Results for Pacific Islands

Criticisms of Tonga's accession to WTO made by Oxfam last week, have been called "outrageous", "nasty" and "erroneous", by the Tongan delegation to Hong Kong, led by Tonga's Minister of Labour, Commerce and Industries Hon. Dr Fred Sevele, in a statement today.

Any hope held by Tongans or other Pacific Islanders that Australia was about to launch a "guest worker scheme", allowing unskilled labour to go and pick fruit in Australia, was put to rest at the end of November when the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer, made it clear that Australia was not going to entertain it.

The Pacific Island News Association (PINA) conference was opened in Nuku‘alofa today with over 100 regional and international journalists and observers in attendance at the Janfull International Dateline Hotel.

It is important for island countries of the South Pacific to establish a media code of ethics as well as a complaint mechanism, so that the media can regulate itself and improve its standards, regional journalists were told today.

Journalists from 10 Pacific Islands countries are participating in a three-day workshop focusing on the balanced reporting of news about women and children, and others outside the main stream of news.

Labour mobility for Pacific Islanders, and the trans-shipment of radioactive materials through the South Pacific, are two issues that Tonga's Minsiter for Foreign Affairs and Defence, Hon. Sonatane Tu'a Taumoepeau Tupou, said will keep appearing on the agenda of future Forum meetings until they have satisfactorily been dealt with.

The President of French Polynesia, Oscar Temaru said at Madang yesterday that he was hopeful that the Pacific Leaders at this year's Forum meeting would elevate French Polynesia from an Observer Status to an Associated Member Status. By Pesi Fonua

Two Tongans were among Forum leaders and heads of regional organizations who were awarded medals by the Rt Hon. Michael Somare in Madang last night.