Cover Story
25 Pacific Islanders To Watch
Who Is Moving Up? While they don’t quite make the Power 10 list, our 25 To Watch are leaders who have shown the potential to be
Evelyn
Adolph
Evelyn Adolph ranks among the best of her peers in the Pacific. With a master's degree in Economic Policy Management from Columbia University in the United States, and several years working with the FSM Department of Economic Affairs, Adolph has academic and real-life qualifications. By August she will have completed two years as an Adviser to the Executive Director for Australia at the International Monetary Fund (IMF). And she is eager to return to her home island of Pohnpei. "When I get home I hope to work with the Compact Management Unit recently established in the FSM." Look for the respect Adolph already commands within the FSM and among officials of the donor community, to continue to grow. Tukana Bavoro
When Tukana Bavoro returned to Fiji after a stint in Palau, it was to the position as CEO of one of Fiji's most scrutinized financial institutions, the Fiji Development Bank. Since he took over the role, the FDB has introduced new services for companies, agricultural and development finance to manage small loans for indigenous Fijians and Rotumans, and a business and risk services division to screen loan applications. In order to stem bad debts, Bavoro has also set up a unit to recover outstanding loans. The FDB chairman says the bank "hasn't seen changes like this for 37 years." It's a fair bet Bavoro isn't done yet. Maire Bopp When Maire Bopp Dupont told a meeting of journalists in 1998 of her HIV-positive status, she could hardly have imagined how that act would have reverberated around the region. Since then, Bopp, has continued to bring attention to one of the region's continuing health challenges. With the establishment of the Pacific Islands AIDS Foundation, Bopp and her colleagues are working to help people living with HIV/AIDS to live without fear of discrimination, improve access to treatment, improve policies that address HIV issues and minimize the economic burden on HIV/AIDS affected households. Bopp and PIAF demonstrate how civil society organizations can make an impact on a regional and international level. Tim Cahill The 2004 Oceania (Soccer) Player of the Year is part-Samoan Tim Cahill. This year the 25-year-old has played for English club Everton in the English Premier League and for Australia against Iraq. He represented Australia in the Olympics after a test case for a change in the eligibility rules, necessary after he played for a few minutes for a Samoan schoolboy's team at the age of 14. Cahill is considered one of Australia's, and Everton's rising stars and a role model for sportspeople throughout the Pacific. Elias Camsek Chin
Palau Vice President and Minister of Justice, Elias Camsek Chin, is a softly-spoken man-with clout. Chin is committed to the grass roots and considers himself the "eyes and ears" of the people. It is no surprise, then, that his special interests are in promoting the traditions and culture of Palau and in sponsoring programs for prisoner rehabilitation. He is also making his presence felt internationally, attending a series of environment and Compact funding conferences this year. The door is wide open for Chin, a retired U.S. Army officer, to consider a presidential bid in 2008 when President Tommy Remengesau Jr. finishes his final term. Peter Christian
Veteran legislator Peter Christian is the most powerful elected official in the Federated States of Micronesia, whose constitution constrains executive branch influence while it favors the national Congress. As Speaker of the unicameral Congress, Christian effectively determines the national agenda. His challenge is to step beyond the wheeling and dealing of the legislative branch, and begin articulating a national vision for the badly fractured FSM. If he does that - and he's expected to be a contender for the FSM presidency in a few years - the quick and articulate Christian could become a force to reckon with across the Pacific. Heinz S. Hofschneider
Heinz S. Hofschneider is an independent member of the House of Representatives and a former Speaker of the House. As one of the commonwealth's most outspoken lawmakers, Hofschneider is a big supporter of Micronesians working together to benefit the region, especially in the area of marine resources. He says past and current administrations have used residents of the freely associated states (Marshall Islands, FSM, and Palau) as "reimbursement concerns" and a "nuisance and burden." He wants to change that, saying 50 percent of marine resources are within the Micronesian region and should be harnessed for the benefit of the entire region. Rick N. Hou Rick Hou has headed the Solomon Islands Central Bank since 1993, through some incredibly difficult times. During that time he has taken the government to task over financial management and the logging and fishing industries when he thought it necessary. This has won him widespread, if sometimes grudging respect, and the support of Australia, significant in the context of the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands that is led by Canberra. Hou has the skills and experience to step up to regional roles. But it's not clear if he has the inclination. Sandra King Sandra King has taken the skills and experience she gained as a former deputy director of the U.S. Department of Interior's Office of Insular Affairs to spearhead the development of a non-profit group called the Pacific Islands Center for Education (PICED). Since 2001 PICED has helped young Samoans and Pacific Islanders succeed at college and beyond. King also leads national advocacy work on education policies that impact Samoans and other Pacific Islands populations. Jerry Kramer
