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Over TOP$22,300 crowdfunded for Tongan man attacked after ‘begging’ for money in Australia

By
Kaniva Staff
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A funding campaign has raised more than TOP$22,300 (NZ$14,000) within 24 hours to help a Tongan man who was allegedly assaulted after asking for money in Australia.

Siaki Tome. Photo/Screenshot

His mother has also received donations in cash and food in Tonga after the incident.

Siaki Tome was subjected to what appears to be an unprovoked attack on Monday night.

Sini Piu claimed Tome approached him asking for works. It has been claimed the incident occurred after Tome had asked Piu for money to be paid in advance from his pay.

Unconfirmed reports said Tome was after an unpaid wage from Piu.

Piu was overheard in a livestream video clip talking to Tome about the money.

The livestream video, which was seen by Kaniva News, came to an abrupt halt after what appeared to be an altercation while someone was trying to break it up.

An apology

Piu later posted an apology to Facebook and attempted to clarify the situation. He claimed he was trying to stop a friend from allegedly attacking Tome. Piu said he and Tome were having fun and he had given him some money.

Footage of the alleged attack spread rapidly online, where Tome has received an outpouring of support.

A GoFundMe fundraising page was set up by Stenley Schulz, to help get Tome back on his feet.

At time of writing, 280 people had donated money, and the page had been shared 3,100 times on Facebook with 354 followers.

Within 24hours, the page had received more than NZ$14,000, accompanied with heartfelt sentiments from the Tongan community and beyond.

One supporter wrote that while he didn’t know Tome they wished their small donation can help.

“No human is supposed to be treated the way you have been,” they wrote.

Others sent condolences to him and his mother who is in Tonga.

“We support you and hope you find justice and new hope for a better future.”

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly reported Sini Piu’s name as Sinipiu Taumālolo.  

Covid-19 update: 15 new community cases reported in New Zealand today

By
Kalino Latu
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By RNZ.co.nz. Republished with permission

There are 15 new community cases of Covid-19 in the country today, Director General of Health Dr Ashley Bloomfield has revealed.

Speaking at today’s media conference, Dr Bloomfield said there were now 855 cases in the current community outbreak and 218 cases were deemed to have recovered.

There were 21 new cases reported yesterday, and 20 on three days in a row before that.

There are 37 cases are in hospital, six in ICU and four are on ventilators.

There was also one Covid-19 case to report in a recent returnee today.

Ongoing investigations by Auckland Regional Public Health has resulted in a total number of unlinked cases to 25, an increase of one from yesterday, Dr Bloomfield says.

Only two of today’s new cases are yet to be linked. He said investigations into those unlinked cases were continuing and he expected those numbers to fall.

Analysis of yesterday’s 20 cases shows that 19 were contacts of known cases and of those 15 were household contacts already isolating and not active in the community, Bloomfield said.

Five people yesterday were potentially infected in the community with 127 exposure events – over half were related to central workplaces.

On contact tracing, slightly more than 38,000 individuals are in the system still, Bloomfield said. About 87 percent of them have had a test.

Yesterday, there were 13,230 swaps processed around the country – 8566 were taken across metro Auckland.

DNA gives 300 possible links in search for Onehunga baby’s mother

By
Sisi Latu
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By RNZ.co.nz and is republished with permission. 

DNA has led police to at least 300 people who could be related to a baby girl who was left at an Auckland recycling centre.

The body of the newborn was discovered by workers at the Onehunga site on the evening of 16 August. A bag of baby clothes was also found in the rubbish.

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“Working with the ESR forensic scientists, a sample was obtained from the baby girl,” Detective Inspector Scott Beard told Checkpoint.

“They have come up with what’s called a familial DNA link, which means that … if we speak to the right people we will identify a relative, or the mother or father of that child, from the database that ESR has given us.

“We have in excess of 300 names on that list, but we have created a matrix, we’ve worked with our Behavioral Science Unit… so we are prioritising what we’re doing and who we’re seeing.”

The DNA database is stored and held by ESR, Beard said, and the number of possible links is from across New Zealand.

