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Dawn service at Pangai will mark ANZAC Day in Tonga 100 years after Battle of the Somme

By
Philip Cass
-

This year ANZAC Day commemorates the centenary of two important events during the First World War – the Battle of the Somme and the arrival of a New Zealand army recruiting team in Tonga.

The Tongans were among many Pacific islanders who served in the New Zealand, Australian, or French armed forces during the First World War.

Most of the initial volunteers from Tonga were Europeans or part-Europeans who joined the British, New Zealand or Australian armies.

In 1916, a recruiting team visited Tonga and persuaded a number of men to sign up.

Many volunteers from Tonga served with Maori or Cook Islands units.

While the disastrous Gallipoli campaign is traditionally the focus of ANZAC Day, the western front in France and Belgium was where most Australian and New Zealand units served as part of the British army.

On July 1, 1916, the Allies launched a massive attack on the German lines in the Somme River area of France. The attack was a disaster, which left 60,000 British troops dead or wounded on the first day.

The New Zealand Division was committed to the battle in September. Of the 15,000 men who went into action 6000 were wounded and 2000 killed. More than half of them have no known grave.

The Battle of the Somme dragged on for four months before the winter rains turned the ground into such a quagmire that movement was impossible.

By the time the attack was called off, more than 600,000 British and French soldiers were killed, wounded or missing in action. The Germans lost more than 650,000 soldiers. After more than one million soldiers on both sides had been killed or wounded, the allies had advanced just eight kilometres

A statement from the New Zealand High Commission in Tonga said April 25 had become a day of national reflection.

“Tongans, New Zealanders and Australians pause to remember and honour men and women who have served and sacrificed in war, conflicts and peace operations.

“It is a time to remember those who returned and those who did not and also reflect on the impact their service had on those who remained at home.”

To commemorate ANZAC day in Tonga, a dawn service will be held at 6am on Monday 25 April at the cenotaph at Pangai.

Captain Sila Siufanga, Regional Commander of the Salvation Army, will be the Officiating Minister.

Those attending are asked to be seated by 5.45am. Medals may be worn.

The main points

  • This year ANZAC Day marks the centenary of two important events during the First World War – the Battle of the Somme and the arrival of a New Zealand army recruiting team in Tonga.
  • The Tongans were among many Pacific islanders who served in the New Zealand, Australian, or French armed forces during the First World War.
  • In 1916, a recruiting team visited Tonga and persuaded a number of men to sign up.
  • Many volunteers from Tonga served with Maori or Cook Islands units.

Read more

https://kanivatonga.co.nz/2015/04/tongans-remember-volunteers-from-the-islands-who-served-in-first-world-war/

Christine Liava’a Koe Kau To’a Na’anau Poletau. Valiant Volunteers: Soldiers from Tonga in the Great War. You can contact the author at cliavaa@gmail.com if you would like to buy her book.

Tonga in World War One

Passion for History (Fiji Times interview with Christine Liava’a)

WWI: Tongan soldiers struggled in a strange land (New Zealand Herald)

Anzac Day in the Pacific

Moimoi’s brush with death

By
Kalino Latu
-

“IF you weren’t a fit footballer, you’d probably be dead.”

These were the chilling words former Parramatta cult hero Fuifui Moimoi was faced with after a bout of the flu turned into two weeks in intensive care with a serious infection.

Speaking to The Saturday Telegraph from his hospital bed in the north of England, Moimoi admitted he feared for his life when the infection started invading his body in the space of days.

“I was ready to go to training, but my body was weak,” recalled Moimoi, who is now playing for the Leigh Centurions in the English Championship.

“I decided to stay home and sleep and when I woke up the next day my temperature and heart rate was really high and I couldn’t stand up.

“I also couldn’t lift my arm because it started puffing up and I was in a lot of pain.

“Luckily one of my Tongan mates was staying with me for a couple of days and he rushed me straight to see the club doctor.”

Moimoi was now in a bad way.

