Another season of turmoil has swept politics in Papua New Guinea. The Supreme Court has ruled the recent budget sitting to be unlawful, ordering the parliament to resume on Monday while the prospect a no confidence motion in Prime Minister James Marape hangs in the air.
But for all the raucous jostling for power, critical questions of law in the country must also be resolved. One of the most pressing is whether or not the death penalty should still remain a legal punishment for crimes in PNG.
In February 2020, PNG’s then deputy prime minister, justice minister and attorney general Davis Steven put the death penalty issue on the agenda, pledging a nationwide consultation to test public support for the imposition of capital punishment. This followed a campaign by the PNG Council of Church’s to abolish capital punishment in the country. PNG has not carried out any executions since the reintroduction of the death penalty in 1991.