Social tensions are rising in Papua New Guinea over Covid-19 vaccination, as people working to help curb the spread of the virus face mob attacks.
PNG's biggest urban centres and numerous provinces have been grappling with the third wave of the pandemic, driven by widespread community transmission of the Delta strain of the virus.
Protest in Papua New Guinea's capital, Port Moresby, over the 'No Jab No Job' policy of some business houses. 1 November, 2021. Photo: Melvin Levongo
The outbreak has overwhelmed PNG's national and provincial health systems which are also under attack by elements of the public when it comes to the vaccine rollout.
According to the National Control Centre, around 3.8 percent of PNG's eligible population of 4.7 million have been fully vaccinated.
Three different Covid-19 vaccines are available in PNG: AstraZeneca, Sinopharm, and Janssen.
Vaccination against Covid-19 is not mandatory in PNG, but protests over recent vaccination requirements have been held in recent days in PNG's two biggest cities, Port Moresby and Lae, in defiance of rules disallowing gatherings of more than 20 people.
In Moresby, angry market vendors held a massive rally to call for an end to municipal rules that restrict access to market facilities for the unvaccinated.
And in Lae, hundreds held a street protest over private employers increasingly demanding staff be vaccinated, with one protestor describing it as an infringement on basic rights.
The mood in Lae has deterioriated with urban clinics this week forced to close indefinitely following attacks on health workers and support staff who have been subject to stone-throwing, verbal abuse and threats.
Morobe province is also withdrawing mobile clinics and health teams conducting Covid vaccination and awareness programmes because of increasing attacks on them.
Furthermore, vaccination teams in the Highlands have also had rocks thrown at them.
PNG's Prime Minister James Marape warned the public of negative influences who were misleading people on the issue of vaccination.
"Individuals with political and other vested interests, are trying to rally public support to suit their own agenda.
"I urge people not to incite and mobilise others to cause unnecessary problems in Port Moresby and other parts of the country, when we least need it in these difficult Covid-19 times," he said in a statement.
PNG Prime Minister James Marape Photo: PNG PM Media
Lockdowns
While the national capital has notably opted against a lockdown to contain the current surge in cases, some provinces have been enforcing them to try and break community transmission.
Lockdown measures extended for another two weeks in Eastern Highlands Province have seen police mount road blocks to restrict movement between districts, while only essential services are allowed to operate, and a province-wide curfew between 6am and 2pm continues.
The provincial administrator and Covid-19 controller, John Gimiseve, was at pains to assure the public the fight is not against people.
"It's the virus that we are trying to fight. But unfortunately it's in the human beings, on the human beings. So that makes it a little difficult for us to separate and deal with the virus separately from the human being."
Mt Hagen Hospital, Papua New Guinea's third-largest, has run out of drugs and medical supplies as a nationwide drug shortage cripples hospitals around the country. Photo: EMTV
In nearby Western Highlands province, a two-week lockdown which was lifted yesterday has been credited with easing local Covid case numbers, providing a little relief for the overwhelmed wards at Mt Hagen Hospital
Furthermore, the Covid response clinical lead at the hospital, John Junior McKup, said the arrival of a British emergency medical assistance team late last month had brought much needed support for the local health workers.
Another Australian emergency medical team has deployed to PNG with Defence Force personnel to support local pandemic response logistics, October 2021. Photo: Australian High Commission in PNG
However Dr McKup said low vaccination rates remained a concern in his province, with recent news of protests and social media posts against vaccination turning people off.
"Unfortunately, around the country, vaccination teams are getting attacked by mobs of people," he explained.
"There's a lot of misinformation, untruths being spread widely on social media, against the vaccine. People want to believe all this false information that's going around, and it's not helping us drive the vaccination."
Workplace safety
Marape has repreatedly advised the public not to rely on Facebook to get their information about the Covid-19 and vaccination.
But with limited impact from its own awareness campaigns, the government is struggling to convince the public that vaccination against Covid-19 reduces the chance of people becoming severely ill and dying from the virus, and can help prevent transmission.
Now, Morobe province is withdrawing mobile clinics and health teams conducting Covid vaccination and awareness programmes because of increasing attacks on them.
Marape has told the public that their rights are not being infringed, as no one is forcing them to get vaccinated - but pointed out that the country's beleaguered economy stood to suffer even further if the virus was simply allowed to spread at places where people gathered, including workplaces.
"Later this week, we'll release workplace protocol that will come out. That may involve, for instance, regular testing at different workplaces," Marape explained.
"For those who do not want to be vaccinated, well, you'll assist us in the solution. You want to go to work - those workplaces also need to have safety as part of their work. So you'll assist in getting yourself tested."
He said if a worker was found to be Covid positive, then they would have to self-isolate, so as not to spread the virus at their workplace, describing this as commonsense.