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Hon. Eke denies claim government will hike electricity bills to raise money for 2019 Games

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tonga’s Minister of Finance, Hon ʻAisake Eke has denied claims the government plans to increase electricity bills to raise money for the 2019 South Pacific Games.

Hon. Eke made the denial in the wake of claims by former Law Minister Clive Edwards that the government planned to increase electricity charges by imposing a six cents per kilowatt levy.

Kaniva News contacted the Minister for a response to Edwards’ allegations.

In response, Hon. Eke said: “Oku ikai ha mea pe he ia…oku teeki aupito ke omai ha fktuu pe he ia ki he Kapineti. (Translated: There is nothing like that….there was no such proposal submitted to Cabinet”.

In a letter written to Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pohiva on August 28, Edwards said it was obvious the government planned the increase as way of accumulating money for the Games.

Edwards demanded Hon. Pohiva confirm whether his allegation was true or not.

He told Hon. Pohiva the planned electricity rate hike would be a financial burden to the poor people of the nation.

Edwards also asked the Hon. Pohiva about the Democratic Party’s pre-election promise of a 15 percent decrease for electricity charges.

He said it was apparent the Party had not delivered its promise since it came to power eight months ago, nor was the cut included in the government’s 2015/16 budget.

Kaniva News has asked Edwards if he can provide us with the source of his allegations, but we are still waiting for his response.

Kaniva News has reliable information that when the Party won the election and formed the government it sought advice from experts on the possibility of reducing electricity charges as promised.

However, it was advised that a 15 percent cut was impossible as it would cost Tonga Power millions of paʻanga when there were hardly any other sources from which income could be raised.

One source suggested that if the government made its promise Tonga Power would lose up to tens of millions in income.

Before Tonga’s general election last November, the Democratic Party promised to cut rates for water and electricity by 15 percent.

The Party promised the following in its long term goals:

  • Cutting water and power prices by 15%
  • Increasing the provision of solar power to villages
  • Reviewing government board memberships
  • Implementing tax cuts
  • Reducing tax charges on freight from Tongans living overseas
  • Charging taxes on local flea markets to balance the reduction of charges on cargo from Tongan overseas.
  • Paying civil servants’ salary on time
  • Increasing the budget for fisheries by TP$1.3 million (NZ$834,000)
  • Reinstating the Planning Department and bringing it under the Prime Minister’s Office
  • Reviewing laws for subleasing of land by lease holders
  • Mortgaging of land to be limited to 15 years
  • Creating laws to control all government national assets
  • Reviewing the current electoral systems
  • Reviewing Asian immigration policy
  • Forming laws to control Chinese depositing money overseas.

Hon. Pohiva also announced that if the party was elected, within six months of achieving government it would take action in the following areas:

  • All government vehicles would operate only within working hours
  • All public servants and ministers would travel economy class when going overseas.
  • Overseas travel that had already been paid from overseas sources would not be paid for again by the government
  • All payment for government travel would be made by the Treasury
  • Taking control of ministers’ overseas travel to reduce spending
  • Reviewing government board members’ meeting policy that a one-hour meeting deserves payment for a whole day.
  • Banning fishing for sea cucumbers
  • Authorising villagers to look after their coastlines and beaches
  • Establishing a marketing authority to sell local produce and products overseas
  • Ensuring overseas fishing vessels have valid licenses
  • Reviewing government portfolios that come under one ministry

The main points

  • The government has denied claims it plans to increase electricity bills to raise money for the 2019 South Pacific Games.
  • Tonga’s Minister of Finance, Hon ʻAisake Eke, made the denial in the wake of claims by former Law Minister Clive Edwards that the government planned to increase electricity charges by imposing a six cents per kilowatt levy.
  • In a letter written to Prime Minister ʻAkilisi Pohiva on August 28, Edwards said it was obvious the government planned the increase to as way of accumulating money for the Games.
  • He told the Prime Minister the planned electricity rate hike would be a financial burden to the poor people of the nation.

