Tonga’s prime minister cancels visit to Katikati

NEW ZEALAND – The bodies of five Tongan men killed in the Bay of Plenty earlier this week have been released back to their families.

The men, four of whom were in New Zealand on seasonal work visas, were leaving a kiwifruit coolstore near Katikati on Tuesday night when their car was hit by a logging truck on State Highway Two.

Katikati seasonal employer liaison officer Sefita Hao’uli has been working with their families in New Zealand and in Tonga about what happens next.

He said the families of the four seasonal workers wanted their bodies brought home.

“The funeral directors are preparing the deceased to be repatriated back to Tonga as soon as possible. Those details as to when are still unknown, because we have never had to put four Tongan caskets on an aircraft to Tonga before.”

Under the RSE the workers were insured and this will cover the costs of repatriating the victims’ bodies to Tonga.

Apolosi Tu’angalu, who worked with the victims, says the other Tongan workers there want to take them home.

“We are heartbroken at what has happened. We really feel the loss of our colleagues,” he explained.

“We met this morning and we’ve all decided we want to return together with our colleagues who died. We’ll just come back next year. We all just feel that we want return together and take them home.”

A community remembrance service has been held in Katikati.

A local Tongan community leader said he was disappointed that Tonga’s Prime Minister cancelled his trip to Katikati to visit the families of the Tongan men.

Prime Minister Akilisi Pohiva, who is visiting New Zealand, was expected to meet with family members and attend the community remembrance service in Katikati.

The Tongan Consul said there was never any official arrangement for the leader to go to Katikati and other “issues” had come up.

A spokesman said the main issue was that the bodies had not been released which meant the prime minister could not meet them.

“The bodies are not ready to be seen and bodies will be taken to Tonga. He will be in Tonga ready to meet them when the bodies are ready to be taken over.”

Tongan Advisory Council Board chair Melino Maka said the visit to Katikati should have been the top priority.

“This is one of the saddest things for the Tongan community, and especially the Katikati Tongan community. What you have to understand is that you as a prime minister have to drop everything and try to be with the families, and make sure that the families know that you are there to support them.”

A spokesperson said Pohiva would fly back to Tonga on Saturday where he would meet with the deceased men’s families there.

The coolstore operator, Allan Dawson, said the coolstore was closed for business but people were gathering there to mourn the dead men .

“There’s just a tremendous outpouring of support from all around the community and all around the greater post-harvest community of kiwifruit that we’re associated with,” he said.

“We’re all really quite distraught at the moment.”

The company was doing everything it could to inform the families in Tonga, and would provide financial support to them.

A Givealittle fund raising page has been set up online to raise money for the men’s families.

- PNC