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Tuesday 3 November 2020 5:53pm
Suva, Fiji : Most of the Revenue and Customs administrations around the Pacific, including Tonga, have agreed to work together to ‘ride out the CoViD-19 pandemic’ after they reported a drop in revenue this year, at the Oceania Customs Organization Secretariat (OCO) Heads Annual Conference held virtually on October 20.
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Tuesday 3 November 2020 5:08pm
Canberra, Australia : The Australian Government has committed an additional $500 million to supporting access to safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for the Pacific and Southeast Asia through a range of advance purchase agreements with manufacturers and through participation in the multilateral COVAX Facility. Premium content -
Tuesday 3 November 2020 5:00pm
Nuku'alofa : A new $2.3 million ‘Api Tonga multipurpose hall was opened by Fiji’s Speaker of Parliament, Hon Ratu Epeli Nailatikau in Suva on 2 November, as a home away from home for Tongans living in Fiji. Premium content -
Tuesday 3 November 2020 4:49pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : Nasif Naushad Ali (55) a Fijian citizen, who currently holds a Tongan residency permit, was jailed for possession of illicit drugs, including methamphetamine seized from his home in Kolofo'ou. Premium content -
Tuesday 3 November 2020 10:26am
Canberra, Australia : Whoever claims victory in the US presidential contest this week, Washington’s grasp over Asia’s future is on the wane. The world’s confidence in US power and the moral authority it once commanded and the capacity to deploy it are much diminished. Even the most energetic and driven administration won’t restore it easily, soon or perhaps ever. ...The reality is that small and middle powers in Asia now have to play an unfamiliar leadership role. This ominous responsibility will remain long after the 46th President of the United States settles into the White House. By East Asia Forum editors. -
Monday 2 November 2020 12:34pm
New York, USA : New York Times reporting: From the droves of people voting by mail to the widespread protests for racial justice to the pandemic and worries about the electoral process itself, the 2020 US election cycle provides “a recipe for a lot of angst” on Election Day, Nov. 3 ...“We’re seeing a huge increase in the need for mental health services,” said Eva Escobedo, a therapist in Texas. “I think that people are way more polarized even within their families and essential groups than they ever have been before.” So how can you engage with friends and family members across the political divide on Election Day and afterward without succumbing to fights and finger-pointing? By Katherine Cusumano. Premium content -
Monday 2 November 2020 12:01pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : Tonga's Tropical Cyclone Season for 2020-21 has officially started in November. There are no tropical cyclones expected in the coming week, says Tonga Met's first outlook for the season. -
Monday 2 November 2020 10:27am
Sydney, Australia : New York Times reporting: They used to call it “the tyranny of distance.” Australia’s remoteness was something to escape... until the pandemic. The virus has turned this outgoing nation into a hermit. Australia’s borders are closed, internationally and between several states. Its economy is smaller, and its population growth has fallen to its lowest rate in more than 100 years. Island living looks like a privilege when the world is pestilent. By Damien Cave. Premium content -
Saturday 31 October 2020 9:00am
Aliaga, Turkey : New York Times reporting: Now, as the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the cruise industry, companies are downsizing their fleets and selling the ships for scrap. “We’ve never seen anything like this,” said Kamil Onal, chairman of the Ship Recyclers’ Association of Turkey. “Before the pandemic we mainly dismantled cargo ships, but now this has become the fate for cruise ships after months of sitting idle without passengers.” Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 9:04pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : A massive national roads project that aims to tarseal 2,149 kilometers of roads throughout Tonga, is underway with a $15 million pa'anga allocation in the government's 2020-2021 national budget. It's a fraction of the $300 million that is needed to complete the task. The work is slowly getting into motion, says Hekisou Fifita, the Acting Director of the Civil Engineering Division of the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Manager of government road projects. By Pesi Fonua. Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 7:19pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : Princess Pilolevu Tuita opened the Tonga National Museum on the first floor of the Queen Salote Memorial Hall on October 30. Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 7:08pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : A senior police officer has been suspended from Tonga Police duty for allegations of assault against a police recruit. Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 6:46pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : After completing eight and a half-years as a Supreme Court Judge of Tonga, Hon. Mr Justice Charles Cato was appointed as a King’s Counsel, during a formal but heartwarming farewell in Nuku'alofa today. By Linny Folau. Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 6:23pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : A repatriation flight to Tonga from Auckland, New Zealand with 172 passengers arrived at Fua’amotu International Airport this afternoon, 30 October. Premium content -
Friday 30 October 2020 5:54pm
Auckland, New Zealand : Eleven-year-old Sosaia Vea from Ha’ateiho won a speech competition in New Zealand urging Pacific students to stay in school. His headmaster at Remuera Intermediate School said Sosaia’s speech was incredibly powerful and he delivered it flawlessly and with great pride and passion. -
Friday 30 October 2020 5:22pm
Tampa-Fla, USA : New York Times reporting: That old political heartbreaker, the presidential battleground of Florida, lured the two White House contenders to the same city on Thursday, as President Donald Trump and Joe Biden confronted some of their biggest political vulnerabilities in a state that is once again shaping up as the most elusive prize in next week’s election. By Katie Glueck and Patricia Mazzei Premium content -
Thursday 29 October 2020 7:02pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : The first repatriation flight to Tonga from Brisbane, Australia with 80 passengers arrived at Fua’amotu International Airport this afternoon, 29 October. Premium content -
Thursday 29 October 2020 3:30pm
Nuku'alofa, Tonga : Team Tonga is showcased in the grand final tonight in Season 2 of the Pacific Island Food Revolution, a regional televised series promoting healthy Pacific cuisine. The team of two Tongan cooks, Tuituiohu Mafi and 'Amelia Asi, competed hard to get to the final with Team Fiji vying for the coveted title. Premium content -
Thursday 29 October 2020 2:34pm
Apria, Samoa : For the first time the 2020 Pacific Ocean, Pacific Climate Change Conference underway this week is being held as a virtual conference. Another large virtual event - the Pacific Islands Nature Conference will be held in November, attracting hundreds of virtual participants, reports SPREP. Pacific Islands Forum Leaders also will soon meet virtually to discuss regional priorities, the highest of which are COVID-19, climate change, and oceans. -
Thursday 29 October 2020 1:12pm
Ann Arbor-MI, USA : Unlike the old superpower contest between the United States and the Soviet Union, the incipient cold war between China and the US does not reflect a fundamental conflict of unalterably opposed ideologies. Instead, today’s Sino-American rivalry is popularly portrayed as an epic battle between autocracy and democracy. ...The idea that we can choose only between freedom in an American-style democracy and order in a Chinese-style autocracy is false. The real aim of governance is to ensure pluralism with stability – and countries everywhere must find their own path to this goal. By Yuen Yuen Ang
