In light of recent media reports that the Courts are imposing more suspended sentences due to overcrowding in Tonga’s prison system, the following clarification is provided for the information of the public and better understanding:
The Courts do not suspend sentences because of prison overcrowding.
Provision of adequate prison facilities and related services is the responsibility of the Executive Government.
Upholding the rule of law and administering justice in the Kingdom is the responsibility of the Judiciary and the Courts.
Suspended sentences are considered and imposed in accordance with relevant statutory provisions enacted by Parliament and principles established by the Court of Appeal. Those laws and principles are referred to and applied in the judgments of the Courts.
Save in exceptional circumstances, those judgments and full reasons for the sentences imposed are routinely published on the websites of the Attorney General’s Office (ago.gov.to) and the Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute (paclii.org) and are thus matters of public knowledge.
The relevant considerations and principles on whether a sentence of imprisonment should be suspended wholly or in part include:
A suspended sentence is intended to have a strong deterrent effect.
If the offender is incapable of responding to a deterrent, a suspended sentence should not be imposed.
Whether the offender is young, has a previous good record, or has had a long period free of criminal activity.
Whether the offender is likely to take the opportunity offered by the sentence to rehabilitate him or herself.
Where, despite the gravity of the offence, there is some diminution of culpability such as a lack of premeditation, the presence of provocation, or coercion by a co-offender.
Whether the defendant has cooperated with the authorities.
Suspended sentences are almost always imposed upon specified conditions such as probation, completion of rehabilitation programs and/or community service. Any breach of those conditions may result in the suspension being rescinded and the offender being required to serve the period of imprisonment.
Michael Whitten QC
Lord Chief Justice of the Kingdom of Tonga
26 March 2021
Tongan girls are becoming pregnant due to ignorance about contraception, male partner’s refusal to wear condoms and conservative social attitudes, according to a new report.
• The report, Unplanned Adolescent Pregnancy in the Pacific: Tonga, said cultural, religious and social conventions in Tonga made it hard for women to talk about the issues.
The report, Unplanned Adolescent Pregnancy in the Pacific: Tonga, said rates of unplanned adolescent pregnancy were high in many Pacific Islands countries.
The report said young women needed proper sex education, but said the lack of balance in power between girls and often older men needed to be addressed.
The report said that researchers found that cultural, religious and social conventions in Tonga made it hard for both younger and older women to talk openly about sexual and reproductive health, contraception and abortion.
Researchers from the University of New South Wales interviewed girls aged between 16-19 who had become pregnant about their experiences as well as older women who were encouraged to talk about their knowledge of local practices.
The university team interviewed 26 people in Tongatapu, Vava’u and Ha’apai.
School
All the young participants were either still in high school or had recently graduated when they found out they were pregnant.
Fear of telling their parents was widespread.
The report said poor availability of contraception, lack of information and lack of control over their own bodies could lead to unplanned adolescent pregnancies.
Much of the writing on teenage pregnancy came from a western viewpoint and focused on clinical services to reduce adolescent fertility.
However, it had been argued that the health and wellbeing of adolescent mothers in the Pacific would be better served by attention to cultural and social features of the society.
Knowledge about contraception and sexual and reproductive health was low among the young women interviewed.
“Most of them knew they could become pregnant from having unprotected sex, but for some reason did not think they would become pregnant when they were having unprotected sex with the father of their child,” the report said.
Facebook
Sources of reliable information about sexual and reproductive health and contraception were limited. Many participants said the only things they knew were what they had seen on Facebook, on YouTube and in movies.
Some of the young participants were aware of contraceptives and where they could get them, but were put off by the problem of trying to keep it private.
Of the young participants who did mention the use of contraception (almost exclusively condoms), it was used erratically at the sole discretion of their male partner.
Having an abortion was one of the first thoughts for many of the participants. Most girls had heard that there were ways to abort a pregnancy, but few were sure of exactly what to do.
Many of the teenage mothers wanted to get back to school, complete their education and get a job or move on to higher education. This also appeared to be factor for a number of parents of the pregnant teenagers.
This seems to played a part in arrangements to have a child adopted by a close relative.
Education
The report said young women needed to be supported with proper sex education. It suggested that this could be effective if it was offered to girls and older women together.
“Sexual and reproductive health and contraceptive education for young girls may be more acceptable if it is delivered in a forum that enables the older women to take some ownership of the process,” the report said.
“The hosting of small mother-and-daughter group meetings or workshops may improve, and begin to normalise, dialogue between mothers and their daughters on matters of sex, gender and relationships.”
However, the report said the issue of contraceptive use needed to be approached from several angles, including gender equality.. The fact that the decision to use contraception was usually the man’s represented an unfair imbalance in the power between the people involved.
