Results for Press Releases

The Pacific Islands Forum's Ministerial Contact Group (MCG) on Fiji met in Auckland, New Zealand Yesterday, 31 May 2010, to continue Forum efforts to engage with Fiji authorities on addressing the situation in Fiji.

At approximately 11:15am this morning (Wednesday 26 May) Chathams Pacific’s 8 Seat Queen Air Aircraft suffered a nose wheel collapse on landing at Fua’amotu Airport. - Chathams Pacific

A meeting was held in Nuku'alofa last week to discuss ways in which the Tongan tourism industry can benefit from the recently signed Tonga Energy Road Map (TERM).

Australia will provide Tonga with an estimated A$27.8million in official development assistance in 2010-11. This represents a A$6.5million increase compared to the estimates of official development assistance to Tonga for 2009-10.

Tonga will receive 90,000 doses of H1N1 vaccine in addition to the first batch of 10,000 doses that was received in March this year. Necessary ancillary items, such as syringes, needles and supplement to the operational costs will also be provided. This has been made possible with the generous support from donor partners of WHO, including Australia and New Zealand.

Decades of deregulation, greed and free-market speculation have plunged the world into deep economic recession, with appalling impacts on working people and their families across the planet. 34 million jobs have been lost, and the end is not in sight. With a further 64 million people pushed into extreme poverty, the quest to end global poverty is yet further out of reach.

I have had difficulty having that independent role accepted to the point where the Government has removed most if not all of my responsibilities. These have been allocated to either the Cabinet or the Minister of Justice. This is not the independence the Government said it wanted to achieve when it created the new Attorney General's position. The Minister of Justice is not the Attorney- General. - Office of Attorney General

The loss of 74 lives on the MV Princess Ashika was a devastating tragedy where it appears serious breaches of the law may have occurred. I express my deep sympathy to those who lost family and friends in the sinking of the vessel. In consultation with the Solicitor General and other Crown Counsel I have approached the International Association of Prosecutors (IAP) to nominate two special prosecutors to work in Tonga in relation to the purchase, operation and sinking of the MV Princess Ashika.

His Majesty’s Government, having studied the report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry, is satisfied that all the recommendations of the report should be addressed as soon as possible and the law should be permitted to take its course with regard to the issue of criminal and civil liability.