What’s happening in Papua New Guinea’s highlands

Who is fighting?Much of the recent violence, including Sunday’s attack, has involved Ambulin-allied tribes and their Sikin rivals.But the violence across the central Enga province has drawn in more than a dozen rival tribes, including the Sikin, Kaekin, Senek, Ambulin, Itokane, Epok and Sau, and spurred ever-changing tribal blood alliances.Some local officials suggested those who died on Sunday were mostly mercenaries hired from across the highlands to help prosecute a long-running grudge.Others said most of the dead were from the Sikin tribe, who were killed by the Ambulin or their allies.How widespread is the problem?Australian researcher Miranda Forsyth has tried to quantify the size and scope of the violence in the highlands.Forsyth and her team found local media reports of 158 tribal fights and a total of 1,896 people killed between 2018 and 2022.That number is likely vastly underreported, and deadly attacks are known to have occurred at least as early as 1996.Elderly tribesmen in the area readily recall fights over rape, theft and tribal boundaries that were solved half a century ago with bows, arrows, axes and spears.Today, those problems are just as likely to be solved by American M16s, AR-15s or Belgian FN rifles, pushing the death tolls higher.



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