NEWSPAGE 31 October
2011

(Photo: Australian High Commission)

SAMOA: Australian High Commission supports Samoa Victim Support Group
Source: Australian High Commission Press Release

Staff at the Australian High Commission have made a stand against violence with the Samoa Victim Support Group by wearing yellow.

Samoa Victim Support Group provides care, support and assistance to victims of sexual crimes and domestic violence. They are asking members of the public to show there support for the work they are doing by sending in a photo of themselves wearing yellow with a Samoa Victim Support Group sign.

High Commissioner Stephen Henningham said, “It is important that the community takes a stand against violence. I would encourage everyone to show their support for the victims of violent and sexual crimes.”

President of the Samoa Victim Support Group Lina Chang said that violence especially against women and children was a major problem in Samoan society.

“Domestic violence cases at SVSG from 2006 to 2010 have increased by 250 per cent. This increase is due to awareness campaigns such as ‘No to Rape and Indecent Acts’ and the presence of SVSG’s village representatives throughout the community, which empowers and encourages the community to come forward to stand against domestic violence,” Ms Chang said.

This year, AusAID provided WST 50,000 in funding through the Civil Society Support Program to support the activities of the Samoa Victim Support Group.

Dr Henningham said, “Living free of violence is everyone’s right. It is also everyone’s responsibility to help reduce violence. As a father and a husband, I want say real men don’t hit.”

“The Australian Government is committed to working with the Government of Samoa and civil society organisations to help reduce violence in society.”

In the 2011 Federal Budget, Australia committed $25 million over four years to help Pacific Island countries address violence against women.

This week, the Pacific Women’s Empowerment Policy Dialogue, Stopping Violence Against Women will be held in Canberra Australia, it is being co-hosted by Australia and the United States.

The dialogue will identify actions for Pacific governments, civil society, donors, regional and UN organisations to boost regional efforts to end violence against women in the Pacific.

Photo Caption: Australian High Commission staff with members of the Samoa Victim Support Group.

(Photo: Australian Government)

AUSTRALIA: Samoans to receive more money from their Australian family members

The Australian Government has announced a $3.5 million package to make it cheaper for migrants from developing countries to send money to their families back home.

The Australian package will support the uptake of new technology, such as mobile banking services, increase access to financial services for the poor and help improve the development impact of remittances.

The Australian High Commissioner, Stephen Henningham, said “Many Samoans benefit from financial support from family members in Australia. Remittance flows make up 20 - 25 per cent of Samoa’s gross domestic product, so this program will help make a real difference."

Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, David Bradbury, highlighted Australia's active support of lower remittance costs.

He said that "Already Australia and New Zealand's website, www.sendmoneypacific.org, has contributed to reducing the average cost of sending $200 to Pacific island countries by approximately $6 or 3 percentage points between January 2009 and June 2011. The assistance announced by the Australian Foreign Minister will support developing Commonwealth countries in setting up their own mechanisms to increase transparency and competition in the remittance services market."

The Australian Government has also provided funding to Digicel to support low cost money transfers through mobile phones.

Earlier this year, Westpac substantially cut its telegraphic transfer fee for remittances to the Pacific of less than $500 from $30 to $10, and for those with Westpac accounts in the Pacific, their inward telegraphic transfer fee will now be waived. ANZ have also announced they will be launching a stored-value card that has the potential to cut remittance fees to around six per cent of the total amount remitted.

"I would like to congratulate the Australian financial institutions and service providers who have moved to cut their fees," Mr Bradbury said.

Photo Caption: Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasurer, David Bradbury.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA: PNG lawyer attains Master’s in the United States
Source: The National

Young, ambitious and an achiever is how one can describe Lillian Vevara who recently received a master’s degree in natural resources and Environmental Law from the University of Oregon in the United States.

Vevara, employed by the Department of Justice and Attorney General (DJAG), was a recipient of a US Fulbright Scholarship last year.

Vevara, a senior legal officer with the Office of the State Solicitor within the DJAG, said the programme was relevant to the kind of work she does within the department.