FAKAMATALA FAKATONGA
Fokotu’u ‘e ha lipooti hili ha fakatotolo fakaako ‘i Tonga kuo taimi ke vakai’i e lao mo e tukufakaholo ‘a e fonua’ hangē ko e tapu ‘o e fakatōtama’ mo e tapu ke talanoa’i e ngaahi me’a fakaepo’uli ‘a e ongo me’amali’ ke mahino ki he fānau fefine’. Ko e taha ‘eni ia e ngaahi tapu tuku fakaholo’. Ka kuo lahi e taonakita ‘a e fānau fefine’ mo e feinga ‘i he ngaahi founga fakalilifu kehekehe ke fakatooki ‘a e pēpee’ tu’unga he ilifia he feitama’. Ni’ihi puna mei he feitu’u mā’olunga pea ni’ihi inu ha me’a pe ‘oku ala ke ne fakatooki ‘a e pepee’ hange ko e piliu’. Pea ‘ikai foki mahino lelei pe faingamalie ke ngāue’aki ‘a e ngaahi me’a malu’i kapau te nau ‘unoho mo ha tangata.
A widespread Pacific civil society call for a global ban on deep sea mining activity has been launched.
The Pacific Regional NGO Alliance of church and civil society groups kickstarted their campaign to stop deep sea mining yesterday in Fiji.
The general secretary of the Pacific Council of Churches, James Bhagwan. Photo: RNZ / Jamie Tahana
Their Blue Line Statement says that as custodians of the world’s biggest ocean, Pacific peoples have a moral obligation to protect it against exploitation and destruction.
However, a number of Pacific governments including Cook Islands and Nauru have backed exploration activities by companies spearheading the embryonic deepsea mining sector.
Opening the Blue Line launch, the Secretary General of the Pacific Conference of Churches, Reverend James Bhagwan said governments and companies claiming there would be minimal damage to the ocean from deep sea mining ran the risk of being on the wrong side of history.
“That which is actually know about our ocean depths actually runs contrary to the push for deep sea mining,” Bhagwan said.
“Scientists regularly warn against the devastating and irreversible damage to ecosystems and habitats; the resulting biodoversity loss, including of many known endemic species and others yet to be identified, that will be affected and most likely will never recover; the risk of giant sediment plumes travelling beyond the mining sites, smothering and potentially destroying all life forms on the sea floor.”
The coordinator of the Pacific Network on Globalization, Maureen Penjueli, told the campaign launch that scientists have given clear warnings about damage to oceans and the link to climate change.
“Recently they warned us about the carbon storage facilities of our ocean floor itself. Recovery of biodiversity destruction would be something that would not happen in human timelines.”
She said the Pacific Ocean had long been viewed by external powers as a kind of “anti-space” or void.
“A space in which great tests and experiments have taken place, first for world peace.
“In the past it was used as the proving ground for nuclear weapons. Our people drew a Blue Pacific Line and said never again.”
She said the advocates of deep sea mining were now presenting the industry as neccessary for the world’s fight against climate change under “false narratives of green technological revolution”.
The Deep Sea Mining Campaign warns that if nodule mining is allowed to take place in the Pacific Ocean, species such as the Sperm Whale could be adversely affected. Photo: WILLYAM
Companies such as DeepGreen Metals, which is looking to mine parts of the Pacific, say the world needs polymetallic nodules on the seabed for materials to make batteries for electric vehicles that will drive the carbon-free societies of the future.
Bhagwan described this argument as spurious, saying the minerals needed could be sourced from better recycling efforts and land-based resources.
In a recent interview with RNZ Pacific, the Cook Islands prime minister Mark Brown denied that his country was gambling with ocean health by opening up for deep sea mining exploration.
Economic strains caused by the pandemic have highlighted the need for Cook Islands to diversify its tourism-reliant economy.
The Cook Islands’ roughly two million square kilometres of Exclusive Economic Zone contains an estimated 10 billion tonnes of polymetallic nodules, rich in manganese, nickel, copper, cobalt and rare earth minerals.
Bhagwan noted that decades ago land-based mining also began with promises of economic and social benefits for Pacific people.
“And our lived experiences in the Pacific show clearly that the powerful corporations benefit the most while it is our people who bear the costs of destruction of our natural environment.
“Across resource frontiers of our region, history records this deception time and again.”
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown Photo: Cook Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs & Immigration
Tuvalu’s former prime minister, Enele Sopoaga who attended the online launch, said countries inviting seabed exploration were opening up a huge range of problems for ocean health.
“Soon they will be coming to Tuvalu, especially the vulnerable economies looking for the extra dollar. No. This is not on as long as I am in the parliament of Tuvalu.
“I will use all my energy to stop this mad idea about mining the seabed.”
Sopoaga is also calling for an end to the shipment of nuclear waste and disposal of plastics.
The new CEO of the Tonga Rugby Union is on a mission to restore confidence in the country’s national sport.
Peter Harding spent four years as General Manager of High Performance with the TRU, before departing in 2016 when a new administration was voted in.
Photo: Tonga Rugby Union
Since then he worked as a rugby consultant in Africa and Asia but said his passion for Tonga never left.
