National
New customs duties legislated
Monday 25 June 2012 | Published in National
Recently government approved an increase of tariff import duty rates for alcoholic beverages, soft drinks, cigarettes and tobacco. The passing of the Customs Tariff Act on Tuesday has legislated this increase into the import duty rates. Beer, wine and soft drink import duty rates have now increased by 15 percent. Beer of less than 2.5 […]
No crime ring update
Monday 25 June 2012 | Published in National
Opposition leader Wilkie Rasmussen is keeping alive the memory of the crime syndicate bust Immigration made last month. Immigration deported an illegal Indonesian visitor who was discovered to have connections to an organised crime network. He was travelling on airlines tickets purchased with a stolen credit card. In Parliament this week Rasmussen asked minister of […]
Student markets a hit
Monday 25 June 2012 | Published in National
The Punanga Nui Market place hummed last week with two special market events drawing in the crowds to the Wednesday ‘Winter Fest’ night market and Tereora College food festival on Friday. Tereora College students involved in a young entrepreneurs programme launched their products at the Winter Fest night market. After 18 weeks of developing a […]
Amend the regulation
Monday 25 June 2012 | Published in National
Dear Editor, I have just been listening to a radio interview with Mr Sam Mossman, a well-known sport and recreational fisherman, author and special projects editor for the New Zealand Fishing News. His recent article ”Rarotonga in Summer“ was mentioned in the Cook Islands News. When asked about recent fishing experiences, he briefly mentioned Aitutaki […]
Kwai en route to Penrhyn
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
Kwai is set to make landfall in the Cook Islands during the first week of July. The Cook Islands-registered cargo vessel makes several trips to the Cook Islands per year, but is based in a Honolulu port. She is currently southbound. Kwai’s most recent trip to the Cook Islands was last December. She stayed longer […]
Govt considers privatising market
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
Business Trade and Investment Board minister Mark Brown has said government is keen to ”divest“ itself of the Punanga Nui market. In a live interview with Matariki FM, Brown acknowledged the public interest in privatisation of the Punanga Nui marketplace. ”With the expansion of the Punanga Nui out there, there’s a lot of interest in […]
The origin of mynas in Tahiti?
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Environment
The first mention of mynas in Tahiti is by Clement Wragge who arrived there from Rarotonga in 1904. He wrote that he saw the ”mina“, a thrush-like bird, strutting around Papeete and they had been ”imported from the Moluccas to kill those infernal big wasps and cattle ticks.“ Although the French name in Tahiti, Merle […]
The spread of the 'farmer's friend' – the myna bird
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Environment
The myna is locally much loathed as a pest, yet it arrived in the early 1900s with such high hopes as the ”farmer’s friend“. We follow its triumphant march from India to many countries, including the Cook Islands. The Common Myna is indigenous to southern Asia, primarily India. It lives in open woodlands but is […]
Arts council board elected
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Local
The National Arts Council is moving ahead, with a board of seven members having been elected. The new members of the board include Mike Tavioni, Rutera Taripo, Ani O’Neill, Maurice Newport, Tokerau Jim, Ana Rasmussen and Barbara Arbon – all of whom represent the wide range of arts across the Cook Islands, from film to […]
NZ Navy sailor dies in crash
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Local
A New Zealand Defence Force sailor died in a motor vehicle crash at the Avatiu intersection yesterday morning. William Paratini Delamere, 22, was involved in a fatal crash that was reported to police at 12.37am. He was a sailor aboard the HMNZS Otago, which has been in port this week as part of a Pacific […]
Single fin can fetch US$20,000
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Local
Sharks are a popular topic this week, with the Ministry of Marine Resources releasing a draft shark national plan of action and then shark fins allegedly being found on a foreign fishing vessel in Cooks waters. Earlier this month, marine resources minister Teina Bishop was asked whether he was aware of allegations that vessels licensed […]
Planting for a new future
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in Local
Nikao member of parliament Ngamau Munokoa plants a citrus tree in front of the new Ministry of Education building yesterday as part of the special hand over ceremony. For being instrumental in negotiating the land with landowners for the new education building – Munokoa was honoured with opening the doors to the building and planting […]
Why the early years count
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
We all know just how vulnerable children are in their early years. What we are now learning through international research, is that what happens in a child’s life in their first few years will have a huge effect on the makeup of their brain. It will shape their development in every area of life for […]
Education returns home to Nikao
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
The official handover of the new Ministry of Education building on Friday drew passionate words and much enthusiasm about a better education for all Cook Islands children. Secretary of Education Sharyn Paio told the large gathering of educators and political, cultural and religious leaders that the building was as much theirs as it was the […]
Bishop in Tonga for Forum fisheries meet
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
All the cabinet ministers bar one will be in the Cook Islands this week, with parliament sitting again on Monday. Prime Minister Henry Puna, Deputy Prime Minister Tom Marsters, Ministers Mark Brown, Teariki Heather and Nandi Glassie will all be in the Cook Islands carrying out normal duties. Minister Teina Bishop will be in Tonga […]
Village groups vying for clearing contracts
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
Government has said it prefers to give contracts for roadside cleaning work to community groups over private companies. Nikao MP Ngamau ‘Aunty Mau’ Munokoa asked internal affairs minister Mark Brown in Parliament this week whether village groups ”are allowed to help with the clearing programme“. ”Government has looked at establishing some policies with Internal Affairs […]
Finance legislation tabled in Parliament
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
Parliament this week tabled the Foundations Bill, legislation allowing for the creation of a new service which the financial services industry can market internationally to bring more business into the country. Opposition leader Wilkie Rasmussen raised concerns during question-and-answer time on Thursday that government was not being proactive enough in its efforts to promote the […]
Napa leads
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
The electoral office has released the preliminary results of the Titikaveka by-election, showing Democratic Party candidate Selina Napa to be in the lead. Napa is leading with 256 votes, followed by Cook Islands Party candidate Teariki Matenga with 224 votes. In third place is independent candidate Teava Iro with 94 votes. This result does not […]
Harpooners' catch rates down 70%
Saturday 23 June 2012 | Published in National
Since the Ministry of Marine Resources (MMR) enacted a set of rules last month to regulate use of fishing aggregate devices, one local fisherman says his catch rate has declined by as much as 70 percent. The fisherman, who uses a harpoon to spear mai mai, says that the rules – which ban harpooning within […]
Shark action plan criticised
Friday 22 June 2012 | Published in National
The Ministry of Marine Resources’ (MMR) proposed changes to the National Plan of Action for sharks, the key policy document for shark conservation and management in the Cooks, have been met with a skeptical response from conservationists. A two-day public consultation last week on revising the National Plan of Action (NPOA) for sharks was attended […]
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