Artist creates shoe from coconut leaves

By
Kalino Latu
-
A coconut leaf shoe that has been welcomed to Facebook as a bit of fun and some have asked what sizes are available so they could order a pair. Photo/Facebook

As Tongan Language Week comes to a close, social media users have been praising a picture of a shoe  made of coconut leaves that has appeared online.

The photo was posted to Facebook by Ngaluafē ‘Ulupano. He has yet to respond to our request for comments.

The idea surrounding the creation and the design and who made it is unknown to Kaniva News.

Although it’s quite obvious the shoe is not intended to be worn, the work of art received several approvals on Facebook.

Many said its appearance came at the right time as Tongans in Aotearoa mark Tongan Language Week.

The theme of the Tongan Language Week is “to enrich Aotearoa with Tongan arts”.

The creations and designing of art using coconut leaves is not uncommon in Tonga and other Pacific Islands.

Islanders can make items out of coconut leaves such as fans, eye-glasses, whistles, baskets and many others, but the shoe design is new to many.

The coconut leaf shoe was welcomed to Facebook as a bit of fun and some have asked what sizes are available so they could order a pair.

The Tongan Language Week will be concluded today and a free public talk is scheduled for this evening in Onehunga led by Professor Hūfanga ‘Ōkusi Māhina and others to mark the end of the historical week.

The main points

  • As Tongan Language Week comes to a close, social media users have been praising a picture of a shoe made of coconut leaves that has appeared online.
  • The photo was posted to Facebook by Ngaluafe ‘Ulupano.
  • The idea surrounding the creation and the design and who originally made it is unknown to Kaniva News.
  • Some commentators said its appearance came at the right time as Tongans in Aotearoa mark Tongan Language Week.

NZ Agree to accept 100 more refugees

By
Kaniva Staff
-
Syrian refugees. Warning: this article contains image that readers may find distressing

John Key’s government has bowed to pressure and accepted 100 more refugees from Syria to come to New Zealand.

The news has been revealed by the UNHCR spokesperson Ariane Rummery this morning to the The Nation. 

However critics said Hon. Key did not do enough with Opposition Leader Andrew Little saying the Government’s response to the refugee crisis must reflect the scale of the massive humanitarian disaster unfolding in Europe.

Hon Little said:  “the response must be proportionate to what New Zealand can offer these families who are fleeing for their lives with little more than the clothes on their backs.

The Green Party was disappointed and its Co-leader James Shaw said: “We understand from the United Nation High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that New Zealand will take 100 extra Syrian refugees on top of our regular quota of 750,”

“If reports are accurate, an extra 100 refugees to tackle such an enormous situation is a start, but a very disappointing start, unfortunately.

“Our quota allows for +/-10 percent already ie a maximum of 825. Therefore, an extra 100 refugees is only an extra 25 people on top our existing quota.

Child
Young boy found lying face-down on a beach near Turkish resort of Bodrum was one of at least 12 Syrians who drowned attempting to reach Greece. Photo/Reuters

“Once again, National is trying to look like it is doing something, without actually doing anything of significance.

“New Zealand needs to increase its quota permanently, not just do the bare minimum for just this year.

“On Tuesday, the Green Party will be seeking leave of Parliament to introduce Denise Roche’s Member’s Bill which will permanently increase our quota to at least 1000 refugees a year.

“It is heart-breaking to see children and their families fleeing a terrible situation with nowhere to go. We need to do more as a country.

“As an emergency response, 25 extra people is far too little, we prefer Labour’s Bill which will bring an additional 750 refugees into New Zealand this year,” said Mr Shaw.

Sacramento Police search for Tongan suspect following campus deadly shooting

By
Kaniva Staff
-

Sacramento police said they were still searching for a sole suspect, whom they described on Twitter as a “male Tongan, white shirt/beige cargo shorts, last seen fleeing (on) foot from the shooting.”

The gunman opened fire on the busy Sacramento City College campus Thursday afternoon killing one person and left two  people with serious injuries.