His body was losing strength by the minute, while one arm and hand had blown up to resemble a human marshmallow man.

Moimoi
Moimoi spent two weeks in hospital. Photo/Daily Telegraph

Leigh owner Derek Beaumont saw Moimoi turn up to the club in a weak and lethargic state.

“The team doctor saw Fui and he knew something wasn’t right and sent him straight to the hospital,” Beaumont said.

“He had drips on him all over the place because the infection was shutting his body down.

“When he went into hospital his temperature was 41.7 and his heart rate was 130 while he was laid down relaxed.

“He had some kind of infection in his arm, which was spreading throughout his body and causing a lot of pain, but thankfully we stopped all of that.

“Fui is still weak and has lost about 15 kilos, but he is getting better.

“The main thing is he is okay, because the doctors said because he waited so long to get help it would have taken a lesser man out.”

It’s a reality that certainly hasn’t been lost on Moimoi, even though he left hospital on Friday after almost a fortnight.

“I’m just happy I’m still here — I’m very lucky and blessed,” he said.

“I’ve started walking around in the last two days, but the last eight days prior to that I’ve been in pain the whole time.”

Despite losing a significant amount of weight and strength, Moimoi was in good spirits on Friday when his wife and two children arrived from the United States to visit him.

Beaumont also confirmed the bookend has rediscovered his famed appetite.

“Fui is asking for the good old Burger King and KFC, so he must be on the mend,” he joked.

“The physio said to him he can eat what he wants and as much of it because he has got to build his body back up again.

“But we’re just glad Fui is okay, because it could have been a lot worse.”

– dailytelegraph.com.au

Reforms announced for Tonga by World Rugby

By
Kaniva Staff
-

World Rugby, the Tonga Rugby Union (TRU) and the Tongan government have agreed a package of reforms designed to address ongoing governance concerns within the union and support the future sustainable growth of rugby in Tonga.

Based on a common commitment to preserve and promote rugby development, the positive and constructive meetings in Nuku’alofa, set out to deliver an equitable solution regarding a number of unresolved administration and governance issues, the union’s debt and outstanding legal cases.

The agreed strategies include: Establishment of a 10-year tripartite funding agreement, encompassing all annual World Rugby, government and TRU funding, committed to the growth of rugby in Tonga in line with good governance criteria

Establishment of a joint management committee – comprising representatives of World Rugby, Tongan government and the TRU to oversee all aspects of the TRU high-performance programme

The re-establishment of the Tonga National Rugby Academy to include world-class player pathways and player welfare programmes to provide locally based players with a clear pathway to national team selection

A restructure of the World Rugby development investment programme to facilitate the re-invigoration of competitions in the outer islands, including ‘Eua, Ha’apai and Vavau.

World Rugby Chairman of the Rugby Committee, John Jeffrey, who attended the meetings, said: “Tonga holds a special place in the history and future of rugby and rugby holds a special place in the cultural, economic and social fabric of the kingdom.

“We are committed to working with the Tongan government and union to address the apparent issues and this prudent support package is a reflection of our collective commitment to rugby in Tonga and World Rugby’s ongoing support of rugby in the Pacific Islands.

“This collaboration and investment will provide an environment to further grassroots development for the wider rugby family in Tonga, while strengthening the high performance environment that provides a dedicated pathway for local players to represent Tonga on the international stage.

“Good governance is central to World Rugby membership and World Rugby remains committed to rugby in Tonga and supporting a robust and sustainable administrative and governance framework within the union that will enable the union to prosper on and off the field of play.

“This support package will also provide a pathway and an opportunity for the union to strive to gain eventual representation on an expanded World Rugby Council and we will work closely with the union to ensure that they have the ability to achieve the requisite good governance criteria.”

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Cabinet approves new pay structure for public servants in move described as a milestone

By
Philip Cass
-

Tonga’s public servants will have a new pay structure from July 1.

The new pay structure is part of the Second Remuneration Report which was approved by cabinet yesterday.

A government press release yesterday said the decision marked a new milestone for the public service.

