PINA

-The European Parliament has voted 62-1, with two abstentions, to end Vanuatu’s visa-free access to the Schengen Area. Parliament Rapporteur Paulo Cunha notes this marks “the first time we have removed a third country from the visa-free list.” The European Commission had temporarily suspended Vanuatu’s visa waiver privileges in March 2022, citing “risks posed by Vanuatu’s investor citizenship schemes.” The initial suspension...

On the eve of the fifth session of the international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-5), the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) reiterated that the future instrument must take into account the special circumstances of Small Island Developing States (SIDS). “We will not accept a treaty that does not recognise the special circumstances...

The Pacific Islands have long served as a moral compass in global climate negotiations, consistently calling for equity, ambition, and justice. At COP29, that call was once again ignored, leaving vulnerable communities to bear the brunt of the climate crisis while the richest nations turned their backs on their legal and moral obligations. This COP was framed as the “finance COP,”...

Tongan Prime Minister Hu’akavameiliku Siaosi Sovaleni is currently facing a new no-confidence vote following recent political tensions and concerns raised by the King. The Speaker of Parliament, Lord Fakafanua, announced the no-confidence vote motion this morning. It comes after the Prime Minister survived a motion for a vote of no confidence ballot against him in September 2023. “The office of the lord...

Samoa's Ministry of Health has confirmed a case of whooping cough, or pertussis. New Zealand has declared an epidemic of the disease. The health ministry said a seven-week-old baby boy, who had not yet received any vaccination, was confirmed to have whooping cough earlier this month and has since recovered. The ministry said it continues to observe a high number of severe...

With the close of COP29, attention now turns to The Hague, where Vanuatu’s historic climate case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) is set to begin on 02 December. The case, supported by 110 UN member states and intergovernmental organisations, could have significant implications for global climate action. Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu's Special Envoy for Climate Change and Environment, expressed frustration...

Rich nations pledged to contribute at least US$300 billion annually to the global fight against climate change as UN climate talks came to a contentious end early Sunday morning in Baku. Developing nations who had sought over US$1 trillion in assistance called the agreement “insulting” and argued it did not give them the vital resources they required to truly address...

National Capital District (NCD) Metropolitan Commander Silva Sika has confirmed that local journalist Hennah Joku from Jayapura, Indonesia was arrested and charged with two counts of making a defamatory publication using any electronic device by the NCD Cybercrime Unit at 7-mile. She was charged and processed at the 7-mile police station and then taken to Boroko Police Station cell where...

New Caledonia's Union Calédonienne, one of the main and oldest components of the pro-independence movement, has elected Emmanuel Tjibaou as its new president at the weekend. The election was one of the main items of the agenda of UC's Congress, which was held in the small village of Mia (near Canala, East Coast of the main island of Grande Terre). Tjibaou,...

In a historic moment marked for the United States (U.S) and Fiji relations, Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Sitiveni Rabuka met with the U.S Secretary of Defence Lloyd J. Austin III, the first- high ranking official from U.S Department of Defence to visit Fiji. In a bilateral meeting convened Saturday in Nadi, Prime Minister Rabuka welcomed Secretary Austin’s...