“My family’s been in Tonga since 2012 and my son’s nine and he’s basically grown up here. He spent a bit of time in Australia, six or seven months of his life, but the majority of his time is here. My wife’s settled with friends, we’re quite settled here – it’s a fantastic place to live and we’ve got a lot of really good friends here.”
The TRU signed a tripartite agreement with World Rugby and the Tonga government six months ago, after the global governing body pulled its financial support because of governance and administration issues.
Harding, who is contracted until the end of 2023, said the Board has already agreed to undergo a full governance review.
“If you notice that both Samoa and Fiji are on the (World Rugby) Council – that’s because they welcomed the governance review…which was put together after the World Cup in 2015. They’ve been through that process and they’ve had a rewritten constitution, rewritten review and so has Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea…[the] Cook Islands have done it.
“We’re basically the last people in the Pacific to do it so one of the first things we passed in the first board meeting was that we need to have that governance review.”
Peter Harding, new CEO of Tonga Rugby Union Photo: World Rugby
Harding said it was a collaborative and consultative process with stakeholders in Tonga.
“We need to do that to update the constitution and also to get on the treadmill so that in future we can potentially get on Council and have a member there who can speak up for us.”
Harding had no illusions that his job would be easy and was looking forward to many robust discussions in the boardroom and on the streets of Nuku’alofa.
“I know most of the players: I’m sort of plugged into most of those guys, I talk to them. I know the former coach Toutai (Kefu) pretty well and there’s something that is a bit addictive about island rugby…so seeing I was here and I’d just done four years in Africa with various nations trying to sort out governance and management there so I thought I had the expertise so I put my hand up and I was lucky enough to get it,” he said.
“Because rugby in Tonga is like it’s in people’s souls, it’s part of the country and part of people and…people tend to have very strong views on how things are to be done and how they’re to be run and it does occasionally lead to arguments or lead to issues and lead to problems.”
Harding said the public were passionate about things they believed in.
“I struggled with that as a palagi when I first came up…that was a challenge which to be honest I’m looking forward to now.”
Hire Power
Meanwhile the Tonga Rugby Union was close to confirming a new ‘Ikale Tahi coach, after the preferred candidate was signed off by the TRU Board on Thursday.
38 people applied for the role which has been vacant since Toutai Kefu’s contract expired after the 2019 World Cup, including a number of former Tongan internationals.
Tonga’s 2019 RWC squad Photo: Tonga Rugby Union
Peter Harding said it was important to get a coach and support staff in place as soon as possible, with two Rugby World Cup qualifying matches against Samoa looming in July.
“We’ve only just been reconfirmed as getting funding (from World Rugby ) so we haven’t been able to do anything about staff at this stage, because we didn’t have any money. There’s no point putting people on if there’s no money in the bank to pay them so we’ll start doing that now,” he said.
“The first person we’ll get is a head coach so we can start getting ready for July but after that staff here (in the TRU office) will be put on…now there’s got to be a negotiation to make sure that the coach is going to fulfill all of the requirements that we need, because part of our requirement for the coach is to spend at least four months on island to be a suppose a Director or Rugby type position and to assist and educate local coaches.”
Additional staff would follow, with Harding largely alone at the TRU offices.
“We’ll be looking at staff on-island like administrators and accounts because we’ve had a lot of problem with the money, but after that the first really on-island staff we’ll be looking at will be a development manager and a couple of development staff to come on in and get stuck into what we need to do up here – get some energetic people to really start looking at the schools and looking at the development of the kids.”
Change of venue for Rugby World Cup qualifiers
Tonga and Samoa will play their upcoming Oceania Rugby World Cup playoff series in New Zealand because of the ongoing uncertainty around Covid-19.
The ‘Ikale Tahi and Manu Samoa were meant to play home and away in July, with the aggregate winner to join England, Japan, Argentina and a qualifier from the Americas in Pool D in 2023.
Peter Harding said the games would now take place in New Zealand in mid-July.
“New Zealand Rugby have been very good and they’re going to help us out, for both teams, and get those games with Samoa there on the 17th and 24th of July…then the loser will play the highest ranked Asia-Pacific team to qualify directly to the World Cup,” he said.
Tonga were also pencilled in to play a warm up test against Ireland in New Zealand the week before, although Harding admitted that was looking unlikely.
It’s also unclear if their best players will be able to take part.
“To get the best people in that’s going to depend on the MIQ places in New Zealand…We’re putting all our applications together at the moment, which is difficult without a coach because he hasn’t picked a team,” he said.
“But if we’re going to bring people from overseas – if it’s from Australia hopefully there’s a travel corridor between those, that’s been on and off, but if they’re from Europe we’re going to have to find MIQ places.”
Peter Harding said Tonga and Samoa would still be able to select strong teams from eligible players based in New Zealand.
Samoa and Tonga do battle during the 2016 Pacific Nations Cup Photo: Renee McKay/SRU
Former New Zealand discus star Siositina Hakeai is looking to snatch records in a new sport.
