Solomon Islands election counting complete, as negotiation process to find a prime minister kicks off, Sogavare says he runs security amid tense wait for new government
An intense period of political horse-trading is underway in Solomon Islands after no political party won enough seats in last week’s election to form government on its own. In what one expert labelled an
Jo Nata’s journey from the dark
'We let the genie out of the bottle' Emerging out of 24 years in prison, Josefa Nata is now convinced that the George Speight-led takeover of Fiji’s Parliament in 2000 was not justified and that all it did was let the
Opening Fiji’s can of worms
Josefa Nata knows he’s expected to tell all, having featured prominently in the George Speight-led takeover of Fiji’s Parliament in 2000. In the long history of Fiji’s coups since 1987, this was not only the
Prison ‘dark culture’
Josefa Nata claims Fiji’s prison system is perpetuating what he describes as a “dark culture” of cover ups of the abuse of prisoners’ rights, including uninvestigated deaths, and has met with Prime Minister
Opinion: What’s wrong with Vanuatu’s proposed party laws?
Vanuatu is holding its first ever referendum on 29th May on two constitutional amendments designed to lessen instability on the floor of parliament. The first amendment (17A) intends to tie members of parliament (MPs)
Solomon Islands: No clear winner as lobbying to form next government intensifies
Lobbying to form Solomon Islands’ next government is intensifying. With only four more seats in the 50-member parliament yet to be officially declared, there is no outright winner. As of Monday, the two
More than half of Solomon Islands election results in as counting continues
More than 60 percent of the national results of the Solomon Islands election are now in. So far, two female MPs have been elected and three former prime ministers may be in the running for the top job. Counting is still
Pacific nation hosts its biggest-ever election day
Ballots are due to be cast in one of the Pacific’s largest elections as Solomon Islanders, from the city to remote villages, choose their next national leaders. About 350,000 people are due to vote across 50 seats
Voters must re-register to participate in 2026 Samoa General Elections
All eligible voters in Samoa including Samoa’s diaspora must register or re-register to vote in the next general elections in 2026. Savali News reported the Office of the Electoral Commissioner is already on the
Opinion: Decriminalisation of same-sex relations in Cook Islands
On 14 April 2023, during the second reading of the Crimes (Sexual Offence) Amendment Bill 2023, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, in this speech, said: We are a free country, we have freedom of speech, we have
CARE Leader calls for peaceful and respectful elections, 6,780 polling officials for 2024 joint elections
The Solomon Islands Leader of the Coalition for Accountability, Reform and Empowerment (CARE) Matthew Wale, who employed a character-assassination campaign approach in this year’s election campaign and sparked
Tonga to build 200 prefab houses for PIF leaders meeting as accommodation falls short
The Tongan Government plans to build 200 houses for the Pacific Forum leaders meeting in August, as accommodation falls short, the Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku told a media in Nuku’alofa. Tonga will host
Solomon Islands declares public holiday on Election day, liqour ban
Solomon Islands Government had declared Wednesday 17 April 2024 as a public holiday for the conduct of national, provincial and Honiara City Council elections. The caretaker Minister of Home Affairs, Christopher Laore
Tonga PM announces minor reshuffle, resignations as ‘Utoikamanu moves to Communication
Tongan Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni has confirmed his resignation as Minister of His Majesty’s Armed Forces. He also confirmed the resignation of Fekita ‘Utoikamanu as Minister of Tourism and
2024 joint ballot papers arrived safely in Solomon Islands
The Solomon Islands official ballot papers for the 2024 Joint Election are printed and have now arrived in the country on Tuesday this week. The ballot papers totaling a record of 1 million, cater to voter numbers in a
Opinion: Uncharted waters II: an update on politics in Tonga
Tonga’s Crown Prince Tupouto’a ‘Ulukalala recently led a government delegation to the second Japan-Pacific Islands Defence Dialogue. Members of his delegation included the current Prime Minister’s defence
Australia and Tuvalu deal back on track, as Falepili Union gets ratification green light
Australia’s Pacific Minister Pat Conroy says Tuvalu’s new government has formally agreed to begin ratifying the landmark Falepili Union with Australia, delivering the federal government a significant foreign policy
Reports Tonga PM has resigned from Defence to ‘appease’ king says government source
The Tongan Independent has reported that Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni and Minister Utoikamanu of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had resigned from the portfolios. Senior sources within the Tongan
Nauruan president starts six-day China visit
Nauru President David Adeang arrived in Beijing on Sunday, embarking on a six-day state visit to China from Sunday to 29 March. It marks the first visit by a Nauruan president after the two countries resumed
Former Cook Islands Deputy PM jailed on fraud and corruption charges
Former Cook Islands deputy Prime Minister Robert Tepaitau and two other former high-ranking Government officials were handed jail terms Friday for fraud and corruption charges. Tepaitau has been jailed for two years and
“When are we going back?” – Nuclear Displacement in the Marshall Islands
Gina Langinbelik Anuntak is a student at the College of the Marshall Islands (CMI). She is President of the CMI Nuclear Club, a student association that unites Marshallese students to understand the legacies of the 20th
Opinion: Tonga MP Piukaka’s rhetoric about the King hand picking Noble MPs is a serious threat to our half-cooked democracy
Member of Parliament Piveni Piukala’s proposal to revoke Tonga’s current nobility electoral system to allow the king to hand pick them for Parliament would be a fatal blow to Tonga’s fragile democracy. It flies in
CNMI seeks to address fiscal crisis
CNMI leaders on Sunday announced plans to revise the government’s current budget to address the “urgent fiscal challenges” facing the commonwealth. “While it’s not easy to share this news, I believe we
