Articles by Utopia Support

PACIFIC BRIEFS - 18/08/2018

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

FIJI – Fiji’s National Disaster Management Office says more than 800 homes on the island of Kadavu have sustained damage from this month’s Cyclone Keni. The NDMO Director Anare Leweniqila says 804 houses have been damaged, 201 of which were fully destroyed. Mr Leweniqila said 104 evacuation centers remain active with 803 evacuees. He said the relief and recovery phase continued in Kadavu with assessment teams to work through the 75 villages in the area by the end of the week. FBC News reported the collective cost of damage for the Western and Northern Divisions was expected to be finalised by Friday. Leweniqila said the assessment for the West and North would cover the combined disasters in relation to Cyclone Josie, Tropical Depression 13F and Cyclone Keni. BOUGAINVILLE MP URGES 100% TURNOUT BOUGAINVILLE – An MP in Bougainville’s autonomous regional parliament says it’s important that there is a strong, emphatic vote by Bougainvilleans in next year’s independence referendum. The Papua New Guinea autonomous region is to hold a referendum in June next year under the terms of the Bougainville Peace Agreement. PNG’s national parliament has been tasked with the final say on the referendum outcome. Rodney Osioco from Kokoda constituency said a strong majority vote would ensure Bougainvilleans’ self-determination aspirations are ultimately approved by PNG’s national parliament. “That is why the members are doing more awareness to the people that we must all fully vote one hundred percent to our aspirations so that that outcome can be rectified in the parliament, because parliament is the only legitimate authority who makes laws in the country.” PETITION CALLS FOR ELECTION DEFERRAL FRENCH POLYNESIA – A petition has been launched in French Polynesia in a bid to defer this month’s territorial election to remedy irregularities in the registration process. The newly-formed group Our Movement said within three days, its online petition had been signed by 2000 people. It was launched in response to obstruction by administration officials who allegedly refused to certify documents needed for candidates to stand. The new party’s leader Tevai Haumani said some of his candidates withdrew after being threatened with job losses. He said because of this interference his party couldn’t lodge its list of 73 candidates on time. Haumani had also written to the French president Emmanuel Macron asking for protection of aspiring politicians for there to be a democratic choice. Leaders of another new party list, A Ti’a Mai, also said it faced obstruction and therefore couldn’t meet the nominations deadline for the election April 22. - IN SAMOA 59 sailors preparing to leave for work on board cargo and cruise ships in Europe have been warned not to drink alcohol. During a farewell ceremony the acting Prime Minister, Papalii Niko Lee Hang said this is the main challenge faced by local seamen now working overseas. Papalii said that the government’s zero tolerance on alcohol consumption remained and if the new group misbehaved overseas they would be sent home and no longer be considered for further service on foreign ships. Anti-plastics initiative VANUATU – Britain and Vanuatu are leading a new Commonwealth initiative to fight plastic pollution in the Pacific and other oceans. The British government has committed US$88 million dollars to the Commonwealth Clean Oceans Alliance. The funding package is billed at helping to boost global research and assist Commonwealth countries stop plastic waste from entering the oceans in the first place. Speaking ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting in London next week, PM Theresa May annnounced that New Zealand, Ghana and Sri Lanka had joined the Alliance. Together with Vanuatu as joint chair, Britain called on other countries to pledge action on plastics. This can include a ban on microbeads, cutting down on single-use plastic bags, or other steps to eliminate avoidable plastic waste. Developing countries who sign up to the Alliance are eligible to bid for partnership support to improve waste management systems and implement other initiatives to reduce the plastic waste reaching oceans. Aid spending unpopular PACIFIC – Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Concetta Fierravanti-Wells says the vast majority of Australians do not want increases in aid spending. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that 80 per cent of Australians do not support any further spending on foreign aid. Fierravanti-Wells called for Britain to partner on infrastructure development in the Pacific. Speaking to aid agencies on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in London, she said the Australian aid budget will be kept at US$3 billion and would not increase until the economy was back on a sustainable footing. Fierravanti-Wells said the government polling had exposed a “big schism” between the community and those working in the aid sector. The Sydney Morning Herald reported the opposition Labor Party’s belief that the government’s cuts to foreign aid have allowed China to move into Australia’s backyard by showering poorer Pacific Island nations with aid and cheap development loans. Island evacuation pending VANUATU – A patrol boat loaded with police and mobile force personnel is being deployed to the Vanuatu island of Ambae this afternoon to help with an intended mass evacuation. A state of emergency has been declared on the island, with the volcano at the island’s centre continuing to erupt, blanketing much of the island in ash. A spokesperson for the National Disaster Management Office, Presley Tari, said the mass evacuation will begin once the forces arrive and establish themselves which is likely to be later on this week. The government announced last week that a mass evacuation would again take place, with people from the islands north, west and south being moved to the far east coast or nearby smaller islands. Ambae is in Penama Province and the provincial government has secured land on the island’s east side for victims of the ongoing eruption. This comes as the central government’s ministerial task force is still yet to complete negotiations to acquire land for resettlement on either Maewo or Pentecost.

