at past Games, Oceania Championships, Commonwealth Games and the Olympic Games. Basketball deciders Tonga defeated Papua New Guinea 67-46 in a pool match of the women's basketball competition but have failed to make the final stages. Leading 30-26 the Tongans took control of the game in the last two quarters to romp home with their first win after three games. But the win has come too little too late for the Friendly Islanders, who had lost 76-44 to Cook Islands on Friday and 62-44 to Tahiti on Monday. Meanwhile, Fiji and Guam have qualified for the semifinals in the competition, the teams having to wait for the result of the Cook Islands and Tahiti game to confirm who their opponents will be. In the men's competition Fiji defeated New Caledonia by two points, winning 68-66, PNG defeated Samoa 87-72 while Tahiti proving too strong for Tonga winning 71-64. [caption id="attachment_47512" align="aligncenter" width="1084"] Solomon Islands Men's Basketball Team bows out of the Pacific Games 2023 5X5 Basketball competition, after losing their final group match on a strong 87-53 defeat to Guam on Tuesday 21 November at the Friendship hall. Photo: Facebook.com/Pacific Games[/caption] Source: RNZ.Com

After several major crimes in East New Britain (ENB) including a recent armed robbery that took place in Pomio leading to a near death experience by an employee, the city of Kokopo is seeing a decrease of reports of major crimes. This has come about due to the deployment of police officers that have been sent to control and maintain law and order in ENB. The batch deployed have impacted the community in Kokopo city by minimizing violence, including the most recent fighting that occurred late last month. Provincial Police Commander (PPC) Chief Inspector Janarius Vosivai was pleased to inform PNG Hausbung of the lack of violence due to the deployed reinforcement of police officers. “The rate has gone down especially the most recent brawl that occurred in town,” said PPC Vosivai. PPC Vosivai stressed that the behavior of the youths who actively get involved in petty crimes, and the crucial time during the year so However, despite this, the PPC continuous to urge the citizens to be vigilant when going to work or moving to daily routines. “Sometimes youths after or towards the end of school year time, tend to get involved in petty crimes, and most are found to be students.” “I would appeal to our decent citizens of ENB to be very cautious and vigilant in your day-to-day chores, minimize night travels, and travel in numbers or groups to have more leverage over these culprits.” PPC Vosivai also said that it’s best to stay out of the hotspot areas or red zones. With the slow growth of peace in ENB, PPC Vosivai is determined to maintain it and to do whatever is necessary to keep the peace.

The people in Ulamona, West New Britain (WNB) are being evacuated and moved to the Kabaya Care Center after Mt. Ulawun erupted just 48 hours ago. According to the Ward Councilor Member Mr. Christine Luvani, Mt Ulawun has reputed very badly in the last 48 hours. Mr. Luvani told PNG Hausbung that due to the current heat and dust from the eruption of the volcano, people are currently evacuating the area. The elderly were the first to move out to the care center. All surrounding villages are following the same procedure. Apart from the Kabaya Care Center, they are also looking to move some of the people to Barema and Soi. Currently, the volcanic dust is just over Bialla town and should be expected to move over Kimbe town and parts of the province as well. Ash fall and black smoke is seen throughout the area. Mr  Luvani said, most of the people need to move now. Those residing at Noua will have to move to Bakada, which is 180 kilometers away from the volcano. He also mentioned that the problem right now is providing canvases to house the people at the care center, and the government needs to come down now and support the people. “The government should be looking at suppling water and other necessary items during their stay at the care center.”

