The CBC PNG & SI Migrants & Refugees Desk convenes a Workshop on civil society and forced displacement and statelessness in PNG.

December 5 th , Port Moresby: The Migrants & Refugees Desk under the Catholic

Bishops Conference of Papua New Guinea & the Solomon Islands convened with other

stakeholders, local non-governmental organizations, and church groups on Wednesday,

3rd December, for a workshop on Forced Displacement and Statelessness in the country.

The workshop was a way for stakeholders, human rights advocates, the church, and

non-governmental organizations to raise awareness, educate, and advocate on the

challenges that Migrants and Refugees face.

The Workshop was co-facilitated by Mr. Jason Siwat, Director of the Migrants and

Refugees Desk, and held at the CBC PNG SI conference room 1.

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Mr. Jason Siwat , Director – Desk for Migrants and Refugees CBC PNG& SI

Participants who took part in the Civil Society Workshop on Forced Displacement and

Statelessness in Papua New Guinea included representatives from the Office of the

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations High

Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Church partners, human rights advocates and

other non-governmental organizations in the Migrants and Refugees space.

Discussions and presentations done were:

•  A Human Rights approach to Forced Displacement and Statelessness facilitated

by a representative from OHCHR.

•  Forced Displacement and Statelessness in PNG by a representative from

UNCHR

•  The work of the Civil society in PNG with forcibly displaced and stateless

persons.

•  A Training was also facilitated by the representative from UNCHR called

“Effective identification and referral of asylum seekers”

•  And the last session was titled “Towards a Referral Plan for forcibly displaced

and stateless people in PNG”.

The Migrants and Refugees Desk, headed by Bishop Deputy Joseph Durero SVD,

Assistant Deputy Bishop Francis Meli, Director Jason Siwat and Ephraim Bavi, have

been working tirelessly as a humanitarian and pastoral body to support and advocate

for the rights and well-being of displaced individuals. 

The M&R Desk works directly with the Migrants and Refugees section of the Dicastery for Integral Human Development of the Holy See in Rome, and the special apostolate and advocacy of Pope Francis on the plight of Migrants, Asylum Seekers, refugees, internally displaced persons, and victims of trafficking and smuggling. (M&R Desk, CBC PNG SI)

Attendees during the workshop recently.

Locally, Mr. Siwat and Mr. Bavi have worked tirelessly with the displaced communities of

West Papuans living in Port Moresby, as well as refugees and migrants who seek their

help.

Just recently, the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, James Marape, said PNG’s

foreign policy “is not being overshadowed or manipulated by Indonesia” and that

concerns over alleged human rights abuses in West Papua have been communicated in

multiple bilateral and regional meetings over the years.

He made the remark in Parliament in response to questions from North Fly MP Hon.

James Donald, who asked why the government was quick to comment on conflicts

abroad but had not taken stronger public positions on West Papua, despite reports of

killings, displacement and refugees crossing into PNG’s Western and East West Sepik

provinces that share common land border with Indonesia’s West Papua region.

According to the United Nations, approximately 10,000 refugees from West Papua live

in Papua New Guinea. The M&R Desk’s own records indicated about 2000 of them live

in camps around Port Moresby, such as Hohola and Waigani.

Many of these refugees have been registered and have also obtained Papua New Guinean citizenship through a naturalization process initiated by the government.The Catholic Church, as a religious institution, has long been a steadfast advocate for

migrants and refugees.

This is an excerpt from the Justice & Peace Office/ Catholic Social teaching on people seeking asylum and refuge.

“Jesus was born into life as a refugee. Mary and Joseph had been forced to flee into Egypt from their own land to save the life of their child. This was no accident but was central to the life of the Holy Family and would become a central teaching of the Catholic Church , hospitality and protection for the stranger in our midst. Catholic Social Teaching is rooted in Scripture, exemplified by the saints, and articulated through the Church’s formal teachings consistently underscores the moral imperative to welcome the outsider, particularly those who are poor and marginalized"