Pacific voice grows in NZ
Islanders influence election outcome Auckland: Over 330,000 Pacific people living in New Zealand now have a bigger voice in parliament following September’s General Election which saw the National Party re-elected
Politics
US seeks dismissal as nuke lawsuit gains support
Islanders’ justice bill nears US$2.3 billion When the Marshall Islands filed legal action in late April against nine nuclear nations at the International Court of Justice and against the United States in federal
Tokelau meeting approves south Albacore Tuna plan
FFA ministers endorse Atafu Declaration Fisheries Ministers in the Pacific have endorsed moves they hope would lead to better management of the south Pacific albacore tuna fisheries both in their 200 miles exclusive
Emotional fall-out overnuclear test memorial
Flosse tries to move shrine from park Even though the last nuclear test in the Pacific was conducted nearly 20 years ago, the commemoration of the atomic era still causes debate in French Polynesia. President Gaston
Kiribati plans livestock and farms on Fiji property
Kiribati President Anote Tong has brushed aside criticism of his government’s decision to buy the Natoavatu Estate land in Fiji at a price of AU$9.3 million. Despite popular belief. Tong says the 5461 acres of
Fisheries expert hurries off with stern warning
Tuna depletion rate death threat to industry Majuro — Glenn Hurry is the first of two important and long-term fisheries management officials to be leaving regional posts over the next six months. Hurry, after four
Fiji prepares for first poll under new constitution
The countdown to Fiji’s first General Election under its new Constitution is well underway with the country’s long-established political parties vying to out-maneuver 2006 coup leader, and incumbent Prime
PNG lobbies for its SG nominee
Melanesians vie for top forum post It is not new. Nor is it unknown. As a matter of fact, the race for a Melanesianled economic dominance in the South Pacific has been an on-off, on-again, off again preoccupation of
New Caledonia elections reaffirm divisions
Philippe Gomes is a happy man. His anti-independence party Calédonie Ensemble has done well in New Caledonia’s elections, gaining more seats than the conservative RassemblementUMP (RUMP) Party that has long dominated
Three Opposition MPs suspended in Nauru
Crackdown against critics continues Police intervention was required twice in Nauru’s parliament as government and opposition MPs clashed over the suspension of three Opposition members last month. The standoff
Palau seeks direct air links with PNG
One northern Pacific state has almost secured what has been a remote aviation dream shared by many of its small island neighbours – to get to its larger South Pacific island neighbours at as short a time and
Samoa
Ruling HRPP bows to growing pressure After several months of debate, secret meetings and petitions, the decision came down to the Samoan Minister of Finance, Faumuina Tiatia Faaolatane Liuga for him to heed the calls to
“A world free of nuclear weapons”
Pacific calls for elimination of WMD Pacific governments have endorsed a call for a legally binding agreement to ban nuclear weapons at a major international summit discussing the humanitarian consequences of nuclear
Marshalls’ Attorney General tackles fraud
Three charged in alleged Majuro Hospital scam Three people have now been charged with a combined 142 criminal charges in the Marshall Islands High Court, charges that allege a pharmacy company bribed Ministry of Health
UN sends mission to New Caledonia
Debates over electoral rolls and alliances The United Nations has sent a delegation to New Caledonia in the lead up to crucial municipal and provincial elections as supporters and opponents of independence joust over
French Navy seized Chinese fishing boat
Maritime border dispute flares up again Sea border dispute between Vanuatu and New Caledonia has resulted in the arrest and conviction of a Chinese boat captain and members of his crew. New Caledonian maritime
Judicial shake-up in Nauru
Opposition MPs decry deportations Nauru’s Opposition has described the treatment of two of its highest judicial officers in the land as contempt for the rule of law. Opposition leader Mathew Batsiua alleged that
From Mexico to the Marshalls
Castaway survives 14-month Pacific ordeal Late in 2012, El Salvadorian fisherman Jose Salvador Alvarenga and his Mexican companion Ezequiel Cordoba left southern Mexico in a 24-foot boat for a day of shark fishing. They
At 60, legacy of Bravo still reverberates
MUnresolved issues remain to be resolved March 1 is a national holiday in the Marshall Islands marking the day the Bravo hydrogen bomb was exploded at Bikini Atoll, spewing radioactive fallout on islands around the
Dual citizenship
Govt hopes to raise over US$98m The creation of dual citizenship in Vanuatu through constitutional change has created two fiercely opposing camps in a debate that refuses to die. In one corner are the purists, led by
New benchmarks for Australian aid
Bishop announces ODA cuts and reviews As Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop joined members of the Pacific Islands Forum Ministerial Contact Group (MCG) in Suva last month, she highlighted Australia’s new
Fiji back from the cold?
FiMCG anticipates Fiji’s full Forum participation Fiji is coming back in from the cold. Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama’s announcement that he would step down as military commander on February 28, then on
PM Lilo on a cleanup footing
But will he have the time to complete the job? As his nation prepares for the national general election later this year, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Gordon Darcy Lilo, is a man whose leadership is under siege. And he