KATHY NOVAK | SBS

PETER O’NEILL’S NEW GOVERNMENT, in power for just over a month, is promising a host of reforms in Papua New Guinea.

But one thing looks unlikely to change. Homosexual acts have been illegal since British colonial times. Men caught in same-sex acts face up to 14 years in prison.

Former MP Dame Carol Kidu says the laws are contributing to the country’s HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Although the laws are not strictly enforced, gay citizens face discrimination in their daily lives, and often struggle to find jobs.

But the push for decriminalisation has little support in PNG’s traditional Christian society.