She said her job deals with mining and petroleum projects and the Fulbright scholarship offered her studies in these particular areas.

It identifies areas of development in a country and aligns them with the kind of field studies that applicants show interest in.

She said PNG is blessed with a lot of natural resources and the exploitation of these resources progresses development. Hence, a need for comprehensive legislation to promote sustainable resource development here.

“For example other countries are drilling for oil under the sea but PNG is now looking at seabed mining which is a new area of resource development; and we must have good policies and legislation in place to protect our seabed,” she said.

When Vevara applied for the Fulbright Scholarship, she did her study proposal on seabed mining which automatically placed her as one of the top three short-listed candidates.

“As the scholarship is focussed on new initiatives, my study proposal on seabed mining stood out as they recognised it as one of the new developments in our country,” she said.

Lillian said undergoing studies in the US was an experience for her as she had advanced to a much higher level in all aspects.

“Their academic system is so different from ours, it was an academic and cultural shock for me which I eventually learnt to cope with during my studies.

Their way of learning is different from the way we learn in our country.”

Vevara said it was about being proactive in reporting, presenting and participation.

She said everyone had to be part of these activities everyday as they were assessed accordingly.

Vevara showed dedication and commitment to her studies and completed the one-year course in 10 months.

She was then given another scholarship by the masters programme in which she studied international environmental law in Washington DC.

When asked what advice she would give to those who want to achieve a certain goal in life? She confidently said, “Number one, with God one will always succeed in life so always put God first in everything you do and number two, be yourself and don’t try to fit into somebody else’s shoes, they can be too big or too small for you.

Always put God in the centre of your life because He’s the pillar of life, you can have anything you want but you won’t be satisfied if you don’t have God.”

Vevara’s achievement is an inspiration to many Papua New Guinean women that they too can achieve success both nationally and internationally; nothing is impossible.

It is encouraging to see women of humble beginnings who face difficult challenges but yet they press on in life to make their dreams come true, and Vevara is an example.

Now back in the PNG, she has resumed duties at the DJAG and is prepared to give the best of what she has learnt for the betterment of her country.

Coming from a mixed parentage of Siassi Island and Kainantu, EHP, most of Vevara’s education was in Kainantu. After completing year 12 at Aiyura National High, she was selected to study Law at the University of PNG. She graduated in 2005 and started practising in 2006 with a private law firm, and then she was taken in by DJAG on the same year. She’s been with the department since then.
 

(Photos: New Zealand Defence Force)

SOLOMON ISLANDS: WWII memorial plaque dedicated on Vella Lavella Island
Source: New Zealand Defence Force Press Release
 

A dedication service has been held on Vella Lavella Island, Solomon Islands after HMNZS RESOLUTION delivered a memorial plaque commemorating the Kiwis who lost their lives in the WWII battle to liberate the island.

Fifteen New Zealand servicemen were killed during a Japanese bombing attack in Niarovai Bay, Vella Lavella on 1 October 1943. They were buried on the island and later re-interred at Bourail War Cemetery in New Caledonia.

Later in the war, members of the 209th Light Anti-Aircraft Battery erected a large stone plinth at the site with a metal plaque commemorating those who had died. Over time the memorial was forgotten and it fell into disrepair.

New Zealand soldiers patrolling in the area for the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) rediscovered the memorial in 2006 and the corroded plaque was later sent to the NZ Army Museum in Waiouru.

NZ High Commission staff and NZ Defence Force personnel serving in the Solomon Islands began a restoration project in 2011 to have a replacement plaque erected at the site.

A new stone plaque was made in New Zealand replicating the original wording and adding new information about the post-war history of the memorial.

"The memorial is one of the very few physical reminders of the significant role that New Zealand servicemen played during the campaign to liberate Vella Lavella from the Japanese. It is important to remember and honour their sacrifice,” said Major Al Mitchell, NZ Senior National Officer in the Solomons and Deputy Commander of RAMSI.

“The Kiwi troops serving in the Solomons have helped the NZ High Commission staff to raise the funds for this restoration project.