“The current salary structure was established back in the 1970s and it is outdated and contained a lot of anomalies for a lot of positions and salary scales,” the statement said.

“The first attempt by the Government to reform the salary structure was in 2005, which unfortunately resulted in the public service strike.

“Lessons learned from 2005 were taken into account by the current Government in revisiting this important initiative for the public service.”

The Second Remuneration Report was submitted to Cabinet by the Remuneration Authority in November 2015. Cabinet ordered the Remuneration Authority to work with the Public Service Commission on ways to implement the report and make it available it to all chief executive officers for consultation.

Consultations were completed in March and the final report handed to Cabinet.

Work on implementing the report will be undertaken by the Public Service Commission, the Ministry of Finance and Planning and the Remuneration Authority.

Prime Minister, Samuela ‘Akilisi Pohiva said if the various bodies worked with the public service there would be a smooth transition to the new salary structure.

He said proper mechanisms would be established to deal with anomalies and complaints fairly and satisfactorily.

The Minister for Finance and National Planning said the decision to approve the report sent a signal to the kingdom’s development partners that the government was working on reforming the public service.

The new remuneration structure is linked directly to the performance of public service employees and the government’s commitment to improve service to the public.

The Public Service Commission is working with the Remuneration Authority in the preparatory work for the implementation of this new framework.

Cabinet also approved the First Remuneration Report submitted by the Remuneration Authority in 2014. The report will be updated and also effective from July1.

The first report recommended remuneration structures for officers listed in the schedule to the Remuneration Authority Act 2010 which included Cabinet Ministers, Legislative Assembly Staff, Judges, Members of Court of Appeal, Tribunals and Statutory Boards, His Majesty’s Armed Forces, Ministry of Police, Prison and Fire Services and positions not covered in the Public Service Act.

The main points

  • Tonga’s public servants will have a new pay structure from July 1.
  • The new pay structure is part of the Second Remuneration Report which was approved by cabinet yesterday.
  • A government press release yesterday said the decision marked a new milestone for the public service.
  • “The current salary structure was established back in the 1970s and it is outdated and contained a lot of anomalies for a lot of positions and salary scales,” the statement said.

Police warn escaped prisoner is ʻvery dangerous’

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tonga Police have warned that a prisoner who escaped while he was being taken to court on Tuesday 12  is very dangerous, and should not be approached.

Dangerous
Heamani Lōpeti

Heamani Lopeti, 40, is still serving prison sentences for various offences including armed robbery.

Police have appealed to the public for information about the 1.82m height and black hair prisoner.

Police said Heamani according to record lived in Ma’ufanga in Tongatapu.

Tongan families get affordable cyclone-proof homes

By
Kalino Latu
-

The New Zealand’s Habitat for Humanity’s  CEO Claire Szabo was in Nukuʻalofa to meet with Government of the Kingdom of Tonga Deputy Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni to sign a memorandum of understanding.

Ms Szabo said the agreement was focused on a commitment to the families of Tonga and provide them with affordable, cyclone-resistant homes.

“Habitat is committed to responding in times of disaster to all nations of the Pacific, and we’re pleased today to formalise our focus on responding to families in Tonga whose shelter may have been affected by disaster such as cyclones.”

“However, this agreement isn’t limited to a ‘bottom of the cliff’ response,” Ms Szabo said.

“We’re also very much looking forward to progressing work with families in Tonga whose shelter may not be adequate to withstand future disasters, through development projects, and this is a desire we’re pleased to share with the government of Tonga.”

Ms Szabo said the charity had been active in the Pacific for many years and was currently undertaking a partnership project in Samoa, continuing with rebuilding and housing resilience projects following the devastation of Tropical Cyclone Evan in 2012. Habitat was also working alongside Habitat for Humanity Fiji in the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Winston.

The signing of the memorandum of understanding was witnessed by New Zealand Member of Parliament Jenny Salesa.

