PINA

A Cook Islands cryptocurrency expert is critical of a proposed law targeting tainted cryptocurrency, arguing it undermines human rights and doesn’t address the real channels of money laundering. In the rapidly evolving landscape of cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology, the introduction of the 2023 Tainted Cryptocurrency Recovery Bill has become a subject of intense scrutiny. Ano Tisam, a Cook Islands cryptocurrency expert,...

United Nations Secretary General, Antonio Guterres will attend this year’s Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga in August. This was announced by Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum(PIF), Henry Puna at his monthly media briefing in Suva last Friday. “I wrote to him last month, I think on the 9th of April, to thank him for gracing the lunch...

Nine more Solomon Islands ministers have been sworn-in Monday formalising their appointments to their respective Ministerial portfolios, almost completing the lineup of cabinet ministers this week. The eleven Ministers includes: *Manasseh Damukana Sogavare – Minister for the Ministry of Finance and Treasury *Manasseh Maelanga – Minister for the Ministry of Infrastructure Development *Harry Kuma – Minister for the Ministry of Commerce, Industries, Labour...

China’s top diplomat pushed for Papua New Guinea to sign a policing agreement with Beijing during a trip to Port Moresby last month, forcing Australian and PNG officials to scramble to prevent an embarrassment for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese before his visit to our closest neighbour. The revelation about the proposed policing deal – which PNG officials say has been...

The Autonomous Bougainville Government(ABG) is warning it might use other avenues to gain its independence should the PNG government continue to be mischievous in dealing with the Bougainville Independence agenda. The warning was sounded by ABG Attorney General and Independence Implementation Minister Ezekiel Massat just as the ABG delegation headed to Port Moresby for the Joint Supervisory Body (JSB) meeting...

By Stephen Wright and Stefan Armbruster Fiji’s ranking in a global press freedom index has jumped into the top tier of countries with free or mostly free media after its government last year repealed a draconian law that threatened journalists with prison for doing their jobs. Fiji’s improvement in the annual Reporters Without Borders index was in contrast to the global...

Three countries have been awarded Olympic berths following the reallocation of quota places. Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea clinched them in the men's -68kg category, while Fiji have confirmed another in the women's -67kg category. In the -68kg category, Alireza Abbasi of the Refugee Team won an Olympic berth at the Asian Qualifiers. He was later ruled ineligible to represent...

Tuvalu’s Climate Change and Home Affairs Minister, Dr Maina Talia, has called on church leaders in the Pacific not to turn a blind eye to the geopolitical tensions in the region. Dr Talia opened the Pacific Churches for Ecological Stewardship & Climate Justice 2024 conference in Suva Monday, where church leaders are discussing climate change issues. The Tuvaluan Minister said climate...

The board of the loss and damage fund is set to pick its host nation in July as it speeds up the process to ensure hard-hit countries can directly access money to help them recover from the unavoidable effects of climate change. As the 26-member board held its first three-day meeting in Abu Dhabi last week, discussions centred on the...

Tuvalu and other Pacific countries can expect a higher concessional grant from the Asian Development Finance (ADF) – with the new USD$50 billion pledge from 36 donors announced last week. The grant pledge is the biggest so far in the history of the ADF replenishment cycle and coincides with its 50th anniversary this year. The Asian Development Fund (ADF) provides grants to...