Warring tribes in Papua New Guinea sign ceasefire deal

Warring tribes in Papua New Guinea agree to ceasefire after escalating revenge killings, leading to humanitarian crisis.

Warring tribes in Papua New Guinea negotiated a temporary ceasefire on March 13, agreeing to halt a spiralling series of revenge killings in the country’s remote highlands.

Years of tit-for-tat fighting in Papua New Guinea’s central Enga province has escalated in recent months, with as many as 64 tribespersons killed during a single grisly ambush in February.

Two feuding factions — known as the Yopo Alliance and the Palinau Alliance — met in the capital of Port Moresby on March 13 to hammer out a three-month ceasefire.

The agreement, said that the running clashes had resulted in “the displacement of thousands of people” leading to a “humanitarian crisis”.

“Both fighting factions agree to lay down arms and cease and desist from all forms of hostile engagements,” read the agreement, signed by tribal leaders and police.

The pact acknowledged “the many lives that have been lost on both sides” and “the massive destruction of homes, livelihoods, land and property”.

Highland clans have fought each other in Papua New Guinea for centuries, but an influx of mercenaries and automatic weapons has inflamed the cycle of violence.