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 »

Leitana Nehan executive director Helen Hakena speaking at the International Peace Day event in Bougainville. Photo: FemLINKPACIFIC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Louise Anne Laris in Bougainville

A community leader says reviewing the Bougainville Peace Agreement is a “crucial step forward” for civil society and the Autonomous Bougainville government needs to reflect and set positive goals.

Helen Hakena, executive director of Leitana Nehan Women’s Development Agency and convenor of the Regional Media and Policy Network on UNSCR1325 in Bougainville, saysd the government must enhance efforts to prevent future conflicts.

Also a founding member of GPPAC Pacific, Hakena said during an International Peace Day event: Read more »

President John Momis ... trying to put an end to local conflict. Photo: PMC

Pacific Scoop:
Report – By Gorethy Kenneth in Buka

Autonomous Bougainville Government President John Momis will not tolerate corrupt foreign mining operations and local dealers helping these pacts on Bougainville.

And he seriously wants to put an end to the local conflict, specifically in his Konnou Constituency in Buin, south Bougainville, where innocent people are being killed.

He has also called on those who are still holding onto guns and ammunitions to put aside this violence and weapons so that the ABG can empower them to manage their own affairs and offer them a good opportunity to move on in life. Read more »

A Torokina machine gun. Photo: New Dawn FM

Pacific.Scoop
By Aloysius Laukai in Buka

The chairman of Bougainville’s Torokina War Relics Association, Albert Magoi, has thanked the United Nations Development Programme for recognising what his group is doing to free Torokina from the deadly relics of World War II.
Read more »