Resort in Bora Bora, French Polynesia.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Virginie Ribadeau Dumas, in Wellington.

Real estate: The auction for the Rockland’s Hostel and Lodge the week before ended up being a waste of time. The bids rose up to NZ$4.225 million, far from the expected NZ$5.1 million expected by French Polynesia’s Vice-president Edouard Fritch. As a consequence, the Hostel, controversially acquired by the French Polynesian government in 2006 will not be sold. “This is a financial catastrophy”, declared Fritch in an interviewed to La Dépèche. The Vice-president said he asked for three weeks to think about it. He will raise the issue at the next Cabinet meeting. Read more »

Vanuatu Daily Post publisher Marc Neil-Jones (centre) with staff in Port Vila. Photo: Daily Post

Despite strong sentiment among media people in the Pacific that censorship is harming the quality of news, divisions run deep between former colleagues and co-workers about the best way to move ahead in the fight for media freedom.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Alex Perrottet of Pacific Media Watch

Freedom of the press may be taken for granted in many Western countries, but in some Pacific nations it is a far-off ideal. Although Fiji is the only country to have recently enshrined news control into law with the Media Industry Development Decree, other media people in the Pacific have experienced draconian sanctions on their reporting.

Vanuatu Daily Post publisher Marc Neil-Jones has had many run-ins with authorities. Read more »

Savali editor Tupuola Terry Tavita. (Photo courtesy of Savali.)

Insight Report – By Tupuola Terrence Tavita, in Apia.

There could very well be a third coup in Fiji very soon, this time from inside the barracks. The word from reliable sources in Suva (who wish to remain anonymous) is that the powerful Military Council – most of them from Fiji’s chiefly families – have become disenchanted with how Commodore Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama is running things.

The Military Council is maneuvering to call the shots from inside the barracks. One name that has come across more often now – and remember this one – is Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba – or popularly known as Roko Ului – a son of the late president Ratu Sir Kamasese Mara. Read more »

Stanley Simpson is news editor of Fiji Broadcasting Corporation.

This keynote speech by Stanley Simpson (news editor of the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation) was presented to the 1st Pacific Media Partnership Committee meeting, August 25-27 at the Fa’onelua Convention Centre, Nuku’alofa, Tonga. Those attending explored how to sustain a vibrant Pacific media.

Pacific Scoop:
Speech – By Stanley Simpson.

The Fiji media landscape (as many of you know) has changed dramatically over the last three to four years, and especially over the last year with the enactment of the Media Decree 2010 outlining new and stronger guidelines for the media to abide by.

We are all operating now under this media decree, while the censorship still remains for now. One of the major ethical issues that has confronted our journalists over the last year or so is how do we report and practice the principles of journalism under a censored environment? Read more »

Gaston Tong Sang, President of French Polynesia, in Papeete. (Photo courtesy of Wikicommons.)

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Virginie Ribadeau Dumas, in Wellington.

Politics: Follow up from the political soap opera. Interviewed about various current affairs by the daily La Dépêche, French Polynesia’s president Gaston Tong Sang expressed his concerns about the political instability currently reigning in the territory. “I maintain my call for early elections”, he told the journalists, “without a clear majority at the assembly one cannot rule a country.” He insisted on the need to reform the electoral law next year. This reform will be one of the major issues discussed next September with French Overseas Minister Marie-Luce Penchard.

France / French Polynesia: the pro-independence coalition UPLD held a press conference on Monday to explain why its representative will not attend the meeting hosted next September by French Overseas Minister Marie-Luce Penchard to discuss the polling reform aimed at solving the parliamentary instability in Papeete. Read more »

Aisake Casimira, programmes coordinator for the Pacific Conference of Churches: “This is a social problem.” Photo: Joe Yaya/PCC

Church leaders at this month’s Pacific Conference of Churches meeting were called on to help deal with the issue of HIV and AIDS in the Pacific, with a focus on family and discouraging “outdated” cultural norms.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Alex Perrottet

Church leaders must face the facts about HIV/AIDS in the Pacific and drop long-held prejudices about those living with the virus, says a regional advocate.

Steven Vete of UNAIDS said prejudice and discrimination prevent access to treatment for those most in need. Read more »

RAMSI soldiers patrolling the streets of Honiara, Solomon Islands. (Photo by Jason Dorday, and courtesy of Scoop.co.nz.)

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By PMC Newsdesk.

Newly elected Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Hon. Danny Philip, has pledged to work closely with the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) to ensure his nation continues its progress toward a stable society.

The Solomon Islands held a general election in early August that saw Danny Philip emerge as a likely replacement to Dr Derek Sikua. Philip succeeded in taking over yesterday after weeks of number counting among his political peers. Read more »

A censored Fiji Times immediately after abrogation of the constitution in April 2009: Now a new decree controls the media. Photo: PMC/File

Time is running out for the 141-year-old influential newspaper as it has only a month to divest 90 percent of its Australian-ownership – or be forced to close down.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Shannon Gillies

Military dictatorship in Fiji has thrown the survival of the Pacific’s longest running English-language daily newspaper in jeopardy.

The Fiji Times has served its host nation since it was founded in Levuka in 1869 – 141 years ago. Read more »

Rocklands is an historic building located in Epsom, Auckland. It is currently owned by French Polynesia. It will be auctioned this week. *Photo courtesy of Rocklands.co.nz.)

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Virginie Ribadeau Dumas, in Wellington.

French Polynesia’s Vice-president Edouard Fritch and Real Estate Affairs Director Tania Berthou are currently in Auckland for the sale of the Rockland Hostel. Earlier this week, they met John Wolley, legal representative of French Polynesia in New Zealand, and Tim Lichtenstein, representative of Colliers International, the real estate in charge of the auction sale that will be held on Wednesday.

According to a press communique released by the vice-presidency Tuesday, the objective of the meeting for the government’s envoys and their Kiwi associates was to review the situation and discuss the main issues: potential buyers, amount of the opening bid, and scenarios in case the auction failed. Read more »

Indonesia's military forces in West Papua. (Photo by the late Ardiansyah Matra'is, and courtesy of papuapost.wordpress.com.)

Pacific Scoop:
Slightly abridged in translation by TAOL.

JUBI: According to a police statement, the autopsy of the body of West Papua journalist Ardiansyah Matra’is has revealed that he was struck several blows before falling into the water and drowning in Maro River, Merauke.

Police public relations officer Untung Yoga told journalists that several of his teeth were missing and there were swellings in several parts of his body, all of which were likely to have been the result of his having been struck with a blunt implement. Read more »