10 Oct 2005

PNG waives visa fee to encourage journalists to cover Forum summit

7:16 am on 10 October 2005

Papua New Guinea has set aside the visa fee for foreign journalists'in a bid to attract them to cover the 36th Pacific Islands Forum Summit.

The Foreign Affairs and Immigration Deputy Secretary, Tarcy Eri, has told the Post Courier newspaper that given the "adverse publicity" PNG suffers, they want foreign journalists "to come and see for themselves that PNG is as safe as anywhere"

The newspaper's editor-in chief, Oseah Philemon, who co-sponsored the request for the waiver, says he believes the benefits of a well informed Pacific Islands community of Forum affairs and decisions far outweighs the 170 US dollar visa fee