“As yet the mother hasn’t come forward, nobody, no family, no friends have come forward to tell us who we’re looking for. That’s what we want.

“As soon as we find the mother and find out what’s going on, we can release the baby girl, so she can have the funeral that she deserves.

“We’re hoping that the mother or someone who knows will come forward, he or she can come to us through an intermediary, through a counselor or someone, because there’s no doubt she’ll need some emotional support, whether she needs some medical support, we don’t know. But, looking after her interest has to be the first thing.”

Detective Inspector Beard said it is not yet known if the baby was alive at birth.

“Pathologists are still waiting for some toxicology tests to come back, before we get their final opinion in a report.”

He said there were 100 recycling trucks that came into the Onehunga facility on the day the baby was found. Police have focused their inspection of CCTV footage to the trucks closest to the time the blue bag was discovered, with the baby and several items of clothing.

“The bag was close to where the baby was found at the time, and when we go back through the CCTV footage of the recycling plant, you can see the bag close to the baby.

“Inside that bag were some baby clothes. Now we can’t 100 percent say that is linked, but we have to investigate that aspect.”

An early verbal report from the pathologist suggested the baby had not been born at a hospital or a medical centre.

Beard said there is no evidence to show who exactly put the baby into a bin or bag that ended up at the recycling centre.

“We don’t know what circumstances there are. It could be completely innocent circumstances. There’s a whole range of reasons why this could happen.

“We want to find the mother, but more importantly we want to also lay this baby to rest with some dignity and respect and love that she deserves.”

No repeat of Akosita Lavulavu scandal as amendment means serious convictions will lead to immediate exit from Parliament

By
Kalino Latu
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After months of using Clause 23 of the Constitution to justify doing nothing against jailed Cabinet Minister Akosita Lavulavu, Prime Minister Tu’i’onetoa has voted to change the clause.

Former Cabinet Ministers and MPs Akosita Lavulavu and husband ‘Etuate Lavulavu

The amendment means that scenes of the Prime Minister refusing to action against a Cabinet Minister convicted of a serious crime cannot be repeated.

The Speaker, Lord Fakafanua, submitted the bill to change Clause 23 to the House.

The amendment  was to stop allowing any convicted civil servants, government representatives and MPs from retaining their office after being convicted by the court for more than three years or sending them to prison as the 2013 amendment allowed.

Lavulavu and her husband ‘Etuate were jailed for six years on three counts of obtaining money by false pretences.

The Supreme Court was told the Lavulavus had committed a carefully executed fraud over several years.

PM Pōhiva Tu’i’onetoa. Photo/Kalino Lātū (Kaniva News)

Judge Cooper, presiding, said the Lavulavu’s conduct “would be disgraceful in anyone, but for a member of cabinet, and a man who used his political connections and position to facilitate these frauds, goes beyond just criminally reprehensible.”

Akosita Lavulavu stayed in Cabinet on full pay during her trial. A scandal rapidly developed as the Prime Minister repeatedly defended her and said he would not take action against her until she was found guilty by the court.

Akosita and her husband ‘Etuate Lavulavu were found guilty by the Supreme Court on June 4 and sentenced on July 2. After her conviction Hon. Tu’i’onetoa announced that Clause 23 barred him from removing her from Cabinet until her appeal was heard.

She eventually resigned.

Veteran Tongan journalist Kalafi Moala told the AUT journalism student publication Te Waha Nui the Prime Minister has used Clause 23 “as an excuse for his non-action on his criminal Minister, Akosita Lavulavu.”

He asked why the Prime Minister had suddenly accepted her resignation before her appeal.

In his speech to support the bill, Lord Fakafanua said he did not want an MP to retain their seat in Parliament after they had been convicted by the court.

Lord Fakafanua said convicts should not remain in the House until their appeal was heard. He said this would tarnish the reputation of the king, the Prime Minister and Parliament.

He said that in some circumstances, a person who had their conviction quashed or set aside by the court could apply for compensation for the time they spent in prison as a result of that wrongful conviction

The only addition made to the amendment was to raise the period of more than two-year’s imprisonment to more than three-year’s imprisonment.

