Forest Minister tries to gag debate

Rimbunan Hijau’s little boy, Forest Minister, Patrick Pruaitch, is resorting to ever more desperate measures to try and silence the debate over Papua New Guinea’s notoriously corrupt and destructive logging industry.
After attempts to prevent discussion of key issues spectacularly backfired at last months Forest Law Enforcement Seminar organised by the PNG Forest Authority, the Minister has now demanded that Forestry Officials do not ‘participate, facilitate or engage’ in any ‘seminars, conferences or studies’ that are not personally approved by himself.
By acting like a totalitarian dictator and overriding Constitutional freedoms, the Forest Minister hopes to stop any further critical analysis of the abysmal performance of the logging industry. However, now that his scheme has been exposed, Pruaitch will find that he has only succeeded in reinforcing the international perception that he is desperate to cover up the illegal and unsustainable logging and human rights abuses of Rimbunan Hijau and other logging companies.

In a democractic society its people like thew Minister that needs to be isolated. What a disgrace? Freedom of speech, print and media is a luxury we enjoy in PNG and why should we give it up because one person is demanding we be silent!! COWARDLY BEHAVIOUR