OPINION: The Solomon Star has been challenged by the writer of a letter to the editor, Edwin Lapangi, for giving special media treatment to controversial New Zealand entrepreneur Kelvyn Alp. An article in the NZ Sunday Star-Times last year about Alp's plans to open a gold mine billed him as a "former self-described mercenary who once 'declared war' on the NZ government".
HONIARA:
Dear editor,
My name is Edwin Lapangi from Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea, and I am a keen reader of your online news service.
First of all, I must say that I have no direct interest in the "Alp" issue but I am making these observations and questions as a neutral outsider.
In Papua New Guinea, we also have similar issues where people from outside come in to do "Simon says do this; do that" to us and reading Mr Alp's previous viewpoints I began to sense that maybe he is just one of these like-minded fellows.
My concern, however, is on how your paper [Solomonstarnews.com] has treated Mr Alp's views and that of those who have been debating him.
In the recent exchange of letters by Mr Alp and other writers, most notably one Derrick Manu'ari of Arosi One, Makira, it has become obvious to me that your paper is giving Mr Alp special treatment.
Every time Mr Alp writes, you publish his views in your Private View column regardless of whatever the quantity and quality of his letters.
This has become apparent to me recently when Derrick Manu'ari (and others) wrote letters to you raising concerns and questioning Mr Alp's ideas and views; you decided to publish their letters under the Letters to the Editor column.
This was despite the fact that Mr Manu'ari, in my view, wrote a very good and lengthy letter, which, if you were not pro-Alp, you would have published also in your Private View column.
Mr Alp replied to Mr Manu'ari and others, in a shorter letter, and to me his views were quite shallow and do not warrant space in your Private View column.
Yet he was given special treatment again to have his letter published under the Private View column.
The later replies by the others, especially Mr Manu'ari, which was quite lengthy and to me carries a lot [more] rationale than Mr Alp's first reply, was only published under the Letters to the Editor column.
My question therefore is why are you favouring Mr Alp?Are you benefitting financially from this man's media advocacies? If that is the case, then I can say to you that your position as a watchdog in society is already compromised.
Many entities of the public media here in PNG have already fallen into this trap and are now licking their wounds after the revelations of their nocturnal allegiances come to light.
Most times they are tied to the noses of foreign entrepreneurs whose category I assume Mr Alp belongs.
Or is [the] Solomon Star a pro-socialist medium? If that is the case, then I can full understandf why Mr Alp is your ally and partner in advocacy.
However, I can tell you point blank that socialism has no future in this world and that you should rethink your position on this.
Your faithfully
Edwin Lapangi
Port Moresby City
Papua New Guinea
* No immediate comment or reply was published by the Solomon Star. - Solomon Star/Pacific Media Watch
Pacific Media Watch
