From Matangi Tonga Magazine, Vol. 16, no. 1, June 2001.

The restructuring of Tonga’s telecommunications will be completed in July 2001 with the establishment of the new Department of Communications.

The department, which came into being when the Communications Act 2000 was enacted in November 2000, will get its own operational budget in July.

Meanwhile, the department has been operating out of the Prime Minister’s office since it became the regulatory body for communications on February 15 when the new Tonga Communications Corporation began.

The department has also taken over the role of the Satellite and Communications Unit of the Prime Minister’s Office.

Paula Ma‘u who has been with the Satellite and Communications Unit, and is now running the new department said that the department was the regulatory authority for communications in Tonga, and therefore would be responsible for the issuing of licences and the formulating of regulations. In recent months he has been active in promoting the government’s new open policy with regards to the issuing of licences for broadcasting and Internet service providers.

He said that the department would liaise with commercial partners such as TongaSat, and with international organisations such as International Telecommunications Union and the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).  

Paula said that the department would also be involved in the formulation of a censorship policy for Tonga, and the computerising program for government. “The department will be very active in either supporting or finding ways to advance Tonga’s telecommunications.” He said his department supported teh TongaSat proposal for a regional consortium to launch a satellite into one of its orbital slots over the Pacific. The concept of making Tonga as a Traffic Hub for Internet connections was an attractive proposal because of the small population and therefore a small local market, it will enable us to have a cheaper service.