Tonga's leitis strive for visibility

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

TONGA – Transgender women and gender-diverse ‘leitis’ in the conservative Pacific Island Kingdom of Tonga say they “cannot be silent anymore” about their fight for visibility. Joey Joleen Mataele is one of many in Tonga’s island chain who identifies as a ‘fakaleiti’ or simply ‘leiti’, which translates roughly from Tongan as “like a lady”. “The role of leitis in our society is more of a housewife role, a domestic worker, we’re known in the public eye in our churches and for helping the youth programmes, but when it comes to our personal choices, that’s when the barriers start going up,” she told the ABC’s Pacific Beat this week. Mataele is the President of the Tongan Leitis Association, a group at the centre of a new documentary released at the weekend in London called Leitis in Waiting, a year-long exploration of what life is like for transgender women in Tonga. “It’s been years of dreaming that our story would be recorded and be distributed to the world,” she said. “I think this is a great achievement for us to be able to do this. And it’s a tool that we will be able to use.” Mataele’s father was a politician and a member of Tonga’s elite, and her family has a close relationship with the country’s royal family. In the documentary, Tonga’s Princess Salote Lupepau‘u Tuita describes her mother’s relationship with Mataele when he was a baby. “One memory my mother has is of when Joey was a toddler and he had very, very feminine features and really, really curly hair. “So my mother had a life-sized doll as well and she said, ‘you’re prettier than my doll’ – so she put the dress of her life-sized doll on Joey and put his hair in ringlets and would take him around. “It wasn’t to mock him or anything, she just loved it. Since then, he’s always been that special and close to her.” Yet despite her connections in the upper echelons of Tongan society, Mataele’s place within the community remains a struggle. While in some cases leitis are accepted as caretakers and workers, they are also outlawed, shunned and even face jail time. Tonga’s Civil Offences Act criminalises cross dressing and sodomy, with both carrying jail terms of up to 10 years. Mataele said people in Tonga remain uncomfortable talking about the issue. “I think it’s time to talk about it, we cannot be silent any more, I mean if we keep silent about this, it’s not healthy, it’s not mentally and physically healthy for all of us,” she said. Leitis in Waiting culminates with a meeting organised by the Tongan Leitis Association, where the group publicly push for decriminalisation for the first time. The documentary’s director and producer, Joe Wilson, said the dichotomy of Tonga’s identity is part of what drew him to the story of the leitis. “It is probably the most religious country I’ve ever been to, which makes the story of how you work for change when it comes to how LGBT people are viewed very interesting and very challenging. “But also very hopeful because in this case the Tongan leiti community is also very well integrated into their church communities,” Wilson told Pacific Beat. “So they’re accepted on some levels but not on other levels.” The push for decriminalisation and the rising public presence of the leitis comes at a time of heightened religious tension in the country, with American-funded elevangelists fuelling a new campaign against the LGBT community in Tonga. “It’s creating an ugly division that I don’t think had really existed in Tonga prior to the emergence of this kind of approach,” Wilson said. But Mataele continues to be an avid church-goer and won’t be swayed from either her faith or her gender identity. “The more they preach against us, it doesn’t really make me angry, it actually makes us all a stronger person,” Mataele said. “At the end of the day it’s just a small island. You cannot move without anybody noticing and if they think they can move us out to little secluded islands, because of our sexual orientation or gender identity, I think they need to wake up.” In London for the premiere, Mataele was awarded a Commonwealth Points of Light Award – an honour given by the British Government and endorsed by the Queen of England. The award commended her for, “using song, humour and dance to promote issues which affect the transgender community”. While the award is not recognised in Tonga, Mataele said she dedicated it to everyone who had helped “fight this fight”. The new documentary is to tour worldwide.

Pacific must embrace plan to clean up shipping

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

PACIFIC – There is a call for Pacific nations to maintain a leading role in reducing greenhouse emissions from the shipping industry.

Folau explains his religious convictions

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

Wallabies star Israel Folau has revealed he offered to walk away from his Rugby Australia contract in the wake of his controversial comments on homosexuality and that tension remains with the game’s administration over the issue.

