National

Kaino brings World Cup

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in Local

All Blacks star player Jerome Kaino and the Rugby World Cup will touch down on the rock this Sunday for a whirlwind visit. A World Cup parade is being planned for Wednesday, May 2, through Avarua from 4pm to 6 o’clock giving the public a chance to see both the Webb Ellis Cup and Kaino […]

Diesel leaks into stream

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in Local

Heavy rainfall is being named as the cause of a waste oil leak at the Avatiu Valley power station, which flooded in to the neighbouring Avatiu stream. People living in Avatiu Valley this week said they were becoming concerned with the strong odours and residue leaking from the Te Aponga Uira (TAU) power station. The […]

Longest ever sailing leg completed

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Vaka Marumaru Atua arrived in Tahiti on Monday morning. This is a condensed version of the latest blog update penned by voyager Alex Olah and circulated to members of the Cook Islands Voyaging Society. The vaka is expected to arrive in Aitutaki in the first two weeks of May, and in Rarotonga mid-May. It is […]

Service medal awarded to 7

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Seven service members have had their time in the New Zealand defence forces recognised at an Anzac Day ceremony this year. Six men and one woman were included in the list of those who received the New Zealand Defence Service Medal at the Cook Islands Returned and Services Association headquarters in Nikao on Wednesday. Sapper […]

Anzac spirit in Rarotonga

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Legal action possible over computer sale

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

The Business Trade Investment Board (BTIB) is considering taking legal action against Telecom Cook Islands (TCI). BTIB is seeking legal advice in relation to a dispute with TCI over its securing of a contract to sell computer hardware to the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC). In August FSC announced that TCI had won the tender to […]

Why not print photos of youth offenders?

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Cook Islands Police say suggestions to publish the photographs of repeat youth offenders in the media face a number of legal and ethical obstacles. Cook Islands News was last week contacted by a member of the public who suggested that the newspaper should include a series of photos of youths who are known to police […]

Aeronautical charges won't be so dramatic

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Proposed increases to aeronautical charges are not likely to be as dramatic as early drafts suggested because the Airport Authority will receive a share of the departure tax collected at Rarotonga, according to financial secretary Richard Neves. The authority had created its proposals, which included increases of up to 300 percent over three years on […]

'Internet doomsday' gets closer

Friday 27 April 2012 | Published in National

Computers across the Cook Islands are at risk of a virus which has infected hundreds of thousands of computers world wide. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has issued a warning that those with the virus will simultaneously lose access to the internet on what is being called ‘internet doomsday’ on July 9. The virus […]

Vaka fleet reaches Tahiti

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

The voyagers aboard Cook Islands vaka Marumaru Atua have reached Tahiti. Together with her six sister vakas, Marumaru Atua made landfall at Tahiti on Monday. Now anchored inside Passe d’Aiurua, her coordinates are S17 48.5 W149 07.8. She is joined by Haunui, Te Matau a Maui, Uto Ni Yalo, Gaualofa, Faafaite and Hine Moana. (Faafaite […]

Liquor lock-up rule laid down

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

The Liquor Licensing Authority is giving alcohol retailers until May 1 to ensure their liquor cabinets are lockable. Following a meeting of the authority on March 23, secretary Harriet Williams sent a letter to all alcohol retailers to advise them of stricter enforcement of the terms and conditions on which their licences are contingent. “You […]

Samoa vessel completes first voyage to north

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

The MV Samoa Express’s first voyage to the northern group islands has now finished, providing organisers and the islands’ inhabitants with a few headaches and plenty of useful knowledge along the way. The ship stopped by Nassau on Saturday as the final destination in its five-island shipping route that looped around all of the Cook […]

Departure tax changes floated

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

The days of standing in line to pay your departure tax before leaving Rarotonga could soon be numbered as the government aims to have the tariff embedded in airfares by December this year. But once that happens, air passengers could also be asked to pay more in departure tax if government plans to increase it […]

Rain-fed agriculture a risk

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Environment

Rarotonga features in a new report warning of the unique freshwater challenges facing many small islands in the Pacific. Released this week by the UN Environment Programme and the Secretariat of the Pacific Communities (SPC), the report was written by David Duncan, regional environmental engineer at SPC SOPAC’s Water and Sanitation Programme. He concludes that […]

Toa's relocation up to authority

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Environment

This story is a response to a reader’s request for the names of officials who will be responsible for dealing with the TOA Environmental Impact Assessment. The reader wrote: “They need to know the public is watching and counting on them to protect this island.” The public has until one week from Monday (May 7) […]

Loss of comradeship lamented

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Local

A moderate crowd gathered at the Cenotaph for the dawn parade in Avarua early yesterday to remember the fallen men and women who fought for the freedom we enjoy today. In his address, Returned Services Association president Dennis Dwane told the gathered that Anzac Day was a day commonly regarded as a time for New […]

Anzac spirit links Pacific people

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in Local

The weather often has a way of reflecting the mood of a day and it was certainly the case at Rarotonga’s Anzac Day commemorations. As hundreds of people gathered in front of the Avarua Cenotaph for the Anzac Day morning service, the weather switched from sun to spitting rain, the ceremony all the while being […]

Student says aloha

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

Meeting other exchange students and learning the Hawaiian language were highlights for Hanamarie Koteka who recently returned from Hawai’i after an eight month student exchange programme. The 15-year-old Arorangi girl was chosen as the 2011-2012 exchange student to Kamehameha School in Honolulu, Hawaii. “I was sitting in class one day and Mrs Herman came in […]

Red Cross trains peer educators

Thursday 26 April 2012 | Published in National

To help train up new peer educators, the Cook Islands Red Cross hosted a youth peer education camp at its base in Tupapa during the school holidays. The camp had a turnout of over 35 young people and ran for a full week ending on Sunday. These camps are held every two years. The previous […]

New wharf proposed for Manihiki

Tuesday 24 April 2012 | Published in Local

Developmental prospects in Manihiki and Rakahanga – including a possible $4 million upgrade to Tauhunu wharf – will be put on show this week when New Zealand High Commissioner John Carter travels north for his first official visit to the atolls. Prime Minister Henry Puna and Minister for Finance and Economic Management Mark Brown will […]