Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister, James Marape, has declared a state of emergency in response to escalating unrest that has reportedly resulted in at least 16 fatalities. This cycle of unrest was triggered by a strike involving hundreds of police, military personnel, and civil servants who were disgruntled upon receiving a reduced pay packet, and subsequently gathered at Port Moresby’s Unagi Oval before marching towards the country’s Parliament.
A large crowd later stormed the Parliament building, leading to an intervention by lawmakers. In a counter statement on social media, the government refuted claims of having cut pays for the police and other civil servants, attributing the reduction to an oversight by government payroll staff.
The decision taken by the police to strike seemingly emboldened protestors and looters, leading to a night of intense looting and pillaging. The Chinese embassy in Papua New Guinea noted that several Chinese citizens were injured, and numerous Chinese-owned businesses were plundered.
Papua New Guinea, which hosts an active US military base and recently entered into a bilateral security agreement with Australia, retains the option of seeking external support to curb the unrest. Australian Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese has stipulated that they have not yet received any such requests from the Government of Papua New Guinea.
In a significant political fallout, six Members of Parliament have separated from the Government and called for Prime Minister Marape’s resignation. James Nomane and Kieth Iduhu, two of these six MPs – both of whom are from the Prime Minister’s Pangu Party – have criticized Marape’s failure to prevent the country’s descent into crisis.