New barrack indicates Tonga Police moves to recruit more women

By
Kaniva Staff
-

More women are expected to join Tonga Police in July and that recruit squad  is targeted to have more women than men.

The new police barrack opened in Nuku’alofa today was part of the Ministry’s endeavour to provide decent and modern accommodation to cater for the new female recruits.

These statements were taken from what Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva and Police Commissioner Steve Caldwell said in speeches they made while they commissioned the new police barrack at the Tonga Police Academy in Longolongo today.

The TP$1,053,468 buildings funded by New Zealand and Australia comprised of a training room, 20 bed rooms furnished with a table and a chair,  a wardrope as well as a toilet block.

“These new police barracks and training room facility avails Tonga Police of much needed upgraded accommodation that supports the effectiveness of the accredited Tonga Police College in the delivery of training to Tonga Police at all levels, from recruit to upcoming Tonga Police leaders,” Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pohiva said.

Police Commissioner Stephen Caldwell said the new building means an opportunity to bring in more police officers to Police.

“This day not only represents the opening of a new building but it opens the door to our future vision for the Tonga Police College, being a centre of learning excellence for our police officers,” Caldwell said.

Barrack1
A fully furnished room for the new recruits. Photo/supplied

“The purpose of this building is to accommodate our new recruits commencing in July, it will house our female recruits. I have clearly signaled that I wish the next recruit intake to be 50% women recruits.”

Hon. ‘Akilisi Pohiva in his keynote address said the new building would benefit Tonga’s Police College in its delivery of training to new recruits.

“These new police barracks and training room facility avails Tonga Police of much needed upgraded accommodation that supports the effectiveness of the accredited Tonga Police College in the delivery of training to Tonga Police at all levels, from recruit to upcoming Tonga Police leaders,” he said.

“These barracks and the land behind it will be used for the construction of a solar system to enhance the operation capacity of Tonga Police through access to a reliable source of electricity. This is also a crucial initiative that supports the commitment of the Tongan Government to reducing carbon emissions through renewable energy.”

The new barracks was designed by the Kramer Ausenco architects and built by the Yanjian Construction.

More Tongans and Fijians qualified for Rio Olympic

By
Alpha Latu
-

Two Tongans and One Fijian will book their ticket to Rio in the next couple of months after they were successful at the archery Olympic qualifier in Tonga yesterday.

Fiji’s Robert Elder, Tonga’s Sifa Taumoepeau and Lusi Tatafu were three new faces to add on to the two nations’ lists of Rio Olympians.

Last month Pita Taufatofua of Tonga became the first Tongan to qualify for the Rio Olympics after winning gold at the Oceania Taekwondo Qualifiers in Port Moresby.

Fiji table tennis youngster Sally Yee was qualified at the International Table Tennis Federation-Oceania Olympic Games qualification tournament in Bendigo, Australia in March.

Fiji’s men’s football team, men’s rugby sevens team as well as women’s rugby sevens were all qualified for the upcoming summer Olympics after they each won their Olympic qualifying finals in 2015.

In June Tongan competitive swimmer Amini Fonua who won three golds at the 2015 Pacific Games will compete in Fiji at the Oceania Swimming Championship to see if he can be qualified for the Olympic.

READ MORE:

Tonga hosts archery Olympic qualifier, Prince opens competition

Dead baby was victim of poverty says judge as he acquits parents in case he calls “tragic”

By
Philip Cass
-

An eight month old boy who died of vomiting and diarrhoea was the victim of poverty, the Tongan Supreme Court has ruled.

The Hon. Justice Cato described the case as tragic.

He made the statement in acquitting the child’s parents of charges of manslaughter by negligence.

He said the child’s death was avoidable, but that the baby and his parents were victims of poverty.

He said the parents were “perhaps lacking also in education and awareness.”

He said the defendants, Siulolovao Mafi and Teni Latu were very  ordinary  Tongan  people, living by   hand  to  mouth by  Mr  Latu’s  fishing. They lived in very  basic  accommodation  with four  children.

