Pacific Notes
Pacific Notes
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Hawaii Back in the PBDC Fold - ADVERTISEMENT -
Seven years after Hawaii abruptly pulled out of the Honolulu-based Pacific Basin Development Council, the Aloha State is back in the fold. Hawaii Gov. Linda Lingle in late January announced the move, saying the state's active involvement in the Pacific Islands "is our destiny." "Rejoining the Pacific Basin Development Council will enable Hawaii to take a leadership role alongside our Pacific neighbors to determine the future of the region," she said.
PBDC, as it is better known, was formed in 1980 to help coordinate U.S. Pacific territorial relations with the federal government, particularly in the areas of economic development. It is comprised of the three U.S. Pacific territories -American Samoa, Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas-and included Hawaii until the mid-1990s. That is when former Gov. Ben Cayetano cancelled Hawaii's membership, and all but ended any formal ties to the territories. Hawaii was also a U.S. territory before it became a state in 1959. Lingle said her administration had budgeted the $36,000 for annual membership in the organization. Hawaii's membership officially begins in July, at the start of the state's fiscal year. "The Pacific region is going to be pulled together once again," noted CNMI Gov. Juan N. Babauta, who serves as PBDC president. "Hawaii is the natural center" for dealing with federal-territorial issues such as transportation, education, and health care and economic development, he said. American Samoa Gov. Togiola Tulafono noted that even though he and the two other territorial chief executives were governors, they did not have the same status as the governor of a U.S. state. Having Hawaii back in PBDC, he said, would give the territories more clout when dealing with Washington. Togiola emphasized that Hawaii, more than any other U.S. state, understood the Pacific Islands. "Hawaii is truly the melting pot of the Pacific," Togiola said, noting that islanders from nearly every Pacific nation and territory live in Hawaii. "That's why it is crucial that Hawaii is involved in PBDC." Lingle, Babauta and Gov. Felix Camacho of Guam (who did not attend the meeting) are Republicans. Togiola is a Democrat. The fact that Lingle is Hawaii's first Republican governor since 1962 gives her higher visibility with the Bush Administration. -Floyd K. Takeuchi Fiji Bainirama Is Keeping Army Job After weeks of controversy and uncertainty, the Fiji government at the end of January extended the contract of Commodore Frank Bainimarama, who has led the Fiji military for the last five years, for an additional three year term. Some Fijian political groups objected to a contract extension because Bainimarama has stated unequivocally that he wants those involved in the May 2000 coup and the mutiny at the military barracks to be brought to justice. Currently there are pending charges against members of Parliament and the vice president, among others. As speculation spread in January about a rift between the military and the government, Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase delivered a statement to the nation in an effort to allay public concerns. -Giff Johnson FSM Congress Proposes Amnesty, Unseats Judge Two actions by the Federated States of Micronesia Congress-a bill that would grant amnesty to people who are now facing prosecution or may be prosecuted for misuse of funds under the first Compact of Free Association and a resolution to remove temporary Judge Richard Benson from the FSM Supreme Court-have ignited a big debate in the FSM and prompted President Joseph Urusemal to go to court in an effort to block implementation of the Benson resolution. In mid-January, Floor Leader Henry C. Asugar introduced a bill that, if passed, would give amnesty not only to those currently being prosecuted, but others who may be prosecuted in the future. Since December 2002, the FSM Attorney General's office has filed a series of criminal actions related to misuse of government funds against high ranking elected and government officials from Chuuk, including former speaker, now FSM Senator Jack Fritz. The pending legislation claims that the national government has improperly singled out "certain classes of people"-meaning from Chuuk-for investigation and prosecution, but is not prosecuting people from other islands. Before a gallery packed with spectators, the FSM Congress in late January deferred action on the bill before recessing. In a tandem legislative development, the FSM Congress approved a resolution in January to halt the services of retired FSM Supreme Court Justice Richard Benson. The resolution said that Benson has already exceeded the three months allowed for a temporary justice to serve. Benson was hired by the Supreme Court to hear the criminal cases against a group involving several former and currently seated members of the FSM Congress. The resolution prompted President Urusemal to seek a writ of prohibition from the FSM Supreme Court against enforcement of the resolution. -Giff Johnson Papua New Guinea Somare Fends Off No-Confidence Vote Papua New Guinea parliamentarians gave themselves a five-month holiday by adjourning in January until June 29, drawing the ire of the nation's watchdog, the Ombudsman Commission. "The Parliament should be spreading its meetings evenly throughout the year to comply with the letter and the spirit of the Constitution," Chief Ombudsman Ila Geno says, threatening a third Supreme Court interpretation of the issue. Two have resulted in Supreme Court rulings affirming that PNG Parliament needs to sit for 63-days in one Parliament year which currently runs from August 5, 2003 to August 6, 2004. Parliament had sat for 38-days to January 21 so faces a marathon 25-day sitting from June 29 and August 6 when Parliament resumes. The long adjournment is aimed at buying time for Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare and his embattled coalition government, which has had difficulty putting together enough votes to pass constitutional amendments to Section 145. This bill-possibly the most contentious in the Somare-led government's 17-month term-aims to extend the grace period for votes of no confidence from 18 months to 36 months. It has been knocked back twice on the crucial law-effecting second vote, resulted in the sacking of three cabinet ministers including two deputy prime ministers, and split two major political parties as well as sacking of one minor party. The government had hoped to secure