Sacramento Police Department spokeswoman Traci Trapani said the attack appeared to be an “isolated incident” rather than a campus shooting spree.

Free Wesleyan Church name can still be used in Australia, but way is open for legal action

By
Kalino Latu
-
Church in Sydney previously known as Pulelaʻā. Photo/Kevin Debaune (Facebook).

The fractured Free Wesleyan Church (FWC) in Australia can continue to use that name, even though it was de-registered on April 27, according to a New South Wales government spokesperson.

However, it appears the way is now open for the rival sides of the church in Australia to take legal action to stop the other side from using the name.

The FWC was de-registered after legal action by Westpac to recover millions of dollars owed to the bank by the Pulelaʻa church. The church lost its multi-million dollar church in Sydney and five other properties that were used for security of a loan.

The FWC in Australia is now split, with some staying under the leadership of the disgraced former FWC Superintendent of the Pulela’a church Matafonua Fotofili and others following the Rev Dr Siotame Havea, who was appointed by the church’s conference in Tonga to take over from Fotofili.

A spokesperson for New South Wales Fair Trading told Kaniva News that although the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga was no longer incorporated in New South Wales, it could continue to use the name.

An unincorporated entity could call itself whatever it wanted, she said.

Inevitably, questions have arisen over which congregation has the legal right to use the name.

“If another body with a same or similar name objects to the unincorporated association using the same or a similar name, the other body must take civil action to prevent the use of the name by the unincorporated organisation,” the spokesperson said.

The cancellation of the Association’s registration under the Act did not prevent the FWC in Australia from continuing its activities as a church, the spokesperson said.

An association did not gain authority or permission to undertake activities simply because it is registered under the Act.

“It is not compulsory for a not for profit organisation in NSW to register as an incorporated association under the Associations Incorporation Act 2009 (the Act),” the spokesperson said.

Tongan conference

Rev Fotofili has publicly claimed he and his FWC followers are in the FWC in Australia and that Rev Dr Soatame had defected and started a new church.

However, the Tongan conference’s General Secretary, Dr Tevita Havea, stated on Facebook last week that the only congregation the Tongan conference controlled in Australia was the congregation where Rev Matafonua Fotofili was previously superintendent.

Dr Havea said that the Tongan conference had decided to replace Matafonua with Rev. Dr Siotame Havea.

Dr Tēvita said there were other three FWC churches in Australia: These were the Fakaongo from the Tongan Parish (Uniting Church in Australia), and two congregations that broke away from Pulela’a church, the SUTT NSW led by Rev Tau Sailosi and the Nuku’alofa Church in Brisbane.

Dr Tēvita said these churches were free and not under the Tongan conference up to the present.

History

The loss of the Pulelaʻā caused disarray among church members that culminated in many breaking away, while some stayed in the church because they were promised benefactors would pay off their loans and brought back their properties.

However the Free Wesleyan Church’s 92nd conference in Tonga in July announced that the promises made to the Pulela’a congregation were untrue.

The conference was also told the ministers mismanaged the church’s properties in New South Wales. They were found guilty of professional misconduct by a team of investigators led by the Church’s Secretary General, Dr Tevita Havea in 2014.

As a result the conference decided to recall Rev Matafonua and his assistants to Tonga where they were supposed to work under the scrutiny of the President and attend counselling services.

However, since Rev Dr Havea started work in Australia in early August, Rev Fitiofili has continued to service some of the Pulela’a church followers and claimed they were the ones who held legal right to operate the church in Australia.

