Home Blog Page 432

Suspected suicide at Taliai Military Camp

By
Kalino Latu
-

A military authority has confirmed that a new recruit died at Taliai Military Camp in Fua’amotu airport this week.

Kaniva understands the death is a suspected suicide. Talaki online, a Tongan language news web page alleged the officer was discovered hanging from a tree.

The paper identified the deceased as Mengi Katea Tahaafe. 

Camp manager Lieutenant Colonel Lamipeti Mapakaitolo​ said the soldier died on Monday, according to Talaki.

Mapakaitolo said an investigation was underway to determine the cause of death.

Overseas Democrats call for action against loss of reforms, warn right to elect PM may be lost

By
Kalino Latu
-

Members of the Democratic (PTOA) movement in New Zealand and Australia have signalled a fight back against the loss of any more democratic reforms.

And they warn that the loss of reforms could even include the right for Parliamentarians to vote for the Prime Minister.

Former Education Inspector at Tonga’s Ministry of Education Mosese Tekiteki, who lives in Auckland, told Kaniva News people were worried that the Tu‘i‘onetoa government could take away more of the powers that were relinquished to the people in the 2010 political reforms.

The concerns arose after the government passed a law recently to return the power to elect and appoint the Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the king.

READ MORE

There have also been concerns about the failure to pass the six bills the Late ‘Akilisi Pōhiva government wanted to push through to complete the transfer of political power from the king to Parliament.

As Kaniva News reported at the time,  Hon Siaosi Pōhiva said the abandonment of the bills mean the kingdom had been left without a fully working system of government accountability.

Tekiteki,  who is a member of the PTOA Aotearoa Movement, described the actions of the Tu‘i‘onetoa government as “daylight robbery.”

He said he and the movement were planning an online campaign to challenge any further move by the government to remove any further powers.

He also blasted the PTOA MPs who voted to support the government to return the power to elect and appoint the Secretary for Foreign Affairs to the king.

“I do not believe in them,” he said.

As Kaniva News reported earlier, Hon. Siaosi, condemned the vote.

He said the action of his Party MPs was disappointing (“fakamamahi.”)

Hon. Siaosi said the 2010 Political Reform was meant to ensure all executive powers were brought from the king to the people through the executive government.

Meanwhile, Sydney-based Democrat Activist Tevita Latapu told Kaniva News the Tu‘i‘onetoa government would be encouraged if Tongans did not take action.

“For me this was a backward move by the government,” Latapu said.

“It could trigger an upheaval and a small fire that could become bigger in the future.”

Latapu, who is a former officer of a New Zealand Tongan Society for Political Reforms in Tonga, warned the right of Members of the House to choose the Prime  Minister could be lost.

“If people take this lightly without addressing it with care, it would encourage the government to continue making laws to return all the powers the king had relinquished to the people, like the power to elect the Prime Minister,” he said.

The main points

  • Members of the Democratic (PTOA) movement in New Zealand and Australia have warned that their supporters could fight back against the loss of any more democratic reforms.
  • The concerns arose after the government passed a law recently to return the power to elect and appoint the Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the king.

Victim still haunted by sexual assault, Supreme Court hears; hands down 18 month sentence

By
Kaniva Staff
-

The Supreme Court has sentenced a man to 18 months in prison for serious sexual assault.

The man pleaded guilty before Judge Niu on June 2 to one charge of serious indecent assault and one of unlawful imprisonment.

The man, 66, had  no prior criminal convictions.

Judge Niu, presiding, told the court the man abused his position of trust by assaulting the girl.

The prosecution told the court the girl was still haunted  by the assault.

“The girl has suffered and will continue to suffer from the act which you have committed upon her,” Judge Niu said.

“All your good deeds in your guilty plea and your remorse, all pale and fade away.”

The judge said the girl felt a prison sentence was the least punishment that would give her a sense of justice.

On the sexual assault charge, the  man was sentenced to two years in jail, with the last six  months suspended for one year subject to the condition that he did do not commit any offence punishable by imprisonment during that one year.