Jerry Kramer is the most powerful business executive in the Marshall Islands, with interests ranging from construction, real estate and a hotel to a travel agency, insurance and inter-atoll shipping. But he has also become a major player in the commercial and residential real estate markets on Saipan and Guam-earlier this year, he was named Guam co-business executive of the year. He will play an increasingly prominent role in national development in the Marshall Islands and business initiatives in other parts of the Micronesian region. Dr. Fa'amausili Matagialofi Luaiufi As Chief Executive Officer of Samoa's Public Service Commission Dr. Fa'amausili Matagialofi has played a pivotal role in a public service sector that has been acclaimed as one of the more comprehensive and far-reaching in the region. Dr. Fa'amausili's part in both driving and managing the restructuring and corporatization reform program has not been lost on others in the region looking to carry out similar reforms. Dr. Fa'amausili is among a group of women making their mark in leadership positions in Samoan public life. Teremoana
Mato Teremoana Mato is the manager of the Small Business Enterprise Center, which aims to help small business entrepreneurs and family owned and operated businesses meet the challenges of the 21st Century. Mato says, "I want to equip myself with the knowledge, strength and stamina to do what is best for the development of my country at regional level. I see the renewed policies that will bring prosperity for my people; I see many of our Cook Islands people return home so that we together can help build economic prosperity for my country." Lolo Letalu Moliga Lolo Letalu Moliga took on presidency of the American Samoa Senate on Jan. 3 and is already attracting attention in his drive to make the Senate and territorial government more effective. He has dismissed 10 workers for poor performance; called for a Constitutional Convention; re-established the Senate investigative committee; moved several important pieces of legislation in the Legislature; and called for an audit of the Senate's financial statements. Lolo has been able to bring together the 18 Senate membership to work as a team despite their political differences. "When the Senate speaks, we speak as a whole," he says. Kaleo S. Moylan
At age 38, Kaleo Moylan has already demonstrated his competence in both business and politics. He has established Guam's first domestic life and health insurance company. In 1998, he was elected to the 15-member Guam Legislature with the fourth highest vote total. He was reelected in 2000 and in 2002, he ran with Governor Felix Camacho for his current position. Public differences with Camacho lead most observers to believe the team will not run together in 2006, though both decline to comment on the matter. Robert
Muller
The youngest Chief Secretary in the 26-year history of constitutional government, 37-year-old Robert Muller is determined to revamp the public service, which he says is in need of "shock therapy." Although Muller is no stranger to government, having served in the 1990s as permanent secretary for Resources and Development and then Foreign Affairs, his most formative experience is of more recent origin as chief negotiator of the amended 20-year Compact of Free Association with the United States. Now as Chief Secretary, he gets the opportunity to oversee implementation of the deal that will inject well over $1 billion into the country through 2023, and the challenge of bringing a public service noted for lethargy and ineffectiveness into the 21st century. Michael Phillips
Attorney Michael Phillips, 43, describes his law practice as a "combination of litigation and public interest." As an attorney he has successfully forced the implementation of the Chamorro Land Trust Act; had declared invalid a contract to build a controversial waste-to-energy plant; defended the Legislature's right to mandate an elected (not appointed) school board; fought a governor's order prohibiting government employees from talking to the legislature; and defended the legislature's authority to give Lieutenant Governor Kaleo Moylan certain powers despite objections from the governor. Phillips has served six non-consecutive years as chairman of the Democratic Party of Guam. Mike
S. Sablan