Former New Zealand discus star Siositina Hakeai is looking to snatch records in a new sport. Photo: RNZ / Talei Anderson
The 27-year-old is a five time New Zealand women’s discus champion and placed fourth at the last two Commonwealth Games, but after entering the Auckland Strongman Series, the New Zealand-born Tongan said she was hooked on a new sporting challenge.
“I’ve been doing track and field for quite a long time, since I was 12-years-old. I started travelling the world at 14 [and] it just got to a point where my love for the sport started fading away,” she said.
“I decided to enter the Strongman Series because I knew I was strong, I just didn’t know how strong, and my love for the sport and lifting heavy just grew ever since.”
Hakeai entered her first New Zealand Strongman Series competition in 2019 where she picked up a New Zealand record for lifting 237kgs. By the end of 2020, she broke the New Zealand and Oceania women’s deadlift record at 270kgs.
But with the women’s world record sitting at 290kgs, Hakeai said the work was not over.
“Prior to that competition I only ever lifted 260kgs and I sit back now and I regret not putting 280kgs on the bar because the movement of the 270kgs was quite quick,” she said.
“I kind of regret not going [for] 280kgs but touch wood this year I can go for a 290kg world record or maybe even 300kgs.”
Afraid of how they might respond to her new found passion, Hakeai refrained from telling her parents about her participation in the the record-breaking competitions.
However a video posted online quickly gained attention and it wasn’t long before her secret was out.
“They found out through a video on Facebook,” she admitted.
Hakeai lifts 107.5kg log at the 2020 New Zealand Strongman Record Breakers competition. Photo: Facebook / New Zealand Strongman Series
“At first my parents weren’t too happy because I’ve been doing athletics for such a long time and me doing well in athletics isn’t just for myself but it’s for my parents and my family.”
“It kind of took a toll on them but then when they saw the potential I had in lifting, they’re a lot more supportive now. Mum’s always checking up to see if my back is all right or if I need extra massages, and dad is just making sure that I’m not overdoing it and I’m not trying to smash it so hard where it’s going to affect me long-term.”
Hakeai said Pacific Islanders were naturally strong, and it was encouraging to see more Pasifika participating in weightlifting sports.
“I see a lot of islanders getting into lifting and so they should be because it’s in their nature, they’re naturally strong, [and] that’s what we’re good at,” she said.
“I love seeing females throwing those irons around in the gym and not being afraid to go in there and lift, and not sticking to the cardio machines… I like that I can inspire people, especially girls, to give it a go and just showing guys that us girls can do what they can do, sometimes even better.”
While Hakeai aimed to break new records, she indicated her time doing discus wasn’t over yet, with hopes to one day represent her island nation.
“I’ve always wanted to represent Tonga in discus, in track and field, and my goal was to represent Tonga in the next Commonwealth Games, but with Covid-19 I’m not sure what’s going to happen.”
“If I can represent New Zealand in lifting and Tonga in track and field, that’s my ideal goal…I don’t know if I can represent both, but that’s definitely something I’m going to be looking into.”
King Tupou VI has signed Tonga’s new cyber bullying bill, known officially as the Electronic Communication Abuse Offences Act.
It is now an offence to abuse, harass or otherwise harm another using electronic communication.
An offender could be fined not exceeding $10,000, or imprisonment not exceeding three years, or both.
A person that is convicted of any repeated serious offence under this Act will be liable to a fine not exceeding $20,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years, or to both.
Service providers
Under the government’s bill a service provider must prevent communications networks and facilities from being used in, or in relation to, the commission of offences in this Act.
A service provider must assist Tonga Police in inquiries regarding this Act.
A service provider who fails, without reasonable excuse, to comply commits an offence punishable to a fine not exceeding $20,000.
Disabling order
Under the law a victim can apply for a court order to remove any information they deemed causing them any harm if the court is satisfied the respondent, service provider or relevant person or party has sent, or caused the electronic communication to be published.
The king signed the bill into law on February 25 after it was passed by the Legislative Assembly on 10 December 2020.
COMMENTARY The Minister of Infrastructure has wrongly attacked Kaniva News and Democratic Leader Semisi Sika in an article published by the VPON webpage yesterday.
Former Minister of Infrastructure ‘Etuate Lavulavu and wife former Minister of Internal Affairs. Photo/Akosita Lavulavu (Facebook)
‘Akosita claimed we attempted to interfere with the judiciary system after Sika called on her to resign ahead of her two separate fraud trials which are expected to start next Monday March 29 followed by another on April 12.
She also questioned Sika’s ground for comments saying no court has “proven beyond reasonable doubt” that she has committed any crimes.
She also criticised Sika for using Kaniva to echo his concerns saying he should understand “separation of powers”.
She told us there was no legal basis for her to resign and that she can’t wait for the day to come so she can make her case in court.
