A new visa application to re-enter Papua New Guinea has been filed, which he hoped would be granted shortly.

On Friday the in the Kokopo National Court Justice Salatei Lenaia issued orders to the acting chief migration officer, Solomon Kantha, and the PNG immigration and citizenship service Authority to facilitate Tennent's return within 14 days.

Lenaia also stayed the notice of cancelation used on June 1 by the minister of foreign affairs and immigration

It is now up to the parties to decide whether Tennent is issued with a new visa and work permit or the legal pathway is pursued.

Before his arrest, Tennent was three years into a seven year commitment to work in Papua New Guinea as part of the Caritas Catholic Volunteers Overseas programme.

As a lawyer, Tennent was using his skills to advocate on behalf of the Pomio villagers around issues related to land rights.

This included taking court action against Rimbunan Hijau, a Malaysian-based company whose interests include logging and timber processing.

For the past month Tennent has been trying to do what he can to continue his work via email but his sudden departure had been disruptive. He said he left behind a huge amount of work which he was keen to get back to

He said the experience had given him a renewed commitment to his advocacy work but it was likely he would take a more cautious approach in how he went about his role should he be able to return to Papua New Guinea.

"Certainly it's going to make us more thoughtful about what we do," he said.

Source

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His comment comes after the Catholic Church said it was poised to take legal action against Mr Kantha for contempt of court because he ignored a stay order and deported Douglas Tennent Continue reading

Acting chief immigration officer, Solomon Kantha said Tennent's visa was cancelled by Immigration and Foreign Affairs Minister Rimbink Pato because of his alleged involvement on landowner issues.

He said the decision was based on a complaint from landowners in East New Britain.

The Post Courier reports that Kantha has told the archbishop of Rabaul, Francesco Panfilo, that Tennent, can re-apply for a new visa and work permit.

However, the archbishop has refused to do so unless he receives reassurance from the Foreign Affairs Department that Tennent can return.

He is also demanding to know who lodged the complaint letter.

The landowners' umbrella company's, Memalo Holdings Ltd, managing director has denied that they are responsible.

Wesley Pagott said although the members of Sigite Mukus Integrated Rural Development Project (SMIRDP) disagreed with with what Tennent has been doing, they were surprised to hear that he was deported.

Memalo Holdings was originally incorporated listing six separate landowner companies as shareholders.

They were all incorporated on the same day. Two have since been delisted.

Memalo controls the land on which the SMIRDP is being developed by Rimbunan Hijau Group (PNG).

The Group has a diverse set of interests that encompass forestry, timber processing, palm oil, transport, media, retail and property development.

It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rimbunan Hijau, a company based in Sarawak, Malaysia.

The Acting Governor of East New Britain, Cosmas Bauk, has pledged his support.

He said he would do everything in his power to make sure that Tennent can return to continue on with his work.

Bauk said he was disappointment at the manner in which the current government has been doing its business without regards to the people's plight for justice and what they rightfully claim as theirs.

He commended the church for their efforts in assisting the people in Pomio and East New Britain and would stand with the church in this fight.

Source

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Despite a court order staying his deportation, Douglas Tennent was forced to leave PNG on Monday after being told on Friday by immigration officials he was abusing the conditions of his religious worker visa.

Now back in New Zealand Tennent said he wants just two things.

"One of them is to return to PNG to continue my work with the archdiocese in helping local people on infrastructure and land issues," he said.

"And the other thing I want is for immigration to spell out to me how I breach my visa and if any groups have got concerns about my actions, set them out so I can respond. I have had no opportunity to respond."

In a statement issued on Tuesday the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands , said Tennent was deported for fighting for justice for the voiceless in Papua New Guinea.

The archbishop of Rabaul, Francesco Panfilo, says Tennent was working for him on disposing of church and other lands, a housing project for low-income earners and helping those negatively affected by a huge palm oil project, run by multi national Rimbunan Hijau.

Rimbunan Hijau, which has wide interests in PNG, has a huge oil palm plantation at West Pomio in East New Britain.

Panfilo said the claim by immigration that Tennent had illegally involved himself in sensitive land issues was false.

Tennet is a well-known and respected author on immigration and refugee law issues.

He worked from 1984-1992 as an advocate in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea court and prison system under a joint project of the Anglican and Catholic Churches.

From 1998 until 2002 taught in the Faculty of Law, University of Papua New Guinea. He was also the Associate Dean.

He then spent some time on the faculty of law at Waikato University.

From 2009 till 2011 he was a legal advisor in the Solomon Islands.

Source

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The communist government of the north-east African state, which does not set a fixed period for military service, has kept Church workers and seminarians in the army for more than 15 years in some cases.

The charity Aid to the Church in Need said a local source told it the government "exaggerates the danger of war, as a pretext to keep people in military service".

"In general, military service has led to a situation where there is a shortage of qualified workers in many professions — not just in the Church," the source added.

While conscription has radically reduced the number of pastoral workers in the Church, its charitable activities have also suffered from state interference because the Church has been forbidden to carry out charitable work.

Seminarians were technically exempt from military service between 2008 and 2011 — but reports received by Aid to the Church in Need suggest many of those conscripted in 2008 were still in training camps.

The government has encouraged all Eritreans to own weapons, even priests and housewives. National service is required for all male and female citizens beginning at age 16.

Over 2000 Christians are among those who have refused military service and are imprisoned for their beliefs.

Thousands avoid military service by fleeing the country each year. Eritrea's national soccer team recently defected while on a visit to Uganda, in part because of the compulsory military service, Radio France Internationale reported.

Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993 after a 30-year conflict.

Of the 5.2 million people in the country, nearly half the population are Christian. Most of these are Orthodox, with Catholics making up just 4 per cent of the population.

Sources:

Catholic News Agency

Zenit

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