  • The main points
    The fractured Free Wesleyan Church (FWC) in Australia can continue to use that name, even though it was de-registered on April 27, according to a New South Wales government spokesperson.
  • However, it appears the way is now open for the rival sides of the church in Australia to take legal action to stop the other side from using the name.
  • The FWC was de-registered after legal action by Westpac to recover millions of dollars owed to the bank by the Pulelaʻa church. The church lost its multi-million dollar church in Sydney and five other properties that were used for security of a loan.
  • The FWC in Australia is now split, with some staying under the leadership of the disgraced former FWC Superintendent of the Pulela’a church Matafonua Fotofili and others following the Rev Dr Siotame Havea, who was appointed by the church’s conference in Tonga to take over from Fotofili
  • For more information
    Tonga pastors get counselling but no ministries (RNZI)

Rev Fotofili claims FCW in Australia has split (Kaniva News)

Photos of Princess Pilolevu walking on women’s back in Sydney stir online debate

By
Kalino Latu
-

Photos of women lying on the ground while Princess Pilolevu Tuita walked on their backs have stirred mixed reactions on social media.

Some  commentators used the word ‘primitive’ to describe the display, while others said it was a traditional act of respect.

The photos were apparently shot at a Holonga, Vava’u’s village day, in Sydney, Australia, last  Saturday.

The photos and video taken at the scene, where a number of women lay face down on what appeared to be a concrete floor, went viral on Facebook.

While many made positive comments, some said it was uncivilized and others criticised the Princess for not telling the women to stop what they were doing.

However, a witness said the Princess did not walk on the women’s backs, but stepped over them and put her feet in the spaces between the women while they were lying face down.

Many said they worried that the women could be physically harmed by the Princess walking on them.

Some supporters of the Princess tried to convince critics that this was something any Tongan could do and was not just for a royal prerogatives.

The report drew surprised comments from people from other cultures.

A post on the Samoa Koko Café Facebook page said: “Who knew this manifestation of respect still existed today in the Pacific? Her Royal Highness Princess Pilolevu of the Kingdom of Tonga (one of the oldest monarchy’s in the world) is pictured here walking over “commoners” as they [lie] on the ground as a mark of respect and honour to their majesty.”

In response, Mereani Sau Dawaii wrote: “It reminds me in some parts of Fiji, when there’s a wedding. The women from the men’s family will form two lines sitting closely to one another [with] their legs out. They will have mats and tapa covering their feet and the new bride will walk from one end to the other. I think it’s beautiful and all I can see in this pic is respect.”

Michael Field, a veteran New Zealand journalist who has covered the Pacific, also wrote about the images, saying: “This is why, in Tonga, the royal word for a commoner is ‘kainanga ‘o e fonua’ – dirt eaters.”

On the same post where Field commented, Indira Moala a Tongan reporter for Radio New Zealand International wrote:  “And though it’s hard for others to believe, it’s actually an act that many commoners are excited and honoured to do (smile emoticon). Other commoners watching, normally cheer them on in support, or admire their humility to “to ki lalo” – the humble act of falling down.”

Misi Fifita wrote: “Let’s just get one thing straight. This photo is from Holonga Day on Saturday and I was there when this happened. She ‘DID NOT’ step or walk on these people pictured. She stepped in between them. So before you run your mouth, criticise and judge, make sure you have the facts. Ask anyone who was there. She refused to walk on them. People refused to move unless she did. So she walked in between people (not stepping on anyone) to make them happy and to get them up.”

Euphoric mood

The practice is not uncommon in Tonga and is not something that can only involves members of the royal family and nobles.

It is not a formal practice and people are not obliged to perform it during Tongan celebrations and entertainment.

The Tongan saying depicts it this way: “Fakapuna pe ‘e he māfana” (It was stirred to action by the overwhelming emotion one gets when she or he enjoys the celebration).

It can be seen anywhere whenever Tongan celebrants are euphoric or overjoyed and not only in big celebrations.

A small entertainment in a Tongan family home can be enjoyed to the point that the party goers will climb on tables and chairs and even roll on the floor.

There are several other cultural exercises that are aligned with it, such as laupisi ‘eiki, when the commoners have to do something that may look nonsensical when the royals are around. Its purpose is to highlight the presence of royals or nobility.