‘Akosita was responding after we ran an article yesterday headed: Sēmisi Sika: “Infrastructure Minister ‘Akosita Lavulavu should ‘volunteer to resign’ ahead of her two separate fraud trials”
It has to be underlined that there was no suggestion in the article that ‘Akosita was found guilty by any courts or committed any offence or that we criticised any decision by the court over her two fraud charges. Her court cases have yet to be heard and for her to say we attempted to interfere with the judiciary in dealing with her cases was utterly baseless and a mere attempt to mislead the public.
The Opposition & Media roles
The Opposition’s main role in democratic countries is to question the government of the day and hold them accountable. The Opposition utilises the media to reach voters “with its views and to establish an identity as an alternative government.”
The call by Sika for ‘Akosita to resign was part of his responsibilities as the Leader of the Opposition to hold her to account for the accusations against her because she is required to be accountable to the public and the people who have elected her to Parliament.
Earlier this month the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Lord Fakafanua launched the first ever Parliamentary Reporters’ Handbook for the Tongan media.
The Lord Speaker said “that Parliament and the Media in Tonga share a mutual symbiotic relationship; one where the Assembly relies on the media to deliver their messages, opinions, and decisions to the public. This is while the media closely follows and scrutinizes the work of MPs”.
‘Akosita appears to have downplayed attempts by our Parliament of which she is a member to upgrade and gave more space to media freedom in Tonga.
Separation of power & Checks and Balances
‘Akosita should know that media is the fourth estate or pillar of democracy along with judiciary, executive and legislature.
Our roles included checking on each other through “procedures set in place to reduce mistakes, prevent improper behavior, or decrease the risk of centralization of power”.
“Media of today has an all embracing role to act against the injustice, oppression, misdeeds and partiality of our society”.
We do not suggest that ‘Akosita has committed any offence but we act “as watchdog to protect public interest against malpractice and create public awareness.”
The Minister should understand better as she and his husband ’Etuate Lavulavu owned a newspaper and a radio station in which ‘Etuate used to attack the government’s critics and held the Opposition to account.
Resignations vs court judgement
The Minister is absolutely correct in saying that she never broke any laws in relation to her fraud cases. That is a matter for the courts to decide.
Unfortunately, that is not the point. There does not have to be a court judgement to be made for a Cabinet Minister to resign once they came under the spotlight. And the Tongan courts have no constitutional power to order her to resign. The mere fact that she has been accused and charged with two separate fraud cases, not just one, was enough for her to resign.
Cabinet Ministers’ credibility is a pivotal asset. Meaning they have to be honest. It means avoiding any activities, work or nonwork, that may harm the reputation of their office or the State services. And they have to do their best to protect that reputation.
Lessons from New Zealand & Australia
Being regarded as an honest and trustworthy Minister is not just about avoiding criminal activity or being cleared by a court decision. It is about understanding the difference between corruption and accusations and acknowledging that what is seen as the potential to cause the public to lose trust is just as great a concern than actually being found guilty in a court.
Most of the Cabinet Ministers in New Zealand and Australia who resigned because of any connection to corruption, accusations, allegations or indictments did so without having to wait until a court decision was made on their cases.
They wanted to step down as soon as they can possibly do to keep any criticisms and concerns against the government at bay.
This was seen when the New Zealand Health Minister David Clark formally resigned last year after “controversies in his handling of the Covid-19 response”.
Clark said: “”But it has become increasingly clear to me that my continuation in the role is distracting from the government’s overall response to COVID-19″.
In 2010, a New Zealand cabinet minister Phil Heatley resigned voluntarily “after finding an error in his expense accounts”. At the time, PM John Key offered him a chance to stand down but Heatley wanted to resign.
Key told media at the time, he would return Heatley if an investigation would clear him. And it happened. The investigation cleared him and Heatley’s ministerial role was reinstated.
Last year Three South Australian ministers and the state’s Legislative Council president resigned over the State Government’s expenses saga.
One of them was Premier Steven Marshall who said after he resigned: “The distractions of the past week have been extraordinarily disappointing and unacceptable.
“I don’t believe there has been deliberate dishonesty … but it’s very clear this is a distraction the Government doesn’t need”.
Whale watching licenses case
The Minister insisting that we should leave it to the courts to make decision in which she implied would be the only way to justify a resignation was balderdash.
Last year the Supreme Court warned ‘Akosita to follow the law and reinstated whale watching licenses she denied to a group of companies
The Minister was ordered to pay the plaintiffs’ costs.
If this was a case in New Zealand or Australia it is believed she was told to resign.
But what is most important here is that she was tried in court and she was found to have broken the law and she never resigned.
Now she is telling us after she had been charged for frauds and knowingly dealing with forged documents and obtaining credit by false pretenses she would not resign because the courts have yet to make decisions against her cases.
