Police officers' perceptions of the people's complaints regarding police use of excessive force in port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

It is commonly known that Papua New Guinea (PNG) has been facing the problem of police brutality. Ordinary Papua New Guineans often say that police brutality is common in PNG like other developing countries, or even worse. In most police brutality cases, the opinions and cries from the public dominate the discussion and police officers are not given the chance to speak and give their side of the story. Understanding of the reasons behind the use of police brutality in police practice is not well-known. This research focuses on the perspectives of police officers in Badili, Gordons, Gerehu and Boroko police stations in Port Moresby. It aims to establish, from the perspective of officers working at those police stations, the reasons for and/or the causes of police brutality. There are many reports on police brutality written at the international and national level. However, few reports contain the perception of police officers and the causes of police brutality. What is more, no research on this topic has been conducted in PNG to establish the causes of police brutality. This is necessary to provide a greater understanding of the issue for concerned stakeholders. This paper presents the police officers' perception, and provides insights into their training, obedience and disobedience to protocols and directives. The paper concludes with recommendations for the key stakeholders' consideration to mitigate the issue of police brutality in PNG.