Post-Courier, PNG’s top paper backs staff … and a free press

For journalists at Papua New Guinea’s Post-Courier, the usual daily pressures apply — work the phones, chase the story, hit the deadline.

Post-Courier editor Matthew Vari, left, going over the Friday edition with, from second left, sports editor Simon Keslep, education reporter Leiao Gerega and sportswriter Jonathan Sibona at the newspaper’s headquarters in Port Moresby.

For journalists at Papua New Guinea’s Post-Courier, the usual daily pressures apply — work the phones, chase the story, hit the deadline.

Once the stories are filed, and the nearby printing press in the heart of Port Moresby has begun to whirr, the newspaper’s 200-odd staff turn their attention to the biggest challenge of the day: getting home safely.

And in Port Moresby, a city with one of the highest rates of violent crime in the world, that’s no easy thing.

“It’s pretty bloody dangerous up here,” says the Post-Courier’s managing director Kevin Smith, a Darwin expat who has lived and worked in Port Moresby for the past 16 years.

But on Friday, staff at the News Corp-owned newspaper were on the receiving end of a very good news story: construction of three residential apartment blocks, directly across the road from the Post-Courier’s offices, is soon to begin.

Each of the three blocks will contain 11 apartments, allowing 33 staff members and their families to be housed rent-free at the complex. Those that won’t be housed in the new apartments will be eligible for rental allowance, and all will have access to secure transport to their homes at the end of their shifts.

The Post-Courier’s editor, Matthew Vari, says the multimillion-dollar investment in staff housing represents the unwavering commitment of News Corp to a free press in PNG.

“The development of the Post-Courier goes hand-in-hand with the development of this country. We have grown with it,” said Vari, who was appointed editor last ­November. “It’s a sign to me that says this is how much News Corp values its investment in PNG.

“It’s a vote of confidence, not just in the business but in the ­country.”

Vari said the newspaper’s staff were acutely aware of the important role they played in a nation beset by violence and corruption, and the challenges they faced in keeping the powerful to account. And, in turn, the newspaper viewed its staff as its greatest asset.

“There’s something very special about the staff here. We are so proud for them, the work they do and the sacrifices they make. That we can provide such accommodation for them is a great source of pride for us.”

An artist’s impression of the new staff accommodation opposite the Post-Courier offices in Port Moresby.

News Corp Australasia executive chairman Michael Miller said the new housing facility “will provide the amenity needed to help the Post-Courier continue to tell the stories that matter most to the people of PNG”.

“The commitment the Post-Courier team shows the people of PNG every day is nothing short of extraordinary,” he said.

Deputy Labor leader Richard Marles, who has visited PNG several times in an official capacity, said the Post-Courier played a ­crucial role in the nation’s democracy.

“As the country’s national paper, it plays an important role in providing news and publishing critical stories and updates in a democratic society,” Mr Marles said.

“As our closest neighbour, it is right that Australia provide assistance where we can to ensure the values of a democratic society can be maintained.”

The newspaper was established in 1969, and is the nation’s longest-running daily newspaper, with a reputation for fiercely independent journalism, despite the political risks of doing so in such a volatile country.

“Violent threats against editors and staff have been made in the past, but our journalists can cop it pretty hard,” said Smith.

“The Post-Courier is well known for a being straight, upfront newspaper that takes on the challenges of corruption.

“If we see something that’s wrong, we just go for it, and we really pride ourselves on that.”

The newspaper has five regional bureaus around the country, in addition to its Port Moresby headquarters.

It publishes Monday to Friday, with an average daily circulation of about 26,000. Most of those copies are sold by street sellers at traffic lights.