Police in Papua New Guinea have shot at university students who were protesting against Prime Minister Peter O’Neill, according to reports.

Several people were injured and there are unconfirmed reports of at least one death, the BBC said.

The students were marching from their campus in the capital, Port Moresby, towards parliament where Mr O’Neill was due to face a confidence vote.

The ABC quoted student Gerald Peni, saying police fired shots directly into the crowd when students would not let them arrest the president of the student council.

The governor of Oro Province Gary Juffa, a critic of the O’Neill government, wrote on Twitter: “Spoke to students and informed that several were shot.”

He added that the issue started with an argument between a metropolitan police superintendent and a student.

The students have been protesting for the past five weeks, demanding that Mr O’Neill stand down over corruption allegations.

– TiVi Tuan-san