Liam Fox
ELIZABETH JACKSON: Nearly every city, town and village in Papua New Guinea has an open-air market.
And in a country of small-scale farmers they're the economic lifeblood for much of the population.
But in the cities, the markets are often run down and have become hives of criminal activity.
Most of the vendors and customers are women, so they suffer disproportionately from the poor facilities and crime.
But in Port Moresby there's an attempt underway to restore markets to the important and safe institution they once were.
Here's our PNG correspondent Liam Fox.
LIAM FOX: At Gordons Market in Port Moresby, scores of small stalls offer an incredible array of super fresh fruit and vegetables.
Different sections are devoted to different kinds of produce like bananas or coconut or sago.
Back in Australia you'd pay a premium for organic food like this but here it's incredibly cheap.
Gordons is the biggest market in the city but it's pretty grim.
(Sound of man washing potatoes)
A man washes a sack of potatoes in a muddy puddle because there's no running water.
It's crowded. Those who didn't get here early enough to find a spot in the shade have to set up shop in the hot, wilting sun.
As an expatriate I wouldn't normally come here, because it's also a notorious hotspot for crime despite there being a police station next door.
The crowd is a magnet for thieves, extortionists, drunks and dope smokers.
A recent newspaper report said a woman was gang-raped after she was attacked here and dragged away by a group of men.
At least 80 per cent of the stallholders and patrons are women so they bear the brunt of the poor facilities and criminal activity.
Women like Dawn Morafeae. She's been coming to Gordons for 30 years to sell the sago she extracts from palm trees in her village, four hours drive away.
DAWN MORAFEAE: I used to feel scared a bit because I'm a woman. And I find it hard to sell sago when I am alone, 'cause it's very dangerous down here in Gordons, especially for mothers and the girls.
Of course, you have heard recently that sometimes we will also have broad daylight raping and snatching bags and pickpocketing.
LIAM FOX: Do you think there's enough security presence or police presence here at the market?
DAWN MORAFEAE: No I don't feel that there's enough security and police here.
What I want is I need foot patrol, regularly in early hours and late hours.
Law and order is not in order.
LIAM FOX: It's not only the female vendors who suffer.
Women like Maggie Raymond, who come here to do their shopping, also have a hard time.
MAGGIE RAYMOND: No, it's not safe for women to walk around because plenty of drug bodies around, they use the knife, screwdrivers, they started to pull the billums and all this.
So we feel afraid to walk around freely.
We just came to the market and go back to the house, stay there.
LIAM FOX: Have you ever been attacked or robbed yourself?
MAGGIE RAYMOND: Yeah, one time I went to the bus stop. There were two boys robbing my billum in the car.
They tried to take my phone, mobile phone. And I was holding my phone back, and the two boys took the knife, took out the knife from their ribs or pockets and they started to put the knife on me.
And they went to grab my phone and I said, I started to shout out, and boys inside, they tried to help me, and two boys were afraid and they ran out.
LIAM FOX: But things are starting to change.
Gordons is a trial site for something called the United Nations Women's Safe Cities project.
Other trials are being run in India, Egypt, Ecuador and Rwanda.
It's about making public spaces like markets safe so women can live free from fear and be free to make a living.
To find out just how bad the situation was, Alethia Jimenez from UN Women says surveys were carried out in six of the city's markets.
ALETHIA JIMENEZ: What came out in all markets is that none of the markets are safe, in particular for women and girls.
Another thing that we found from the study is there's extortion, there's sexual violence, there's sexual harassment, and there was a very poor management of these public spaces.
LIAM FOX: In what ways are you making - all these groups making, coming together to make markets safer?
ALETHIA JIMENEZ: Well, I mean, one of the main areas has been looking at how we work with the government to make a stronger, better-organised and managed markets division who can address the problems of sanitation and toilets and water, etc.
Then we're also working in partnership with the police, with security companies, to develop codes of conduct for their staff to protect the rights of the users of the markets.
Another area that we're looking into is behavioural change programs, engaging with the youth and grass roots.
We have a strong grass roots mobilisation component where we help the vendors organise themselves; form a markets vendors' association so they have a voice and representation with the local level government.
LIAM FOX: It's only been going for a few months but things are improving.
(Sound of rubbish being cleared away)
Unsightly and unhealthy rubbish is cleared away, leaking sewers have been fixed, and a group of armed policemen keep an eye on the activity.
