Reaction from Papua New Guinea to Biden: 'He may have been eaten by cannibals'

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape made a statement regarding Biden's remarks about his uncle, Ambrose Finnegan Jr., who served in World War II.

James Marape pointed to the US President's words, "They never found the body because there were so many cannibals in that part of New Guinea," and stated, "President Biden's remarks may have been a slip of the tongue, but my country does not deserve to be labeled in this way."

Emphasizing that World War II had nothing to do with the people of Papua New Guinea, Marape said, "World War II was not my people's war, but they were unnecessarily dragged into a conflict that was not of their making."

Marape noted that the people of Papua New Guinea live in fear of death due to unexploded bombs from World War II detonating in their daily lives, adding, "There are many battlefields in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, and they are littered with World War II remains, including human remains, aircraft and shipwrecks, tunnels, and bombs."

Marape also called on the US to help locate the remains of soldiers who lost their lives in Papua New Guinea during World War II and to clear the wreckage of the war.

BIDEN'S CLAIMS REGARDING HIS UNCLE

US President Biden spoke about his uncle, Ambrose Finnegan Jr., who served in World War II, following his visit to a war memorial in the US state of Pennsylvania on April 17.

Stating that the body of his uncle, whose plane crashed, was never found, Biden had used the expression, "They never found the body because there were so many cannibals in that part of New Guinea."

On the other hand, according to the US Department of Defense's Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, the plane carrying Biden's uncle crashed for "unknown reasons." There is no information in the records suggesting that cannibals played a role in the death of Finnegan Jr.

News Source: AA