The Port Moresby Suburban Rugby League (PSRL) 2023 season Grand Final was dominated once again by the Mountain Bulls in both the Under-20 (U-20) and the A-grade. In the U-20 game, the opening minutes saw the Mountain Bulls taking the lead against the Bandicoots by scoring two tries and two successful conversions in the first half through their heavy left prop, Abel Pup. The Bandicoots struck back in the second half with a try through an impressive ball play and a piece of solo brilliance by their left-wing Eddie Robert, sidestepping his opponents to the try line. But, with the failed conversion from the Bandicoots, the Mountain bulls were able to maintain the lead until the end of the match, ending with a 12-4 victory. The main event, the A-grade grand final match, was the toughest of them all with the relentless 54 Bears and the Mountain Bulls bite down hard on their mouth guards and played a brutal and aggressive 80 minutes of footy. Both teams came to a draw of 6 points all towards the end of the match; however, the unexpected winning field goal came off the boot of Raven Jordan to put the Mountain Bulls in front and to eventually win the match by just one point. Final score, 7 points to 6. Both U-20 and A-grade Mountain Bulls teams have now broken their club record of winning the PSRL premiership twice in a row. It was a memorable moment for the club and the players. Most of the players were overwhelmed by the happiness of their achievement that they were lost for words and some even with tears of joy.

Cocoa Farmers in rural Sawataetae Village in the Duau Local Level Government (LLG) in the Esa’ala District of the Milne Bay Province, are building a cocoa drying facility that will allow them to process their own produce for export. The farmers are being assisted by the Milne Bay Provincial Division of Agriculture and Livestock (PDAL). The man overseeing this project is PDAL’s Physical Development Officer for Esa’ala District, Mr. Toka Rubin. “The villagers were given cocoa seedlings in 2018, after we ran through training with them.” Mr. Rubin explained that these trees have now started bearing, prompting the PDAL to assist the villagers build a processing facility for their harvests. “The reason why we are building this facility in Sawataetae, is because these group of small holder cocoa farmers have been able to produce enough cocoa to meet the market demand, which is 450kgs in total.” He explained that once the wet beans are dried, the PDAL buys off the dry beans and sells them to buyers. The new cocoa bean drying facility is expected to reduce the cost of logistics involved in processing and transporting the beans. Right now, the PDAL is working with an estimated 15 cocoa farmers or small holders in various Cocoa Wards, with plans to expand and bring on board more people.

The construction work on Kavieng’s first modern city mall will commence next year in February, opposite Bisi Trading. The ground breaking ceremony for this project, that is a joint-venture partnership between the New Ireland’s business arm; the New Ireland Development Corporation (NIDC) and developer, Modern Niugini Estate Development Limited, took place over the past weekend. On hand to officiate the ground breaking were New Ireland Provincial Executive Council Chairman for Works and Infrastructure Andrew Minkiong, Chairlady Assisting the Governor on Finance, Misbil Nelson, New Ireland Development Corporation (NIDC) Chairman Mr. Chris Tarkap and Developer Roger Lin. Speaking on behalf of the New Ireland Provincial Government was Andrew Minkiong, who said that this is an exciting project that will open up a new chapter for economic development in Kavieng. "This tangible development is a testament and clear demonstration of the visionary leadership of Governor Sir Julius Chan. "This occasion will add another milestone achievement that will transform Kavieng to qualify our quest to attain city status and will assist the Kavieng LLG's transition from an urban LLG to Kavieng City Authority in the not so distant future". The modern two storey shopping mall is being hailed as a great achievement for the people of New Ireland and will create competition amongst the retail businesses, as well as give people more shopping, rental and parking space as well as a pedestrian walkways and bus terminals. The developer, Modern Niugini Real Estate Development Limited signed the Project Agreement with New Ireland Development Corporation NIDC in 2019 however due to COVID-19 restrictions, mobilization of materials into the country has been slow. Developer, Roger Lin said they were awaiting the arrival of building materials before they commence. The project will take two years to complete.