This week there will be celebrations here to mark World Food Day.
There has been an encouraging start, but this is a long-term project.
It's going to a take a major change in the mindsets of the men who use this space before things really change.
This is Liam Fox at Gordons Market in Port Moresby for Correspondents Report. ABC News
LIAM FOX: At Gordons Market in Port Moresby, scores of small stalls offer an incredible array of super fresh fruit and vegetables.
Different sections are devoted to different kinds of produce like bananas or coconut or sago.
Back in Australia you'd pay a premium for organic food like this but here it's incredibly cheap.
Gordons is the biggest market in the city but it's pretty grim.
(Sound of man washing potatoes)
A man washes a sack of potatoes in a muddy puddle because there's no running water.
It's crowded. Those who didn't get here early enough to find a spot in the shade have to set up shop in the hot, wilting sun.
As an expatriate I wouldn't normally come here, because it's also a notorious hotspot for crime despite there being a police station next door.
The crowd is a magnet for thieves, extortionists, drunks and dope smokers.
A recent newspaper report said a woman was gang-raped after she was attacked here and dragged away by a group of men.
At least 80 per cent of the stallholders and patrons are women so they bear the brunt of the poor facilities and criminal activity.
Women like Dawn Morafeae. She's been coming to Gordons for 30 years to sell the sago she extracts from palm trees in her village, four hours drive away.
DAWN MORAFEAE: I used to feel scared a bit because I'm a woman. And I find it hard to sell sago when I am alone, 'cause it's very dangerous down here in Gordons, especially for mothers and the girls.
Of course, you have heard recently that sometimes we will also have broad daylight raping and snatching bags and pickpocketing.
LIAM FOX: Do you think there's enough security presence or police presence here at the market?
DAWN MORAFEAE: No I don't feel that there's enough security and police here.
What I want is I need foot patrol, regularly in early hours and late hours.
Law and order is not in order.
LIAM FOX: It's not only the female vendors who suffer.
Women like Maggie Raymond, who come here to do their shopping, also have a hard time.
MAGGIE RAYMOND: No, it's not safe for women to walk around because plenty of drug bodies around, they use the knife, screwdrivers, they started to pull the billums and all this.
So we feel afraid to walk around freely.
We just came to the market and go back to the house, stay there.
LIAM FOX: Have you ever been attacked or robbed yourself?
MAGGIE RAYMOND: Yeah, one time I went to the bus stop. There were two boys robbing my billum in the car.
They tried to take my phone, mobile phone. And I was holding my phone back, and the two boys took the knife, took out the knife from their ribs or pockets and they started to put the knife on me.
And they went to grab my phone and I said, I started to shout out, and boys inside, they tried to help me, and two boys were afraid and they ran out.
LIAM FOX: But things are starting to change.
Gordons is a trial site for something called the United Nations Women's Safe Cities project.
Other trials are being run in India, Egypt, Ecuador and Rwanda.
It's about making public spaces like markets safe so women can live free from fear and be free to make a living.
To find out just how bad the situation was, Alethia Jimenez from UN Women says surveys were carried out in six of the city's markets.
ALETHIA JIMENEZ: What came out in all markets is that none of the markets are safe, in particular for women and girls.
Another thing that we found from the study is there's extortion, there's sexual violence, there's sexual harassment, and there was a very poor management of these public spaces.
LIAM FOX: In what ways are you making - all these groups making, coming together to make markets safer?
ALETHIA JIMENEZ: Well, I mean, one of the main areas has been looking at how we work with the government to make a stronger, better-organised and managed markets division who can address the problems of sanitation and toilets and water, etc.
Then we're also working in partnership with the police, with security companies, to develop codes of conduct for their staff to protect the rights of the users of the markets.
Another area that we're looking into is behavioural change programs, engaging with the youth and grass roots.
We have a strong grass roots mobilisation component where we help the vendors organise themselves; form a markets vendors' association so they have a voice and representation with the local level government.
LIAM FOX: It's only been going for a few months but things are improving.
(Sound of rubbish being cleared away)
Unsightly and unhealthy rubbish is cleared away, leaking sewers have been fixed, and a group of armed policemen keep an eye on the activity.
This week there will be celebrations here to mark World Food Day.
There has been an encouraging start, but this is a long-term project.
It's going to a take a major change in the mindsets of the men who use this space before things really change.
This is Liam Fox at Gordons Market in Port Moresby for Correspondents Report. ABC News
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