Government Briefs

Kiribati

A government company, Atoll Motors Marine Service (AMMS), has been given six months by its new board to revive or be referred back to government to decide its future. New board chairman Tenanora Tekanene says, "we gave the staff six months to pull up their socks and do something or else there's not much we can do for a dying company but to refer it back to its owner, the government." The public is puzzled why the once large company has almost collapsed. At the end of 2003, all AMMS branches had almost no stock in their freezers, and many shelves were bare.

-BB

French Polynesia

The French National Assembly in mid-January approved a law to increase French Polynesia's autonomy. Tahitipresse reports that this reform measure offers Tahiti a new evolution in its recent history of internal autonomy. The law would allow French Polynesia to have its own overseas representation, although French overseas minister Brigitte Girardin says that such representation would not be of a "diplomatic nature."

-GJ

FSM

Recently reelected Pohnpei Governor Johnny David says that his "number one priority" will be the resurfacing and expansion of the airport runway. "Lengthening of the runway will be a big step toward economic development," he says. His next agenda item is to deal with the state's biggest investment, the Pohnpei Fisheries Corporation. PFC is out of commission, and David says that the American tuna company, StarKist, might be interested in setting up a factory at the PFC facility.

-OW

Tim Fenlon, a former superintendent with the Queensland Police in Australia recently spoke about the FSM's proposed National Task Force (NTF) as a way to prevent high-level corruption within the FSM government. Fenlon, who has been working on FSM law enforcement issues, says the NTF can help achieve financial accountability and political transparency. "Offenses involving public figures are difficult matters to investigate and may be beyond the resource capacity of many of the State departments," he says. The NTF, says Fenlon, would consist of a team involving the state police, the national police and other specialists such as lawyers, accountants, and financial advisors to investigate high level and organized crime.

-OW

Guam

While on Guam January 17, U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Gale Norton signed a grant of $14.2 million for the Guam government. The money is to help cover costs associated with the immigration of citizens from the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands allowed under the Compact of Free Association.

-FW

The arraignment of former Guam Governor Carl Gutierrez was postponed from January 29 to February 18 as all Guam judges recused themselves from the case. Retired FSM Supreme Court Justice Richard Benson was named to hear the case. Gutierrez is accused of diverting government labor and property to build a home and in another case, of ordering more than 2,000 streetlights to be connected on private property, presumably as political favors.

-FW

CNMI

Arson was ruled out by fire investigators in a devastating fire at the Division of Boating Safety and Fish and Wildlife offices at Smiling Cove Marina in Saipan that caused over $1million in losses on January 19. Faulty electrical wiring was the probable cause of the blaze, which burned three rescue boats, two jet skis, and one other smaller boat purchased by the federal government for boating safety.

-FR

Palau

The second expert meeting of the Asia-Pacific Forum for Environment and Development (APFED) was held January 16-17 at the International Coral Reef Center. The meeting was presided over by former Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto and chaired by former Palau President Kuniwo Nakamura. APFED is a small think tank that brings together eminent persons, nominated by their countries, to produce a model of equitable and sustainable development for the Asia/Pacific region.

-NC

President Tommy Remengesau, Jr. has asked the national legislature to ratify his authority to obtain a loan from the International Commercial Bank of China for the National Development Bank of Palau (NDBP). Remengesau is authorized to borrow money for the use of the country, but in this particular case the Taiwanese bank is asking for the specific ratification of the Palauan legislature before lending $5 million under favorable conditions to Palau.

-NC

Papua New Guinea

The announcement of Australian police involvement in criminal and fraud investigations under a five-year assistance program to Papua New Guinea prompted a lively exchange in parliament between Prime Minister Michael Somare and MP Peter Yama as to who would be the first to be arrested. Foreign Minister Rabbie Namaliu says the involvement of Australian police personnel is aimed at training PNG police investigators and building up capacity in the force.

-GJ

Fiji

The European Union is providing a grant of nearly $1 million to a Fiji group that has frequently been at odds with Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase's government. The Citizens Constitutional Forum is being supported by the EU to help it promote people's awareness of their rights and obligations in a democracy. The group was key to bringing the case of Indo-Fijian farmer Chandrika Prasad to an international court of appeal that led to the reinstatement two years ago of the country's multi-racial constitution. Qarase's government responded to the challenge of its legality by deregistering the organization. EU Pacific office head Frans Baan acknowledged the grant was controversial, but said the Citizens Constitutional Forum has two roles, one as a relentless community worker and the other as a national watchdog. It is the first area that the EU is supporting, he said.

-GJ

Money laundering has become a serious problem in Fiji, says Sakiusa Rabuka, the head of the anti-money laundering agency. Rabuka says the problem is evident because the Financial Intelligence Unit received more than 400 reports about suspicious transactions by the end of 2003 after only five months in existence, the Pacific Islands News Association reported.

-GJ

A national strike by the Fiji Public Service Association is expected following a vote in favor by 97.5 percent of the members voting. More than two-thirds of the 4,800 members voted on the strike question. FPSA General Secretary Rajeshwar Singh says FPSA was waiting for a mandate from the Fiji Teachers Union and Fiji Nurses Association before giving a 28-day strike notice to the government. Discussions with the government were continuing in an ongoing effort to forestall the impending strike. The union wants a five percent cost of living and merit increase.

-GJ

Tonga

Enforcement of Tonga's restrictive new media laws effectively shut down all newspapers in the country, including the government's, in late January and into February, reports the Website of the news magazine Matangi Tonga. Warnings of severe penalties for unlicensed publishers and booksellers, along with police raids on shops, have kept Tongan newspapers off the newsstands. Last November the Tongan government banned publication of any unlicensed newspaper. The deadline for license applications was December 31. After the government didn't make public the act until December 24, the newspaper registration unit postponed the deadline to January 31. In spite of this postponement of the registration period, police raided shops and confiscated copies of the Taimi 'o Tonga newspaper and cash in early January. Matangi Tonga reports that in January it was "conveyed through the coconut wireless that no newspaper was allowed to be published without a license." By the end of January, all publications had halted printing. Decisions on the licensing had not been announced as Pacific Magazine went to press. Meanwhile, 152 Tongans have signed a writ to be filed with the Tonga Supreme Court challenging the media legislation.

-GJ

Samoa

The Samoan government seized over 3,000 uncensored videos and DVDs from video shop shelves during December and January. The enforcement follows years of ignored pleas by the government for owners to bring in videos and DVDs for censorship before putting them up for sale. The Film Control Board believes there is a link between the rising crime rate and viewing inappropriate films.

-FS

An environmental information system managed by the Apia-based South Pacific Regional Environment Program has received international recognition for its innovative use of communication technology. The Stockholm Challenge, an international competition that each year looks for new models for the information society of tomorrow, selected the Pacific Islands Environment Network (PEIN) as one of the last nine finalists out of almost 900 projects from 107 countries. PEIN is now establishing itself in 15 Pacific Island states and territories. It is funded by the European Union.

-GJ

Contributors: Batiri Bataua, Giff Johnson, Olivier Wortel, Frank Whitman, Frank Rosario, Nancy Chism and Fili Sagapolutele.