The main points

  • Photos of women lying on the ground while Princess Pilolevu Tuita walked on their backs have stirred mixed reactions on social media.
  • Some commentators used the word ‘primitive’ to describe the display, while others said it was a traditional act of respect.
  • The photos were apparently shot at a Holonga, Vava’u’s village day, in Sydney, Australia, last
  • The photos and video take at the scene, where a number of women lay face down on what appeared to be a concrete floor, went viral on Facebook.

Final four flags chosen before New Zealand vote

By
Kaniva Staff
-

Here are the four flag designs that eligible voters will rank in the first binding postal referendum this year, between 20 November and 11 December.

From the 10,292 alternative designs suggested to the Panel, four have been selected to be ranked by New Zealand in the first binding referendum this year.

Here you can learn more about these designs, see them in context and meet the people who designed them.

Silver Fern (Black & White) Designed by Alofi Kanter Official Description The dominant feature of this flag is a black and white fern frond. The fern frond sweeps diagonally up from the bottom left corner to the top right corner of the flag. The leaves and the stem on the top side of the fern are black on a white background. The leaves and the stem on the bottom side are white on a black background. Designer’s Description The fern has been a distinctive symbol of New Zealand for the past 100 years. Strong and simple, it represents our uniqueness as Aotearoa New Zealand and the black and white colours show our ‘yin and yang’, with the softly curved spine of the frond binding us all together as a young, independent and proud nation. Credit for the fern goes to The New Zealand Way Limited.

flag13

Silver Fern (Black, White and Blue) Designed by: Kyle Lockwood Official Description The dominant feature of this flag is a white fern frond that sweeps up diagonally from the bottom left corner to the right of the top centre. The left side of the fern is sitting on a red background. To the right of the fern there are four stars in the formation of the Southern Cross constellation, sitting on a blue background. Each star is red with a white border, and has five points. Designer’s Description The silver fern: A New Zealand icon for over 160 years, worn proudly by many generations. The fern is an element of indigenous flora representing the growth of our nation. The multiple points of the fern leaf represent Aotearoa’s peaceful multicultural society, a single fern spreading upwards represents that we are all one people growing onward into the future. The red represents our heritage and sacrifices made. Blue represents our clear atmosphere and the Pacific Ocean, over which all New Zealanders, or their ancestors, crossed to get here. The Southern Cross represents our geographic location in the antipodes. It has been used as a navigational aid for centuries and it helped guide early settlers to our islands

flag14

Koru Designed by Andrew Fyfe Official Description The right half of this flag is black. At the halfway point of the flag the black forms a koru on a white background. The black koru spirals down and to the left from the top of the flag. Designer’s Description As our flag unfurls, so too does its koru. The koru represents the fern frond, but is also reminiscent of a wave, a cloud, and a ram’s horn. In Māori kowhaiwhai patterns the koru represent new life, growth, strength and peace, and for this reason has taken a special place in Aotearoa’s visual language.

flag12

Silver Fern (Red, White and Blue) Designed by: Kyle Lockwood Official Description The dominant feature of this flag is a white fern frond that sweeps up diagonally from the bottom left corner to the right of the top centre. The left side of the fern is sitting on a red background. To the right of the fern there are four stars in the formation of the Southern Cross constellation, sitting on a blue background. Each star is red with a white border, and has five points. Designer’s Description The silver fern: A New Zealand icon for over 160 years, worn proudly by many generations. The fern is an element of indigenous flora representing the growth of our nation. The multiple points of the fern leaf represent Aotearoa’s peaceful multicultural society, a single fern spreading upwards represents that we are all one people growing onward into the future. The red represents our heritage and sacrifices made. Blue represents our clear atmosphere and the Pacific Ocean, over which all New Zealanders, or their ancestors, crossed to get here. The Southern Cross represents our geographic location in the antipodes. It has been used as a navigational aid for centuries and it helped guide early settlers to our islands.

Falg 11

 

Tongan composers spelled out the name of their beloved in their song lyrics

By
Kalino Latu
-

Tongan punakes or composers, choreographer and musicians, composed songs to tell of their love or someone else’s love to young women or men.