Israel Folau's beliefs spark backlash

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

TONGA – The president of Tonga Leiti’s Association is asking for Pacific sporting role models like Israel Folau to be more socially responsible.

Tree-trimming laws frustrating

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

A DELAY in a government review into tree trimming is incredibly frustrating, the Electricity Networks Association says.

Call to clamp down on clampers

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

NEW ZEALAND – A South Auckland woman is accusing car clamp companies of deliberately targeting poor areas.

Cancer screening error

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

A BOWEL cancer screening error affected 12,500 more people than earlier revealed, with 30 of them developing cancer. The Health Ministry said in February a technical glitch involving a pilot screening programme at Waitemata District Health Board meant 2500 people missed out on screening. It said three people developed the killer cancer as a result and one died. But new details released today show about 15,000 Waitemata residents missed out – including the original 2500. Ministry officials said initial analysis showed that more than 30 of those people got bowel cancer. Jane O’Hallahan, the Ministry’s National Screening Unit clinical director, said they had clearly failed some people “and for that we are sorry”. She emphasized the problems only related to Waitemata residents and the pilot, not the national rollout of screening now under way. Russian hackers suspected Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern is checking whether New Zealand has been hit by a fresh wave of global cyber attacks, she says. The United States, Britain and Australia have said hackers backed by the Russian government infected computer routers around the world. Speaking in Berlin, Ardern said she was awaiting advice from the New Zealand intelligence agency, GCSB. GCSB director-general Andrew Hampton said in the agency’s annual report in November that 122 local incidents, about a third of the 396 serious incidents recorded by the GCSB’s National Cyber Security Centre, had “indicators of connection to foreign intelligence agencies”. He said Russian state-sponsored hackers were behind some of those incidents. “New Zealand is not immune to the threat of espionage by foreign states or to foreign efforts to interfere with the normal functioning of government or the rights of New Zealanders,” the report said.

Deportation order 'a nightmare'

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

NEW ZEALAND – A British man whose stepdaughter was murdered in New Zealand could be deported by the government despite residing in the country for more than 50 years, in a situation he describes as an “endless nightmare”.

Kiwi dog owners' love knows no limits

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Regional

NEW ZEALAND – New Zealand is a nation of dog lovers who will spare no expense when their pets get into trouble.

Kata - 18/04/2018

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Kata

Football Championship title on the line

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Football

The ongoing National Football Championship is living up to expectations as the men’s and women’s teams are producing some great performances to entertain the many supporters at the CIFA Complex and Takitumu School.

Smokies - 18/04/2018

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Smoke Signals

TE MATO VAI COSTINGS A LITTLE VAGUE In discussions with a fellow petitioner to parliament regarding Te Mato Vai, a question was raised regarding the lack of costings for the project. What would our three local banks think about lending on an application to finance a project of this magnitude? The application would read something like this: “It will be roughly $30 million for the ring main and another $34 million for stage two. A total of $64 million. (These figures are estimates only; we will know the real costs after we start the project).” EXTORTION CLAIMS What is the outcome of these ridiculous claims by Wilkie Rasmussen regarding George Pitt? Have the police completed their investigation? After all the media hype surrounding this much-publicised incident, nothing comes of it? SS: Our repeated questions on this subject have met with silence. It is strongly rumoured however, that Pitt is, or has been, advising some factions of the Democratic Party. CULTURE CONTEST JUDGING Congrats to all the Tereora College teams that competed in the cultural festival competition at the Auditorium last Thursday night. However, in the spirit of fairness, in the future, please don’t select judges who are directly helping the teams in the competition which is what happened at the auditorium. If judges are helping a particular team, then they should not be allowed to judge when their team is performing to show fairness to everyone. Otherwise it puts other teams at a disadvantage and will destroy the hard work and effort that has been put into the performance by the other groups. On a positive note, it is good to see that our culture is still alive. DON’T CYCLE ON THE FOOTPATHS! I was walking along the footpath on the way to the market on the lagoon side the other day when I nearly got run into by a very fast local cyclist coming at top speed from behind. I then had to move over as several tourist cyclists came towards me on the same footpath. This is happening more regularly than ever before and since the tourist season will be starting in earnest soon, I think signs should be put up to say this is not a cycle track! MURI SPEED LIMIT Early in the first term of government the then police minister (Henry Puna), imposed a speed restriction in the area of Muri. There has been very little by way of enforcement of this restriction (by traffic authorities and little radar or checkpoints). However, the condition of the road throughout Muri/Titikaveka is such that any speeds above the imposed limit would be hugely detrimental to the integrity of any vehicle. STOP TALKING AND DO SOMETHING There is continual rhetoric from the government regarding the condition of Rarotonga’s lagoon waters. However, over the last few years there has been very little actual decision-making as to what remedial works or causes of the problems are required, to correct the unhealthy situation. BIKE SAFETY When school resumes next year, let’s hope the students get a good talking to about the need to take care on the roads when they ride their bicycles. Some elementary knowledge of the road rules and the need for common sense, might be helpful. Doing wheel stands, weaving all over the road and not bothering to look before riding on to busy roads, isn’t conducive to a long life.