The child died at the beginning of 2014 after being ill for several days.

He became ill on January 30 of that year and died on February 2. He was not attended by a doctor and was not taken to hospital.

Dr Aho, a paediatrician at the Vaola Hospital, gave the cause of death as dehydration. Dr Aho said if the child had been brought to the hospital as late as the morning of February 2 and been treated, he would have lived.

The Crown’s case was that the accused grossly  neglected  their child over this period, rendering them liable to an offence of manslaughter by negligence or in the  alternative  had  both  been guilty  of  wilful  neglect  by  not  seeking  medical  assistance or taking  the  child  to hospital.

Hon. Justice Cato said that when considering his verdict, he took into account, among other matters, whether somebody in the same position as the boy’s parents would consider their conduct criminal.

He said neither of them seemed to fully understand how serious their baby’s condition was and in any case they were absolutely destitute and had no money with which to take their child to hospital several kilometres away.

He said that Mafi had relied on the wife for an assessment of the boy’s condition and had also spoken to his own mother. Tongan medicine had been tried, but failed. Teni’s sister believed the boy was possessed because they lived near a cemetery.

A local pastor was called to pray for the boy, but he too had apparently failed to realise the seriousness of the boy’s condition.

The pastor arrived in a vehicle, but did not offer and was not asked to take the boy to hospital.

The father had tried to obtain a vehicle from his patents, but they refused to lend it to him.

Hon. Justice Cato dismissed a suggestion that the boy’s mother should have taken her son and tried to hitchhike several kilometres to the medical facility.

He said the child’s feeding  had been disrupted by  a  shortage  of  breast  milk  and  the  substitution  of  inadequate liquids  instead  of  formula  which  in  Tonga  is  expensive  and  he lost  weight.

The mother had been giving the boy Milo and water and she and her sister had tried to fed the baby with chicken, breadfruit and juice while he was ill.

The judge said inadequate  diet  or  hygiene  may  have  caused  his stomach   ailment.

He said the parents did not, in his view,  wilfully  neglect, or  abandon  their  child,  but sought  a vehicle  or  money  and  assistance  from  the  extended  family  which was  not  forthcoming.

“I do  not think  that  a parent  who  is  unable to take  a  sick  child to  the  hospital  because he  or  she  did  not  have  the  means  to  do  so  should  be  found  to have  wilfully  neglected  the  child,” Hon. Justice Cato said.

“Perhaps  they   may  have  done  more over  the  three  day  period,  but  taking  into  account  their  lack  of means  it is  not clear  to  me, on  the  evidence  I have  heard, what more   they   could   have   done.

“This   case is very sad and tragic.”

The main points

  • An eight month old boy who died of vomiting and diarrhoea was the victim of poverty, the Tongan Supreme Court has ruled.
  • The Hon. Justice Cato described the case as tragic.
  • He made the statement in acquitting the child’s parents of charges of manslaughter by negligence.
  • He said the child’s death was avoidable, but that the baby and his parents were victims of poverty.

Tongan appointed as Acting District Court Judge in New Zealand

By
Alpha Latu
-

Auckland barrister Mina Wharepouri, who has Tongan and Maori heritage has been appointed an Acting District Court Judge  to be based in Manukau.

The appointment was announced by Attorney-General Christopher Finlayson QC on Tuesday.

Wharepouri commenced his career with Kensington Swan in 1995.

He moved to Russell McVeagh in 1997 where he was counsel for several Māori claimants in proceedings in the High Court and Court of Appeal.

Between 2003 and 2011 Wharepouri worked for Meredith Connell leading District Court and High Court jury trials. He also trained police in matters relating to evidence and prosecution.

In 2012 Wharepouri became a barrister sole appearing regularly in District Court and High Court trials.

Judge Wharepouri, who  will be sworn in on 1 June 2016 in Manukau.

His mother is Melenaite Vaka, the daughter of Tēvita Vaka and Vinola Cook of Helemonga, Kolomotuʻa in Tongatapu, Tonga.

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