Lord Fakafanua said the more than three-year imprisonment term meant serious crimes that could only be dealt with by the Supreme Court and a jury. Criminals convicted and sentenced to two years or less for light offences like traffic offending should be exempted from Clause 23.

The government, including Prime Minister Tu’i’onetoa, supported the Bill and he voted for it when it was put to the ballot at the end of the month.

FAKAMATALA FAKATONGA

He’ikai toe hoko e kupu 23 ‘o e konisitūtone’ ke ne fakangofua ke kei minisitā, mēmipa Fale Alea pe fakafofonga pule’anga ha taha kuo fakahalaia’i ‘e he Fakamaau’anga Lahi ke ngāue pōpula ta’u ‘e tolu pe laka hake kae tokua ke nofo ‘o tali ki ha’ane tangi ‘i hono tautea’. Kuo paasi ‘e he Fale’ ha lao ke fakalelei’i ‘a e kupu 23 pea ke ne fakamahino  ko e mōmeniti e halaia ‘a ha taha he lao’ ni ko ‘ene ‘i tu’a ia mei hono lakanga fakapule’anga’ tatau ai pe ‘oku toe hoko atu ia ‘o tangi’. Na’e fakamahino ‘i Fale Alea ‘e he Sea Looti Fakafanua ‘a ia ko ia ne ne fakahū ‘a e lao fakatonutonu’ ni ko e laumālie ‘o e kupu ko eni ke tuku leva ki tu’a ha taha kuo halaia. Pea ka toki tangi ia ‘o tali pea  ‘oku faka’atā ‘e he lao ke ne ‘eke ‘e ia ‘ene totonu mo ha huhu’i mei he pule’anga’ pea ‘oku fea pe ia pea ko e me’a totonu pe ia ke fai.  Ka ‘oku mahu’inga ke malu’i e ngeia ‘o e Fale’ mo e Tu’i mo e pule’anga’ ke ‘oua na’a nau faifai ange kuo nau  malu’i mo kei fakalaloa’i ha taha kuo fakahalaia’i. Ko e hili foki ‘eni hano fakaanga’i lahi ‘o e palēmia Pōhiva Tu’i’onetoa he’ene ngāue’aki ‘a e kupu’ ni, ke fakatonuhia’i ‘aki ‘ene malu’i ‘a Akosita Lavulavu hili hono fakahalaia’i ‘e he Fakamaau Lahi’ ki hono kākaa’i e pa’anga ‘ova he vaeua miliona ‘a e pule’anga’. Ka ne iku ‘o holomui ‘a e palēmia’ mei he’ene taukave ko ia’ ‘o ne fakahā kuo fakafisi ‘a Akosita pea ‘asi kuo ‘ikai ke ne kei muimui ki he kupu 23 ki mu’a hono liliu ko ‘eni’.

 

NZ and Tonga police investigate drugs allegedly found in shipping container : PM Tu‘i‘onetoa

By
Kalino Latu
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Tonga and New Zealand polices are investigation after what appeared to be illicit drugs discovered in a shipping container from Tonga in Auckland.

Prime Minister Pōhiva Tu’i’onetoa has confirmed the investigation this afternoon during a government sponsored livestream show released by FM 87.5 Broadcomm.

The Prime Minister was responding after he was asked to clarify the allegations regarding the drugs.

“It has been alleged the drugs were imported from Tonga but let’s leave that to police to work together with New Zealand Police to confirm it,” Tu’i’onetoa said in Tongan.

Reports on social media since last week claimed the New Zealand Customs and Police siezed the alleged drugs after the container arrived at the Ports of Auckland recently.

Kaniva News contacted New Zealand Customs Department.

The drugs allegations came after an estimated 14kgs of cocaine washed up on beaches in Vava’u.

Tongan police seized the haul and an ongoing investigation has seen 21 people charged so far including three foreigners.

The recent arrests included a 49-year-old man and his 23-year-old wife from Ta’anea, Vava’u on August 23.

The couple are in police custody charged with engaging with others in the supply of illicit drugs.

