The incident comes just before Hidden Valley is to register its first gold and could have severe repercussions for Papua New Guinea on the international mining scene.
A long-standing land dispute between Biangai and Watut tribes over ownership of the 2,076-ha. McAdam National Park between Wau and Bulolo came to a head last week as the Watuts gathered in Wau in their hundreds and staged an early morning attack on the Biangai villages.
Lae Angau Hospital’s emergency ward confirmed receiving the bodies of two men and admitting two others with shotgun pellet wounds while several others were said to have been treated in Bulolo for pellet wounds.
Bulolo MP Sam Basil, Menyamya MP Benjamin Philip, provincial administrator Patalias Gamato and police yesterday held crisis meetings with the Watut people in Wau and later moved to Biangai to meet with the local villages.
The Biangai villages around Wau comprise Wandumi, Kaisenik, Kwembu, Biaweng, Ilauru, Were Were and Winima while the Watut villages stretch all the way from Wau to the border with Menyamya.
A Watut man was allegedly killed recently by Biangais over a gold-bearing piece of land on the national park, which is said to have sparked the tension.
Commander of Bulolo-based police mobile squad 15 Michael Tilae told The National that last Friday, the Watuts gathered in Wau town and, in a well-coordinated dawn raid, attacked Biangai villages all the way to Kaisinik.
He said a 15-year-old paralyzed boy was burned alive in a house and an old man was murdered by the Watuts and other opportunists, who numbered more than 1,000.
Tilae said on Saturday, the Watuts gathered en masse and were trying to advance on Wandumi, when they were halted by police.
“We have reinforcements from Lae and they managed to contain the situation at Wandumi Bridge.Shops are closed, people are not moving around. Things are very tense at the moment.”
Tilae said other people took advantage of the situation to converge on the Hidden Valley gold mine.
“We have one mobile squad up at Hidden Valley,” he said. “There’s a group of Watuts up there demanding things from the company.
“We don’t know what exactly they are demanding.”
A Morobe Mining Joint Venture spokes-man told The National yesterday: “It was just opportunists who were taking matters into their own hands.
“We beefed up all our security to counter that. The situation got volatile last Friday and, as a precautionary measure, we moved the families from Wau to Lae.
“We’ve secured the entrance to the mine so that only absolutely essential traffic comes inside the gate.
“I understand that because of the disturbance, and the possibility of opportunists, we’ve suspended operations for the time being, said the spokesman.
