Australia's Rifle Gift to PNG: Storage Concerns

0:00What's up? I'm Corey, and these are your headlines from Sydney News today. Australia plans to send 3,500 purpose-made rifles to Papua New Guinea's defense force as part of a new treaty. But the head of PNG's military, Rear Admiral Philip Polwara, says they lacked a secure storage to handle them safely. He wears the weapons could leak out and fuel ongoing travel violence. Travel clashes in PNG have killed hundreds in recent years, made worse by smuggled high-powered guns like M-16s. Even kids as young as 8 have been spotted handling them. Polwara amid some military weapons have ended up with warlords, including recent seizures at checkpoints and hot spots like anger province. Past Australian 8 included around 7,000 rifles, many now unaccounted for according to old reports. Building better armories back in 2002 helped cut smuggling for a while. Violence has displaced thousands across provinces, with elites and politicians sometimes backing the gun trade to protect interests.

1:00Right now, PNG is running a big audit on lost military firearms and ammo, plus a nationwide gun amnesty to get illegal weapons off the streets without charges. They are cracking down on personnel too, after an Australian-made gun was stolen from a barracks vehicle, but later recovered with suspects under house arrest. Polwara says it all comes down to better people and systems, and Australia is supporting weapons management efforts. He insists the new rifles won't arrive until storage is ready, stressing they want the guns but need to keep them secure from civilians. We'd like to thank our sponsor for making this episode possible. Your favorite podcasts, music or sleep sounds coming from your pillow, no earbuds, no distractions, listen and relax. S-O-L-L-I-SoliPillo.com