Ignorance key to Fiji Covid-19 crisis – NGO

By
Kaniva Staff
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By RNZ.co.nz. Republished with permission

The ignorance and blatant refusal to acknowledge science and facts on Covid-19 is the reason for the spike in cases in Fiji, the founder and director of a civil society organisation in the country said.

Health checks are ongoing in Fiji in an effort to combat Covid-19.
Health checks are ongoing in Fiji in an effort to combat Covid-19. Photo: Facebook / Fiji government

Sulique Waqa, of the Haus of Khameleon, believes the reluctance of Fijians to ‘admit mistakes or accept the scientific findings’ that have proven to save lives ‘need to be addressed holistically by the populace’.

Waqa said majority of the Fijian people were ‘deeply unwilling to change their minds’ about the pandemic including vaccination.

“It’s playing out during the pandemic among the many people in Fiji who refuse to be vaccinated, wear masks or practise social distancing.

“And when the facts clash with their pre-existing convictions they are jeopardising not only their health and well-being, but the lives of others as well.

“We should accept new information or admit to being wrong regarding the misconceptions surrounding the Covid-19 vaccine.”

Waqa said it has been endorsed by the World Health Organization that the vaccines can save lives against the coronavirus outbreak.

“We are experiencing a national health emergency that is severely straining our health system, putting our front-line health workers at risk and crippling the economy.

“No doubt, there will be more deaths within the coming weeks and months unless Fijians get vaccinated with both doses.

“They should refrain from opting for herbal remedies like vevedu or choosing religious interventions.”

Waqa said the Covid-19 vaccine was not ‘bullet-proof’ against a killer virus.

But the vaccine offered 92 percent protection against getting seriously ill, hospitalisation or death by Covid-19, Waqa said.

Sulique Waqa.
Sulique Waqa. Photo: Supplied/Haus of Khameleon

128 new cases, 12 more deaths reported

The Government confirmed 128 new cases of Covid-19 Monday night – six of them from the outer islands.

Twelve more people have died, bringing the death toll to 520.

Health Secretary James Fong said a 28-year-old woman was the youngest among the latest fatalities.

She presented to the Lautoka Hospital in severe respiratory distress on 27 August. She died eight days later.

The oldest victim was a 93-year-old man who died at home.

Dr Fong said there were 19 other deaths of Covid-positive patients.

“However, these deaths have been classified as non-Covid deaths by their doctors. The doctors have determined that these deaths were caused by a serious pre-existing medical condition and not Covid-19.

“Please note that due to the time required by clinical teams to investigate, classify and report deaths, a 4-day interval is given to calculate the 7-day rolling average of deaths, based on the date of death, to help ensure the data collected is complete before the average is reported.

“As of 1 September, the national 7-day rolling average of Covid-19 deaths per day is 4. The 7-day rolling average of deaths per day in the Central Division is 1 and in the Western Division is 3.”

Dr Fong said a total of 338 positive patients had died from the serious medical conditions that they had before they contracted Covid-19, these are not classified as Covid deaths.

There are 195 patients in hospital – 82 are admitted at the Lautoka Hospital, 14 at the FEMAT field hospital, and 99 are at the Colonial War Memorial, St Giles and Makoi hospitals.

Dr Fong said 24 patients are in severe condition, with six critical.

Fiji has 14,404 active cases in isolation with 1687 patients recovered.

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,, Photo: Red Cross

‘Delta 2’: What’s changed with alert level 2

By
Sisi Latu
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By RNZ.co.nz and is republished with permission.

The government has announced New Zealand will move to alert level 2 from 11.59pm tomorrow, excluding the Auckland region.

Contact tracing app COVID-19 pandemic coronavirus. People wearing masks using phones.

Photo: 123rf / Elizaveta Galitckaia

At alert level 2, there are no restrictions on who can be included in your household bubble, businesses can open and you can go to work while kids can go off to school.

With the change in alert level to ‘Delta 2’ as the prime minister called it, schools will be given 48 hours to reopen from Thursday morning.

Essential workers crossing the alert-level border will be required to have weekly tests.

People who transit between Auckland will need to come through without stopping if they’re moving from south of Auckland to Northland.

