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Police organisation

Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary

The national police force of Papua New Guinea, formed by the 1942 amalgamation of the separate forces of Papua and New Guinea and given its functions by the country’s Constitution.

Fact-checkedLast updated

At a glance

Official name
Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary
System
Papua New Guinea
Level of government
National
Kind of body
National police force
Status
Currently operating
Official website
https://rpngc.gov.pg/ — confirmed against the organisation’s own pages on 17 September 2026.
Facts last checked against sources
17 September 2026

What it is

The constabulary describes itself as the national police force of Papua New Guinea and as the result of the 1942 amalgamation of the former separate police forces of Papua and New Guinea. It states that under the Constitution it is subject to the control of the National Executive Government through a minister, and that the Constitution gives its primary functions as preserving peace and good order in the country and maintaining and enforcing the law in an impartial and objective manner. A constitution that writes impartiality into the definition of the police function, rather than leaving it to a code of ethics, is worth noticing.

What it covers

The whole territory of Papua New Guinea.

Broad responsibilities

  • Preserving peace and good order
  • Maintaining and enforcing the law
  • General policing across the country

Who it answers to

Subject under the Constitution to the control of the National Executive Government through a minister, as the constabulary states.

Elsewhere on this site

Where this connects

Institutions: National police.

Sources

  1. About Us — Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary

    Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary · Institutional (self-description) · link verified 2026-09-17

    SCOPE: the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary only. The constabulary's own about page, read directly. Supports the official name, its status as the national police force of Papua New Guinea, the 1942 amalgamation of the former separate police forces of Papua and New Guinea, its subjection under the Constitution to the control of the National Executive Government through a minister, and the constitutional statement of its primary functions as preserving peace and good order and maintaining and enforcing the law impartially and objectively. The Constitution itself was NOT fetched; the constitutional wording rests on the constabulary's own quotation of it.