Seventeen prisoners shot dead during Papua New Guinea prison break

SYDNEY // Prison officers in Papua New Guinea shot dead 17 inmates involved in a mass prison break on Monday, sparking fresh calls for an investigation into overcrowded jails in the country.

Fifty prisoners were still on the run from the Buimo prison in the city of Lae on Papua New Guinea’s north coast, police said on their official Facebook page, warning the public of a likely increase in carjackings and robberies.

“These are dangerous individuals,” Lae metropolitan police command said. “Police anticipate an increase in serious crimes in the city.”

Local media said more than 70 prisoners attempted to escape from the Buimo prison, about 320km north of the capital Port Moresby, on Friday. The Post Courier and The National newspapers reported that 17 prisoners were shot dead, three captured, and 57 were still at large.

It was the third mass breakout from Buimo in three years.

International human rights groups have repeatedly called for an inquiry into PNG jails, citing concerns about overcrowding, limited access to medical treatment and delays in court proceedings.

“Unfortunately these incidents, tragic as they are, happen all too frequently in Papua New Guinea as there is poor accountability with police and security officers,” said Kate Schuetze, Amnesty International’s Pacific Researcher.

In February last year, 11 prisoners were killed in an attempted breakout at Buimo after 30 prisoners attacked guards. Fifty-five men escaped from the prison in a breakout in 2015 and one detainee was shot dead in 2013 when 44 fled the same facility in another mass escape.

* Reuters