Pacific Forum Secretary General, Tuiloma Neroni Slade (SG Slade), told delegates at a regional meeting in Suva on Monday, 14 October, that pollution, mismanagement and the unsustainable exploitation of resources must not be allowed to continue.

SG Slade stated the imperatives in his welcome speech at the opening of the United Nations-Nippon Foundation Fellowship Alumni Meeting hosted in Suva by the Pacific Islands Forum. Among the guests were academics and representatives from various regional and international organisations, including the United Nations.

The former Attorney General for Samoa stated in his speech “We cannot allow the tragedy which has blighted the ocean-commons of illegal and unsustainable exploitation of resources of pollution and degradation and all other manner of abuse and mismanagement to persist go unchecked.”

“For all these issues there are many common sense solutions: not necessarily about finding the answers, but rather about using the answers we have found and this requires collective global and regional action, practical collaboration and drawing on existing and best practices.”

His statements come in the midst of growing concerns in the region over the exploitation of marine resources, pollution, global warming and the presence of foreign fishing fleets.

“While there are rights to resources, there are also concomitant obligations and responsibilities for precautionary approaches and to conserve obligations that must play out as we look to intensify fishing practices and explore the ocean depths for mineral deposits.”