Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary
| Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary | |
|---|---|
Logo of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary
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| Motto | "Securing A Safer Community" |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | ca. 1950 |
| Preceding agencies |
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| Legal personality | Governmental: Government agency |
| Jurisdictional structure | |
| National agency | Papua New Guinea |
| Governing body | Government of Papua New Guinea |
| General nature | |
| Operational structure | |
| Headquarters | Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea |
| Sworn members | 4800 |
| Minister responsible | Nixon Duban, Ministry of Police |
| Agency executive | Gari Baki, CBE, CSTJ, QPM, Commissioner of Police |
| Website | |
| Law and Justice site, Commissioner page | |
The Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) is a national police force with jurisdiction throughout all of Papua New Guinea.
The RPNGC was formed from two predecessor bodies that existed prior to the independence of Papua New Guinea. The Royal Papuan Constabulary, initially established by the Australian colonial administration as part of setting up Papua in the late 19th century, and the New Guinea Police Force which covered the former German New Guinea and British New Guinea also set up by Australia, initially during World War I and formalized as part of the League of Nations mandate of 1920.
The constabulary played a significant role resisting the Japanese occupation of New Guinea during World War II. For example, the Lae War Cemetery holds the names of 13 police officers (panel 8) who died during the war.
The two colonial territories were gradually amalgamated during and after World War II leading to the merger of the two forces. The structure was retained after Papua New Guinea gained independence in 1975, although the name shifted from Royal Papua and New Guinea Constabulary to the present name with the removal of the "and" in 1972.
The RPNGC is known for the historic use of Police Motu, a lingua franca pidgin variant of the Motu language. During the colonial period, personnel needed to effectively administer the colony were scarce, so the colonial government recruited constables from the various Papua New Guinean peoples and nearby islands such as Fiji and the Solomon Islands. These recruits may have spoken any of about 700–800 different indigenous languages. To aid in communication, a common language was needed and the Police Motu pidgin arose.
The language was widely used not just by police but also by colonial administrators. It was renamed Hiri Motu in the 1970s, due to the connotations of the word "police" and became one of the official languages of Papua New Guinea.
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