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Wednesday, August 29, 2007

SI High Commissioner to PNG writes letter to PNG Government about illegal entrant fugitive

The Solomon Islands Government has taken the issue about a banned Solomon Islander who is on the run from PNG police and immigration officials seriously by writing a diplomatic note to the PNG Government through the Foreign Affairs Department.

In a letter to the PNG Government and Foreign Affairs, the Solomon Islands High Commissioner Bernard Ba’atanisia said the travel had been on the man’s own accord and they acknowledged that he was now living in the country illegally.

“As far as the Solomon Islands Government was concerned, the fugitive islander was still a prohibited person and cannot travel until his ban was lifted by the Papua New Guinea Government authorities and be allowed to travel to Papua New Guinea,” the letter from the Solomon Islands High Commission stated.

The matter had been discussed several times by officials of both countries. “Now that he is in the country illegally he will have to be subjected to the PNG immigration laws.”

Meanwhile, security officers in PNG say they have done their part to deport the Solomon Islander who is allegedly an illegal entrant to Papua New Guinea – but that others in Government have failed to take action.

Documents authorising deportation of the Solomons man are still sitting in the Waigani office of the National Security Advisory Council, a month since they were prepared for the expulsion operation, a National Security Agency officer involved in the issue said yesterday.

The officer said the papers to deport the named man had been prepared and were “collecting dust” at Waigani awaiting officials from the Foreign Affairs Department and the police to collect and carry out the operation.

NSAC told the Post-Courier yesterday the officers in charge of the operation at Foreign Affairs were notified and advised to pick up the papers so they could carry out the deportation operation but they had failed and still had not called into the office to pick up the papers.

Police said they could only act on Foreign Affairs “orders” or papers to deport the foreigner, but to this stage they had not received any more documents.

Source: Postcourier

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