He was convicted and discharged on the count of unlawful imprisonment.

Judge Niu ordered that any details that could identify the girl be suppressed.

Land Court orders Minister to reinstate tax allotment grant and pay costs in dispute

By
Kaniva Staff
-

The Land Court has declared that the grant of a tax allotment was illegally cancelled and ordered the Minister to re-instate the land immediately.

Schumway Mataele claimed that a tax allotment, Lot 92 in the estate of the Crown Prince Tupouto’a at ‘Utulau had lawfully been granted to him by the Minister of Lands in 2016.

Mataele said the Minister then unlawfully granted it to ‘Uluaki-o Vaiola Manu.

Mataele told the court he was the second eldest of the legitimate sons of one named Malakai Tokuolava Mataele but commonly called Hameti Mataele. Because the eldest son, Peni, had been taken and fostered by Hawaiians in Hawai’i, he was then the heir to Hameti Mataele’s land.

He said that Hameti Mataele made him the heir by giving him the land which had been gifted to him by the then Crown Prince Tupouto’a at his estate of ‘Utulau. He said that he moved to the United States in 1984, but after Hameti died he came to Tonga to register the land in his name in 2015.

Manu told the court the tax allotment had been given to him by the estateholder in 1971 and that he had been cultivating it as his tax allotment until he applied for grant of it, with the consent of the estateholder in 2018. He said the Minister of Lands lawfully granted it to him and issued to him his deed of grant.

The Registrar of Lands, Semisi Moala, said that in August 2012, they received a letter from Hameti Mataele stating that Crown Prince Tupouto’a had told his matapule, To’a Malikini, to go with him and survey his allotment and to have it in his name, and that he wanted that allotment to be given to his son, the plaintiff.

On September 30, 2016, the Minister directed that a deed of grant of the plaintiff be prepared for Lot 92.

However, he said that later the deed of grant was found to have not been signed by the Minister. The deed had two lines running diagonally across it with the word “cancel” written in between the two lines, signed by the chief draftsman, Sione Leki, and dated February 7, 2017.

He said that there was no Ministerial direction given for that cancellation.

Judge Niu said the key issue was whether the land under dispute was being farmed at the time of the application. Manu claimed he was growing manioke on it.

However, the judge found the evidence showed the land as not being used.

He said the cancellation of the granting of the land was unlawful because only the Land court had the right to take this action. It was also a  breach of natural justice.

Judge Niu ordered that  the Minister of Lands cancel the deed of grant in the name of ‘Uluaki-o Vaiola Manu and issue a new deed of grant to replace the cancelled deed of grant of the plaintiff, Schumway Mataele, and to have it registered.

He ordered the Minister to pay Mataele’s costs.

Bronco’s forward Fifita signs multi-million dollar contract to start with Gold Coast Titans

By
Kaniva Staff
-

David Fifita has signed a three year contract with the Gold Coast Titans worth more than Aus$3m.

Fifita, who is of Tongan descent on his father’s side, has been playing second row with the Brisbane Broncos.

Fifita made his NRL debut for the Broncos against the Canberra Raiders in 2018.

He is a cousin of Tongan and Australian international Andrew Fifita.

In 2019 he played for Queensland in the State of Origin series.

David Fifita has been out of action this season with a knee injury and has only played twice.

He will join the Titans next season.

The Sydney Morning Herald quoted Titans coach Justin Holbrook this afternoon as saying he was “excited” about Fifita joining the team.

“As a coach we want to bring players to our club to improve the squad and David will definitely do that,” Holbrook said.

“David already has a close connection with our club through some of our players which is an important element that I am looking for as we build this team.”

The main points

  • Tongan rugby league player David Fifita has signed a three year contract with the Gold Coast Titans worth Aus$3m.
  • He had been playing second row with the Brisbane Broncos.

