Home Blog Page 804

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.

Talks continue to appoint Education CEO after March shift

By
Kalino Latu
-

A shift in the Ministry of Education’s CEO position last month has been decided after CEO Claude Tupou was not happy with some of the clauses in his proposed contract, the Prime Minister’s Office said today.

It was announced on March 30 that Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pōhiva who is also the Minister  of Education and Training has appointed Ponapate Taunisila as Acting CEO.

It said Tupou who held the position since February 16 was reverted to his previous position as Deputy CEO for Secondary Schools.

Tupou was temporally holding the acting position while works to complete his appointment as CEO were in process.

The Office said the Prime Minister and the Public Service Commission agreed Tupou has to be removed from the position so that negotiations continued independently before a final decision will be made.

“This will give Mr. Tupou the independence to pursue and settle his dissatisfaction and at the [sametime] the Ministry’s operation to continue under the leadership of Mr. Taunisila. This decision has been discussed with all parties concerned”, the Office said.

Tupou was recommended by a panel to become the ministry’s CEO but this was rejected by the Minister.

Tupou took the Minister and the Ministry to the tribunal and he won it.

Hon Pōhiva endorsed the tribunal’s decision but he later found out Tupou was not happy with some of the clauses in his contract.

“These issues are still discussed and no consensus has been reached,” the Office said.

“The Public Service Commission is continuing with the appointment process to the position of CEO for Education and Training”.

Tonga suspends supplier of controversial hotdogs

By
Alpha Latu
-

Tonga’s National Food Authority in Nukuʻalofa has suspended the operation of a local company which supplied hotdog to retail suppliers.

The authority is investigating following a complaint that a pack of hotdogs purchased at a local retail shop in Nukuʻalofa contained what appeared to be live worms.

The complainant was slicing the hotdogs for a soup when she noticed the alleged worms coming out of the pieces.

It was not clear how long the pack of hotdogs was purchased before it was opened by the complainant.

The supplier could not be contacted but the authority said the product was imported from Canada.

Chief Executive Officer for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry & Food  Losaline Māʻasi told Radio Tonga the labels on the pack showed the hotdogs were still edible as the pack was not expired.

Māʻasi said they were investigation to see whether or not  the hotdogs were imported and repacked in Nukuʻalofa implying the label looks suspicious.

Police investigate death in Havelu

By
Alpha Latu
-

Tonga Police say the cause of death of a 61-year-old man in Havelu on Sunday at about 11am is still unknown.

A post-mortem was expected this week while the body of the deceased was in Vaiola Hospital.

Chief Police Superintendent Tevita Fifita said they received a report that a man died and he was taken to hospital.

The man was originally from Hihifo, Haʻapai.

Fonua training in US ahead of Olympic qualifier

By
Alpha Latu
-

The New Zealand-born Tongan swimmer Amini Tuitavake Britteon Fonua is currently training in San Francisco in preparation for the Oceania Swimming Competitions to be held in Fiji in June.

He will compete at the Rio Olympic qualifier with swimmers from countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Samoa.

“This is a qualifying time for the Olympics. There are other Tongan swimmers who also want to go to Rio and our selection panel will pick the best swimmers to go. The selection panel is independent and our policy is that no parent who has an athlete trying to be selected can sit in the panel”, his father Sione Fonua said.

ʻAmini won three gold medals for Tonga in 2015 Pacific Games in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.

ʻAmini was trained by Jon Winter from New Zealand before he competed in the Olympic 2012. He could not make it to the semi final and he was Tonga’s flag-bearer.

He is the only Tongan athlete in history to ever hold dual Oceania and Pacific Games titles.

Man arrested with marijuana in Kolofo‘ou after police chase

By
Alpha Latu
-

Police apprehended a man with 61 small packs of marijuana after a short chase along Laifone Rd in Kolofo’ou on Tuesday.

He was charged with possession of illicit drug, said Chief Superintendent Tevita Fifita.

Fifita said Police acted on a tip that the accused carried with him the marijuana.

Police believed the detainee intended to sell the drug to tourists from Pacific Pearl who arrived in Tonga on Tuseday

It was likely more charges will be laid against the accused.

Judge orders 16 years’ jail  sentence for man convicted in child sexual abuse case

By
Philip Cass
-

A man who sexually abused two girls has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.

The man carried out the offences against a 10 year old girl and her 11 year old sister over a two week period.

He was living with their mother.

The man has a previous conviction for raping a 12 year old girl.

In his sentencing report, Mr Justice Cato said the sentence reflected and emphasised the need to deter and denounce crimes against vulnerable victims and protect children.

He said the girls, who are now in care, had been injured mentally and physically.

The man has been banned from having any contact with the victims or with his own daughters by the victims’ mother.

“I consider that   he   represents   a   serious   threat   to   girls   and  there   is  no certainty  that,  even  when  released  after  a  long  period of time  in custody,  he  will  not  still  represent  a  serious  threat,” Mr Justice Cato said.

The final 18 months of the man’s sentence will be suspended on condition that he does not commit any offences punishable by imprisonment for three years; that he is placed on probation; that he does not live in any residence where girls or young women live and that he receives sexual abuse counselling.

The court has ordered that no material be published that could identify the girls.

The main points

  • A man who sexually abused two girls has been sentenced to 16 years in prison.
  • The man, who cannot be named, carried out the offences against a 10 year old girl and her 11 year old sister over a two week period.
  • In his sentencing report, Mr Justice Cato said the sentence reflected emphasises the need to deter and denounce crimes against vulnerable victims and protect children.
  • The man has a previous conviction for raping a 12 year old girl.
1...803804805...962Page 804 of 962