FAKAMATALA NOUNOU FAKATONGA
‘Oku totonu ke mahino ki he Minisitā ‘O e Ngaahi Ngāue Lalahi’ ko e fatongia mu’omu’a ia mo mahu’inga ‘o e Fa’ahi Fakaanga ‘o ha Fale Alea pea tatau mo e mitia ke nau ‘omai ‘a e kau minisita pe kau fakafofonga Fale Alea kuo fai hanau tukuaki’i ke nau fakamatala mo fakahoko ‘a e me’a ‘oku totonu ke nau fai’ ‘ke vakai ki ai ‘a e kakai’. Ko ia ai ko e lau na’e fai ‘e Semisi Sika ‘i he Kaniva ‘o ne ui kia ‘Akosita ke fakafisi tu’unga he’ene ongo hopo lalahi ‘e ua ‘oku hanga mai’ ko e fatongia totonu ia ‘o ‘ona. Pea na’e fai ‘i he laumalie lelei he na’e ‘i ai ‘ene poini’ ko ‘ene pehe ke malu’i e ngeia ‘o e kapineti’. Ko ‘ene ngāue’aki ‘a e mitia’ ki hono fatongia ko ia’ ‘oku toe totonu pe mo ia he ko e ngafa ia ‘o e mitia’ ke nau fakaongo atu e fakakaukau mo e lau ‘a e kau taki ‘o e fonua’ kau ai ‘a e Fa’ahi Fakaanga’. Ko e pehē ‘e ‘Akosita tokua ‘oku kei tonuhia pe ia te’eki fakahalaia’i ia ‘i fale hopo ‘oku ta’e ‘uhinga ia he ‘oku ‘ikai ko e angamaheni ia ‘o e fakafisi ‘a ha minisitā pe Fakafofonga Fale Alea ke toki tu’utu’uni ha fakamaau’anga pea nau fakafisi’. Pea ‘oku ‘ikai ha mafai pehe ia ‘o e fakamaau’anga’. Na’e ‘osi mo’ua ‘a ‘Akosita i he Fakamaau’anga lahi ‘ ‘i hono faka’ilo ia ko e ‘ikai ke ne foaki ‘a e ngaahi laiseni mamata’anga tofua’a ki ha kulupu ‘o ha ngaahi kautaha. Pea na’e tautea ai ia ke ne totongi ‘a e fakamole ‘a e ngaahi kautaha ki he hopo ko ia’. Ne ‘osi totonu ke fakafisi pe ia he fo’i keisi ko ia’ he kuo’ ne maumau’i e lao ‘a e pule’anga’. Ko ‘ene lave ‘o pehē ‘oku feinga ‘a e Kaniva’ mo e taki ‘o e Fa’ahi Fakaanga’ ke kaunoa ‘i he fakamaau’anga ‘oku hala mama’o mo ia mo ta’e ‘uhinga. ‘E lau ia ko e ta’efaka’apa’apa ki he fakamaau’anga kapau te mau kaunoa ka na’e ‘ikai ha fakamatala pehe ‘e taha ‘e ha atu ‘i he Kaniva’. Ko hono mo’oni ko ‘ena feinga mo e uepi ‘a e VPON ke fakangali kovi’i e fatongia totonu pe ia ‘o e Kaniva mo Semisi Sika. Ko ‘ena tukuaki’i ne ‘ikai hano makatu’unga pea ‘ikai te na lava ‘o kuouti pe to’o hangatonu mai mei he ongoongo na’e pulusi’ ko e fe ‘a e me’a ai ‘oku mau kaunoa ai he fakamaau’anga. Ko Nu’u Sila’ mo ‘Aositelēlia ko e ongo fonua ia ‘oku na toutou fai ha ngaahi uekasopu mo e Fale Alea ‘o Tonga ‘i hono feinga’i ke fakahinohino ‘a e founga ngāue ki hona ongo Fale Alea’. Pea ko e founga ‘i Nu’u Sila’ ni mo ‘Aositelēlia ko ‘ene tukuaki’i pe ha minisitā ko e lahi taha’ fakafisi pe minisita ko ia ‘iate ia ‘ikai toe tali ia ke ō ‘o fakatonutonu ‘i ha hopo. Pea ‘oku fakafisi e ni’ih kae lele e fakatotolo pea ‘osi ange ‘oku nau tonuhia pea ‘oku fakafoki pe kinautolu ki honau lakanga’. Ko e me’a totonu ia ke fai ‘i Tonga ke taau mo e lotu ‘aukai ‘a e ‘Eiki Palemia ‘oku fua hono fakamole mei he tukuhau ‘a e kakai’. ‘Oku totonu ke ho’ata mai ‘a e lotu ko ia’ ‘i he to’onga ‘a e kau minisitaa’. ‘Oku totonu ke fakafaikehekehe’i ‘e ‘Akosita ‘a e me’a ‘oku ui ko e tukuaki’i’ pea mo e me’a ‘oku ui ko e halaia ‘i fale hopo ko e ongo me’a kehekehe ‘aupito ia ‘i he pule fakatemokalati. Ko e tukuaki’i pe ‘iate ia ko e halanga ia ki he pau ke fakafisi. He ‘oku ‘ikai fiema’u ke kei nofo hu’uhu’u e kau totongi tukuhau mo mahalo kovi he’ene kei ma’u ‘a e mafai ke ala holo he’enau koloa mo nofo honau ‘ofisi mo fai e ngaahi sevesi ma’a kinautolu lolotonga ‘oku’ ne fe’ao holo mo hono fu’u tukuaki’ mamafa. ‘Oku totonu ke fai mo a’usia ‘e Tonga e maama fakasivilaise ko ia’. He ka ‘ikai ‘e fakatupu ai ‘a e ta’emelino mo e ta’efalala ki he pule’anga fakalukufua o hange pe ko ‘eni ‘oku ma’ave’ave he taimi ni he tukuaki’i ko ‘eni ‘o ‘Akosita’. Pea ko e ‘uhinga ia ‘oku ‘ai ai ‘e mamani mo e ngaahi pule’anga sivilaise ke fakafisi ha minisita pe ‘oku tukuaki’i koe’uhi kae ‘atā pea ma’a pe fatongia’ ke hoko atu ngāue mo fai tau’atāina ma’a e kakai’.
