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VIDEO: Palagi children in Cowra surprise guests with Tongan national anthem

By
Kaniva Staff
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People who were expecting news from Cowra on internet last weekend because Tonga was the guest country in the NSW town’s 2016 Festival of International Understanding had a surprise.

A YouTube video was uploaded to Facebook showed the Tongan national anthem was sung by palagi school children.

The music was fine but for the little children to sing the national anthem beautifully in a language totally different from their mother toungue, was amazing.

After the MC of the day welcomed Princess Angelika Tukuʻaho, the guest of honour of the day she then invited the guests to stand for the kingdom’s national anthem.

To the surprise of most viewers, the palagi school children did an awesome performance in singing the national anthem with great confident.

“I get emotional when I sing the Tongan national anthem (mafana ki ai lol) this video is cool! Young Australian singing our anthem,” John Nicholas Pulu,  a reporter on TVNZ’s Tagata Pasifika programme wrote on Facebook.

The event gave members of the New South Wales community the opportunity to taste Tongan food and enjoy Tongan entertainments and arts.

The message of the Festival of International Understanding is one of inclusion, friendship and understanding — which Tongan guests in  Cowra could not be more excited and proud to be a part of.

The Festival of International Understanding runs from March 11­–20.

Opportunities open to Tongan nurses and apprentices to work in Australia,  NZ

By
Kalino Latu
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Nurses and apprentices in Tonga can now go to New Zealand and practice what they are being trained for in Tonga.

The opportunity follows an agreement signed by New Zealand and Australian Trade Ministers and representatives from Pacific nations at the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus talks in Brisbane last month.

Tonga’s Customs and Revenue CEO ‘Anisi Bloomfield said all apprenticeship-type training in Tonga including welding, fishing, building and eletricians would benefit from the agreement.

He said this was a great opportunity for Tongans and academic institutions which ran technical training in Tonga such as the Fokololo ‘o e Hau Institute, the ‘Ahopanilolo and Tupou Tertiary Institutes.

However, the greater opportunity comes with stricter requirements.

Bloomfield said before the Brisbane’s Pacer Plus agreement, countries from the Pacific nations could choose whoever they wanted to go to New Zealand and Australia to pick fruit under the Recognised Seasonal Employer Work agreement.

Under the agreement signed last month the selection of apprenticeship candidates from the Pacific must involve the employers, representatives from Australia and New Zealand as well as the Tongan government.

Bloomfield said he could see this as a good move to make sure people who were selected could make use of the opportunity and never cause any other problems that could fail the programme.

He said there were other opportunities, including an agreement to allow more commodities from Tonga to be imported into New Zealand.

He said in the past it took five years for New Zealand to accept Tongan fruit to be sold in its markets.  The new agreement meant more fruit, such as zucchinis, would be exported to New Zealand.

Another advantage for Tonga was that the programme could open another door to New Zealand and Australia to upgrade and improve syllabii used by technical training schools in Tonga.

Bloomfield said this was a significant part of the agreement as the two countries wanted to make sure their syllabi were aligned.

“Pacer Plus is an extension of the already strong political and community ties we have with Pacific nations,” Australian Minister Fierravanti-Wells said.

“Deepening regional trade ties will help to increase the skills of workers throughout the Pacific, boost economic empowerment and strengthen the stability of Australia’s immediate neighbourhood.”

The Australian Minister Assisting the Minister for Trade and Investment, Senator Richard Colbeck said PACER Plus would provide an opportunity to create jobs, enhance private sector growth and raise standards of living in Pacific Island countries through enhanced regional trade and closer economic integration.

He said he was particularly excited by the potential for the Pacific to make more money from marine resources, fisheries and tourism potential.

The two countries are now processing the agreement requirement to enable apprentices from the Pacific nations to travel to New Zealand and Australia.

