'Technical Glitch' In Payroll Software Sparks Riots In Papua New Guinea (theregister.com) 40
Papua New Guinea declared a two-week state of emergency following riots and multiple deaths, triggered by a payroll system error that incorrectly applied higher tax rates to government employees' salaries. The Register reports: The pacific nation recently extended COVID-era tax reductions into 2024, but the payroll system used for government employees was not configured correctly and in the first pay run of 2024 reverted to older and higher tax rates. Government workers were therefore taxed at a higher rate and their pay packets were around $100 less than expected -- about half the pay for many employees. That situation was misinterpreted as a surprise tax hike and some workers, including Police, went on strike to protest the situation.
Some saw the absence of law enforcement as an opportunity, and riots quickly spread across the city, accompanied by looting. Prime Minister James Marape described the situation as a "technical glitch," before later declaring a state of emergency that has seen troops stationed in the capital to restore order. Commissioner general of the Internal Revenue Commission, Sam Koin, apologized "for the loss of lives and properties during these regrettable and avoidable incidents."
Some saw the absence of law enforcement as an opportunity, and riots quickly spread across the city, accompanied by looting. Prime Minister James Marape described the situation as a "technical glitch," before later declaring a state of emergency that has seen troops stationed in the capital to restore order. Commissioner general of the Internal Revenue Commission, Sam Koin, apologized "for the loss of lives and properties during these regrettable and avoidable incidents."
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
They were pretty laid back with the BLM riots, a little too laid back. Based on DA's letting rioters and looters go free I'm pretty sure police also had orders from "the top" to let it happen.
Re: (Score:1)
They tried to overthrow the government because they didn't like what democracy gave them. That kind of insurrection. You should know; betting you were there.
Re: Pig patrol (Score:2)
sax on the beach (Score:2)
Upon the sands where waves do reach,
A saxophone whispers, a soulful speech.
Beneath the sun's warm, golden ray,
The sax on the beach begins to play.
Amidst the scene, a playful sight,
Dogs frolic freely, pure delight.
Sniffing butts in canine jest,
A quirky ritual, a furry quest.
So, on this beach where morals die,
Saxophones play, and collies fly.
With dogs and butts in perfect sync,
A seaside symphony, a joyous stink.
Re: (Score:1, Informative)
> BLM didn't try to create an insurrection
insurrection /insrekSH()n/
noun
a violent uprising against an authority or government.
BLM was VIOLENT
BLM was an UPRISING
BLM was AGAINST AUTHORITY and GOVERNMENT
BLM caused $2BILLION in DAMAGE
BLM KILLED at least 25 people
BLM called for the abolishment of police
Seattle protesters take over city blocks to create police-free 'autonomous zone'
https://www.theguardian.com/us... [theguardian.com]
At least 25 Americans were killed during protests and political unrest in 2020
https://www.theguar [theguardian.com]
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Pig patrol (Score:4, Informative)
"Nine of the people killed during protests were demonstrators taking part in Black Lives Matter protests. Two were conservatives killed after pro-Trump “patriot rallies”. All but one were killed by fellow citizens."--- http://tinyurl.com/3zwzd78y [tinyurl.com]
BLM protests were overwhelmingly peaceful. Where violence occurred, it was right-wingers attacking peaceful protests. Violence against property was confined to very small areas, such as one block in downtown Portland. The idea that "BLM riots" existed and were an important threat are right wing agitprop.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
[January 6th protests] were overwhelmingly peaceful. Where violence occurred, it was [left]-wingers attacking peaceful protests. Violence against property was confined to very small areas, such as one building. The idea that "MAGA riots" existed and were an important threat are [left] wing agitprop.
Am I doing it right?
Re: (Score:1)
Am I doing it right?
It's dangerous to go alone. Take some of these:
https://abcnews.go.com/US/man-... [go.com]
https://unherd.com/2020/08/how... [unherd.com]
https://www.wbur.org/cognoscen... [wbur.org]
https://www.rollingstone.com/c... [rollingstone.com]
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/0... [nytimes.com]
https://spectrumlocalnews.com/... [spectrumlocalnews.com]
https://www.injusticewatch.org... [injusticewatch.org]
https://www.opb.org/article/20... [opb.org]
https://www.wweek.com/news/202... [wweek.com]
https://www.wsls.com/news/virg... [wsls.com]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
TL;DR: We know from arrest records and ample reporting that white supremacists engaged in false flag o
How bad is the credibility of the government (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
In America the average person is 1 paycheck away from homelessness.
In Papua New Guinea you're half a paycheck away from civil unrest and 16 dead, apparently.
Re:How bad is the credibility of the government (Score:4, Interesting)
Did people not believe the response?
It's difficult to know what additional mistakes were made by the government but the first problem is tribal culture: Every perceived slight and injustice is caused by one person belittling and insulting the whole tribe, and must be remedied with bloodshed or murder.
The government is not seen as protecting the people, so dishonesty and violence towards it is excused by ordinary townsfolk.
Re: (Score:3)
The first time anyone from outside had even seen parts of the island was in the 1930's when aircraft flew over the highlands and discovered several million completely unknown people.
Those people don't even really share a culture and there are more than 800 languages in PNG.
I'm surprised that sort of stuff doesn't happen more often.
Re: (Score:2)
Getting half your pay one month seems bad but I think in most places you would wait a day to get an explanation.
It shouldn't take a day. It shouldn't take even an hour. A knowledgeable worker (let alone supervisor) in the treasury department should have been able to figure out the problem literally with a brief glance at a single pay stub from an affected worker. When you work with figures all day they start to become familiar. You will literally see the same numbers over and over again all day and come to expect them, and when they are not what you expect it is obvious.
In order for this to get out of hand so quickly
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
but I think in most places you would wait a day to get an explanation
how very first world of you
fair play to them, dont fuck with the paycheck. the salary is sacred
Re: (Score:2)
Getting half your pay one month seems bad but I think in most places you would wait a day to get an explanation.
Perhaps the government has pulled similar antics in the past. According to the article, they mistakenly taxed at the pre-COVID tax rate, so the employees have in the past seen their paychecks at this size, so it didn't sound as unbelievable as it would to someone in the US getting half their pay. Then again, most governments don't wait for explanations on half payments either, try to submit only half the taxes you owe on tax day in the USA, you instantly owe penalties and interest, nobody waits for any expl
Not a health state to begin with... (Score:2)
Re:Not a health state to begin with... (Score:5, Funny)
I just took a look and and seems like PNG is not a healthy state to begin with. From what I'm reading, this seems to be the norm.
PNG is fine, you shill - much better than your proprietary JPEG-2000 garbage.
As Professor Frink... (Score:2)
As Professor Frink https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org] from the Simpsons would say: "Oops forgot to carry the one!" https://www.youtube.com/watch?... [youtube.com]
JoshK.
they know how to do it in PNG (Score:2)
two-week state of emergency following riots and multiple deaths, triggered by a payroll system error
they dont fuck about in papua new guinea! if they have the same enthusiasm when the internet goes down i might consider moving there
A non-radical idea (Score:2)
I wonder what would happen where everyone votes for the same tax rate (lower), with no more deductions--even churches pay. No more loopholes/corruption. And less class warfare (arguably the focus of the article)?
Apparently taxation IS theft! (Score:1)