Pacific Scoop:
Report – By PMC news desk

The United Nations regional human rights chief has hailed 2011 as a “significant year” for Pacific achievements with all outstanding national reviews being completed.

” It has been an excellent stocktaking exercise for the region and will now act as an important baseline from which to evaluate future progress over the next four years,” said Matilda Bogner, Regional Representative of OHCHR’s Pacific Office in  Suva.

Saturday 10 December marked International Human Rights Day. Read more »

Oil being pumped off the stricken container ship Rena, grounded on the Astrolabe reef in the Bay of Plenty. Photo: Maritime NZ

WITH the Rena still precariously balanced on New Zealand’s Astrolabe Reef – an environmental catastrophe that has hit the Bay of Plenty coastline – it doesn’t take much imagination to envisage the sort of damage that could be done to fragile Pacific ecosystems in the wake of a similar disaster. Special report by Kim Austin for Pacific Scoop.

Although there has been much talk about the problem of unexploded ordnance (UXO) in the Pacific over recent months, anti-landmine campaigners are worried the New Zealand government may be looking to downgrade its aid commitment to the region.

This, combined with pressure from the US government on the handful of Pacific nations yet to sign the Mine Ban Treaty, is causing concern for NGOs working in the Pacific.

At the recent Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting in Auckland, a talk was given about the UXO problem that still plagues vast areas of the Pacific, especially in the North West. Read more »

Indonesian repression in West Papua. Cartoon: © Malcolm Evans / PJR

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By PMC news desk

The killing and abduction of journalists in Indonesian-occupied West Papua has been highlighted in a special new report on Pacific media freedom over the past year by Pacific Journalism Review.

“By far the most serious case of media freedom violations in the Pacific is in West Papua—far from international scrutiny,” says the journal in an editorial.

The 39-page report on the state of media freedom in the Pacific in 2011 notes that in August, in particular, “sustained repression has also hit the news media and journalists”. Read more »

Wreck diving among sunken World War II battleships has become a fashionable holiday pastime in the Pacific. But the flip side is the danger many of these hulks pose. Photo: National Geographic

APART from risking life and limb when digging a new taro patch, derelict weapons hamper economic development. Tourism cannot be properly developed until areas have been declared safe.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Kim Austin

World War II may have ended more than 60 years ago, but for those living in the Pacific “theatre of war” the legacy of death and devastation remains.

When fighting finally ceased in 1945, foreign military forces packed up and returned to their respective homelands, leaving a swath of destruction in their wake.

They also left piles of unexploded ordnance (UXO), which still plague the region today. Read more »

Flashback to Nuku'alofa 2006 ... Pacific-wide fear of rioting, fuelled by jobless youth. Photo: SMH

THE 42nd Pacific Islands Forum came and went, but Pacific youth advocates are pleading with leaders to wake up to the increasing number of young people involved in crime and violence in the Pacific.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Christopher Chang

At 3:30pm on 16 November 2006, the first stone was thrown in Nuku’alofa, Tonga. Within three hours, rioters had tipped over cars and looted shops.

The Pacifica Royale hotel and ANZ Bank crackled under the blaze of fire. Eight people were killed.

The rioters were of all ages, but most were young males. It is a situation that Pacific youth advocates are still fearful of, five years on. Read more »

Kiribati children greet UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon at Eita Maneaba, Tarawa, during his visit to climate change problem areas last month. Photo: Naoki Takyo / UNICEF Pacific

CLIMATE change adaptation strategies in the Pacific are expected to have a big impact on  agriculture and food security, such as in the Solomon Islands, as communities seek to become more resilient.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Henry Yamo

Displacement, loss of land, culture and identity is a looming and alarming problem encountered by Pacific people on islands that are most affected by global warming and climate change

This is the trend troubling most Pacific island states, especially Papua New Guinea, Kiribati, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu.

While coordinated efforts in partnership with governments, donor and implementing agencies have been progressing well, more concerted efforts are essential as the impact worsens each day for island people. Read more »

Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna .... declares marine park in support of Oceanscape. Photo: Nigel Moffiet / PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Nigel Moffiet

Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna has declared almost half of the country’s exclusive economic zone as a marine park to demonstrate his country’s commitment to the Pacific Oceanscape project.

The Pacific Oceanscape, a collaborative initiative between 15 Pacific Island nations within a 38.5 million sq km area, was first proposed by Kiribati President Anote Tong in 2009. It began last year with great support from Pacific leaders.

President Tong said the initiative – which covers issues such as ocean health and security, sustainability, governance, scientific research and investment – is a much needed step to protect the region. Read more »

Amnesty International chief executive Patrick Holmes presents the petition to Kiribati President Anote Tong. Photo: Amnesty International

Pacific Scoop
Report – By the PMC news desk

Kiribati President Anote Tong has become the first and only Pacific leader so far to accept a petition of more than 21,000 signatures protesting against sexual and gender-based violence in island states.

“We want to thank and commend President Tong in taking this step forward,”  said Amnesty International Aotearoa/New Zealand’s chief executive Patrick Holmes.

“Every signature is a demand for change in the Pacific. It is imperative that leaders take notice and ‘change the lights on women’s rights’. Read more »

Pacific Scoop:
Report  – By Taberannang Korauaba

The world should be clear that the Kiribati government is not using climate change to find an alternative place for its people for a better life, say cabinet officials.

I-Kiribati people – especially the elders – refuse to relocate. Although the water becomes brackish and salty; although their crops have been washed away but they still don’t want to leave.

But the problem is real, it is there in Kiribati. Read more »

Pacific seasonal workers in New Zealand ... key economic contribution. Photo: Cathnews

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Taberannang Korauaba

Celebrating the achievements of the recognised seasonal employment scheme may not be top of the agenda for news media – except for negative issues. But there are strong positives for the Pacific.

Examples of negative media reports have included linking the scheme to comments such as “people smuggling” abroad.

Yet there is evidence that more than 7000 Pacific people involved in the scheme have financially benefitted through “remittances”. Read more »