I was previously unsure about sharing my story about getting robbed in Wewack at gunpoint, but now four months on I feel that while I don’t want to shit talk PNG, it is time to share the story. Ideally to help others, but if nothing else for my own sanity.
Click to read about safety in PNG.
Table of Contents
What the Wewack?
Wewack is a small town in Morobe Province, PNG. It is the sort of place most people pass through quickly, and it has a reputation for being rough and a bit chaotic. Locals warn that petty theft and fights can happen in public spaces, and outsiders are advised to stay alert.
I personally had come here as part of a research trip which went from West Papua over the border into Vanimo, before flying to Wewack. Despite its size, it feels like a real PNG town with a mix of markets, small streets, and locals going about their business.
Click to see my Wewack guide.
Getting robbed in Wewack at gunpoint
We’d flown from Vanimo in the morning with our plan being to check into the hotel in Wewack quickly, before heading out to tours. We did this, with us leaving our passports in the hotel. This would come in useful later. Tour-wise we started at the market, a notoriously dodgy place which lived up to its reputation as we saw a fight take place. After this we got a takeaway lunch and headed to the Japanese hill lookout spot.
The lookout spot is on a small rise outside of town. From there, you can see Wewack sprawled below, the river cutting through the middle, and the surrounding hills and farmland stretching out in every direction. It’s quiet and isolated, with a few overgrown paths leading up to benches. The view is pretty decent if you want photos, but it is exposed, and you feel completely out of the way. Tourists do go here, which was to prove important to the story…
So, I get out of the bus and look toward the bushes where I see a number of men with guns running towards us. It was one particular guy looking at me that caught my eye, as well as the fact that his big gun was homemade. I’ll add that I had my iPhone 16 in my hand, as well as a bag over my neck that had an iPhone 14, as well as my glasses and a GoPro.
At this point I knew what was going on, so tried to slip my phone in my pocket. This was as it had the SIM card in it, so I felt it might prove useful. To cut a long story short this was seen and the next thing I know I was on the floor sans glasses after being hit in the head with the gun.
What followed was me emptying my pockets and the robbers taking not just all of our possessions, but even our lunch from the bus – the phrase here indeed is “cunts”. The standout part? Me saying, “Hey you have everything, can we go now?” To the reply of “I’m gonna fucking kill you.” He didn’t, to be fair, and when they left I told the driver that we needed to get the fuck out. Which he slowly understood and indeed we did.
The aftermath
We headed to the hotel and called the police who showed up and, through Find My iPhone, managed to get one phone back and maybe work out who the people were. Police reports were filed to a degree and then things went cold. I am not sure what exactly happened yet as you never can be sure in PNG.
I’ll add one thing though, I do wonder exactly how much power those in government have and I wonder why they don’t try doing the El Salvador model and get the army to fix shit. But hey I am no politician!
What getting robbed in Wewack taught me
Ok, so I will add that this was not a tour and that I still feel that PNG is safe and well I still love the place (although I did get ribbed in Wewack). I do though now realize a lot of things about violence in the country. Much of it relates to my previous statement. Crimes in PNG often do not get reported, which means the stats are worse than they seem. The government here also do not have all that much power in the boonies.
Therefore if you do head to remote parts consider the situation, consider getting armed support, do not rely on the police and never carry your passport. PNG is great, but until major changes are made safety has to be considered.
And that muggles is how I got Wewacked and Wewak
Click to see my PNG Tours with YPT