PINA

The Fiji Times editor-in-chief Fred Wesley says he has to live under the ambiguous provisions of the Media Industry Development Act (MIDA) 2010 “from Monday to Sunday”. He said this while speaking at the sixth Pacific Media Summit in Honiara, Solomon Islands last week. Wesley pointed out provisions in the law that said no media organisation in Fiji could publish materials...

By Anthony Bergin and Neil Baird Marine safety and sea transport are major concerns for the Pacific islands region. The island states have a high level of dependence on inter-island transport for the movement of both goods and people. All Pacific peoples benefit from their access to affordable, safe and reliable sea transport. As Sam Bateman argued many years ago,...

Fijiana 15’s Head Coach Senirusi Seruvakula has named his maiden 23-member squad to face England in their debut Rugby World Cup match on Saturday at Eden Park in Auckland, New Zealand. Seruvakula has selected the best available players to take on the opponent who has more test matches, experience, and wins in their bag compared to Fijiana. Brumbies Loosehead Prop Iris...

Samoa on Wednesday took advantage of World Rugby's new eligibility rules by including former All Blacks Steven Luatua and Jeff Toomaga-Allen in their squad to tour Europe next month. The pair were among eight players uncapped by Samoa in coach Seilala Mapusua's 31-strong group for Tests against Italy, Georgia and Romania -- their first northern hemisphere tour since 2019 ahead...

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will host his Solomon Islands counterpart Manasseh Sogavare against a backdrop of accusations China has influenced the Pacific island nation. Prime Minister Albanese will welcome Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to Canberra on Thursday 6 October. Australia and Solomon Islands are part of the Pacific family and have a strong security partnership, based on...

Environmental concerns were high on the list of issues to be addressed at the recent three-day Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders, held in Honolulu from 12 to 14 September with Japan’s decision to release up to 1.25 million tons of water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the Pacific Ocean one of the most pressing concerns. That is a position...

The total budget to run the upcoming Vanuatu snap election is VT150 million (US$1.2 million). Chairman of the Electoral Commission, Edward Kaltamat, confirmed this Tuesday. In addition to that, the Australian government has also stepped in to assist the Electoral Office. Kaltamat said the staff of the Vanuatu Electoral Office is working hard in preparation for the Polling day on 13 October...

Written by Dame Meg Taylor and Soli Middleby Following almost a decade of geopolitically driven “stepping up”, ‘uplifting’, ‘resetting’, and “stepping up across the board”, it appears that Western governments believe more of the same will achieve greater influence in the Pacific. Even New Zealand and Australia, who have recently sought to articulate something different, remain focused on implementing more...

Guam Governor Lou Leon Guerrero has announced that Guam would apply for membership in the Pacific Islands Forum. “The Pacific Islands Forum is seen as the united front for all the Pacific island leaders,” she said during a press conference on Monday. “It’s the forum that is in unity and will strengthen our voice in the Pacific Islands here with...

Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown had the United States Secret Service “scrambling” after travelling on a public train from New York to Washington on his recent trip. Brown was there for the first-ever United States-Pacific Island Country Summit held last week. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration (MFAI) secretary Tepaeru Herrmann said national security provisions are in place when a...