NEWSPAGE 28 June
2010

(Photo: Josephine Latu)

(Photo: SportingPulse)

SAMOA: Samoa Tourism Authority Updates
Source: Samoa Tourism Authority Press Release
 

Swimming Samoan Style

When 14 members of the Amosa Swimming Club arrived at the Aquatic Centre in Apia last week for a clinic with the Australian Swim Team, it was smiles all round as the budding young Samoan swimmers jumped in for a master class. Led by Head Coach Glen Beringen, the seven to 12-year-olds were given lessons in warming up, streamline and breaststroke as gold medallist from Australia’s Oceania team passed on their skills and knowledge, before the Samoan swimmers impressed the Australians with their singing.

“It was a great experience for our team to see how keen and enthusiastic these kids were about learning to swim,” said Beringen.

“The Championships are helping to promote swimming in Samoa, and hopefully this little clinic today will inspire these 14 kids to keep swimming and spread the word to others to do so as well.”

Samoa has a team of seven swimmers competed at the meet last week, with Clarissa Tema, Jesse Nilon, Kurtis Tulia, Monica Saili, Roy Peters, Sam Tamasese and Shawn Crichton all representing their country with pride.

The 2010 Oceania Swimming Championships concluded on Saturday.
(Article & Picture Source: www.sportingpulse.com)


Tanoa Tusitala to open 1st July 2010

Tanoa Tusitala Hotel, Apia - Samoa As the Tanoa Hotel Group enters into a new phase of its development, its Chairman, Mr Y P Reddy is delighted to announce that the much awaited opening of the fully refurbished Tanoa Tusitala Hotel in Apia will take place on July 1st this year.

Mr Reddy said ‘We have experienced many challenges in undertaking this project and it is fair to say that there were far more than we first anticipated or could have planned for. The two most significant challenges were as a direct result of the two disasters we experienced, namely the severe fire damage the hotel endured and of course, the impact of that horrific tsunami.

He then added “As I indicated during the early part of this year, we would successfully weather the storm and are now, thanks to the hard work and diligence of all those involved in this project in Samoa, in Fiji and in New Zealand, I am delighted to announce that we will be open for service on July 1st 2010.

Please contact Miss Kalpana Reddy [email protected] for further information.
(Source: Tanoa Hotel Group)
 

(Photo: Australia-Pacific Technical College)

AUSTRALIA: Fiji Cross Cutting Advisory Group meets in Suva
Source: Australia-Pacific Technical College

At the second meeting of the APTC Cross Cutting Advisory Group, Fiji, recently held in Suva, Ms Romaine Kwesius, Counsellor for the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) told the assembled stakeholders, "Your ideas and advice will be used in the design process, not just for formal institutional programs already in place, but also for the informal which are also important."

The Advisory Group, with the key role of providing advice and support to APTC, consists of representatives from organisations within Fiji with expertise and interest in the issues of gender equity; sexual and reproductive health, including HIV /AIDS prevention; disability inclusiveness, and child protection,

Stakeholders attending this consultation included representatives of the Fiji Employers Federation, UNAIDS, Fiji Women's Crisis Centre, South Pacific Commission, AIDS Task Force, Fiji Red Cross, Fiji National Council for Disabled Persons, Marie Stopes International, AIDS Task Force, Pacific Disability Forum, PACFAW, the National Council of Women - Fiji, PATVET, Save the Children Fiji, the Ministry of Education - Early Childhood Education, and the Fiji Early Childhood Teachers' Association.

Advisory Group members made presentations on each of the cross cutting issues, as well as APTC General Manager Mr Antoine Barnaart making a presentation on the purpose of the College, and APTC senior management staff speaking on the delivery of cross cutting issues within the College. Lively and productive discussions ensued about how delivery could be enhanced to ensure equity objectives are achieved.

Ms Kwesius concluded her remarks by acknowledging "the excellent role played by the Group's members in reaching out and engaging with different communities and organisations to make APTC as effective as possible."

Photo Caption: AusAID Counselor Ms Romaine Kwesius addressing the conference.
 

(Photo: Lance Iversen / The Chronicle 2008)

PAPUA NEW GUINEA: Rare PNG artifacts to come home
Source: The National

At least six national cultural property objects, illegally exported to the United States in the late 1970s, may be coming home at last.

They are part of the Jolika Collection, owned by American philanthropists John and Marcia Friede, which were donated to the San Francisco city’s de Young Museum and are currently on public exhibition there.

Their imminent return followed discussions and agreement reached between visiting Tourism, Arts and Culture Minister Charles Abel, John Friede and de Young officials in San Francisco last Wednesday.

The milestone agreement, which acknowledged that a total of nine artifacts in the Jolika Collection were the property of the people of PNG, came after years of wrangling between the PNG government and Friede over the ownership question.

Abel pursued the matter last month after it transpired that international auction house Sotheby’s New York and Paris had taken about 36 artifacts from the collection, through a court order, to sell for money owed by the Friedes.

