The order of the Sky God

The recent funeral of Tonga’s respected former Prime Minister HRH Prince Fatafehi Tu‘ipelehake, brought the country to a standstill for ten days. The occasion, however, reminded us again that Tonga is run by two sets of interwoven political orders, one so old that it has its origins in a mythical heaven, and the other so relatively new that it has not yet replaced the old. By Pesi Fonua. Matangi Tonga Magazine Vol. 14, no. 2, May 1999.