The current Public Auditor of the Northern Marianas is highly respected for his knowledge of government finances. A certified public accountant, Sablan served in executive positions in several big corporations before joining the government as special advisor for budget and finance in 1998. He cut non-resident accounting staff from 33 to one, and his local staff is now conducting training for their counterparts in the Pacific region. Sablan is thought to command enough public backing that he could win either the governorship or Washington, D.C. representative post, should he choose to run for elected office. Alan Seid
Alan Seid has long sought the presidency of Palau, and now is only four years away from running for his country's top job. A business executive with interests ranging from real estate development to tourism to telecommunications (as well as a failed effort to sustain Palau Micronesia Air), Seid won election to the Palau national Senate late last year. He is expected to use his post as chairman of the foreign affairs committee as a platform to discuss Palau's role in the Pacific and Asia. Seid is on a collision course with Palau Vice President Elias Camsek Chin, who is already being spoken of as a presidential contender in 2008 (current President Tommy Remengesau, Jr. cannot run for a third term). Shaista Shameem Fiji's Dr. Shaista Shameem is already creating waves as the United Nations special rapporteur on mercenaries, the first such appointment in the Pacific Islands region. She has asked the Fiji government for an assurance that Fiji nationals will not be used as mercenaries in Iraq, where many have taken up work as security guards under private companies. She has worked as a lawyer, university lecturer, journalist and human rights activist. Asterio Takesy
The veteran bureaucrat is shaking up the once sleepy Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme in Apia, Samoa. In the process, Takesy, originally from Chuuk in the Federated States of Micronesia, has begun to significantly strengthen SPREP's ties to its funding agencies and reaffirm its commitments to the agency's stakeholders. Takesy earned his stripes in the U.S.-administered Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, and then rose quickly in the newly independent FSM in a number of senior appointed posts. Takesy's soft-spoken style belies his toughness. He is a skilled bureaucrat, with broad regional and international experience. Oscar Temaru
Political analysts have observed that Oscar Temaru has already shown his political savvy in the short time he has been back in the president's chair this year. After a long and drawn out battle with his predecessor, Gaston Flosse, for the leadership in the courts and polls, Temaru is likely to have learned from the mistakes of his first short tenure. It will be fascinating to see how his presidency develops, and whether he can hold on to power. Fei Tevi The Tongan-born Executive Secretary of the Pacific desk of the World Council of Churches (WCC), Fei Tevi, has qualifications in political science, international relations, development and diplomacy. On Tevi's watch, the WCC has been vocal on issues such as self-determination in French Polynesia, climate change and the World Trade Organization. He is committed to churches having a voice in regional issues, including those being addressed by the Pacific Islands Forum. Tessie Tsoi
Tessie Tsoi is one of the few Papua New Guineans working hard to provide basic services to families living with HIV/AIDS. Friends Foundation Inc which she founded in 2000 is involved in the care of people affected by HIV/AIDS. One of its more sobering tasks is arranging "proper funerals" for 47 abandoned children (some of them victims of HIV/AIDS) who died at PNG's largest hospital Port Moresby General Hospital. She is now working towards offering therapy for mothers living with HIV/AIDS and helping affected families meet school fees and other basic expenses. Robert Underwood
Robert Underwood is one of the few Guam political leaders with a strong regional focus. When he was Guam's Delegate to the U.S. Congress for 10 years through 2002, he was a go-to man for leaders of U.S.-affiliated islands needing support on congressional legislation and funding. His loss in the 2002 Guam governor's election freed him to do more work in the region, where among other projects he's been stumping for the islands to take advantage of major U.S. educational scholarship programs supported by the Gates Foundation. An educator and linguist by training, Underwood is constantly challenging islanders in the broader Micronesian area to think creatively about development and policy issues, and to define their relationship with Washington, instead of letting the U.S. set the agenda. Vaine Iriano Wichman Vaine Iriano Wichman is a motivated and committed Cook Islander who returned to her country with a degree from University of Bradford in England, and after working for the (then) South Pacific Commission, and as a consultant for the Asian Development Bank. Now the Parliamentary Secretary for Finance, her ambition is to "be honest in my dealings inside and outside Parliament." Wichman's vision for Cook Islands? A place where Cook Islanders will manage their affairs with dignity, respect for culture and environment, and clear perceptions of global choices that will ensure a strong growth path. |
