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 »

Joycelyn Lai of the Young Women’s Christian Association speaking at the WRAP forum .... funding a big challenge for her organisation. Photo: Myles Idoko Ojabo /PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Myles Idoko Ojabo

A Fiji women’s rights campaigner has warned her colleagues to avoid a “too soft” approach and not to let male politicians water down or ignore strategies.

“Pacific Island governments need to make a commitment in terms of funding,” Edwina Kotoisuva of the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre said yesterday at a panel discussion hosted at AUT University in association with Amnesty International and the Pacific Media Centre.

The forum followed the launching of a new report on gender human rights in the Solomon Islands by Amnesty International.

The panel was organised by the Women’s Rights and Advocacy in the Pacific (WRAP) to coincide with the Pacific Islands Forum starting in Auckland today.

Read more »

Prime Minister John Key with former All Black Inga Tuigamala (right) and friends at the launch of the Pacific Showcase at The Cloud last night. Photo: Alex Perrottet / PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Alex Perrottet

Preliminary events for the 42nd Pacific Islands Forum were well underway in Auckland yesterday as dignitaries arrived either to present at conferences or at least check out what was on offer at the Pacific Showcase at the Cloud last night.

While Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Lupesoliai Sa’ilele Malielegaoi presented at the Lowy Institute’s Conference on the Pacific Islands and the World,Tongan Prime Minister Lord Tu’ivakano arrived in time to attend the official opening of the Pacific Showcase on Auckland’s waterfront.

Not all dignitaries are present, however, with a Parliament sittings preventing current Prime Minister Sato Kilman from attending the Engaging Fiji meeting in Fiji last week and another sitting on Wednesday delaying his arrival in New Zealand.

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 »

Fiji Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe 'Frank' Bainimarama. Photo: Scoop

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

In a clear display of Melanesian unity leading up to the Pacific Islands Forum, 11 Pacific nations have gathered to attend the Engaging Fiji meeting in Nadi.

Similar to last year’s meeting at Natadola before the PIF meeting in Vanuatu, Fiji has not only garnered support for its aims but leaders appear to have  agreed on a united front before attending the wider Pacific meeting in Auckland next week.

Fiji’s status is likely to be a point of discussion for the region’s leaders in Auckland, however it remains suspended from the Forum with its only representatives being the rugby players who will receive the focus of attention when the Rugby World Cup kicks off at the end of the week. Read more »

Tongan schoolgirls ... educational trends favour girls, especially in Polynesia. Photo: Matangi Tonga

The success of educating girls in the Pacific, particularly Polynesia, has been a notable trend in the Pacific. Educating females has been difficult in some countries that have strong patriarchal views about the cultural role of women and girls in society.

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Henry Yamo

Numbers of girls enrolling and completing primary and secondary education in the Pacific region is growing and comparing strongly with male students, according to a leading educator.

AUT University’s professor of Pacific studies, Tagaloatele Dr Peggy Fairbairn-Dunlop, compares the trend with a widespread global pattern where girls are often doing better than boys at school.

“While there may be some disparity in the three Pacific groupings – Melanesia, Polynesia and Micronesia – caused by cultural perceptions about education and gender, the results so far are notable,” she says. Read more »

NZ Prime Minister John Key’s chairmanship of the Pacific Islands Forum ... under a cloud over criticism of the forum’s accountability and NZ’s development aid policies. Photo: Alexander Winkler/PMC

“If the the forum’s leaders had implemented half the commitments they had made, the Pacific Islands would be the best run countries on earth. Alas, in general, neither is true and the commitments are rarely kept.”  – Dr Roman Grynberg

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Alexander Winkler

While New Zealand Prime Minister John Key was talking up the importance of the Pacific Islands Forum this week, an article by a former executive criticising the organisation’s procedures and demanding more accountability from the leaders has caused ripples ahead of next month’s summit in Auckland.

The publication of an article by the forum’s former director of economic governance, Dr Roman Grynberg,  in the latest edition of Fiji-based  Islands Business magazine, has challenged the views of Key in a speech at Auckland University yesterday.

In an address about the Pacific Plan, Key emphasised the importance of sustainable economic development in the Pacific. Read more »

NZ Prime Minister John Key speaking at Auckland University's Fale Pasifika yesterday. Photo: Henry Yamo/PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Henry Yamo

Leadership in development, donor coordination and sustainable economic activities in the Pacific are poised to top the agenda at the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) meeting in Auckland next month.

This was highlighted by New Zealand Prime Minister John Key during his pre-forum 40th anniversary PIF leaders lecture series speech hosted by Auckland University yesterday.

Key said New Zealand would be hosting the 42nd PIF meeting against the backdrop of one of the biggest events in this part of the globe – the Rugby World Cup. Read more »

Pacific seasonal labour ... critically important for New Zealand to prepare for migration. Photo: Devzone

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Taberannang Korauaba

New Zealand needs to plan quickly for the future before population growth problems in neighbouring countries get out of hand, says a leading Pacific demographer.

The Pro-Vice Chancellor Research of AUT University, Professor Richard Bedford, said the problems stemming from population growth were becoming serious in Kiribati and the Solomon Islands.

“In Kiribati, of the 100,000 population, 50 percent live in urban Tarawa while in Solomon Islands of its 500, 000 population, 20 percent live in urban areas,’ Dr Bedford said. Read more »