Last week, he travelled to the US to reinforce the government’s position that national cultural property objects, which were illegally exported, must be returned.

In San Francisco, he met with museum director John Buchanan and John Friede, as well as other museum and city officials, to express the government’s concerns over the recent sales of items from the Jolika collection which could have cultural significance to PNG.

More particularly, Abel highlighted the government’s position on the nine national cultural property artifacts, all illegally taken out from the Sepik River region.

“An agreement was drafted and signed that committed both parties to the preservation of the Jolika collection, the recognition of the claim by Sotheby’s on a part of the collection and an undertaking to pursue jointly an option to raise funds to buy out the remaining Sotheby’s debt,” he said in a statement.

“The agreement also noted the PNG government’s claim to the nine objects, six of which are in the current possession of the de Young Museum.”

Abel said Sotheby’s was aware of the ownership question and would not lay claim to any of them to sell to recoup money - several millions of dollars - borrowed by John and Marcia over the years to collate the Jolika collection, arguably the best collection of New Guinea (PNG and Indonesia’s West Papua) in the world.

He described the collection as “a wonderful advertisement of our country”.

“We are grateful for the efforts of John Friede and the de Young Museum in preserving the collection, some of which were collected in the 1800s and may otherwise have deteriorated and been lost for forever,” Abel said.

The minister also visited the Bishop Museum in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he met with the board of directors and signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation with the PNG National Museum and Art Gallery.

Photo Caption: Visitors to the M.H. de Young Memorial Museum view an array of masks created by various peoples from Oceania that are included in the Jolika Collection of art that John and Marcia Friede donated to the museum.
 

(Photo: Solomon Star)

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Solomon games open: Malaita present gifts to teams
Source: Solomon Star

His Excellency the Governor General Sir Frank Kabui has officially opened the 2010 Solomon Games yesterday at Auki, Malaita province.

The official opening ceremony which spearheaded by proud Malaitans took place at the main game centre, the Aligegeo School play ground.

The ground will accommodate five different sports.

The opening began with an opening parade by all sports contingents from the provinces.

Each provincial sport contingent participating in the games was presented with three bags of taro and a pig as a gift and as a show of welcome by the people of Malaita and was followed by the arrival of the Governor General’s Baton.

The baton was handed over to the Governor General Sir Frank Kabui by Solomon Islands young running athlete Betty Babalu after being paraded around Auki town by the triathlon athletes.

The ceremony was attend by the Governor General Sir Frank Kabui, Minister for Home Affairs Peter Tom, NOCSI President Fred Maetoloa, Malaita Premier Richard Irose and other dignitaries from the government and the provincial government, church leaders, elders and chiefs from the surrounding communities of Auki and other important sports officials guests.

The Governor General Sir Frank Kabui after receiving the baton the baton signifies togetherness, harmony and peace.

Sir Frank urges all Malaitans to show great respect and to take good care of all the visiting athletes from other province.

“You must show unity through sports so that all visiting athletes can return with good memories just as the 2010 Solomon Games theme says “Let us unite through sports”.

He wished all athletes the best of luck and for all to enjoy their stay and return with good memories of Malaita.

Other speakers also reiterated the same sentiments of uniting through sports.

Awards were later handed over to the medal winners for Solomon Island athletes that participated in the South Pacific Mini Games in Cook Islands last year.

The Governor General in conclusion thanked the Malaita organizing committee, NOCSI, Business houses, and supporters whose tireless efforts see the successful opening of the event.

Photo Caption: Governor General Sir Frank Kabui pull his speech out of the baton.
 

WORLDWIDE: Pacific must show commitment to combat torture
Source: United Nations Development Programme Press Release

Pacific Island countries should commit to ratifying the Convention against Torture, is the call from the Regional Pacific Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) .

The call comes on the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. The region is the only one in the world where no country has ratified the Convention, despite clear evidence that torture and ill-treatment are taking place.

There have been some steps made toward implementing international standards on torture prevention. In May the Vanuatu Government publicly committed to ratify the Convention against Torture by the end of 2010 and in the same month Papua New Guinea invited the United Nations Special Rapporteur on torture to carry out a fact-finding mission.

Matilda Bogner, Regional Representative for the Pacific said:

“The International Day in Support of victims of torture is about recognising that torture exists in our world and working toward eradicating it. I strongly encourage all Pacific Island Countries to listen to the call from the United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, for all states to ratify the Convention against Torture.

This region is sadly far behind others in its ratification rate, which shows that too little attention has been paid to the issue of torture and its eradication. Ratifying the Convention will help to strengthen the prohibition on torture in national constitutions of the region, respect for law enforcement and the rule of law.”

The United Nations General Assembly officially proclaimed the 26th of June as the International Day in Support of Victims of Torture in 1977. The Convention against Torture has been ratified by 146 countries.