Politics
Is Region Under Threat from International Crime Outfits?
Forum concerned little done since Honiara.
Are the Pacific Islands really on the brink of being taken over by international crime outfits? Their governments don¹t rule that possibility out.
They say: There's "clear evidence of serious transnational crime moving into the region and posing serious threats to the sovereignty, security and economic integrity of Forum members."
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This declaration by the Pacific Islands Forum of 16 countries after their annual summit, held this year in Nauru, is one of a number of resolutions overshadowed by decisions giving a green light to a Pacific Islands free trade zone and controversy over United States and Australian opposition to the Kyoto climate change treaty.
At the 1992 meeting in Honiara, Forum leaders agreed that island governments should each enact laws to defer, deflect or defeat attacks on the region by organised crime, including drug traffickers.
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But at Nauru the feeling was that few governments had done much about turning the Honiara resolution into concrete reality.
Their communiqué "reiterated concerns over the increase in drug trafficking" and local production of illicit drugs in the region. It welcomed work being done on the drafting of a model bill for the control of illegal drugs. Since the Honiara declaration the need for law enforcement cooperation had become "more acute".
The Forum instructed its secretariat to run a "stock-take of members'
action" and report to the 2002 meeting.
Others points in the communiqué:
n Education - the Forum endorsed a regional basic education action plan
approved by education ministers meeting at Auckland last May. Information
technology (IT) can have a critical future role in delivering education. But
urgent action is needed to cut the high cost of IT infrastructure.
- More priority needs to be given to solving land use issues, including the
use of land for commercial purposes.
- Regional statistics services need to be improved and so does the region¹s
ability to co-ordinate and improve technical assistance for them.
- The islands need to prepare for trade negotiations with the European Union
due to begin in September 2002. The Cotonou trade and aid agreement signed
with the Europeans in June last year as a successor to the Lome agreement
refers to the European Union¹s desire to forge deals with African, Caribbean
and Pacific recipients of aid that will give European goods easier access to
their markets.
- The Forum continues to be unhappy about shipments of radioactive waste
through its region by Japan, France and Britain. It wants these three
countries to agree to compensate for any accident. It wants this matter to be "vigorously pursued at the appropriate political
level."
- Rapid population increase affects most of the region¹s countries with most
of them expected to have continued growth for at least the next 30 years.
This will put more pressure on limited resources and will lower living
standards. More priority needs to be given to population problems.
- A proposal for a South Pacific whale sanctuary will be pursued through
national, regional and international channels.
Some Forum countries are already banning whaling in their national exclusive
economic zones (the sea area within 320 km of their shores.)
- The Marshall Islands continues to be contaminated by United States nuclear
weapon tests. The United States thus has a "special responsibility" towards people harmed
by the tests, including giving them fair and adequate compensation, the safe
resettlement of radiation victims and the "full and final" restoration of
economic productivity in radiation areas.
- The Forum Secretariat and South Pacific Tourism Organisation should agree
on means of closer collaboration between themselves.