The main points

  • Nurses and apprentices in Tonga can now go to New Zealand and practice what they are being trained for in Tonga.
  • The opportunity follows an agreement signed by New Zealand and Australian Trade Ministers and representatives from Pacific nations at the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations (PACER) Plus talks in Brisbane last month.
  • Tonga’s Customs and Revenue CEO ‘Anisi Bloomfield said all apprenticeship-type training in Tonga including welding, fishing, building and plumbing would benefit from the agreement.
  • However, the greater opportunity comes with stricter requirements on who can go to Australia and New Zealand.

Murdered man ‘sits up’ at his own funeral

By
Kaniva Staff
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A Puerto Rican man who was shot and killed earlier this month has been laid to rest “just as he was in life” in an extremely unconventional funeral.

Fernando de Jesus Diaz Beato, 26, was shot 15 times in the Villa Carolina neighbourhood of San Juan on March 3 and police say they have no leads on the crime.

Describing him as a “happy and very active person”, the family decided against a coffin for the funeral service in favour of a chair, sitting Diaz Beato with his legs crossed, dressed in his favourite clothes and with a cigarette between his fingers.

Finally, as a “surprise”, the funeral home chose to leave his eyes open.

“Everybody is really surprised because seeing him like that is like seeing him as if he were alive,’ one of Diaz Beato’s sisters said in a video obtained by Live Leak.

A man fun1
The funeral home admitted they ‘surprised’ the family by keeping Diaz Beato’s eyes open for the service, while dressing him in his favourite clothes, finished with the hat and glasses that were his signature

Another sister, Ihizz Diaz Beato, said: ‘We decided to embalm him like this because he was a very happy person, very active and we want to remember him as he was.’

The final effect was if Diaz Beato was sitting and staring at the family and friends who gathered at the funeral.

Marin Funeral Home, in Rio Piedras, has become something of a pioneer of such services in San Juan.

This is the ninth unconventional funeral they have done – but the first where the eyes of the deceased have been left open.

Damaris Marin, the owner of Marin Funeral Home, said they worked closely with the family to achieve the desired effect.

“This time is different because he is seated with his legs crossed but this is the first dead man in history with his eyes open,” she said.

“We have seen that the families wish to see the dead men just as they were when they were alive.

“We gave [the family] a surprise by leaving the eyes of the dead man open.

“I think that this time was the most impressive reaction to any of the work we have done.”

A man fun2
Designed to look like he was sitting in a living room, Diaz Beato’s legged were crossed and a cigarette was placed between his fingers

While the result shocked the family, they said they were happy with how Diaz Beato looked.

“We didn’t want to see him lying in the coffin,’ sister Ihizz said.

“We wanted something different. And also, we wanted him to be remembered by his friends and family the same way he was when he was alive.”

– Daily Mail

Helicopter rejected by Tongan authority welcomed in Samoa

By
Kaniva Staff
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A helicopter Tongan authority could not give its owner a license to fly in Tonga had its maiden flight in Samoa last week.

According to Samoa Observer, Caretaker Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi, met with the Company’s principal and founder, Rodger McCutcheon early last week before he granted approval for the copter to fly in Samoa.

“When it comes to private investments where lives will be saved then government must take decisive action,” Tuilaepa was quoted by the website as saying.

“It is utter nonsense and ridiculous for any government to discard a service of this nature”, he added.

The helicopter was brought to perform life saving emergency work, sightseeing flights for tourists and commercial work.

McCutcheon told Kaniva News the Eurocopter AS350 helicopter arrived in the kingdom last month and because Tongan civil aviation authority could not allow them to fly it on their Australian licenses they decided to transfer and send it to Samoa

He said another helicopter was on its way to Tonga but still they do not have a license to operate it in the kingdom.

McCutcheon said the civil aviation authority needs “up to 3 months to bring in experts to assist them with approving us to fly in Tonga”.

Tonga’s civil aviation authority would not respond to our request for comment but the manager of Tonga International Airport Viliami Ma’ake said he was approached by McCutcheon about the helicopter. He said he told him to talk to civil aviation authority.

Tonga’s aviation safety rules came under strict scrutiny since 2013 after the kingdom accepted the  controversial Chinese MA-60 aircraft in 2012.

The aircraft, which is based on an old Russian design, has been involved in several accidents in different countries. In the worst accident 27 people died.

