Human rights advocates in Papua New Guinea raised alarm following shocking accusations of violence leveled at police by villagers residing near the Porgera Joint Venture Gold Mine owned by Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold mining company. The police stand accused of taking part in a pre-dawn operation Saturday where villagers said 150 houses were torched.  The Akali Tange Association claimed that the police mobile unit rampaged through the Wangima village... Eight young school-aged girls were allegedly gang-raped during the raid, yet their whereabouts are presently unknown... Representatives of Barrick claim that the mine had “been advised that the police operation targeted illegal activities and was conducted under warrants issued by the Porgera District Court,” yet that they had received no prior warning of the police operation.  However, activists have expressed skepticism that the mining firm had no knowledge of the police raid, especially given the relatively frequent nature of house burnings in Wangima — which lies within Barrick's mine lease area.