By John Sexton

3 September 2008, Paia Inlet, PNG: Activists head out from Greenpeace ship the Esperanza to the logging ship, Harbour Gemini. The ship was loading timber bound for China.[Sutton-Hibbert/Greenpeace]

Armed police in Papua New Guinea on September 8 ended a two and a half day protest by Greenpeace activists when they escorted protestors from a ship bound for China with illegally logged timber.

The activists had been occupying a crane for 55 hours to prevent the shipment of rainforest logs. They were attempting to stop the ship from loading illegally logged timber from the Paradise Forest.

3 September 2008, Paia Inlet, PNG: A local resource owner supports action against logging. In the background is a log barge with felled timber, ready to go onto the Harbour Gemini ship. [Sutton-Hibbert/Greenpeace]

Following the Greenpeace action, the ship's owners, Turama Forest Industries promised to review a logging agreement for the Turama Extension, a concession covering 1.7 million hectares in Papua New Guinea.

Greenpeace stated that it will monitor the review process to ensure it follows Papua New Guinea forestry laws and delivers a just outcome for local people.

Turama Forest Industries is owned by Malaysian logging company Rimbunan Hijau.