Articles by Utopia Support

It's colonial land court 'injustice'

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Pa’s lawyer’s comments in your front page editorial on January 12 bordered, in my opinion, on contempt and arrogance, not only to the protesting Vaikai Family, but also to the many other families who have been deprived of their lands too by the processes of the colonial Land Court. It would in my […]

Kata - January 20, 2011

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in Kata

CI league player steps up

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in League

He helped steer the Cook Islands to the 2009 Pacific Cup final, but now Johnathan Ford must fill the boots of Sydney Roosters star Todd Carney. Ford, 21, will be given first chance in the number 6 jersey when the Roosters play Ipswich Jets in a trial at Ipswich on February 5 after Carney was […]

Employee of the year at Edgewater

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in National

The Edgewater Resort and Spa has awarded its night auditor James Short Employee of the Year. James has been working at the resort since 1994. General manager Chris McGeown said, “James is one of the first people visitors see when they arrive and he is the window on the resort. A lot of his work […]

Cruise ship business flows

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in National

Cruise liner Seabourn Sojourn is set to visit today, following hot on the heels of the MS Rotterdam’s stopover on Tuesday. The ship has just started its 2011 World Cruise this month and boasts 225 luxury suites. Its last port of call was Papeete and it will voyage on to Auckland during its 111 day, […]

Jumping through the info hoops

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in National

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) appears to have invented a form for requests under the Official Information Act (OIA), which looks to be in response to a request from CINews that they didn’t like. The newspaper this week revealed that an OIA request made to MFAI Secretary Jim Gosselin was refused without […]

Raro makes 'true' beachfront hotels

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in National

Rarotonga has made it on to a list of the top 25 holiday destinations offering ‘true beachfront’ hotels. The Beachfront Club markets itself as the ‘first-ever global authority on beachfront hotels’ and awards ‘true beachfront’ qualifications to hotels that are actually on the beach, meaning not separated from the sea by roads or traffic. The […]

Problem with Pukapuka petition

Thursday 20 January 2011 | Published in National

The Pukapuka election result could be declared void before the petition is heard by the High Court early next month if information urgently being sought proves that eight people from the island were denied the right to vote. The petition is being pursued by former MP Vai Peua (represented by lawyer Tina Browne), who lost […]

'Sexy eyes' calms down

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Local

Conjuntivitis is calming down in Rarotonga. But it has now started spreading in the outer islands. Dr Rangi Fariu from the Ministry of Health confirmed yesterday that the number of cases being seen at Rarotonga Hospital is declining, with just five cases showing up yesterday. The peak in numbers came just after New Year’s Day, […]

Rutaki vandals given warning

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Local

Puaikura community police and the aronga mana of Rutaki are urging members of the village to report anyone consuming liquor on or near public beaches. “We just want to say that kind of behaviour we cannot tolerate. If you are caught, you are brought up before the Rutaki aronga mana and the Maori justice system,” […]

Declining pass rate in first level NCEA

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Local

Provisional results for National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) show the Level 1 pass rate declined and still does not meet the target set by government. The tentative results were released by the Ministry of Education yesterday. Final confirmed results are not issued until March or April to allow for students to submit applications for […]

'Sufferer' disempowering

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, We were happy to read the article ‘PIAF supports Cook Islands HIV Committee’ in the CI News paper on Monday 17 January. I would like to offer some information that might be useful in writing articles about HIV and HIV-positive people in the future. The article begins with the statement “The Pacific Islands […]

Let's hope Minister's magic is contagious

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, I would like to offer top marks and a big thank you to the Minister for Works, Hon. Teariki Heather, for the rapid response by the road works crew to repair the road in Matavera that leads to Takitumu school. Three days after I had expressed concern about this very road being in […]

Mitchell report subject to OIA request

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Letters to the Editor

Dear Editor, Please allow me to respond to certain statements made in ‘High commissioner’s comments with held’ which appeared in yesterday’s edition of Cook Islands News. The Cook Islands-New Zealand relationship is the most important international tie this country has with other countries. As such, it is essential for those holding official positions in the […]

Kata - January 19, 2011

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in Kata

Scholarships offered for aquatic studies

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in National

Mahurangi Technical Institute (MTI) in Warkworth, New Zealand, is offering a course starting next month which allows students to attain a certificate in aquatic studies – at present, no course of its kind is available on the island. Rebekah Daniel of the Ministry of Marine Resources said that the certificate will enable students to find […]

Vaka voyage to start earlier

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in National

The epic ocean-going vaka voyage will depart earlier than planned, says Cook Islands Voyaging Society (CIVS) president Ian Karika. CIVS originally intended to outfit Marumaru Atua with a solar-powered motor here in Rarotonga, but will not be able to obtain the necessary equipment in time for the April voyage. To that end, the vaka will […]

Tiare Taporo floats on equity funding

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in National

Raising the bar for the quality and standard of cargo shipping Plans to launch Tiare Taporo, a 140-foot cargo vessel, on to the Cook Islands shipping scene are coming together quickly thanks to an innovative private investment scheme. The vessel – formerly fishing vessel ‘Zebroid’ – is undergoing a refit on a Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, […]

HIV advisor to address MPs

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in National

Temo Sasau will be talking to Members of Parliament tomorrow night at Crown Beach about how the Cook Islands should deal with HIV in the community. Sasau is the Pacific Positive Community Programme Coordinator for the Pacific Islands Aids Foundation. He says that the main focus of his discussions with ministers will be to tell […]

NCEA results need improvement – MOE

Wednesday 19 January 2011 | Published in National

The Ministry of Education has warned schools need to do a lot of work to improve the pass rates of the national certificate of educational achievement (NCEA) to come up to the targets set by the Education Master Plan. The ministry released provisional results for NCEA Levels 1 to 3 yesterday. The Level 1 pass […]