Apart from the selection of lyrics and music, they used various  patterns to identify the lover or young women for whom the songs were composed.

Among these patterns was the practice of putting the letters of her name in the first line of each verse.

One of Tonga’s well-known composers, the late Feke Tutuʻila Malupō, used this type of pattern in his songs.

Some time in the 1930s he composed a song many called ‘Pehe Ange Mai,’ or ‘Were It Still Dawn.’

The song was composed for a chiefly young girl named Hepisipa Tuʻipulotu Kakala Pakileata Fohe Guttenbeil. In her youth she was widely known as Paki (from Pakileata) while she was enrolled at the nun’s boarding school at ‘Ahopanilolo in Maʻufanga.

The song has four verses and Malupō used the letters of her name, Paki, to start every verse of the song.

It was not clear who asked Malupō to compose the song, but one source claimed it was a member of the nobility.

The nobleman was ageing while Paki was young and still at school.

The song explains how the lover complained to himself  that he was getting old and wishing he was still young so he could court and wed the young girl.

Paki’s daughter, Yvette Guttenbeil, told Kaniva News she had been told that in her youth her mother was a good looking woman who had long hair and was known for her smiling face.

Yvette said her mother was born in 1923 and died in 2011 at the age of 88.

The tune:

You can find the link to the song below. It was first recorded by string band while the link below is a re-record in modern style of music.

One of the methods used by the Tongan punakes to compose the music of their new songs was to re-arrange a melody of an existing song they like.

They just hummed the tune while playing an instrument or worked on the melody, re-arranging it to create a new tune. Mostly they re-arranged foreign songs.

A Kaniva News inquiry found that  Malupō re-arranged the hymn tune ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus,’ the lyrics of which were written by Joseph M. Scriven in 1855 to comfort his mother who was living in Ireland while he was in Canada.

The lyrics were put to music by Charles Crozat Converse in 1868 and it eventually became one of the most well-known Christian hymns.

It was brought to Tonga when the late Dr Egan Moulton established the Free Wesleyan Church’s Tupou College in 1886. Moulton kept the music, but translated the lyrics  into Tongan and it is known as ‘Monū e Ka ko Ha Monū.’

The lyrics: 

Pehe ange mai ‘oku kei pongipongi

Ke u tuli e mafua siʻoku loto ni

Mafuli e Kaniva pea u ‘iloʻi

Kuo launoa si’ete toe holi

Amusia mu’a siʻa uini ua

Mo e ‘ea haufano ‘i ‘olunga

Angi e Tonga anga e lulunga

Neʻineʻi hala ‘ete fakaʻutoʻuta

Kulukona kumi mai pe ‘oku ‘i fe

‘E te fika ‘uluaki ‘i he kolope

Ne u siutaka peá u toki ‘iloʻi

Ko hoto meʻite ngalu tuku koe ‘i onopooni

‘I sa siʻete fakaʻamu ‘o ka efiafi

Ki he ‘ete nusi mo ‘ete lolo naʻati

‘Ahopanilolo ‘oku ne ‘alaha ai

Fangufangumohe kae māvaetangi

Translated:

Were it still dawn

So I could pursue the desires of my heart

As the milky way turns I realise

That the yearning of my heart are in vain

Oh blessed double wind

And the cool breeze from above

South wind blows, westerly wind blows,

No wonder why my discernment was mistaken

Kulukona search for where

Is my first choice in the globe

I have flown afar and thus discovered

That you are my last consolation of modern times.

Alas I long as the sun sets

For my nusi and my scented oil

‘Ahopanilolo sends its fragrance

And awakens me to my heart rendering departure.

For more information

‘Monu e Ka ko Ha Monu.’

Pehe ange mai

Police investigate two suspects over Muitoa horrific beating

By
Kalino Latu
-

UPDATED: Haʻapai Police are investigating after a 12-year-old was allegedly abducted and horrifically beaten  by two men in their 20s  in Muitoa, Kauvai Island, Haʻapai on August 29

Tonga’s Police Commissioner Steve Caldwell has confirmed this to Kaniva News this afternoon.

