The South Africa-based miner Harmony Gold has announced that the Wafi-Golpu gold and copper deposit in Papua New Guinea could support a mine worth almost 10 billion US dollars.
Harmony, which is equal partner with Australia’s Newcrest Mining in a joint venture to develop the Morobe province deposit, says this resource could provide up to 560,000 gold ounces and 335,000 tonnes of copper annually.
The mine has an expected 26-year life and will cost 4 point 85 billion US dollars to bring to production with a projected start-up in 2019.
Mining.com reports Harmony Gold as saying it will embark on a feasibility study next year with a focus on enhancing gold recovery.
The company says discussions with local landowners are ongoing.
PNG’s government has the option to take a 30% stake in the Wafi-Golpu mine at any time ahead of the start of production. RNZI
 PNG Prime Minister: Peter O'niell
By Scott Waide
EMTV reports that after decades of maintaining a relatively neutral stance, the Papua New Guinea Government will finally be making a strong representation to Indonesia to raise concerns over human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian Military in West Papua.
Prime Minister Peter O’Neill said in an interview with EMTV late Friday that the Foreign Affairs Department will deliver a diplomatic note expressing the concerns of Papua New Guinea citizens to the Indonesian government.
The response comes days after representatives of more than 4000 Lutheran women called on Peter O’Neill to look into the difficulties faced by West Papuans.
Multilateralism is the dominant theme. But, closer to home, key bilateral relationships have been left to languish.
While it is now well known that Indonesia, China and India have all been left off the Prime Minister's itinerary, there is another important country that receives scant attention.
Papua New Guinea is our most immediate neighbour, one of great strategic importance.
Since becoming PM, Gillard has not visited PNG, while her Foreign Minister, Bob Carr, clumsily created a diplomatic incident with his condescending language over a potential delay to PNG's local elections.
Carr threatened that should there be any delay Australia would have "no alternative but to organise the world to condemn and isolate Papua New Guinea".
Rimbink Pato, Foreign Minister of Papua New Guinea. UN Photo/JC McIlwaine
| 29 September 2012 – Highlighting his country’s most recent achievements at the General Assembly, Papua New Guinea’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Immigration, Rimbink Pato, today expressed his country’s thanks for the roles played by the United Nations and others in providing support. “Papua New Guinea continues to benefit from a strong UN presence through its delivery of various development programmes, which we highly value,” Mr. Pato told delegates gathered at the 67th Assembly’s General Debate, at UN Headquarters in New York. | Referring to the UN ‘Delivering as One’ initiative, he said: “This is working exceptionally well for Papua New Guinea.” The initiative arose due to concerns that the UN system has suffered in the past from fragmentation in policy development and implementation, and differing management structures, among other issues. It aims to improve the quality of UN programme and operational support.
Mother-of-six, Wendy Daniell, with her one-year-old son, pictured next to the log she used to prop her legs up while giving birth in Papua New Guinea. Photo: Supplied by Canberra Times
| MOTHER-of-six Wendy Daniell is typical of women in remote areas of Papua New Guinea - she gave birth to her children without help.
Her most recent labour caught her by surprise so she propped her legs up on a log and gave birth in a garden.
But the most extraordinary thing is that she lived to tell her story.
''I gave birth to my youngest baby here, in this coffee garden right near this log. I haven't ever had help to have my babies,'' Mrs Daniell said.
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In the island nation more than five women die every day during childbirth. By 1982, according to Charles Darwin University, most villages were within a two-hour walk of health care so the child mortality rate dropped from 20 per cent in 1960 to 11 per cent. But in the last 30 years this rate has started to climb again.
Aid organisation CARE Australia is hoping to raise $200,000 in the next month to help reverse that trend.
NBC By: Anisah IssimelThe Madang Provincial Government has reiterated calls for amendments to be made to the country's mining laws. Governor Jim Kas says amendments to the existing Mining Act of 1992 are important to accommodate landowners benefits concerns and most importantly, the future generation. He made the call at the weekend when he officiated at a groundbreaking ceremony in the Usino Bundi District,
Radio Australia reporst that Australia's major aid agency has criticises the performance of HIV/AIDS-related programs in Papua New Guinea. AusAID spent over 170 million dollars on HIV programs in PNG between 2007 and 2010, but the report says that there is little evidence that AusAID's support has limited the spread of HIV/AIDS. Public health organisation The Burnet Institute is partly-funded by AusAID, and works in PNG HIV/AIDS programs. Burnet Institute Director and CEO, Brendan Crabb, told Radio Australia's Pacific Beat that while there are failings in AusAID's PNG HIV/AIDS program, they need to be understood in context.
– BY Elle Bee & Lydia Kailap
VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN has become the norm in many parts of Papua New Guinea and is one of the many issues affecting our country today.
There are a number of factors involved with the three most common being domestic matters, bride price payments and the mentality of a male dominated society.
Most men regard women as objects and blame their wives for every little thing they find fault in. For instance bearing a female child when they want a male, work pressure, family obligations, forgetting to clean the house or wash the dishes, children crying, food not cooked to his liking, does not like the way she is dressing, no respect, not enough food in the house and talking to a male stranger to name a few.
Calvin CasparPort Moresby: NBC reports that veteran reporter TOM ALAU has died. Tom was a pioneer sportsman, commentator and sports reporter with the National Broadcasting Corporation. The late Tom Alau died this morning at the Port Moresby General Hospital, after he was hospitalized last night, due to breathing complications. He was 54 years old, and married with four children and six grandchildren. From Oala Village on Aua Island, in the Man... us Province, Tom, was a long time employee of the National Broadcasting Corporation. He joined the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 1973 as an Assistant Technician. He was appointed announcer in 1977 as announcer with the N-B-C, and then Sports Broadcast officer in 1982. In 1984, he joined Kalang F-M, now known as F-M 100 as Sports Announcer and later appointed Assistant Supervisor Kalang Service in 1987. Tom resigned from Kalang in 1988 and joined the NBC as a Sports Journalist in 1991. He took over looking after the Sports Round after Mark Sapias resigned in 1996, and was in charge until his death today
The Governor of Papua New Guinea’s Enga province has blamed some of the election-related violence in the province on the reappointment by the Electoral Commission of a controversial returning officer.
Enga’s Police Commander Martin Lakari says fighting between supporters of opposing candidates in the province has caused many deaths and destruction of property since the election two months ago.
Governor Peter Ipatas says the re-appointment in Kandep district of returning officer Napit Kae, previously the subject of electoral abuse allegations, is the source of much discontent.
“All I’m saying is why must the Electoral Commission, which is supposed to run a fair and just election, continue to appoint a person who has been implicated? So that’s part of the problem. But then you have got supporters... and I think the candidates and everyone have got to own up to the problems there.”Governor Peter Ipata. RNZI
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