Crime rate in this city is staggering. Rape and murder are rampant with the murder rate reportedly three times that of Moscow, and 23 times that of London. The local police force appears impotent and is accused of being responsible for many of the atrocities. Furthermore, the office I worked with took these security issues very seriously and provides a lengthy security briefing requiring extreme caution for new-comers.
An office vehicle had to bring me to the airport one early morning and I was shocked to find out that private security personnel were following us in another car. I was, of course, quick to conclude that the security escort was intended not necessarily for me but for the glitzy SUV I was riding. Still not convinced, I secretly ventured out of my hotel premises into the open city streets one weekend, pretending to be just another man on the street of course I did not wear anything fancy or carry something that would attract attention such as my camera.
The country is rich in natural resources, including huge deposits of gold and copper and the currently being developed liquefied natural gas, and, albeit very slowly, this redounds to some development in the capital. Like Like. So sad that it is so unsafe it is such a beautiful place.
The country as a whole is rich with natural beauty and cultural diversity. Thanks for the comment, scrapydo. It is much the same in South Africa. The big cities are not save at all. The real countryside is more with out these thieves and robbers. The photos are beautiful…how photos can be deceiving. The natural and physical beauty of the place, I think, is already there and will most probably stay. It does look very beautiful; there must be a moral here, beauty is only skin-deep or something.
It is a shame because it looks the kind of place that many people would love to live in. Physically, Port Moresby is beautiful but the security environment is just terrible. Thanks for the comment, Christine. Thanks for the visit, David. Have been in Port Moresly in the late 70s and it was a bit scary all ready then. Photo 7 — is how I remember it. Has changed a lot but.. Great photos. Good that some photos helped you remember how it looked like. With all the natural resources you mentioned, why the high unemployment?
