PINA

-A New Zealand medical team in Tonga is overwhelmed by the level of mental health support needed by those affected from the volcanic eruption and tsunami three months ago. The group of eight from the Pasifika Medical Association (PACMAT) has been helping hundreds of people and says there has been deep trauma amid resilience. PACMAT lead Amanaki Misa said some children...

I want to thank all the Pacific Elders for their recent statement supporting a visit to West Papua by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and urging the UN Human Rights Council to pass a motion on West Papua. These Elders have reminded the world's leaders that this visit must take place before the meeting of the G20...

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has put quality before quantity in its qualification system for the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. It has also devised a system that, unlike qualifying for Tokyo, can be exploited by cheats because it allows athletes to "hide away for a year". It was privately dubbed “the North Korean qualifying system” by one of the delegates at...

A new Fijian Drua ‘i-voce’ or oar was handed to the team during their official welcoming ceremony at the Fiji Museum in Suva last night. The oar or paddle is carried by the captain of the team when they run out for any of their Super Rugby Pacific match. It is also held by the skipper during the team’s i-bole in...

Otago Highlanders coach Tony Brown says the team will not under estimate the Fijian Drua especially in their backyard. The Highlanders team arrived last night ahead of their clash with the Fijian Drua this weekend. “Yeah I think they will be passionate and want to put on a really good performance for their people and I think they will want to...

The Fijian Drua have confirmed the signing of Reds outside back Ilaisa Droasese with immediate effect after he was released from his contract. Droasese made his debut for the Reds in 2021, instantly making an impression as he scored off the bench during their round one win over the Waratahs in Super Rugby AU. Catch every game of the 2022 Super...

The National General Elections 2022, will be delayed by two weeks, says Papua New Guinea Electoral Commissioner, Simon Sinai. He said this delay is by caused by outstanding issues including ballot papers for the seven new electorates, and changes for the reprint runs, funding issues and COVID-19 protocols. He has formally written to the Governor General Sir Bob Dadae requesting...

The Australian government will be assisting in the construction and development of a new naval base in Lami. Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama said the new naval base in Lami will be named after him. He clarified this was not the RFNS Stanley Brown base in Walu Bay Suva but a completely new base that will be similar to that of the...

The Fijian Elections Office has appointed Craig Rickards as Deputy Supervisor for the 2022 General Election. While announcing the appointment, Supervisor of Elections Mohammed Saneem said Rickards brings a wealth of election experience having worked with the Australian Electoral Commission for the last 38 years retiring in 2021. Apart from Australia, Rickards has also worked in Fiji, Tonga, Myanmar and other...

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has released a US$10 million (25.6 million tala) grant from its Pacific Disaster Resilience Programme (Phase 3) to help finance the Government of Samoa’s response to the community transmission of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Samoa continues to battle a surge in the domestic transmission of the virus. The Ministry of Health has confirmed 13 COVID-19-related...