Improved cyclone warning system is welcome, but more action on global warming needed to ensure cyclone threat does not become worse

By
Philip Cass
-

Kaniva News commentary

The news that Tonga and other Pacific Island nations will have months to prepare for cyclones is welcome.

As Kaniva News reported yesterday, a team of climate scientists from the University of Newcastle in Australia and the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand have developed a prediction model that could improve early warnings.

Many parts of Tonga are still suffering from the effects of Cyclone Harold, which struck the kingdom in April, causing widespread devastation.

The new model will generate predictions for the number of cyclones in each country and territory, up to four months before the start of the tropical cyclone season.

The predictions will be updated and available for free on the Long-Range Tropical Cyclone Outlook for the Southwest Pacific website, www.tcoutlook.com.

The Southwest Pacific tropical cyclone season typically runs from November to April.

Tropical cyclones account for 76 per cent of disasters across the Southwest Pacific region, and since 1950, have claimed the lives of nearly 1,500 people and significantly affected the lives of another 3.1 million.

Dr Andrew Magee from the University of Newcastle said the new outlook would be vital to ensuring more effective disaster management.

He said if the predictions helped reduce the risk of disaster, they could save lives.

“Tropical cyclones are erratic and every season is different,” Dr Magee said.

“This makes it difficult for island nations and territories to prepare in the weeks and months before the official start of the tropical cyclone season.

“Our tropical cyclone guidance for Pacific Island nations and territories will improve early warnings and support preparations ahead of the tropical cyclone season.

“This will allow government and aid agencies to prepare enough supplies for the season ahead and will mean there is more time for decision makers to communicate with communities and allow for sufficient planning.”

More work on a bigger scale

However, Dr Magee has warned that climate change will make Island  nations like Tonga more vulnerable to tropical cyclones.

Rising sea levels and other climate-change related phenomena are now part of everyday life in Tonga.

So while the improved early warning system is more than welcome, action on a much larger scale is needed.

The work of Dr Magee and his colleagues will make it easier to predict cyclones and give people time to prepare for them, but what is still  needed a is concerted global effort to make sure the situation and the danger posed by cyclones and global warming do not become even more grave.

As a recent report suggests, however, it is time that the global community takes action and commits itself to taking serious action to fight climate change before it is too late.

“Combating the environmental crisis is not the work of one government or international organisation alone,” the report, by former UN officer and Canadian policy analyst Saber Salem, says.

“It requires collective action by diverse groups such as governments, multilateral organisations, multinational corporations and the general public.”

Salem said the crisis has been exacerbated by President Trump’s decision to abandon the Paris Agreement on climate change, which caused widespread concern in the Pacific.

“The US, China and India are some of the biggest polluters in the world. If these nations do not commit themselves to climate change and cut their carbon emissions to the atmosphere, the lesser polluters will justify their polluting actions and continue with the business as usual,” Salem said.

“For example, Pacific leaders have time and again appealed to Australia ‘to do everything possible to achieve a rapid transition from coal to energy sources that do not contribute to climate change.’

“However, as coal is at the heart of Australia’s ‘economic growth’ the current government has not taken any tangible actions to reduce coal emissions.

“Climate change is no longer primarily a scientific or technological challenge, but a political, social and economic one.

“Unless the global community establishes a strong political will with a strong leadership, environmental crisis will remain unaddressed and the Pacific will continue to bear the brunt of extreme impact of climate change.”

The main points

  • The news that Tonga and other Pacific Island nations will have months to prepare for cyclones is welcome.
  • As Kaniva News reported yesterday, a team of climate scientists from the University of Newcastle in Australia and the National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research in New Zealand have developed a prediction model that could improve early warnings.

Father killed in ‘Utulau single-car crash

By
Kalino Latu
-

A father was killed after the car he was driving in struck a coconut tree yesterday morning Sunday 26.

An eyewitness alleged speed could have been a factor.

He posted photos to Facebook which showed the silver station wagon had sustained damage to its front, sides and roof.

Our correspondent in Tonga said the man was from Te’ekiu.

