Government Briefs
Government Briefs
Nauru
In late February, President Teburoro Tito of Kiribati, chairman of the 16-member Pacific Islands Forum, announced that this year’s Forum Leaders’ meeting will be held in Nauru, a compromise selection. Fiji had offered to host the meeting and said it was its turn. But New Zealand strongly opposed this because of last year’s Fiji coup and instead promoted a bid by Niue.
Tito has been consulting regional, Australian and New Zealand leaders about the venue. The Forum is scheduled for August. Nauru previously hosted the Forum in 1976 and 1993.
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American Samoa
The American Samoa Government has won part one of the its $137 million lawsuit against FM Insurance company for refusing to pay claims from Hurricane Val in 1991. In January, the California Supreme Court decline to review a judgment against the insurance company for $47 million in compensatory damages, upholding a trial and appeal’s court earlier decisions. Governor Tauese Sunia said, however, that most of the money will go towards paying legal and research fees. American Samoa will receive only $2 million of the claim. But Tauese said the federal Highway Administration has agreed to return to the local government $8.3 million paid to them under the federal program called “grant-back”.
Representatives from U.S. flag territories and Hawaii met in American Samoa earlier this year for the 3rd annual Outer Pacific Head Start Conference. The more than 100 representatives and educators came from Guam, Palau, Chuuk, Marshall Islands, Saipan and American Samoa to share ideas and programs to further improve early childhood education (ECE) under the theme “Taking Pride in our Heritage.” Ana Seer, Supervisor for the Model School Teacher Training Program in the Marshall Islands said “the only way to improve student achievement is to improve teacher training.” Monica Blesoch and Florence Kamblang, both staff members of the Head Start Program in Palau, agreed but added that the social environment for students is equally important.
The U.S. Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) have joined local authorities in investigating an alleged multi-million dollar medical insurance fraud at the government owned LBJ Tropical Medical Center. Assistant Attorney General Robert Maez confirmed the involvement of the two federal agencies with the Territorial Task Force on White Collar Crime and Public Corruption. Investigators believe LBJ employees, including medical personnel, administrators, and one doctor worked together to alter insurance claims so that insurers would have to pay extra.
Governor Tauese Sunia is asking lawmakers to pass legislation that would help curtail beverage container litter, promote recycling, reduce the quantities of rubbish in waste streams and keep solid waste collection and disposal costs low. The legislation before lawmakers provides for payment of returnable deposit on all beverages sold in returnable beverage containers. The proposal calls for every importer or manufacturer selling beverages in redeemable containers to collect a cash deposit of not less than five cents on every sale of beverages.
Samoa
A ground breaking ceremony was held in February for the construction of the South Pacific Regional Environmental Program’s (SPREP) Training and Education Center in Samoa’s capital of Apia. The ground breaking follows the signing of the construction contract in Tokyo a few weeks earlier, between the Samoa Government, SPREP and contractor Fujita Corporation.
Papua New Guinea
Politicians in Papua New Guinea were secretly awarded a pay increase late last year, a revelation that came to light just days after the Cabinet overturned a minimum wage increase for the country’s workers, Radio Australia reported. The raise was quietly approved by the country’s Salaries and Remuneration Commission late last year, for MPs, judges and heads of statutory bodies. The Cabinet ruled that the economy could not bear the cost of lifting the minimum wage for ordinary workers to $18.20 a week. News of the pay raise for top government officials caused a public outcry in PNG, with threats of industrial action by workers. Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta responded that the increase — in some cases up to 100 percent — was inappropriate, and asked cabinet to delay implementation of the pay raise, pending a review. He also promised to remove laws that effectively allow politicians to award themselves pay increases.
Kiribati
President Teburoro Tito has voiced disappointment over Philippines reports of the arrest of two Asians as members of an alleged human smuggling ring using Kiribati and Nauru. President Tito told reporters from Radio Kiribati that there’s no truth in the report. He said one of the individuals named is working with Toronto National Investment, the government’s agent in its green passport sales program. He said the green passport development was passed by of Parliament four years ago and was initiated to encourage rich businessmen from Asia to establish their businesses in Kiribati.
Manila immigration authorities in February arrested two alleged members of a human smuggling ring. According to immigration intelligence officers, the two were often seen arriving in Manila and departing for Nauru or Kiribati with groups of Chinese. The two flatly denied they were members of an international human smuggling syndicate. “I work for a bank in Nauru, that’s why I travel a lot,” one told the Philippine Daily Inquirer. According to the other, he accompanied Chinese nationals to Nauru or Kiribati to catch fish.
Micronesia
The Micronesian Fisheries Authority and the Japan Far Seas Fisheries Association have selected the next 10 Micronesians to attend its 2001/2002 On Board Fisheries Training Program. The training is sponsored by the Overseas Fisheries Cooperation Foundation (OFCF) to prepare young Micronesians to work on Japanese purse seine fishing vessels licensed to fish and operate in the FSM EEZ. The trainees are expected to depart for Japan in April 2001 where they will spend the next year training. The first three months training will be devoted to the Japanese language and culture and the final nine months will be out at sea on fishing vessels to gain practical training.
Palau
President Tommy Remengesau Jr.’s new government is proposing the development of a private sector Tourism Association to replace the Palau Visitors Authority, with financial support to come from both the private sector and government, the Palau Horizon reported. It’s also been recommended that the government draft comprehensive planning goals and concrete implementation strategies, and assure a strong commitment to international marketing. Another recommendation is to establish scuba dive site management plans and the implement minimum standards for tourist lodging facilities and services through appropriate building codes.
Tonga
The Kingdom of Tonga is pushing ahead with its bid to provide a headquarters site for the newly established Pacific tuna commission. Tonga has been ranked first by an international panel of experts to host the organization, officially named the Commission for the Conservation and Management of Highly Migratory Fish Stocks in the Western and Central Pacific. About half of the Forum countries, including the Cook Islands, Fiji, Samoa and the Marshall Islands, also have initiated bids to host the commission, which has responsibilities for policing regional fishing regulations.
—Contributors: Fili Sagapolutele, PINA Nius Online, Pacific Islands Report, Radio Australia
