English club, Saracens, have signed Sione Vailanu for on an 18-month deal to begin in 2018. The 22-year-old backrower debuted for Tonga against Japan and Romania in November. Vailanu recently played Sevens Rugby in Japan.
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Friday 5 January 2018
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Auckland, New Zealand
A New Zealand transport company is being held criminally liable over the bus crash that killed three Tongan passengers last year near the town of Gisborne in New Zealand.

Friday 5 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The funeral of Thomas Spencer Monson, the 16th President and a Prophet of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who died on 2 January 2018 at his home in Salt Lake City, will be held next week and televised live for 19 LDS Stakes in Tonga.

Thursday 4 January 2018
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Because mankind has a deep yearning for a sense of belonging and for leadership, humans naturally form groups with established leaders. Some groups are positive manifestations of collaboration and solidarity among individuals. But when groups are based on an ideology or a particular tribe, they can become discriminatory and oppressive toward non-members, especially if a domineering, charismatic leader is in charge. The emergence of populist and nationalist movements in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and other European countries suggests that tribalism is on the rise in the West. By Sami Mahroum.
Thursday 4 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Hon. ‘Akilisi Pohiva (76) has been appointed by King Tupou VI as Tonga’s next Prime Minister, effective from Tuesday, 2 January.

Thursday 4 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Demand for vehicles in Tonga is continuing to increase, while traffic jams and queues grow longer every month in the capital Nuku'alofa.

Wednesday 3 January 2018
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St George, Utah-USA
The Tongan community in Utah are mourning the loss of 46-year-old Kolei Soseti Maile of St George, Utah, USA who passed away on Christmas day after an illness. He leaves behind a wife, four children and a football team – the Pine View High School football team – for whom he worked for as an offensive line coach.

Tuesday 2 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The new year welcomed seven beautiful new babies in Tonga, with six born at Vaiola Hospital on Tongatapu and one at Prince Ngu Hospital, Vava’u. The first, arriving bright and early, was Herschel Tiuke Duane Miller Jr Pola. Only two of the new babies were girls. They are among the first of an estimated 385,793 babies born on New Year's Day around the world.

Tuesday 2 January 2018
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Wellington, New Zealand
Dr Palatasa Havea and Valeti Finau have been named on New Zealand’s annual Honours List. Both honourees are Tongan-born New Zealanders. The Honours List was released on New Year’s Eve 31 December by New Zealand’s Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Tuesday 2 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A 15-member darts team will represent Tonga at the first South Pacific Darts Championships, to be held from 15-20 January 2018 in Vanuatu. The team includes seven men and seven women and a team manager.

Monday 1 January 2018
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
King Tupou VI and Queen Nanasipau'u and members of the Royal Family welcomed guests at a New Year's Day reception at the Royal Palace, Nuku'alofa today. Among the guests were rugby league star Jason Taumalolo and Grammy nominee Josh Tatofi.

Saturday 30 December 2017
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Mate Ma'a Tonga star Jason Taumalolo has become the first Tonga Representative to be named in the Rugby League World magazine's Team of the Year (Rugby League World XIII team).

Friday 29 December 2017
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A dispute by two of the sons of the four Wight brothers who had co-leased a property in central Tongatapu, highlighted the need for the Ministry of Lands to review the drafting of such leases and how to deal with them upon the death of co-lessees, President Owen G. Paulsen of the Land Court of Tonga, stressed in a decision on 18 December 2017. His decision also showed that family members cannot automatically assume entitlement to a lease on the death of the lessee, without having followed the requirements of the Probate Act, which requires an application for Letters of Administration of a deceased's estate.

Friday 29 December 2017
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Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A young man (20) from Fua'amotu died yesterday from injuries he suffered in a car crash on the main highway at Tofoa in the early hours of Wednesday morning, December 27. His name has not been released by Tonga Police.

Friday 29 December 2017
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Suva, Fiji
Radiant bride, 'Anaseini Fifita Falemei Palu of Nuku'alofa, married her sweetheart Joseph James Halapua in Suva yesterday, 28 December, during the Christmas season of weddings.

Thursday 28 December 2017
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Brussels, Belgium
Five Pacific Islands are included in the European Union’s first blacklist, which names 17 tax havens, including American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Palau and Samoa as "non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes".

Thursday 28 December 2017
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Auckland, New Zealand
For the first time in 60 years, only one tropical storm has struck the Southern Hemisphere so far this year in Indonesia in late November, compared to an average of at least five storms by Christmas Day. However, at least eight to 10 tropical cyclones are expected to hit this season, while the sea temperature is warmer than usual.

Thursday 28 December 2017
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Manilla, Philippines
Tonga, Samoa and Tuvalu will be able to access $15 million to strengthen resilience to disasters after the Asian Development Bank (ADB) announced on 18 December it would provide policy-based loans and grants under its Pacific Disaster Resilience Program.

Thursday 28 December 2017
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Gisborne, New Zealand
A memorial service was held outside the New Zealand town of Gisborne on Chistmas Eve to pay tribute to the victims of a bus crash that killed three Tongan visitors last year. The memorial marks a year since the tragic accident occurred.

Wednesday 27 December 2017
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Sydney, Australia
The Australian state of Victoria has established a new law to crack down on the neglect and exploitation of seasonal workers, most of whom are Pacific Islanders working under Australia’s Seasonal Worker Program. The law establishes the “Labour Hire Licensing Authority”, a body to monitor and punish hiring operators who neglect labourers. Tonga is the largest source of labourers under the Seasonal Worker Program.
