PINA

Police in French Polynesia have seized almost US$50 million worth of methamphetamine on a cruise ship from the United States. A 27-year-old Tahitian passenger has been arrested after the discovery of 21 kilogrammes of the drug in his luggage. The authorities say the man had wanted to offload a suitcase when the ship, the MS Zuiderdam was in port in Uturoa...

By Thomas Heaton The proposal for a new marine sanctuary in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands is facing significant pushback over fears it will clamp down on fishing. Proponents say government leaders and a federal advisory group are muddying their message with misinformation about what an added layer of protections for CNMI’s...

The Fiji Pearls were outmuscled 68-54 by Tonga in their second game of the PacificAus Netball Series in Sydney Tuesday. The win pushes Tonga, the 2019 Pacific Games Netball silver medalists on top of the standing. The Pearls trailed throughout the entire match, and were let down by multiple infringements that allowed Tonga to execute their game-plan and structure. Fiji was hindered...

Leadership plays the most critical role in any rugby team, especially for the Swire Shipping Fijian Drua. These are the words of Flying Fijians Head Coach Vern Cotter when asked about the team’s progression in Super Rugby Pacific. Cotter said the Drua has improved over five games but there are bits and pieces that still need work. He said the Drua is...

Samoa's weightlifting team is ready to compete in the Commonwealth Games later this year in Birmingham, United Kingdom with their coach confident of their medal potential. The SWF President and Coach Tuaopepe Jerry Wallwork made the announcement in an interview with the Samoa Observer on Tuesday, saying the "dream team" is ready as they have qualified six weightlifters for Birmingham. “The...

The Division of Customs and Biosecurity on Saturday seized 4.9 pounds of crystal methamphetamine with a street value of US$700,000 at the post office in Chalan Kanoa, the largest drug haul in the CNMI in five years. The Superior Court on Monday imposed a US$1 million cash bail on 48-year-old Yuzhu Zhang who, authorities said, attempted to smuggle the illegal...

The visit to Fiji by New Zealand’s Minister for Defence Peeni Henare has reaffirmed the shared commitment to improving regional security. This was highlighted by Fiji’s Minister for Defence Inia Seruiratu after holding a bilateral meeting with his New Zealand counterpart. Seruiratu said human assistance and disaster relief are key components of the discussions that took place, adding that the defence...

The Australian government has brushed off criticism from the UN secretary general labelling it a “holdout” after Scott Morrison refused to strengthen the nation’s 2030 emissions reduction target. The communications minister, Paul Fletcher, branded António Guterres a member of the UN “chattering classes” after he used an address to a sustainability summit to take an extraordinary public swipe at Australia’s...

Thirty members of the Royal PNG Constabulary (RPNGC) personnel are flying in this morning from Port Moresby to Honiara in a second deployment since the November rioting and looting. Solomon Islands High Commissioner to PNG, William Soaki, this morning sent off the officers to support police in the upcoming Parliament sitting. According to Soaki, this contingent will be the second batch...

The goal to limit future warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius, highlighted in the Paris Agreement on climate change, and driven home in last November’s COP26, gathering in Glasgow, is now on “life support” and “in intensive care,” the UN chief told the Economist Sustainability Summit on Monday. Speaking via video link, Secretary-General António Guterres highlighted some of the progress made at...