“It’s great to be able to come together with the people of Vella Lavella for a dedication service for the new memorial. We have been warmly welcomed by the locals here, who have also helped with the restoration project."

Photo Captions:

Photo 1 - Major Al Mitchell and the local chaplain during the memorial dedication service, Vella Lavella Island, Solomon Islands.

Photo 2 - A group photo after the memorial dedication service, Vella Lavella Island, Solomon Islands.

(Photo: Secretariat of the Pacific Community)

WORLDWIDE: Pacific communities to benefit from coconut processing manual
Source: Secretariat of the Pacific Community Press Release
 
A new coconut processing manual published by the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) will assist community-based producers in the Pacific to improve the quality of their value-added coconut products to meet international market requirements.

The Processing Manual for Virgin Coconut Oil, its Products and By-products for Pacific Island Countries and Territories by Ms Divina D. Bawalan was launched earlier this week at a meeting for Pacific agricultural stakeholders in Nadi, Fiji.

The production and printing of the manual was made possible through the support of the European Union.

Launching the manual, Vinay Chand, a leading United Kingdom-based consultant on coconut processing and marketing said, ‘This manual is intended as a primary source of practical knowledge on the proper handling and processing of fresh coconuts to ensure that virgin coconut oil (VCO) and its by-products will be produced to meet and possibly exceed international standards.’

Virgin coconut oil from the Pacific is being exported to Europe, Australia, New Zealand and United States markets.

‘One of the concerns with producing VCO on a home, micro and village scale operation (especially for home consumption and domestic markets) is achieving a product with consistently good quality that will meet international standards and will always be fit for human consumption,’ said Mr Chand.

‘It is envisioned that the manual will lead to a better understanding of coconut oil and its quality parameters so that VCO processors can easily respond to the queries of their buyers,’ he added.

The purest form of coconut oil, VCO has been generating a lot of interest in coconut-producing countries as well as importing nations because of its multi-functional uses and the way it can be produced at different production levels. VCO production offers an opportunity for the Pacific region’s coconut farmers to increase their income with this alternative to low value copra production.

Aside from presenting VCO processing technologies specifically suited to Pacific Island countries and territories (PICTs), the manual covers options for the processing of coconut shell, water from mature coconuts and coconut milk residue, which are by-products of VCO processing.

It also includes the processing of VCO-based downstream products such as herbal soap, aromatherapy oils and herbal lotions, using aromatic plants available in the Pacific.

The manual is a more focused version of the Virgin coconut oil production manual for micro and village scale processing published by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific in 2006. It was co-authored by Divina D. Bawalan, previously a senior science research specialist with the Philippine Coconut Authority, and Keith R. Chapman, formerly an industrial crops officer at FAO’s Asia-Pacific office.

In the course of conducting VCO training courses in PICTs since 2006, Ms Bawalan discovered that one of the simplest micro/home scale VCO processing technologies that was developed in the Philippines and documented in the FAO VCO manual, does not actually work well in the Pacific region. This may be due to the differences in coconut variety, coconut harvesting procedures and other factors.

As a result, for every training course conducted by Ms Bawalan in a Pacific country, modifications to the process were made, adapting it to the particular conditions of each country.

In 2009, at a roundtable meeting held in Nadi, Fiji discussed the state of the art of coconut processing and market prospects of coconut products in Pacific countries. Organised by SPC and the Asian and Pacific Coconut Community, the meeting highlighted the need for PICTs to focus on the production of high value coconut products.

Consequently, SPC’s Land Resources Division, which is mandated to improve the food and nutritional security of the Pacific community, arranged for Ms Bawalan to adapt her 2006 manual to Pacific conditions through its European Union-funded Facilitating Agricultural Trade (FACT) project.

Copies of the book are available through the European Union-funded Facilitating Agricultural Commodity Trade (FACT) project, based in the Land Resources Division of SPC. Electronic editions can be downloaded at www.spc.int/lrd

Photo Caption: A leading United Kingdom-based consultant on coconut processing and marketing Mr Vinay Chand holds a copy of the new virgin coconut oil processing manual published by SPC.