A 33-year-old married woman was subjected to a nightmare when her boss indecently assaulted her on a yacht at Vaipua in Vava’u last year.
Limoni Tito Siasau was charged after he committed serious indecent assault by fondling a woman’s vagina outside her clothing without her consent.
Three Crown witnesses were called to give evidence during the trial namely the victim, her husband and a co-worker of the victim. Siasau didn’t call any witness.
A copy of the verdict shows the offender and the victim had known each other as workers for the Sunsail company before the incident.
On February 20, 2020, the victim and Siasau with two other workers were at the company’s yacht yard at Vaipua.
They boarded Kepa, a catamaran with two hulls.
After sending the other two workers to work on another yacht, the Europia, Siasau told the victim she wanted to talk to her about work matters.
At one stage the victim told the court Siasau asked if she still wanted the work in which she said yes.
She said Siasau went down into the cabin and told her to come down so he can show her the work to do.
The work was to scrub the wall with janola and scrape it with silicone.
She said she had her back to a bed in the cabin while looking at what Siasau instructed her to do.
It was at this time Siasau pushed her backwards onto the bed and lifted both her legs and touched her on her vagina through her under garment and tight pants she wore.
She said that he pushed his fingers with the fabric of her pants and undergarment into her vagina before she said: “What are you doing?” in which he said: “ for us to have sex and to make you climax”.
She said she struggled and that she pushed him off before he got up.
She said she made him think that she was not afraid and she told her she had not had a bath and whenever he would ring her at any time, she would be sure to be ready for him the following day.
She said he asked her if she was being truthful and she said that she was.
She said Siasau walked up the stairs before he stopped, turned around and put his pant down and held out her penis and told her to come and suck it in which she refused.
She said she pushed the door of the cabin to shut but that he pushed it open and pulled her hand to hold his penis and told her to make him climax.
But just then, his phone rang before he answered it.
She said after talking to someone on the phone he pulled her hand off his penis saying: “No one will climax that way”. He then masturbated himself and ejaculated onto the floor. She said he told her to get a pillowcase from the bedroom and wipe the semen off.
Siasau left before she heard him got to his vehicle and started up the engine. She then called her husband and asked him to come and pick her up straight away.
Her husband took her to the Police station the following day and filed a complaint.
Denial
Siasau denied his charge saying the victim was lying.
Justice Niu in summing up his verdict said Siasau has admitted that he did what the victim has said about him.
Mr Niu referred to a telephone call between Siasau and the victim’s husband in which Siasau said:
“Have your wife checked because she is not mentally well. In any event, there was no witness”.
Justice Niu said: “ He thereby confirmed that he was alone with the complainant and had done what she said he had done to her but that no one, other than himself, would support her story because no one else was there.”
“Taking into consideration, together with all the evidence I have heard in this trial, and the exhibits which have been produced, and agreeing with Mrs. Kafa as counsel for the Crown with the submissions which she has made, I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the accused committed serious indecent assault upon the complaint on 20 February 2020 at Vaipua as he is charged in this trial, and I convict him accordingly”.
The Minister of Infrastructure ‘Akosita Lavulavu should step down ahead of her two separate fraud cases due next week and next month, said PTOA Leader Sēmisi Sika.
Sika said ‘Akosita should quit to keep the “dignity of the Cabinet”.
“Obviously, she is there looking for job.”
“If somebody holds an important position and has court cases in which they had been accused of committing fraud and forgery they should resign immediately,” he said.
The Minister along with her disgraced husband ‘Etuate Lavulavu are due to appear in a Magistrate Court next Monday 29 March 2021 to face a lawsuit brought against them by a landlord in Vava’u.
In that case, Sione Tui of Ha’alaufuli accused the Lavulavus of creating and signing a letter on his behalf to the Ministry of Lands and Survey without him knowing about it. The Lavulavus denied this.
In April 12, two weeks after their Magistrate Court appearance, the Lavulavus are due to appear at the Supreme Court to answer charges brought against them by the Auditor General.