He said the father in his 40s is survived by his wife and children.

Authorities could not be reached for comment.

What happened in Tonga and around the world on July 25, 2020

By
Kalino Latu
-

Utah infections

Tongan community radio in Utah is being used to promote safe behaviour during her Covid-19 crisis as infection rates soar.

The Salt Lake Tribune said the state’s Pacific community had been hard hit by the virus.

Jake Fitisemanu, chairman of the Utah Pacific Islander Health Coalition, said Pacific Islanders recorded higher per capita rates of hospitalisations and fatalities than the state average.

The Pacific community of 30,000 had about 1200 cases and at least 13 deaths.

He said health workers had been collaborating with state and county officials and using the media to reach the communities.

“We did start very early on with public service announcements and interviews on our local Samoan radio, our local Tongan radio and local media that’s widely used among our Pasifika people,” he said.

Camp Covid

Tongans flying home from New Zealand will be housed in the Taliai military camp,

National Emergency Management Committee chair Poasi Tei said the government would talk to people living nearby to ensure they stayed away from the site.

Other venues that may be used for housing returnees include the Kupesi Hotel, Makeke of the LDS Church and the Indoor Stadium.

Around two thousand stranded Tongans have now registered online for these repatriation flights.

Predicting cyclones 

Researchers from Australia and New Zealand have developed a new scientific model that can predict cyclones four months ahead of the tropical cyclone season.

They hope their work can help save lives by giving Pacific governments and meteorological offices advanced warning of a major storm.

Dr Andrew Magee from the University of Newcastle said current technology can predict cyclones one month ahead of time.

He said the model also provided forecasts specific to individual countries.

In April Cyclone Harold demolished tourist resorts in Tonga after leaving a trail of destruction in Fiji, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

The Red Cross said Cyclone Harold caused widespread damage to crops and housing

Investing in ocean sustainability

Investing in ocean sustainability is key to rebuilding the world’s economies according to a new report from the World Resources Institute.

The report, which was commissioned by the High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, says every US$1 invested in ocean sustainability could generate U$5 in economic, health and environmental benefits.

It cites forecasts in four main areas: conserving and restoring mangrove habitats, scaling up offshore wind, decarbonizing international shipping, and increasing the sustainable sourcing of ocean-based protein.

Tonga is heavily dependent on its fisheries and ocean resources for food, transport, economic development and culture. Commercial fisheries jobs in Tonga represent a two percent of national employment, but an estimated 82 percent of Tongan families are involved in reef fishing.

Last year Tonga received a US$10 million grant from the World Bank to improve fisheries governance.

Only TP$2.4 million left

Only TP$2.4 million is left of the TP$16.2  million collected  by the sports levy, the Finance Minister said this week.

Hon. Tevita Lavemaau told the Whole House Committee the estimate included a budget to develop all sporting activities in Tonga and the operations of the Tonga Sports Council.

The Minister was responding to a question from former Prime Minister Lord Tu’ivakano, who wanted know what happened to the money that had been collected.

Hon. Lavemaau said the figures had been audited.

New report says too early to open borders to flights because of low level of preparedness

By
Philip Cass
-

Despite the promise of a repatriation flight from New Zealand to Tonga within the next few weeks, there is still no sign of a trans-Pacific travel bubble opening up.

Tonga has brought back one flight from Fiji and other nations have also begun repatriation flights.

However, as Kaniva News reported yesterday, the Tongan government believes that keeping the kingdom free of the Covid-19 virus has to be the priority.

Ministry of Health CEO, Dr Siale ‘Akau’ola said Tongan authorities had to prepare properly and make sure all steps were completed to minimize risk.

Now a new report says it is too early to open the borders because the risk of Covid-19 remains high.

According to a report by Solomon Islands journalist Ben Bilua in the University of the South Pacific’s journalism student newspaper Wansolwara, the  chief executive officer of the South Pacific Tourism Organisation, Chris Cocker, said the level of health preparedness was below what was needed.

