The Paga Hill Community

Media Pack

27 June 2012

Community Background

Paga Hill is the traditional lands of the Geakone clan. The Geakone clan to this day maintain their customary rights over the area, and contest having alienated the land to the state. It is on the original authority of the Geakone clan, that the Paga community claim certain interests in Paga Hill.

The origins of the Paga Hill community extend back to the immediate aftermath of WWII, when the veteran Papua New Guinean soldier Mairi Nakaia was invited by Colonel Cole Wilson to reside on the land, in order to maintain strategically important military installations. Mairi Nakaia was from the Kikori area of Gulf Province. In 1964, Nakaia was joined by Kikori kin who became the pioneer settlers.

Image 1: Paga Hill during better times.

Following Nakaias death in 1970, the living arrangements of the Kikori settlers was formalised by Chief Lohia Doriga of the Geakone clan, who invited the settlers to remain at the site and continue as custodians of the areas historical relics.

As a result of this arrangement, the Paga Hill community has evolved into a vibrant multi-ethnic suburb. Paga Hill has an elementary school, a church, a development committee, a heritage association, gardens, markets, and canteens. 54.1% of its population are employed in the formal sector. Its residents include small businessman, university educated professionals, and the preeminent Papua New Guinean artist Ratoos Haoapa Gary.

Paga Hill Development Company

In 1997 the Papua New Guinea state leased Portion 1597 which includes Paga Hill to the Paga Hill Development Company (PHDC) (PHDC were then known as Paga Hill Land Holding Company). The Urban Development Lease (UDL) was for a period of 5 years, it included an improvement covenant of K300 million, in addition to annual rent of K30,000. According to the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) a large number of onerous conditions [were] attached to the UDL none of which, the Committee concludes, have been complied with by the Lessee (see 2006 Public Accounts Committee report on the Department of Lands).

Despite non-compliance PHDC was granted a 99 year business lease over portion 1597 in September 2000. The Public Accounts Committee remarked the failure to comply with the UDL covenants, particularly the Improvement Covenant, should have resulted in the Department forfeiting the Lease or at least, not issuing a Business Lease. Nevertheless, the 99 year lease was granted; attached to the lease was a K10 million improvement covenant, and annual rent of k250,000. Like with the UDL, PAC claims the lease covenants were not complied with: The Lease contained only very basic covenants requiring payment of Land Rent and an Improvement Covenant requiring improvements to a minimum of K 10 million within five years of issue of the Lease on the 1/09/2000. Neither covenant has been complied with. No attempt has been made to forfeit the Lease by the Department for this failure. In May 2001the rent was reduced from K250,000 to K50,000 via a hand written note on the lease document nevertheless PAC notes by February 2006, PHDC was K237,000 in arreas.

Despite multiple failures on the developers part, the business lease was reissued on the 3rd of April 2009. However, the improvement covenant was reduced to K5 million, and the annual rent was dropped to K50,000 5% of the lands value thus formalising the aforementioned hand written note. Despite booming property prices in Port Moresby, it appears Paga Hills value has dropped from K5 million in 2000, to K1 million in 2009.

Hotels and Seaparks

Despite the chequered legal history of Portion 1597, PHDC has repeatedly announced ambitious plans to develop the area. The first substantive proposal was announced in 1998, by the then Deputy Prime Minister, Michael Nali. Mr Nali, claimed Paga Hill would be turned from an eyesore into an icon (Australian Financial Review, 14/4/1998). Central to the landmarks regeneration would be a major hotel complex. However, the project lost political support after Nali was sacked from Cabinet in October 1998.

Then in 2003, parliamentary speaker Bill Skate announced the development of a major amusement complex at the Paga Hill site. According, to Skate CCS Anvil would be conducting the feasibility study, paid for out of Skates district support grant. The Director of CCS Anvil was none other than Gudmundur Fridriksson, the current Secretary of PHDC. Interviewed by the Post Courier, Mr Freidriksson said the project, if and when completed, would have 200-300 metres of water slide from the top of Paga Hill and into the sea, a children's playground, an open-air cinema, a picnic pavilion, floating pontoons, paddle boats and a lookout on the top of Paga Hill. It would also have a big waterfront area for markets, restaurants, bowling and a mini golf course (Post Courier, 18/3/2003). Despite their ambitious plans, no amusement centre was ever built.