But it won’t be the ‘normal’ alert level-2, as some of those settings have been changed in light of how much more transmissible the Delta variant is.

Here are the major changes to the rules.

Face coverings mandatory

Face coverings are now mandatory at level 2 in most public venues.

You can take your mask off in venues like restaurants and cafes.

Staff at public facing businesses in level 2 must wear face coverings.

In general, the government is asking you wear a mask if you visit any indoor venues.

Masks are not being mandated in schools, but it is being recommended.

Record keeping

The government expects the public to scan in using the Covid-19 tracer app everywhere they go.

It is mandatory at bars, restaurants, cinemas, churches, and close-contact venues like hairdressers. Customers must scan or have record keeping.

Mandatory record keeping comes into effect from 11:59 pm, 7 September.

Gatherings

Indoor hospitality venues now have a limit of 50 people, while outdoor venues will have a limit of 100 people.

This limit includes things like weddings, civil union ceremonies, birthdays, funerals and tangihanga.

Event and entertainment facilities including cinemas, stadiums and concert venues can open but again, if it’s an indoor venue the capacity limit will be 50, and 100 if it’s an outdoor venue.

If there are seperate ‘defined spaces’ at an event facility, you can have more than 50 people total in the venue, but there should not be any direct airflow between the defined spaces which have up to 50 people.

Indoor public facilities like gyms, which under the old level 2 did not previously have limits on people inside and required one-metre distancing, will now be required to enforce 2m distancing.

You can go to a bar or club, but there can’t be a dancefloor, the limit of 50 people still applies and there can be seated service only.

Cocaine, geography and Covid-19, drug trafficking in the Pacific

By
Sisi Latu
-

By RNZ.co.nz and is republished with permission.

The Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police network says one of the biggest challenges countries in the region face with drugs washing up on their shores is geography and that Covid-19 could be making recruitment easier for drug traffickers.

No caption

Photo: RNZ Pacific / Koro Vaka’uta

In July, an estimated 14kgs of cocaine washed up on beaches in Vava’u.

Tongan police seized the haul and an ongoing investigation has seen 21 people charged so far including three foreigners.

At the end of August, Acting Deputy Commissioner of Tonga Police Halatoa Taufa told Matangi Tonga the recent arrests included a 49-year-old man and his 23-year-old wife from Ta’anea, Vava’u on August 23.

The couple are in police custody charged with engaging with others in the supply of illicit drugs.

Previously, 19 people had been arrested and charged in relation to the cocaine seizure, which is estimated to have a street value of over $US2.2 million.

Of the 21 arrested so far, three were in Tongatapu and the rest in Vava’u.

Glyn Rowland Executive Director of the Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police Secretariat

Glyn Rowland Executive Director of the Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police Secretariat Photo: Supplied / PICP

But Tonga is far from the first Pacific country to have to deal with drugs turning up on their shores.

In 2019 authorities in French Polynesia stumbled on a massive haul of cocaine aboard a yacht, which had only come into dock because it had developed engine problems.

Cocaine has also been seized by authorities in Fiji in 2018 and also in 2018 a multi-national sting operation saw the seizure of cocaine aboard a yacht originating in South America.

The unique geography of the Pacific region creates a significant challenge for drug enforcement, according to the Pacific Islands Chiefs of Police network.

Its executive director Glyn Rowland said the sheer size of the Pacific Ocean makes it difficult to detect the movement of illegal drugs, which can be easily concealed and transported in small vessels.

Mr Rowland said the Pacific is a transit route from South America to the lucrative drug markets of Australia, and to a lesser extent New Zealand.

He believes the cocaine that washed ashore in Vava’u could have come from this supply chain.

Mr Rowland also said the Covid-19 pandemic has had an impact on drug routes in the Pacific.

“Certainly, for our young people, unemployment and poverty is a challenge right now because of the pandemic and that makes them quite vulnerable to recruitment into organised crime gangs and facilitating drug movements,” Mr Rowland said.

He said the Chiefs of Police are mindful of what is going on in the region and there needs to be a concentrated effort to address the issues.

He said this has led to the establishment of the Pacific Transnational Crime Network.

