An ethnic clash in a suburb of Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby resulted in one death and 16 injuries, and prompted closure of offices, schools and shops, the country's media reported on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th February, 2022) An ethnic clash in a suburb of Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby resulted in one death and 16 injuries, and prompted closure of offices, schools and shops, the country's media reported on Tuesday.
According to the Post Courier newspaper, citing a ward member from the Wanigela ethnic group, the clash was caused by a traffic incident in which a taxi driver was held up by thugs near a shop in the Koki suburb in Port Moresby. He was assisted by Wanigela youths who were then attacked by young men from the Goilala ethnic group. Post Courier also reported that the police at the scene opened warning shots to control the crowd. One young man is said to have been killed in a shootout and about 16 other wounded.
Meanwhile, The National newspaper reported two conflicting accounts of what started the fighting. In one, the taxi driver attacked supermarket guards after having been told that he was not allowed to drive into the supermarket's parking lot. At the same time, National Capital District Metropolitan Superintendent Gideon Ikumu said that the clash began when a Goilala tried to rob a taxi and was manhandled by Wanigela youths, which prompted retaliation from a group of Goilalas.
Papua New Guinea is considered to be one of the most diverse countries in the world, with a very high level of ethnolinguistic fragmentation among local communities, which fosters inter-ethnic violence.
