Security is looming as Papua New Guinea's biggest challenge for the national elections.

Five years ago, elections in the Highlands were marred by deaths and violence, stolen ballot boxes and multiple voting.

Such is the level of concern that the Australian Government has reissued its travel warning to PNG along with Canada, the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand.

At the same time, one of PNG's airlines has pulled out of election related work.

PNG Correspondent Steve Marshall reports concerns over security during Papua New Guinea's national elections has led to one airline pulling out of election related work and the Australian Government reissuing a travel warning.

Flying is already dangerous

Marshall says that flying in and out of PNG's remote jungle airfields is dangerous enough let alone worrying about being shot at.

That's what happened during the 2002 elections to pilots carrying ballot boxes across the country.
Some people thought the best way to get their candidate elected was to shoot ballot boxes from rival areas out of the sky.

Mike Jelliffe runs PNG's Mission Aviation Fellowship airline which services around 350 remote airstrips.

"There have been incidences of aircraft being fired at," Mr Jelliffe said. This year he is refusing to accept election chartered work.

"There are no real security measures at these airstrips. They are just grass strips without anything around. There would be ballot boxes just being loaded onto the aircraft with the only people involved would be our pilot and an agent at the airstrip."

As a result helicopters will be used to transport ballot boxes in what will be PNG's largest police operation ever.

Thousands of police deployed

More than 11,000 police have been deployed across PNG.

Police Commissioner Gari Baki says 2000 policemen have been sent the Highlands provinces where violence marred the 2002 elections.

"I think it's justified that we use these kinds of numbers."

"Our PNG Elections assessments still indicate that the highlands is a high-risk area. That is why we don't want to take any chances. The way I am running my election operation is that I'm giving accountability to all my provincial police commanders," he says.

"They run the elections, and they take ownership of it, rather than being controlled and co-ordinated from headquarters."

Guns in the hands of criminals

A Government gun report estimates that around 5,000 illegal weapons are in the hands of criminals and tribal fighters in the Highlands.

The Australian Government has updated its travel advice to the area-concerned Australians could be inadvertently caught up in violence directed at others.

However PNG Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare, who is the country's first leader to serve a full five year term, says outsiders need not worry.

" We want to assure them (people outside PNG) that we can do it. We have done it before and we will do it again."

This national election will also be the first in PNG to be conducted using the limited preferential voting system.

It's hoped the selection of three candidates per ballot paper will deter attempts to hi-jack or destroy ballot boxes.