In its mission to grow the rugby union code in the city, the NCDRU Community continues to push the boundaries in policy and governance, to make the game more accessible for all the city’s constituents. The NCDRU in a statement said that keeping rugby in the exclusive box has been the status quo for decades now and is unsustainable. As such, NCDRU has been at the forefront of advocating mass participation through its programs. The City 7s (the NCDRU's official sevens season) is one such strategy designed to promote inclusion. NCDRU had initially launched the first City 7s in 2017 which enabled many new clubs, teams and people enter the code through the tournament. This year the NCDRU is trialing new initiatives via the City 7s, which will enable the tournament to grow roots and make deep impact. The City 7s tournament is being trialed as a series comprising of 3 separate tournaments. Caretaker President of NCDRU, Cybele Wari Druma stated that the tournament series is importantly to take the game to the fringes of the city for the first time, to expose new audiences to the game while exposing people to new playing environments. “At present, the game of rugby is only played in two venues in the CBD. NCD has close to half a million people and only a tiny percentage of this are rugby patrons. This is an injustice to the constituents in the capital,” said Druma. She added that rugby administrators and communities have become so complacent in their little bubble of familiarity and comfort, gatekeeping the game and that has caused a huge population of potential talent to be completely overlooked for many years. “It is from this massive pool of untapped talent, that we will find the athletes who will qualify the PNG Pukpuks, Palais and Cassowaries to World Cups and the Olympics.” “As long as they are not playing rugby, the national aspiration to qualify to these pinnacle events - not just once but consistently - will never be realized.” Meanwhile, the City 7s aims to engrain a new mindset and culture in rugby and will cast its nets far and wide over the course of its existence, to ensure that the youths are given every opportunity to access the game, showcase their talents and thrive.

Minister for International Trade and Investment & Yangoru-Saussia MP, has urged the Catholic Church and all stakeholders of St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School in the Yangoru-Saussia District of East Sepik Province to redefine the future of the school in his keynote address at the 70th anniversary celebration of the school on the 17th of November, 2023. “I want to congratulate and thank St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School for its enormous contribution to the district and the country in the last 70 years." "You have a very proud history and a legacy worth celebrating.” “Importantly, we need to thank God for giving wisdom and the drive and passion to our forefathers who worked together with the Catholic Church to start this school which has been a real blessing to our communities." "We praise God for this school.” Minister Maru told the people that while celebrating the 70th anniversary of the school, it was also a good time to reflect on the future of the school and which journey and path it will take beyond the 70 years. “The first 70 years is a chapter; we have to write a new chapter." "The question is: what is the new chapter?" "What is the future?" "Do we continue to remain as a primary school, or do we convert the school into a TVET institution?” “These are the questions that the Catholic Church, the district, and our education authorities need to answer.” St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School had been providing education to the communities of Belmo-Yekingen, Nindipari, and Boim-Sara since 1953. “These communities have now grown bigger and have their own new elementary and primary schools." "Nindipari has a new primary school with its first grade 8s graduating this year, Belmo has a new school, and we recently opened a new elementary school for Boim-Sara this year and they will be building their new primary school next year." “So, what will happen to St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School when these three communities have their own schools and will no longer be sending their children to St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School?" "This is a serious question that the Catholic Church and the community must address." "We have to redefine the future of St. Michael’s Warabung Primary.” Furthermore, Maru added that the Yangoru-Saussia District Development Authority (DDA) stood ready to support the Catholic Church if it planned to go down the path of converting St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School into a TVET institution. “We need to build a technical institution because after grade 12 our children will need technical skills." "This is no secret; we have been talking to the Catholic Church about converting St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School into a technical institution for our district because they have the reputation, the ability, and the expertise of running technical institutions." “The DDA is ready to work with the Catholic Church to support whatever plan that they have for the future of St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School as long as their plan is aligned to the National Government’s plan and priorities and our plans for the district going forward.” Minister Maru then made a commitment to give, under his discretion K20, 000 to St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School to complete their school fence, K20, 000 for church maintenance, and K10, 000 to Boim-Sara to support the construction of their new Catholic Church. “I will continue to support the work of the Catholic Church and St. Michael’s Warabung Primary School going forward.” Interestingly, Minister Maru has spiritual roots going back to Warabung as it is the Parish of his mother, Anna Maru and also the Parish at which he had been baptized at as a baby and given the name Richard Maru.