The New Zealand government released a travel advisory warning that New Zealanders flying in the Real Tonga MA60 did so at their own risk and withheld $10 million aid for Tonga’s Tourism industry because of concerns over the aircraft.

In 2014 the International Civil Aviation Organiation demanded Tonga to fully respond to its request to submit a report on Real Tonga’s controversial MA60 aircraft.

In his response the former Prime Minister Lord Tu’ivakano promised the international body he would revise Tonga’s civil aviation rules and regulations within 60-90 days, commit to meet New Zealand aviation standards and replace the Real Tonga with a New Zealand operator during the revision period.

READ MORE: 

Mothers and children dying in childbirth prompted plan for helicopter rescue service 

Mothers and children dying in childbirth prompted plan for helicopter rescue service 

PM revokes Real Tonga’s airline license, promises to adopt New Zealand aviation standards in confidential letter

Rift over Chinese aircraft splits Tu’ivakano and Deputy

Vaipulu removed from Infrastructure portfolio because of errors in aviation report, Justice Minister claims

Valerie Adams on Real Tonga aircraft as it slides off runway at Fua’amotu

VTF’s radio host, Mele Hifo, laid to rest

By
Kaniva Staff
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The funeral of Tonga’s  radio internet personality Mele Hifo Finau took place today in Nukuʻalofa.

Hundreds of fans gathered to say their final goodbyes to the Tongan prominent broadcaster and producer, after a short but brave fight with cancer.

Amongst those in attendance were Managing Director Katalina Uili Tohi and staff of Letio Tonga FM 87.5. The radio broadcasted the funeral services live on air and on internet.

Earlier this week the manager and staff of the government’s sponsored national radio and television Tonga in which Hifo was a former employee arrived at her residence with holo (gifts).

The funeral sermon was held this morning at Fasi’s SUTT church.

Many of Hifo’s friends and colleagues over the years attended the services, among them many Tonga High School’s ex-students and prominent members of the Tongan communities in US and Tonga.

One dead after car hit tree in Haʻapai

By
Kalino Latu
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One man was dead after a car he was driving in crashed into a tree in Haʻapai.

The crash occurred this morning March 12.

Police in Haʻapai could not be reached for comment.

This is developing story. More to come.

Prince Ata attends first Sunday service held for LDS followers in ‘Atatā

By
Kaniva Staff
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Prince Ata joined church leaders who held the first ever Sunday prayer service for members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the island of ‘Atatā.

The ceremony marked a  milestone in the history of LDS church in the island as the church members will start to worship and hold meetings in the island. In the past they have to take 30 minute travels to Tongatapu, the main island of Tonga to attend Sunday services and church meetings.

President Tuʻihalangingie told his congregation, “I recall the times when members have travelled back and forth from ‘Atatā to attend Church; there are days when the ocean is calm and welcoming—and the next day it is rough and angry!”

According to the church’s news website the church thanked His Royal Highness for “allowing them to dedicate the home which has been renovated into a meetinghouse so members don’t have to travel back and forth to Tongatapu to attend religious services”.

The historical event included baptising of Lesieli Paea-he-Lotu Nau and her younger brother Kelepi Mafi Nau to become members of the church.

The prince was quoted by the website as telling the congregation in ʻAtatā, “The Holy Ghost will help us to become better people. This Church will make us happy.”

Prince Ata was baptised into the Church in 2015 months after the king ordered the former Prime Minister and his royal guards to intervene and stop the baptism ceremony.

Ata is the king’s second son and he is number 5th in the line of succession to the throne.

READ MORE:

King sends PM to stop Prince Ata’s christening into Mormon Church

Prince Ata baptised in Mormon church despite king’s repeated requests to postpone  ceremony

LDS leader attacks Prince’s baptism, charges “terrorism” and “bribery”

Princess attends prayer service, Tongans in San Francisco meet to build stonger community

By
Kaniva Staff
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Princess Pilolevu Tuita was guest of honour at a religious service  in San Francisco that marked the begining of a campaign to set up social work activities to support Tongans in Bay Area as well as local communities they live in.

