PORT MORESBY (PNG Today/PNG Post-Courier/Pacific Media Watch): A front page story about Asian prostitutes living and working in Papua New Guinea published by the PNG Post-Courier has caused a public outcry over the weekend, according to PNG Today news website.
The newspaper published with the story by senior journalist Gorethy Kenneth pictures of Asian sex workers purported to be in Papua New Guinea with a caption stating: "Asian prostitutes in a club in Port Moresby".
But PNG Today claimed the images were believed to have been taken from a a news story published in a Nigerian website in 2012. It also carried web pictures showing what appeared to be identical to the Post-Courier front page images.
The website accused the Post-Courier of "sensationalising and falsifying" information.
The Post-Courier followed up today with a front-page story, also reported by Kenneth, about a power blackout hitting the country's first parliamentary debate about decrminalising prostitution.
In a sidebar, the newspaper admitted there had been a "wrong caption" mix-up in Friday's edition. Another group of Asian women was pictured on the front page today with their eyes blacked out.
'Quick money'
According to PNG Today:
There is a public outcry in Papua New Guinea after the local newspaper, Post-Courier published a story about Asian prostitutes working and living in the country. The story appeared in the newspaper's front page on Friday (20/02/2015) with images believed to be taken from a news story published in Nigerian website in 2012. This has not gone down well with the public and many have taken to social media to condemn the action of the newspaper for sensationalising and falsifying information to make quick money. Many people are calling on the newspaper to sack the reporter and the editor.
PNG Today quoted PNG News Facebook Group administrator David Emphraim and social media commentator at the weekend as saying: Whatever the reasons are, Papua New Guineans are distracted by [a] front cover page ... well guess what Post-Courier for some reason has decided to use an old blog story in Nigeria to stir up Papua New Guineans over the so-called 'Asian sex workers here'. There may be some facts in their article but using visual images to incite social uproar is uncalled for.
"So don't be alarmed too much about the report. The original images used by Post-Courier was about 13 teenage girls of Asian origin arrested in Nigeria in 2012 over prostitution."
A former Post-Courier journalist, Jason Jay Prince Wuri, was quoted as saying: "It is a real slap in the face to all levels of journalism when plagiarism is practised! It breaks all forms of journalism ethics and as a journo it's a real shame!
"Especially if it's a sensitive issue like prostitution and [abopt] flaws in our immigration system which are real and ongoing issues affecting our great nation.
"The disappointment here is for a credible mainstream daily in Post-Courier to lie and use a picture downloaded from a blog and say it was in a Port Moresby night club. That for me is lazy journalism without proper investigation on the story to get actual pictures to use with the story."
Other commentators called on the newspaper to apologise to the country for the "journalism blunder", according to PNG Today.
Today's Post-Courier published "supplied" pictures of Asian sex workers claimed to be in Port Moresby that was captioned: "The Asian sex workers, whose agent reluctantly supplied these pictures".
Gorethy Kenneth's story reported: "Parliament's first serious debate on decriminalising prostitution on Friday was rudely interrupted by a power blackout courtesy of PNG Power’s load-shedding."
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