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Residents evicted from a large shantytown in Papua New Guinea’s capital two years ago are hoping to get a share of new government funds.
Following the recent clearance of the Bushwara settlement in Port Moresby, the Government has announced a K20 million fund to help more than 5,000 evicted people resettle.
Danny Gonal, a human rights lawyer who represents thousands of residents of the Morata Nova neighborhood that was cleared two years ago, said his clients should also be entitled to the funds.
He said they also want the court to consider what he defined as “equitable rights.”
He said there were still hundreds of families living on the streets of Port Moresby because they could not find or afford accommodation.
He said some of his group had found housing, but many had not.
“It is very expensive to find alternative accommodation in Port Moresby. I cannot give an exact figure but more than 300 families have been affected. I think they are still living on the streets.
When the Bush Wara evictions occurred, the PNG Department of Lands announced it would provide K20 million for resettlement, but Gonal said the money was still available to anyone.
“The settlers have to meet certain criteria to be eligible for these funds. But it is just a statement. We raised the situation that the Morata settlers are in so that it can be included in this proposal,” Gonar said.
He said he had written to Deputy Prime Minister John Rosseau, who is also Lands Minister, outlining the predicament his clients were facing.
He said PNG had previously tried to force people to return home through now-overturned laws such as the Vagrancy Act.
The Supreme Court ruled that the measure violated the constitutional guarantee of freedom of movement.
Three per cent of Papua New Guinea’s land is alienated or state-controlled land, which Gonar said the government should use to ensure adequate housing is provided. “Through the National Housing Board, there should be enough housing for all citizens, but that is not the case.”
“What’s happening now is that people are coming from rural areas to cities, especially Port Moresby, to look for work.”
Sue for claim
He said when they got here there was no housing so people just had to do what they could to provide shelter and that is what happened.
Gonar said they have sent a notice to the state government and are suing for damages.
He said the company now occupying the New Morata site may have legal rights to the land, but the court also needed to consider equitable rights.
“We have said the company may have legal rights, but the people living on that land and the landowners, including the state government, have said nothing for years.
“They (settlers) made improvements so they get what is called equitable rights. Equitable rights are not as strong as legal rights but in terms of compensation for relocation, they are entitled to compensation.”
“Compensation for the properties they built or for the evictions. Some settlers built permanent structures, but those were demolished.”
Gonar said they are taking the matter to the national court to seek compensation or resettlement.
He said they had filed a Part V notice which registered his clients’ interests to sue the state government to recover losses caused by eviction or provide them with relocation services.
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