As Australia watched its democratically elected government self-destructing in a morass of self-interest and narrow-sightedness, visions of Dorothy journeying through the Land of Oz repeatedly came to my mind. Australia’s leaders need to show more brains, heart, and courage, Sharon Bessell writes.
You are here
Results for tag
Saturday 25 August 2018
Canberra, Australia
Friday 24 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
More than USD$200,000 grant aid was committed by the Government of Japan to upgrade one kindergarten and two water supply systems in Tongatapu, on August 21.
Premium content
Friday 24 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Mafoa'aeata Latu (26) was sentenced to three-years and three-months imprisonment after being convicted for reckless driving that caused the death of his passenger ‘Aisake Lavelua on Hihifo Road at Fo'ui, in March this year.
Premium content
Friday 24 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A 36-year-old Senior Police Constable sustained head injuries after being hit on the head with a machete by a man while responding to a call for assistance during a domestic dispute in Hofoa.
Premium content
Thursday 23 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Around 1300 Tongans with hearing problems were fitted with hearing aids donated by Starkey Hearing Foundation, during clinics on August 21-22 at 'Atele Indoor Stadium. "If people have problems with their ears come straight to us, then it won’t get to a stage where they need hearing aids," Dr Vaka'uta at Vaiola Hospital ENR unit said.
Premium content
Thursday 23 August 2018
1 comment
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tu’ungafasi Polelei Falakiseni was demoted from his rank as Superintendent of Police as penalty for breach of discipline when American, Dean Jay Fletcher charged with murdering his wife escaped custody and fled on his yacht from Vava'u in September 29, 2016. The escape caused huge embarrassment for Tonga and the deceased's family is still deprived of justice, a Police Board of enquiry stated.
Premium content
Thursday 23 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Showko Showfukutei provided a good laugh when she performed Rakugo, a Japanese traditional comedy with some modern characters, and ventriloquism, when visiting Tonga on August 14-17.
Premium content
Wednesday 22 August 2018
1 comment
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
'Leitis in waiting' a one-hour documentary depicting the lives and challenges of leitis in Tonga, a transgender minority group fighting for equality, was showed at a special screening at the Nuku'alofa Film Festival on August 21.
Premium content
Wednesday 22 August 2018
Canberra, Australia
Kofi Annan deserves to be remembered as a near-exemplary United Nations secretary-general (SG). Great chief executives need a guiding vision for the exercise of authority, and all the more so when that authority is international civil authority. Annan’s success was based on his ability to combine pragmatism and humility with an enduring vision of human progress and solidarity. By Ramesh Thakur.
Wednesday 22 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tongan Prime Minister Hon. ‘Akilisi Pohiva released an official statement on 20 August, retracting comments he made two weeks ago in an interview with the Samoan Observer, where he suggested that Pacific Island nations should collectively ask China to write-off its debts.
Premium content
Wednesday 22 August 2018
New South Wales, Australia
A former female prison guard in Australia, Amy Mershell Connors (34), appeared in a New South Wales court on Monday 20 August, where she entered a no plea against charges alleging that she engaged in a 12-month-long sexual affair with a Tongan prisoner Sione Penisini.
Premium content
Wednesday 22 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO) on 20 August announced that it has appointed Mr Marcus Lee as the SPTO China Chief Representative.
Premium content
Tuesday 21 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tongasat unlawfully received over USD$46 million of public money gained from the government's relinquishing of Tonga's 130 degrees East satellite slot to China, a Supreme Court action has determined, in decision over a public law claim that covers negotiations and dealings going back to 2006.
Premium content
Friday 17 August 2018
1 comment
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Artwork made out of recycled materials was exhibited to raise awareness of climate change, at the launch of Tonga’s Joint National Action Plan on Climate Change and Disaster Risk Management (JNAP2), at the Queen Salote Memorial Hall today, 17 August.
Premium content
Friday 17 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Ambulances, vehicles and medical equipment worth $1.8m pa’anga was handed over to Tonga’s Ministry of Health by the Japanese Government on Wednesday, 15 August.
Premium content
Thursday 16 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The visit by the Chinese medical ship Ark Peace to Nuku'alofa has shown there is a high demand for medical treatment, with people of all ages filling the ships passageways waiting to see medical practitioners since the ship's arrival on Monday, 13 August. By Eleanor Gee.
Premium content
Thursday 16 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Prime Minister Hon. ‘Akilisi Pohiva is attracting world wide media attention after he made comments suggesting that Pacific Island leaders participate in a year long weight loss competition.
Premium content
Wednesday 15 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Six Tongans are undergoing pacemaker surgery at Vaiola Hospital for the first time, performed by a team of volunteer medical practitioners from New Zealand on 15-16 August, marking a historic moment for health in Tonga. By Eleanor Gee.
Premium content
Wednesday 15 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
Tonga took a major step to advance its commitment to the 2015 Paris Agreement to limit global surface temperature rise to “well below 2°C above pre-industrial levels” when the Privy Council endorsed the 2016 Kigali Amendment to the 1987 Montreal Protocol on 21 June this year.
Premium content
Wednesday 15 August 2018
Nuku'alofa, Tonga
A three-day training awareness course on the negative effects of Methamphetamine on crime, families, and the physical and mental health of users was organized by Tonga Police last week as part of its ongoing awareness campaign to combat illicit drugs in the kingdom.
Premium content