Cocker said there was a shortage of ventilators and testing facilities in the islands.

“The majority of our Pacific Island countries are just not ready and capable to address Covid-19 if the borders are reopened in this case,” Cocker said.

The Association of South Pacific Airlines CEO, George Faktaufon, said it was too early to reopen borders.

“We just don’t have the facilities to control a pandemic in our islands,” he said.

Faktaufon wants to see urgent talks between governments and airlines to make sure airlines survive the crisis.

The future of airline travel in Tonga is already in doubt with the collapse of Real Tonga.

While both executives are cautious about the dangers of moving too quickly to open borders, they say planning for a return to tourism must start now.

“For us, the planning is important because we just can’t pick up the aeroplanes and start flying when the borders open and we find this to be the most difficult part,” Faktaufon said.

Lack of regional co-ordination on some of the issues such as security requirements and quarantine requirement were aviation’s great concern, according to Faktaufon.

However, business leaders such as  Pacific Islands Private Sector Organisation chair  Stephen Lyon said it was possible to open borders soon and keep people safe.

He warned that the economic impact of Covid-19 would get worse and could be long lasting.

Around the world commentators are predicting it could take a decade or even a generation to recover from the economic damage caused by the pandemic.

“We are a very remote part of the world and it will take us longer to recover economically than other places simply because of our limited market access and our remoteness,” Lyon said.

“We have got to look at this idea of open borders and when we can get open borders for trade and get the movement of people and goods occurring again.

“I see no reason why processes cannot be put in place relatively quickly. If there is  no community transmission open up for the movement of people and trade between Covid-19 free states of the Pacific,” he said.

The main points

  • Despite the promise of a repatriation flight from New Zealand to Tonga within the next few weeks, there is still no sign of a trans-Pacific travel bubble opening up.
  • Tonga has brought back one flight from Fiji and other nations have also begun repatriation flights.

 

Preparation vital to keeping Covid-19 free as Tonga prepares for first NZ repatriation flight

By
Kalino Latu
-

Remaining Covid-19 free was the most important consideration during the kingdom’s repatriation process according to Ministry of Health CEO, Dr Siale ‘Akau’ola.

Dr ‘Akau’ola said while New Zealand was pushing for the Pacific Islands to repatriate their people, it needed to recognise that Tonga needed to prepare properly.

“Even though repatriating our people back is slow, every step has to be confirmed,” Dr ‘Akau’ola said.

“These little steps can put us at risk.”

The Tongan government said this morning it would begin bringing back Tongans from New Zealand no later than the first week of August.

The number of passengers to be flown home has yet to be announced.

Some of the Tongans stranded in Auckland told Kaniva News they had yet to hear from the government since registering online.

At a press conference in Nuku’alofa this morning MEIDECC CEO Paula Ma’u said 1700 Tongans stranded in New Zealand had registered online to fly home.

Among the people stuck in New Zealand were professionals who were required to assist the Ministry of Health and other countries’ diplomatic staff.

A total of 2724 Tongans had registered online wanting to return to Tonga.

Samoa

Dr ‘Akau’ola said yesterday health officials were also looking at Pacific neighbours to see how they were coping.

He said Samoa was struggling to accommodate large groups of repatriated citizens.

“Samoa’s accommodation is full of repatriated citizens,” he said.

“When Samoan seasonal workers were returned they were taken to a big hall where they are all staying.

“I feel Samoa is struggling. I hope we will not reach the same level, where we can’t properly control the situation. We need to be ready to properly repatriate our people.”

He suggested large groups, such as seasonal workers, should be split into smaller groups.

“We need to be ready to accommodate them where they will fit,” Dr ‘Akau’ola said.

“Not a large bubble but small bubbles, such as six people.”

The main points

  • The Tongan government said this morning it would begin bringing back Tongans from New Zealand no later than the first week of August.
  • The number of passengers to be flown home has yet to be announced.

 

1...431432433...951Page 432 of 951