The gathering was held on World Day of Prayer in which fourteen churches met  in a prayer service that followed by a community meeting.

The Tongan community is currently engaging in the San Francisco Tonga Interfaith Just Serve project in which members can come together at weekends to plant trees and clean up places in the area.

Ane Pasina from the community said they also launched a new drive to encourage Tongan locals to become more actively involved in donating blood and organs to their local blood bank. This project is led by one of the Tongan members, William DeBruce.

Tonga SF

Five churches participated in their first community work on March 5 which were led by Rev Maile Koloto of the  Methodist Fale Hufanga, The Tongan consular in San Francisco Sela Tukia,  Leafa Tuita Taumoepeau from Taulama Ma’a e Tonga, members of the St Timonthy Catholic Church of San Mateo and  Siteiki Paula Tonga from Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints.

Tongan SF2

Tongan SF7
Members from Methodist San Bruno. Suaesi Maafu, Matapule Tuono, Leafa Tuita Taumoepeau and Kamila Tongilava Maafu. Photo/Ane Pasina

Twins born to different fathers, DNA test confirmed

By
Kaniva Staff
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All siblings can have different fathers but how about twins?

It may be rare but it did happen. Twins can have different fathers.

A DNA test in Vietnam confirmed two-year-old twins were born with different fathers after their mother had sex with two men in the same ovulation period, the state-run Tuoi Tre newspaper has reported.

The bi-parental twins were taken for testing after the family of the man insisted the pair do not look alike.

Le Dinh Luong, president of the Genetic Association of Vietnam, reportedly said it was an extremely rare case.

“Our Centre for Genetic Analysis and Technology lab has tested and found a pair of bi-paternal twins,” he said. “This is rare not only for Vietnam, but for the world.”

The family were shocked after they received the test result according to the reports.

DNA testing of the Vietnamese mother to rule out a mix-up of the twins with other babies at the hospital confirmed that both children were hers.

The birth of twins to two different fathers is not unheard of according to The Guardian.

“It requires the woman to ovulate two eggs at the same time, and have viable sperm from two different men waiting inside her to fertilise the eggs”.

A 1992 report on paternity suits over non-identical twins – those produced when two separate eggs are fertilised and carried at the same time – found that 2.4% had different biological fathers. It is common enough to earn its own lengthy name: heteropaternal superfecundation.

“For this to happen there’s got to be whole series of events that line up and happen in same few hours. Not only has she got to have sex with two men in a relatively short time, that has got happen at a time when she’s ovulating two eggs rather than the usual one,” said Allan Pacey, a professor of andrology at the University of Sheffield. “The trick is that the woman would have to have intercourse with the two men within five or six hours of each other.”

Fungavaka’s children cannot claim compensation and is ‘late’, AG says

By
Kaniva Staff
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Tonga’s Acting Attorney General says the children of Kali Fungavaka cannot launch a proceeding to seek compensation from government and it is  late for them to do so.

‘Aminiasi Kefu told Kaniva News the settlement agreed between the Tongan government and Fungavaka’s widow Audra Watt entitled the children to some of the money.

He said the widow will set up a trust for that purpose and to benefit the children.

The Attorney General’s Office will supervise the setting up of the trust for the children.

The AG’s comment was made after it was revealed New Zealand based lawyer Kahungunu Afeaki would launch a proceeding on behalf of the children to seek compensation from the Tongan government.

Afeaki did not respond to our request for comment but he told New Zealand newshub “they planned to launch their own proceedings and he says he knows nothing of any money or apology”.

Fungavaka’s first wife Cally Ruahe and mother of his five children only found out earlier this week that a settlement had been reached between the Tongan government and the widow.

“It first came to my attention when my brother sent me a text asking if I had seen a newsfeed on Facebook, until he sent me a screen grab of article and that’s how I came to know about it,” she was quoted by newshub as saying.

The Tongan Government has announced it will apologise to the family of Kali Fungavaka who was killed in the kingdom after an assault in police custody four years ago.

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