Lawless Daru town may be new smugglers’ base

DARU – Police in Papua New Guinea have raised concerns about a potential new people smuggling route for asylum seekers trying to get to Australia.

Police said the proximity to Australia and a recognised state of lawlessness made the area around the Papua New Guinea coastal town of Daru a hotspot for the smuggling of drugs, guns and people.

“Daru has always been a targeted spot where illegal activities take place – because it’s far beyond the reach of the agencies who are supposed to deal with it,” PNG police commissioner Gari Baki said.

Directly above the northernmost tip of Queensland, a network of small islands forms an easy boat passage through the Torres Strait to Papua New Guinea.

At its closest point, the shores of PNG are just four kilometres from the Australian territory of Saibai Island.

Baki said Daru could become the next major people smuggling route for asylum seekers or even refugees who are eventually resettled from Manus Island.

“Australia has always been a target, so they will use Daru as a transit point if we are not too careful,” he said. “If we turn a blind eye on it there’s a strong possibility it could happen.”

Baki said the risk was compounded by Papua New Guinea’s porous border with Indonesia, to the west.

“We have Africans crossing the border and transiting through here, in Papua New Guinea, going through Daru on the way to Australia.

“So activities are ongoing so we need to step up our vigilance so we know what is happening on the border.”

The area around Daru is already on the radar of the Australian Federal Police.

In October, the AFP exposed an organised crime syndicate trading firearms from Australia for marijuana and precursor chemicals for methamphetamines from PNG.

Eight people were charged as a result of the sting.

The route has proved popular for gun-runners and drug-dealers and police fear it could just as easily be used to sneak foreign nationals into Australia.