In that case, the Lavulavu couple is charged with knowingly dealing with forged documents and obtaining credit by false pretenses, after irregularities in an audit of the ‘Unuaki ‘o Tonga Royal Institute in 2016. Akosita was the director of the school while ‘Etuate was the president.
The couple holds positions in the Prime Minister Tu’ionetoa’s Cabinet and People’s Party which are regarded as highly influential.
‘Etuate and Tu’i’onetoa were founding members of the Party before Tu’i’onetoa was appointed as Party Chair and ‘Etuate was Deputy Chair.
The right-hand woman
Following her arrest in March 2018 the late Prime Minister ‘Akilisi Pōhiva dismissed ‘Akosita.
It was reported that her dismissal came after the Prime Minister tried to convince her to resign voluntarily from Cabinet because of her criminal charges but she refused. She was later reappointed as Cabinet Minister by the Tu’i’onetoa government in 2019.
‘Akosita’s infrastructure ministerial roles puts her in a position in which she has been seen as the Prime Minister Tu’i’onetoa’s right-hand woman.
She is the minister who oversees the Prime Minister’s controversial multi-million new road project.
It was estimated that once the project is completed in four years’ time since it began last year it costs taxpayers $300 million.
Critics believe such a big project for a small country like Tonga should have been given more times to be discussed and planned on national level.
Conflict of interest
Not only we have reported that there was a conflict of interest surrounding the awards of the project’s contract works to companies with strong links to the Tu’i’onetoa government, the government has stopped one of its contractors from New Zealand saying there was an issue with its contract agreement. It was the same contractor which failed to pay about more than $100,000 freight debts to a New Zealand based-Tongan freight company which we reported in December.
Sika, a former Minster of Infrastructure previously criticised the project saying it opened a door for the country to face a possible financial crisis.
As Kaniva News reported recently, heavy rain and flooding have destroyed most of the newly constructed roads in Vava’u and part of Tongatapu. This means more money was needed from the taxpayers’ coffers to reconstruct these roads. Meanwhile, most parts of the kingdom have yet to have their roads repaired or constructed.
Concerns about contractors’ background
As we said previously, there is no doubt most Tongans want the road project and see it as a priority. However, they are deeply concerned about the background of the people who have strong links with government and these contractors.
‘Etuate’s company the Inter Pacific was one of the contractors the Tu’i’onetoa government has awarded with a contract to supply rocks and construction services under the Prime Minister’s road project.
‘Etuate previously denied any involvement with any activities which link him to the road project’s contracts.
But it has been recently reported by local media that ‘Etuate was the CEO of his company overseeing the road works currently conducting in Vava’u.
He has been regarded as the mouth piece of the Prime Minister and he has his own newspaper the Kalonikali Tonga and a radio station FM 89.5 in which he attacked the opposition and the government’s critics.
‘Etuate’s past
In 2016 Tonga’s Supreme Court convicted ‘Etuate of bribery and spending over the legal limit on his 2014 election campaign. He was later dismissed from his Parliamentary and ministerial posts.
The judge said ‘Etuate was not a credible witness and that his evidence was implausible, evasive and untruthful.
‘Etuate was also arrested in Utah in the United States in October 2003 over a 1997 immigration scam. In 2004 he was convicted after pleading guilty to two counts of illegal use of a birth certificate.
In a case in 2000, Lavulavu was sued by the Late Prince Tu’ipelehake for damages and unlawful cultivation of his land. In his summing up of the trial, Lord Chief Justice Ward said Lavulavu “was willing to say almost anything that seemed to suit the moment with a repeated disregard for the truth.”
This story by RNZ.co.nz is republished with permission
Authorities say Tonga needs two more prisons and many more psychiatric beds to cope with offenders.
Huʻatolitoli Prison and Correctional Facility
RNZ Pacific correspondent in Nuku’alofa, Kalafi Moala, said this was the view of the Commissioner of Prisons, Semisi Tapueluelu.
He said the issue of psychologically-disturbed prisoners had soared as the country battled a surge in drug offences.
A newly established psych unit at the Hu’atolitoli Prison already had 14 inmates. The unit was built for a maximum capacity of eight people.
Tapueluelu said there were many others who needed the services.
Kalafi Moala said there was a corresponding surge in the number of convictions being suspended by the courts.
“There have been so many court cases, particularly of people tried for drug use and their sentences get suspended and of course we asked the reason ‘Why are these sentences suspended’ and the Superintendent of the Prisons [Semisi Tapueluelu] gave the answer is because they don’t have any room to take in new prisoners.”
Over the years mental health officials in Tonga have drawn attention to the need for more facilities.
The local Mental Health and Disabilities Association said in the past that close to 10 percent of Tongans suffer from mental illness, yet the government had not always provided the necessary support.
Earlier Tonga’s head psychiatrist, Mapa Puloka, said the sector was in dire need of attention with some psychiatric patients sleeping on hospital floors or not in official facilities at all.
He also pointed to a growing drug problem and a lack of help for addicts.