“The mother made her complaint to the local police this morning.  Two youths have been identified as the suspects and police are making active inquiries to find them,” Caldwell said.

Talaiasi Tauʻatāina Lātū was hospitalised in Niuʻui Hospital after he was allegedly beaten with a machete and a piece of timber.

Photos obtained by Kaniva News show the boy’s buttocks and upper part of his legs covered in swelling and bruising.

The complaint to Police comes after the mother, Lesieli Latu said yesterday she has not decided whether to prosecute his son’s attackers because they know each other and she also considered the way they lived as villagers in the island.

However she wrote on Kaniva News’ Facebook page this morning and said she has launched the complaint after her son could clearly explained to her what had actually happened.

Talaiasi  was taken to hospital and was released on Saturday night with a medical report to be taken to Police.

A copy of the medical report on the Ministry of Health letterhead was sent to us by the victim’s mother Lesieli Latu.

The letter says Talaiasi was admitted to hospital on August 29.

According to Lesieli, the medical officer who attended Talaiasi at Niu’ui Hospital claimed parts of the boy’s flesh where he had been hit were smashed.

Alleged abduction

The mother said the men met Talaisi on his way home on the road.

They allegedly forced him into nearby bush where one man beat him with the machete and the piece of timber while the other man held his hands and mouth so that no one could hear him crying.

Lesieli said the duo claimed they beat her son because they found him smoking.

She said after the beating she saw her son limping on his way home. She said she could tell by the way he was limping that something terribly wrong with him.

When Talaiasi arrived he told his mother the tragedy he came through.

She said his son was taken to the local nurse on the island.

“She advised us to take him to hospital otherwise the injuries would become aching and the child could suffer convulsion as he was too young to receive such horrific beatings,” Lesieli said

She said they hired a dinghy to take her son to Pangai on the main island of Lifuka where the hospital Niu’ui is.

“It may have been better that they killed him rather than torturing him like that,” she said.

Lesieli said when she saw her son’s condition she determined she would definitely take legal action against the two men.

However, she said she had second thoughts when she considered how they lived and helped each other in the village.

She said she had yet to make a decision about whether or not she would talk to Police about the two men.

Kaniva News has sent photos of the incident to the Police Commissioner, Steve Caldwell and requested that he comments on the matter.  We are still waiting for his response.

Violence against children is not uncommon in Tonga. Earlier this week we reported on an attack on a young girl and in 2013 the media reported on the beating of a group of teenagers.

The main points

  • A 12-year-old boy was hospitalised in Ha’apai after he was allegedly abducted yesterday (August 29) by two men in their 20s and horrifically beaten with a machete and a piece of timber.
  • The boy was attacked in bush neat the village of Muitoa, at Kauvai Island in Ha’apai.
  • Photos obtained by Kaniva News show the boy’s buttock and upper part of his legs covered in swelling and bruising.
  • However, despite the beating, his mother has not decided whether to prosecute his attackers.

For more information

Tongan teenagers beaten at school

Labour celebrates Tongan language and diversity

By
Kaniva Staff
-

Tongan Language Week is a timely reminder of the importance and beauty of our Pacific culture, identity and language in New Zealand, says our first Tongan born, Tongan speaking MP Jenny Salesa.

The theme for Tongan Language Week in 2015 is “Fakakoloa Aotearoa ‘aki ‘a e faiva ‘a e Tonga” which means enriching Aotearoa New Zealand with Tongan arts.

“Despite some pretty challenging times under this Government, Tongans are resilient. Labour is committed to supporting all Pacific ethnic groups on their respective journeys to success and prosperity.

“With over 60,000 Tongans living in New Zealand, it is the third largest Pacific ethnic group. It is important we continue to nurture the Tongan language to thrive and survive in New Zealand.

“It is just as important that we foster pathways for Pacific people to reconnect with their culture. Pacific language weeks encourage this, especially in the space of arts and crafts,” Jenny Salesa says.

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