the 73 MPs necessary to table the bill and pass the crucial vote to make it law on January 21 after monitoring votes for two-weeks. It did not, and Parliament adjourned for five-months to June 29 avoiding-and delaying-a potential vote of no confidence due after the grace period ends in February. The hope is that additional MPs who support the government's cause will be returned from three of the seven electorates that have been scheduled for by-elections. -Peter Niesi Palau Sharks Off-Limits to Fishermen With gasoline and match, Palau in January made another dramatic statement in its mission to stop foreign fishing vessels from poaching sharks. Against a pale blue sky, smoke billowed over Palau's commercial port from a blazing pile of shark fins and mutilated bodies seized from a Taiwanese fishing vessel caught violating a new anti-shark fishing law. The shark fins and bodies were worth $180,000, but President Tommy Remengesau maintains "Palau is not in the business of selling shark fins, nor do we want to be. It would be hypocritical to sell them." In September, Palau passed a law banning shark finning, the practice of cutting off the high-valued shark fins and tossing the shark body overboard. Palau, whose economy is driven by dive tourism, also took the additional step of banning shark fishing altogether, a move few countries have taken. This recent seizure of the 1,000 pounds of shark fin and 2,500 pounds of shark bodies from the Taiwanese long-liner Ching Chung Fa is the first time Palau's new law was enforced. Palau agreed to a settlement that released the vessel for US$10,000, in part because the case was the first violation of the new law, according to the Office of the Attorney General. The new law has hefty criminal penalties, as high as $500,000 per violation. -Scott Radway U.S.-Affiliated Islands
Secretary of Interior Gale Norton was the highest-ranking American government official in two decades to tour the U.S.-affiliated islands in the region, island-hopping across the north Pacific and then to American Samoa with a large U.S. Congressional delegation led by Rep. Richard Pombo of California. While on Saipan, Norton signed with Gov. Juan N. Babauta an agreement for $5.1 million in Compact of Free Association impact funds, took part in the groundbreaking ceremony of the Visitors Center at American Memorial Park, toured a garment factory and then briefly attended the installation dinner of the new Chamber of Commerce officers. The $5.1 million is the largest amount of Compact funds ever received by the Northern Marianas and represents the CNMI's share in the $30 million annual Compact impact payments allotted to CNMI, Guam and Hawaii. -Frank S. Rosario and Giff Johnson Marshall Islands Outrigger Says 'Yokwe' to Majuro Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, the Hawaii-based hotelier that has been operating in the Marshall Islands since 1996, in early February announced that it was ending its management contract to run the government-owned Outrigger Marshall Islands Resort on Majuro. But even as Outrigger announced its withdrawal by Feb. 20th, hotel officials said they hoped to continue the relationship. Outrigger's announcement follows nearly three months of speculation about the firm's future in Majuro. Last November, Outrigger management in Hawaii issued an ultimatum to the Marshalls national government about the need for $2.2 million in long-overdue renovations of the 150-room hotel. Since last November, both Outrigger and the Marshalls government, which owns the hotel and acknowledged the need for major renovation work at the hotel that was built in 1996, have indicated they wanted to maintain the status quo management situation. But the deal fell through, despite a letter from Foreign Minister Gerald Zackios to Outrigger Chief Operating Officer Perry Sorenson in mid-January, several days after a 45-day notice from Outrigger to terminate its contract had expired. Zackios assured Outrigger of the government's commitment to provide funding, but offered no specific timetable for when money would be available.
The lack of a definite plan for providing funding is what led Outrigger to announce the February 20th end to its management contract. In November Sorenson wrote to Outrigger Marshall Islands Resort board chairman Alex Bing to initiate a 45-day notice of intent to terminate the management agreement, saying, "We can no longer operate in a situation that poses increasing safety risks for our valued employees and guests." Sorenson said that Outrigger has "consistently documented our concerns about this steady deterioration since early 2002." Marshall Islands Visitors Authority board chairman Kirt Pinho said the local tourism industry "will definitely miss Outrigger participation in the Marshall Islands." He said that Outrigger had been a major supporter of local visitor initiatives by providing special room packages and donations. Hinting at what many local business people fear will be collateral damage from Outrigger's departure, Pinho told the February Majuro Chamber of Commerce meeting that he "hoped Aloha Airlines will continue to support the hotels and the Marshall Islands." -By Giff Johnson Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Economy Is Priority One For the first time since the inception of the Commonwealth government in 1978, a senator from Tinian Island, Joaquin G. Adriano, has been elected to head the upper chamber of the 14th Commonwealth Legislature. In the past, presiding officers have been from Saipan, the major population center in the Northern Marianas, and Rota. Each island has three senators. In the House of Representatives, Rep. Benigno R. Fitial, as expected, became the speaker for the third time in his political career. The founder of the Covenant Party, Fitial led his party to capture nine out of 18 seats in the lower house. Fitial then offered the lone Democrat who won in the mid-term election, Rep. Justo R. Quitugua, the chairmanship of the Education Committee to join him, which resulted in a 10-8 vote over Republican Heinz S. Hofschneider, the former House speaker. The Republicans lost seven incumbents in last November's elections. All who spoke at the inauguration promised to set aside political differences. Speaker Fitial, rumored to be eyeing the Governor's seat in the 2005 general elections, said he will cooperate with the Republican administration of Governor Juan N. Babauta. Former Speaker Hofschneider, himself a possible gubernatorial candidate, pledged his seven member's cooperation with the new House majority. -Frank S. Rosario |