'Making it happen' cops criticism

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, “Let’s make it happen.”

Island water resource tested

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Outer Islands

Tests that will identify potential locations for future development of water resources on Aitutaki have been conducted by a team from Pacific Community (SPC) in Fiji.

Memorial to honour Pacific soldiers

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Local

New Zealand’s Ministry of Culture and Heritage has allocated almost half a million dollars towards a Pacific Island memorial which will feature in New Zealand’s Pukeahu National War Memorial Park in Wellington.

New hall hosts CICC women's conference

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Local

“Come and see, go and tell, Jesus is alive.”

Runners work on rubbish issue

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Environment

To combat the increase in rubbish left lying around the island, WATSAN is promoting “plogging”, a new online community on Instagram for a large group of people around the world who combine running with picking up rubbish. Infrastructure Cook Islands (ICI) waste programme coordinator Hilary Boyes says a number of people have been posting on social media about the recurring rubbish problem that is affecting beaches around Rarotonga. “Air New Zealand staff did a clean-up at Social Centre beach in Nikao and by the next weekend, bags of rubbish were found at the beach again,” says Boyes. “As you can imagine, this is pretty disappointing for the staff who worked so hard out of their own hearts to pick up all the rubbish.” She said that there was a high likelihood that rubbish left on the beach or in parks would find its way to the ocean, becoming dangerous to marine animals and impacting the health of our oceans and planet. The issue of rubbish, especially the build-up of plastic in our oceans, is a huge global problem that we can’t keep ignoring, says Boyes Plastic is a physical danger to sea creatures and is now part of the food chain through animals ingesting plastic particles and eventually onto our own dinner plates, she adds. “We can all act at an individual level with our everyday choices and practices to prevent further plastic contamination of the ocean and our health.” Boyes, who has worked in Kiribati and Australia on waste management, says that while litter management on Rarotonga is generally good compared to other Pacific islands where she has lived or visited, there is still much room for improvement. “If you open your eyes to it, there is lots of litter lying around. In particular, after all the rain we have had recently, there is a lot of litter on the beach and in streams. It’s sad.” Boyes says the amount of rubbish around the island prompted the “plogging” idea. The concept involves bringing a bag while going on a walk or run, and when rubbish is spotted to perform an exercise while picking it up. “Squatting and carrying the extra weight of the rubbish adds to the fitness benefits and obviously picking up rubbish before it goes into the ocean or waterways is a good thing,” Boyes says. “If you want, you can then post a picture of your bag of rubbish on Instagram to share with the rest of the global community and support each other.” Boyes has collected over 650 pieces of rubbish since she decided to count it in the last few weeks, and hopes to collect 5000 pieces during her time in Rarotonga. “But I hope I don’t get to that. I hope I no longer find rubbish when I run so my bag comes home empty. Or at least I hope I have to change my running route. “I love the ocean and I love Rarotonga. It’s my way of saying thanks for allowing me to be here and to swim in our gorgeous lagoon.” ICI is working on a number of waste initiatives, such as a cost benefit for glass crushing and mechanisms for operating a sustainable financing scheme for waste management. “The sustainable financing scheme involves adding a small additional cost on the price of products, like 15c on plastic bottles and cans, which we then get a portion back once we have returned the container for recycling,” ICI secretary Ngametua Pokino said, “This scheme works well in almost 50 countries around the world. It just gives containers a small monetary value so we take the time to return it for recycling instead of littering or having it end up in the landfill.” You can also join the online plogging company and link with Hilary on Instagram at Kiwi_hb

Early reform questions still valid

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Politics

In 2004, the Group for Political Change put the following question to our political leaders:

Demos release policy document

Wednesday 18 April 2018 | Published in Politics

A $10 minimum wage, home ownership schemes, a halt to Chinese borrowing, income tax exemptions for local growers and farmers, a better shipping service, reduced reliance on foreign workers, a government minister code of conduct and the establishment of an Independent Commission Against Corruption.