“The network is made up of 20 countries that are working together, sharing information about drug trafficking, money laundering and organised crime gangs,” said Rowland.

“We are also working together with our partners like the immigration and customs to address some of these issues.”

Glyn Rowland said drugs destroy the real fabric of family life.

“The social harm that drugs can cause is pretty immense at every level of society.

“It then leads to the membership of organised crime gangs, that can lead to the gang lifestyle and then that can lead into the mistreatment of women and children.

“We also know that drugs can impact domestic policing, so dishonesty offending such as burglary and acts of violence, so it really does damage one’s way of life,” Rowland said.

Covid-19 update on 6 September: 20 new community cases in New Zealand today

By
Kaniva Staff
-

By RNZ.co.nz. Republished with permission

There are 20 new community cases of Covid-19 in New Zealand today.

In a statement, the Ministry of Health also said there were three new cases in managed isolation and one historical case.

Of the 20 new cases announced, only five were infectious while in the community, the remaining 15 were all in isolation throughout the period they were infected, it said.

All the new cases are in Auckland.

There are 40 people with Covid-19 being treated in hospital today, eight at North Shore, 18 at Middlemore and 14 at Auckland.

Six of these people are either in intensive care or in a high dependency unit.

A full update on today’s cases:

No caption
Photo: Ministry of Health

There have been a total of 38,058 contacts identified so far. Of these, 86 percent have received an outbound call from contact tracers and 91 percent have at least one test result.

The number of Covid-19 tests done yesterday fell to a new low of 4750, just under half of these done in Auckland.

There are no unexpected wastewater detections in the past 24 hours.

The government will announce later today if Covid-19 alert level restrictions will be loosened for regions outside of Auckland.

Cases linked to the current outbreak have so far been detected only in Auckland and Wellington.

And Auckland has been told to get testing to get out of level 4.

Covid-19 swabbing numbers have been falling so fast in the city, some centres closed early at the weekend.

Aotearoa has its warmest winter on record, with warm spring forecast

By
Sisi Latu
-

By RNZ.co.nz and is republished with permission. 

The country has just had its warmest winter on record – beating the record set just last year.

The queue for the Pages Road Covid-19 testing centre in Christchurch.

People queueing at a Covid-19 testing centre last month on a sunny Christchurch day. Photo: RNZ / Kim Moodie

Official climate data from Niwa shows June to August was 1.32C above average.

Meteorologist Nava Fedaeff said in a statement that the last time a consecutive year beat its previous winter temperature record was in 1971.

She said there were 76 locations across the country that experienced a record or near-record warm winter.

Fedaeff said record-breaking temperatures 50 years ago are now considered near average, as seven of the 10 warmest winters have been since 2000.

Fedaeff delved into historic weather records and found that the last time New Zealand experienced a similar sequence of events was 50 years ago. The winter of 1970 was at the time New Zealand’s warmest winter on record only to be beaten by the winter of 1971.

“What was considered to be unusually warm at the time is no longer considered unusual. The winter of 1971 now stands in 13th place of the temperature rankings while the winter of 1970 is 18th.”

Fedaeff said what may have been considered record-breaking in 1970 is now considered near average.

“For instance, the once record-breaking winter 1971 is 0.75C cooler than the winter we have just experienced.”

The years 1970 and 1971, as well as the winters of 2020 and 2021 were influenced by La Niña featuring warm coastal waters, frequent high pressure and more northerly and north-easterly winds than normal.

“These similar winters, decades apart, show us that there are key natural ingredients to getting a warm winter but adding climate change to the mix is like taking the same recipe and swapping plain flour for self-raising,” Fedaeff said.

Warmer spring than usual forecast

A warmer than usual spring is being forecast by Niwa.

Niwa predicts that unseasonably warm conditions at times this spring, particularly in the east of both islands.

It said despite this, cold spells and frosts may still occur occasionally, especially early in the season.

Niwa says spring rainfall is most likely to be below normal in the east of the North Island, near normal in the west of the South Island, and about equally likely to be near normal or below normal in all remaining regions across Aotearoa New Zealand.

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