“People say ‘There is no law in Hela’”: Justice and Gender in Hela Province

Under a thin roof in Tari’s Hope Institute, Sergeant Alice Arigo speaks over the loud hammering of rain to a small assembly of local officials and United Nations representatives. She, alongside members of the Young Ambassadors for Peace and fellow advocates for peacebuilding, is sharing the challenges she faces in assisting women seeking justice. 

As the head of the Family and Sexual Violence Unit (FSVU) in Hela Province, Sergeant Arigo is no stranger to crowds, as she says “Once one person commits a crime, the whole tribe is in the police station.”

She recalls how the family and relatives of an accused or a victim often join them at the police station and can be a significant hinderance to justice. They seek compensation for criminal acts in the form of pigs or money, rather than follow the established legal process. “They’re trying to say there’s no law,” she says. “Even well-educated people say ‘There is no law in Hela’”.

The challenge of bridging traditional and legal justice systems is exacerbated for women, who have limited access to the protections of the legal system.  

“There’s a lot of women and children dying in silence,” says Sergeant Arigo to nods of agreement from her fellow panelists. “Hela is so scattered that the few who can afford to come to the police station, they do come and report. But there’s a lot of cases that are not reported.”

“Women don’t come because they are being threatened. They are going back to the same house, the same family. They have been violated a second, third, fourth time. They are start to see it as normal.”

Despite many women suffering in silence who do not seek assistance, Sergeant Arigo shares that she often finds those who do approach the FSVU are seeking assistance of other services. “When women hear that this is a women’s office they think it is a welfare office, a children’s office,” she says. “So they come to my office for all women’s issues.”

“I tell them I am a police officer, I am not a welfare officer,” she says. “I refer them to the Family Support Centre or to the relevant service.”

Though Sergeant Arigo is more than happy to refer these women to the appropriate support services, responding to these issues not only takes time away from responding to, and investigating, cases of domestic and sexual violence, it demonstrates a lack of awareness of provincial welfare services. Bringing these welfare services closer to the government offices is one strategy that Sergeant Arigo believes will better assist women seeking help. “We need to have those services at the provincial government offices otherwise I’m bogged down with all these issues.”

The path forward, according to Sergeant Arigo, is education. “There needs to be a lot awareness and education in the community about the law, about the Family Protection Act,” she says. “Most of the time when I’m sitting with someone in my office, I’m educating them about the law. I do a lot of awareness and education in my little office.”

Support services for women are evolving across Papua New Guinea and accessibility remains a challenge. Educating women at the community level about the supports that are available to those experiencing violence is a valuable step in ensuring these services can further develop. The United Nations recently opened a new office in Mendi to support existing initiatives undertaken by UNFPA, UNDP, UN Women, FAO and IOM in Hela Province. This presence will bolster UN support to those services that work to protect women throughout the region.