In 2012 PHDC have decided to revisit their 1998 proposal to build a major hotel at Paga Hill, along with extensive commercial premises. According to the company spokesperson, Stanley Liria, PHDC has an agreement with the Hilton Hotel chain, to develop the site. To date, Hilton Hotels have made no public statement confirming or denying their relationship with PHDC.

The Forced Eviction

Image 2: Paga Hill Community Before 12 May 2012

Image 3: Paga Hill Community After 12 May 2012

One of the major challenges facing PHDC, is the Paga Hill community. The community claim an equitable interest in the area, given that four generations of residents have invested in building the community into what it is today. While the community is prepared to resettle in a new area, it must be fairly compensated and given secure title to land.

To date, PHDC have given the Paga Hill community three choices, which were outlined by the opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu in a press release dated 14 May 2012:

Option 1. Dismantle your houses and we will take the materials to 6 Mile for you to reconstruct. You will be given K2,000 hardship allowance and a tent and mosquito nets.

Option 2: Look for your own land to stay on and we will give K10, 000 for permanent houses; K5,000 for a semi-permanent houses; and K2,000 for shanties and bunkers.

Option 3: If you do not accept 1 or 2 police will be authorised to carry out an eviction exercise.

Option 1 and 2, are problematic for a number of reasons. In short, the community do not feel they have secure title to land in 6 mile, and they believe the compensation payments do not fully reflect their investments in Paga Hill. Accrodingly, the Paga Hill community have rejected options 1 and 2, but nonetheless remain prepared to negotiate a more equitable solution.

Despite the willingness of the community to negotiate, PHDC unilaterally enacted option 3. To that end, on 12 May 2012, heavily armed police officers attempted to forcefully evict residents at the Paga Hill settlement in Port Moresby. Bulldozers destroyed homes, while distraught residents looked on. When opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu attempted to stop the demolition, she was manhandled by heavily armed officers, and frog marched from the area.

The actions of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) were a clear violation of the residents constitutionally enshrined human rights. Moreover, the demolition of the homes also violated international principles on evictions.

The UNs Basic Principles and Guidelines on Development Based Evictions and Displacement, declare where evictions are necessary, there is a duty on the part of the state to observe certain guidelines. In particular, state officials should allow neutral monitors to be present at the eviction, while every effort must be taken to protect both the property of residents, and vulnerable groups such as women and children. The principles also state that police officers involved in the eviction must observe the Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials.

Unfortunately these principles were ignored by state authorities when they attempted to evict Paga Hill residents. Not only were the homes of residents destroyed, so were their contents (see Image 4).

Furthermore, when opposition leader Dame Carol Kidu expressly raised concerns over the illegitimate manner in which the eviction was being carried out in line with UN principles she was manhandled by heavily armed police officers (The National, 14/5/2012).

Image 4: A demolished home, and its destroyed contents.

Police then used firearms to disperse concerned Paga Hill residents. The footage released on the incident, suggests the officers were not under imminent threat of death or serious injury, as is required under the aforementioned principles.

Compounding matters, those displaced by the demolition now reside under makeshift structures, and tents. This has had a particularly profound impact on children and women in the settlement (see Image 5).

It was incumbent upon the authorities to not only use minimal force during the eviction exercise, but to ensure that a) the property of residents was carefully secured; and b) provisions were in place to protect the fundamental human rights of vulnerable community members, in particular children.

Image 5: A boy attempts to complete his homework under a temporary shelter.

Conclusion

It is a mystery to the Paga Hill community how a company with the track record of PHDC, has been able to obtain three leases over Portion 1597. As a result of state-corporate collusion the people of Paga Hill have been deprived of their basic human rights, and the community has been thrown in