West Papua churches call for peace amid ongoing violence; Ten more community Covid cases in the CNMI; Don't ignore other health programmes: PNG health official; Court ruling upholds legality of Vanuatu government

West Papua churches call for peace amid ongoing violence

Church leaders in West Papua have called for calm as the conflict between Indonesian forces and Papuan independence fighters intensifies.

The latest violence in Intan Jaya district has caused thousands of Papuans to flee their villages, in some cases seeking shelter provided by churches.

Among the casualties, AFP reports a two-year-old boy was killed in an exchange of gunfire, while a six-year-old was hospitalised for bullet wounds.

In nearby Mimika regency, Father Dominikus Hodo of the Catholic Diocese in Timika says about 2,000 Papuans had taken shelter in church-run buildings.

He held a news conference with other church leaders to call on both parties to immediately hold a ceasefire and start peace talks.

Ten more community Covid cases in the CNMI

Ten more people have been confirmed with Covid-10 in the Northern Marianas.

It takes to 13 the number of cases in the latest community spread in the commonwealth, all of whom are now in quarantine.

The Commonwealth Healthcare Corporation said the new cases were identified and confirmed via contact tracing at the end of last week.

In all, the islands have had 304 cases since March last year.

Don't ignore other health programmes: PNG health official

The deputy head of Papua New Guinea's Pandemic Response has called on the country's health authorities not to ignore their routine health programmes.

Dr Daoni Esorom said that with the surge in Covid-19 cases in most provinces the natural reaction was to redirect resources and manpower towards this.

But he said the provincial health authoriities should ensure they still give priority to malaria, maternal child health, immunisations, tuberculosis, HIV and non-communicable diseases.

Dr Esorom said that with increasing numbers of people dying from diseases other than Covid-19, all health agencies must ensure that focus was also given to these other priority programmes.

Court ruling upholds legality of Vanuatu government

Vanuatu's Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeal of Parliament's former Speaker Gracia Shacrack.

The Court has also ordered Shadrack to pay MPs' court costs for the amount of 75 000 vatu or $687USD within 21 days.

The Court ruling follows a special session of the Court of Appeal last week, after receiving Shadrack's urgent application.

In June, Gracia Shadrack in his role as Speaker of Parliament declared that 19 MPs on the government side - including Prime Minister Bob Loughman - had lost their seats because they missed three consecutive sittings.

The group challenged the declaration in the Supreme Court, which ruled in their favour - Shadrack then challenged that judgment.

Samoa official warns over undersized fish

Samoa's Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries has issued a strong warning against violating fisheries regulations.

This comes after three individuals were charged for selling undersized fish.

The Ministry says it took legal action as part of its efforts to combatting unreported, illegal and unregulated fishing crimes.

Fisheries division official, Magele Etuati Ropeti, has warned that people who flout the rules protecting Samoa's inshore and offshore fisheries can expect hefty fines.

Magele also said the ministry was clamping down on people to re-sell the undersized fish.

Lifetime Achievement Award for Fijian music legend

A Fijian music legend will receive a Lifetime Achievement Award at this year's Pacific Music Awards in New Zealand.

George Veikoso - known professionally as Fiji - has been a part of the music scene for more than four decades and his contribution to Pacific music will be celebrated virtually.

The Hawaii-based artist has won a number of awards over the years including the Hawai'i Academy of Record Arts' Award for Male Vocalist of the Year and the first Best Pacific International Artist Award at the 2014 Pacific Music Awards.

All winners will be acknowledged in an online awards ceremony on December 11th, which will be screened online.

CNMI mulls increasing casino licenses

A bill has been introduced in the Northern Marianas Legislature to increase the number of casino licenses on Saipan from one to five.

The move is seen as an effort to secure a source of funding for the 25 percent portion of the retirees' pensions as the Commonwealth's lone casino, Imperial Pacific International, is expected to lose its license due to nonpayment of the annual licence fee and regulatory fee.

The license fee has been used to pay the shortfall in retirees' pensions in the past.

Authored by House of Representatives floor leader Ralph Yumul, the bill seeks to authorise, establish, and regulate casino gambling within Saipan and the Northern Islands.