Tariff protection

planned for PNG home industries

Tougher restrictions on imported goods will be a policy of the Somare Government if it is returned to of fice in the Papua New Guinea elec tions.

The policies, foreshadowed by Mr Somare in a speech in Port Moresby in late April, suggest that Australia would be one of the most strongly affected of PNG’s supplier coun tries.

Mr Somare’s proposal will mean a ban or a very high import duty on bringing in any product which is already produced in PNG. The re strictions will extend to products for which PNG can provide a reasona ble alternative.

They will also be extended where necessary to promote the internal production of any product.

Mr Somare said the proposals were designed to develop self reliance by eliminating goods which competed with internal production or potential.

He said that at the same time the government would take measures to ensure that internal prices did not rise as a result of the import re strictions.

Mr Somare listed coffee, tea and some foodstuffs and fruit in cluding tropical fruit as examples of imports competing with local production.

Although Mr Somare made no reference to any particular country, Australian goods would appear to be a big part of the competitive im ports.

The re-import of processed goods which originated in PNG as raw materials could also be affected by the proposals, Mr Somare said.

This could mean, for instance, that PNG would begin processing its own coffee instead of exporting coffee beans to Australia and im porting the finished product.

He said the government had reason to believe that PNG had been used to dump some products from overseas markets, and this situation would be closely watched under the new proposals.