PACIFIC BRIEFS 21/04/2018

REFUGEES ROUNDED UP IN DAWN RAID PAPUA NEW GUINEA – A Manus Island refugee in Port Moresby says the Papua New Guinea immigration authority assisted by the army conducted a dawn raid yesterday at a motel in the capital. They were targeting a group of 20 refugees brought to Port Moresby from Manus for medical treatment. The refugee said most of the men were taken from the motel and escorted to the airport for transport back to the island. He said a small number of men avoided capture by hiding, or by being unaware of the raid and away from the motel at the time. About three dozen other men were sent back to Manus from the motel this year after receiving medical treatment. The refugee said about 60 refugees remained in the motel of about 750 in PNG, where they’ve been exiled by Australia for the last five years. PASIFIKA CRIME RATES DECREASING NEW ZEALAND – The former National government in New Zealand is taking credit for halving Pacific youth offending during its time in office. It was revealed this week that the rate of Pacific youth offending dropped by 61 per cent between 2009 and 2017. National’s spokesperson for Pacific People’s, Alfred Ngaro, said National had the right plans and policies in place to improve the lives of Pasifika. He said the figures came as achievement results among Pasifika high school students showed a marked jump. Ngaro said it was known that “a lack of education can lead to a young person offending, so it’s no surprise that as Pacific student achievement goes up, Pacific youth offending goes down”. FIJI AND NZ LOOK TO INCREASE TRADE FIJI – The Fiji Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama says his country is exploring new opportunities for trade and investment with New Zealand. Bainimarama has met with New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in the margins of the Commonwealth Head of Governments Meeting in London. Bainimarama said there was a great deal of unrealised potential between the two countries in trade and investment. He said the Fiji-NZ Business Council could be an effective vehicle for greater economic exchange. Ardern said New Zealand’s new approach to regional co-operation would see it becoming a more involved partner in the development of Fiji and other Pacific nations. TOURISM STAFF SWEPT AWAY BY RIVER SOLOMON ISLANDS – Staff at the Solomon Islands Visitor Bureau are receiving counselling after a staff member died and another is still missing during an assessment of a hiking track. The office’s marketing officer, Stella Lucas, died during the assessment in the Mataniko River region near Honiara. Another worker Chris Nemaia is still missing. The Bureau chairman, Wilson Ne’e, said he cannot comment on the exact circumstances until local authorities release an official report. Honiara’s a police chief Alfred Uiga said the pair were swept away by the river after a downpour of torrential rain. “One male is still missing and searches are ongoing,” Uiga said. “At this stage, the cause of death of the woman is not confirmed but it appears at this early stage she may have drowned in the river.”