10 July, 2024, An open letter:
Dear Minister ‘Utoikamanu and MEIDECC & Tourism Officials, I write to express my support for Starlink to obtain the necessary regulatory approvals to operate in Tonga.
I run the Island Cruising Pacific Rally. We currently have 129 yachts sailing through the Pacific Islands, with many of them currently cruising in Tonga and others heading your way shortly from French Polynesia.
Many of them use Starlink as their primary means of communications on board their vessels. This enables them to download weather reports, send through their arrival documentation to Tongan Customs, to communicate with local businesses and friends and family back home in relation to their welfare.
It is also an essential form of our safety communications as Starlink transmits their location to our rally tracker: https://forecast.predictwind.com/tracking/rally/pacific-rally-2024/
If vessels are in distress, they can use Starlink to make contact with myself or the local Rescue Coordination Services and we are able to quickly see where they are in relation to other vessels to provide assistance.
In addition to our own safety requirements, many of the Tongan businesses we have been supporting throughout our travels in Tonga over the last two months, rely on Starlink for their own communications, and the loss of this service will be devastating. The tourism businesses in Tonga have been struggling since COVID and the tsunami, airline issues, and now the concept of them losing all communications with the outside world - especially with the main Tongan coms cable damaged, would make life extremely difficult for them.
By allowing Starlink to continue operating as it has been for the last 16 months, our rally participants will be able to be safe and continue safely cruising in Tonga, and will also enable your local businesses to continue to operate.
With Kind Regards
Viki Moore Island Cruising incorporating Down Under Rally
E: viki [at] islandcruising [dot] nz
P: +64 21 438 977
www.islandcruising.nz and www.downunderrally.com
