Papua New Guinea offers cash for guns as amnesty opens to combat escalating tribal violence

Papua New Guinea offers cash for guns as amnesty opens to combat escalating tribal violence Weapons amnesty and buyback scheme will run until August as PM James Marape says illegal guns ‘destroying families and villages’ Papua New Guinea has asked residents to surrender illegal firearms in a bid to remove tens of thousands of weapons from the country, as it grapples with escalating violence and tribal fighting in the Highlands region. The police minister, Sir John Pundari, said the national gun amnesty and buyback scheme started on 27 February and it would run until late August. “This is not just a police operation. It is a national movement for peace,” Pundari said in Enga in February. Citizens can voluntarily surrender illegal weapons without penalty in exchange for cash payments under the buyback scheme, Pundari said. The government did not specify how much it will pay for illegal weapons but said it will vary from province to province. In some cases, it may include cash incentives and support provided to people who wish to start agriculture businesses. “If this program prevents even one massacre, it is not a reward, it is a strategic investment in human life,” he said. The amnesty forms part of a broader push by the government to restore law and order, including tougher penalties for the possession of illegal guns. While gun ownership is legal in Papua New Guinea , weapons must be registered and licensed by police. A report by the former Papua New Guinea defence force commander Jerry Singirok, prepared for the UN in 2025, estimates there are about 100,000 illegal guns in PNG. Only about 12% of small arms in PNG are legally licensed and registered, according to a 2025 UNDP report. “Most of these guns were paid for by people outside the communities and handed to young men to cause fear and chaos,” the prime minister, James Marape, said in a statement in January. “This is destroying families, villages and the future of our people.” Marape warned of strong penalties...