Local singer and songwriter, Sailas Kania Junior well-known by the nation as Saii Kay has revealed that he will be releasing his third solo Album titled ‘Unlove’ today on all streaming platforms including Spotify. The singer told PNG HAUSBUNG that he had been in the music for over 12 years following his exposure to the industry in 2010 after which he sang on his father, Leonard Kania album. Earlier this year, Sai had formed and launched the Minigulai band and that had not enabled him the time to work on his own solo album but he has found the time and since then three weeks ago, started working on this album. “My first solo album was released in 2019 with the second solo album released in 2020 so it’s been three years since then and this is my third album.” “I started singing with the Choke band in 2013- 2014 and after that I decided to come out solo in 2015 and since then I have been on my own.” Kania added that there were ten tracks in the ‘Unlove’ Album that will include the ‘Unlove’, ‘Awi Morobe’, ‘Tuavera’, ‘Pakara Feelings’ and ‘Oh Baby’ and will be sung in a mixture of English, Tok Pisin and Kuanua. “I’ll start uploading songs on Friday Night and because it takes a while to upload, the songs will be out on Spotify and by Saturday all the songs will be out.” According to Kania, these songs have not been aired but will hopefully be gracing listener’s ears after this weekend and said that the track ‘Unlove’ would be the next best hit as it may be relatable to people going through broken relationships. “I think that the song [‘Unlove’] is going to be a hit mostly because the song is generally about broken relationships that many people are facing today.” Kania further stated that he hoped that people would listen to these songs and feel a positive vibe. Meanwhile the ‘Unlove’ Album will be launched on the 1st of December, 2023 at the Cosmopolitan which will also be the first time after four years that Saii Kay will be performing on the Cosmopolitan stage again. Presold tickets are already out and are selling at K50 while there will be a K60 gate entry fee charged at the gate on the night. “We’ll be launching this album on the first of December at the cosmopolitan and it’s going to be my first time to be performing back there after a while so it’s going to be a blast.” “I feel really psyched. I’ll be celebrating, the album launch, my birthday and my 13th year anniversary in the music industry.”

Rabaul District Development Authority (RDDA) welcomed its newly appointed board members in a swearing-in ceremony held at the Rabaul District Headquarters on this week. The swearing-in ceremony marked the official start of another term with the newly appointed board members pledging to serve the people of Rabaul district dutifully. The ceremony was presided over by District Senior Magistrate Maristella Painap and saw the participation of Rabaul Open Member, Dr. Allan Marat, as the newly elected Chairman. Dr. Marat's election as the Member for Rabaul Open came after the dismissal of the leave of application filed by dismissed Rabaul MP, Graham Piniau, by the Supreme Court earlier this month. The RDDA Board now comprises of Dr. Allan Marat as Chairman, along with four mandated LLG presidents, including Town Mayor Changol Manuai, Kombiu LLG President Michael Warium, Balanataman LLG President Leonard Maing, and Watom LLG President Enos Pulumen. Additionally, there are three nominated representatives: Pentecost Talvat as the Community Representative, Fidelma Kinakap as the Women's Representative, and Pr. Richard Kais as the Church Representative. Following the swearing-in ceremony, the inaugural RDDA Board meeting was held, where discussions revolved around the districts financial and project status report for 2023. This meeting served to update Chairman Marat and other board members about ongoing projects and provide guidance for future actions. When giving his welcome remarks, Dr. Allan Marat apologized for his absence from office due to legal matters related to the election petition. He also condemned the recent fights in Rabaul Town and called for collaborative efforts among the four LLG presidents and relevant authorities to address the prevailing law and order issues. Meantime, Acting District Administrator Mr. Freddy Lemeki in his congratulatory remarks acknowledged the district's operation without a member and commended the district administration for its continued implementation of programs and development projects. He further encouraged public servants to set aside their differences and work collectively to serve the government of the day and its people. The Rabaul DDA's new board is expected to play an important role in steering the district's development and ensuring the effective implementation of various initiatives.