A popular New York based news media company 'The Daily Beast' has apologized for publishing an article accused of promoting an anti-gay sentiment. The article which was published on The Daily Beast website last week has been removed after receiving a public backlash. In the article, the straight writer Nico Hines used a gay dating site (Grindr) to hook up with three men staying in the Olympic village. The men were not named but according to Hines one of the men came from a “notoriously homophobic country”.
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Results for Tongan
Sunday 14 August 2016
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
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Friday 5 August 2016
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Wellington, New Zealand
Four players of Tongan heritage in the Wellington Hurricanes are set to face the Johannesburg Lions in the 2016 Super Rugby final at Westpac Stadium in Wellington tomorrow night Saturday August 6. Loni ‘Uhila, Vaea Fifita, Willis Halaholo and Ngani Laumape are all fantastic, says their manager.
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Friday 29 July 2016
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Salt Lake City-Utah, USA
A pregnant 30 year-old US-Tongan woman and mother of six, ‘Ofa Kinikini, died after the vehicle she was traveling in was hit by a train in Salt Lake City, Utah on Monday July 25. ‘Ofa's baby was saved in an emergency C-section, a daughter who is now in critical condition, according to local reports.
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Wednesday 27 July 2016
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Auckland, New Zealand
Auckland raised tenor Filipe Manu won second place at New Zealand’s prestigious opera singing competition, the 2016 Lexus Song Quest, last Saturday July 23. The 25 year-old came second to a fellow Aucklander, baritone Benson Wilson who won the competition and the $20,000 prize.
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Friday 22 July 2016
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California, USA
A 46-year-old Tongan man living in California was among 112 people (100 men, 12 women) arrested in an operation by United States law enforcement last week. According to the U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E), the four-day operation was targeting “convicted criminal aliens” and that “the arrested were immigrants who were involved in gang activity or had three or more misdemeanor convictions or a conviction for a ‘significant’ misdemeanor'.”
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Thursday 14 July 2016
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Kansas, USA
A young US born Tongan, 'Ainise Havili (20) has been nominated by the University of Kansas for the “Big 12 Athlete of the Year Award” selected from 12 universities in five states. Raised in Texas, 'Ainise, the daughter of Tongan immigrants Moses and Mele Havili, is a star volleyball player and a member of the 2016 United States College Volleyball team.
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Wednesday 8 June 2016
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Auckland, New Zealand
A New Zealand court has indicted nine men and one woman for the kidnapping and death of a Thai woman, Jindarat Prutsiriporn in March this year. Among the accused are five Pacific Islander men: Tevita Matangi Fangupo (23), Luigi Havea (26), Panepasa Havea (25), Masi Vaifale (34) and Rogers Paleaaesina (25). A trial date has been set for next year.
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Tuesday 31 May 2016
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Fort Worth, Texas
Pro-golfer Tony Finau turned up to the front door of a young lady’s house in Texas last week offering flowers, chocolate, a get-well card and his apologies for accidently hitting her on the head with one of his golf balls.
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Thursday 26 May 2016
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Hamilton, New Zealand
A Tongan citizen living in New Zealand, Tavake Mokofisi (33) has been fined $350 and sentenced to 150 hours community work by a New Zealand court for performing a home surgery on his pet dog in an attempt to neuter it without anaesthetic. The dog is reportedly in good condition and is under the care of an animal protection agency.
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Thursday 26 May 2016
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Tasmania, Australia
A Tongan woman living in Tasmania, Lopa Naufahu, is fundraising to pay $6,865 for her husband’s Australian visa application. Neil Naufahu, who lives and works in Tonga as an electrician, is restricted from entering Australia while Lopa, a permanent resident, lives in Hobart with their Australian-born five year-old son Josiah.
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Wednesday 25 May 2016
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Honolulu, Hawai'i
Acclaimed opera singer and former NFL player Ta’u Pupu’a performed a benefit concert for the Kilohana United Methodist Church in Honolulu on Saturday May 21. The Kiliohana United Methodist Church is known for its humanitarian work in Hawaii and has a strong Tongan following among its congregation.
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Thursday 19 May 2016
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
This month, all 32 teams of America’s National Football League (NFL) announced their new rosters and recruitment of college football players for the 2016 season. Among the new recruits are at least five players of Tongan heritage. The NFL completed its official 2016 NFL Draft on April 30.
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Thursday 28 April 2016
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
New Zealand born actor Joe Naufahu made his acting debut for the popular HBO TV series, Game of Thrones. Naufahu featured in the first episode of season 6 of the series which was played last week. He acts as “Khal Moro” a ruthless warlord of a warrior tribe known as the “Dothraki”.
Thursday 28 April 2016
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tonga has been excluded from the 2016 World Rugby U20 Trophy tournament. Fiji and Samoa are both currently competing in the competition which commenced last week in Zimbabwe. The annual U20 Trophy tournament hosts second tier nations who did not qualify for the premium U20 World Rugby Championship.
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Wednesday 27 April 2016
Cardiff, Wales
Welsh rugby club, the Cardiff Blues, honoured their most capped player Taufa'ao Filise at a special testimonial dinner last week. The dinner celebrated a decade of service to the club by Taufa’ao who comes from Malapo in Tonga.
Tuesday 26 April 2016
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A visiting Tongan couple from New Zealand who wanted to adopt a young girl had their application rejected by the Supreme Court on Friday, April 22. The couple intended to take the 5 year-old to be raised in their home in Christchurch. However, the court concluded that the child was better off living in Tonga.
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Sunday 24 April 2016
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Auckland
One of Tonga’s greatest musicians, Bill Sevesi (born Wilfred Jeffs), passed away yesterday April 23. He was aged 92. Bill Sevesi was an early pioneer of modern Pacific Island Music and is credited with popularising and introducing the Hawaiian guitar key to Tonga and other Pacific Islands. Bill also introduced Tongan music to the airwaves for the first time. He was inducted in the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame in 2015.
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Thursday 21 April 2016
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Wales, UK
Former Mate Ma’a Tonga winger Mateaki Mafi (43) was a prize winner at the 2016 Crufts dog show in Birmingham, England, according to local news media. One of his dogs a Neapolitan Mastiff won the best of breed award in the “working dogs” category. His dog is named “Freddo Dei Mastini Della Rupe”.
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Tuesday 19 April 2016
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
In January this year, there were 2,381 Tongan overstayers living in New Zealand according to recently published estimates from the New Zealand Government’s Immigration Department.
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Tuesday 19 April 2016
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Suva, Fiji
A personal development programme for Pacific Island rugby players was initiated today 19 April with an announcement that $650,000 would be invested into a Fijian programme. A parallel programme will be implemented in Tonga and Samoa later this year.
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