NEWSROOM 15 April
2009

(Photo: Su’a William Sio)

NEW ZEALAND: Fale’ula o Samoa Challenges Community in Aotearoa
Source: Labour Party Press Release

(Photos: Dawn Raid Entertainment)

SAMOA: Savage arrives in Apia to film his latest MTV music video
Source: Event Polynesia News

Savage ‘Demetrius Savelio’ arrived last night from Auckland with Dawn Raid management and crew, accompanied by acclaimed New Zealand Director Chris Graham.

The 15 member group is in Samoa to film Savage’s latest music video “I Love The Islands” capturing the natural beauty of Samoa’s tropical landscape and culminating in the DIGICEL Bigger Better Savage ‘Return to the Island’ concert on Friday 17th April 2009 at Faleata Gym 1.

Deputy Prime Minister, Hon. Misa Telefoni said, “There is a lot of promotional value for Samoa in this project.”

Samoa Tourism Authority and Aggie Greys Hotel are sponsoring the MTV filming in Samoa.

DIGICEL Samoa, major sponsor of the one off concert in Apia is also assisting with extras for the MTV.

“This is the first time our label Dawn Raid will film a music video in Samoa, to make sure we get the best out of the event we’re also bringing Mareko, Devolo and The Deceptikonz to help Savage deliver the best result possible,” said Dawn Raid CEO Brotha D.

Savage with be making special appearance today on local radio and TV programs before filming starts on Thursday.

According to Mr. Tuilagi MS Esera of Event Polynesia Entertainment, “Savage and the Dawn Raid crew will attend assembly at Samoa College on Wednesday and later visit Tesese Institute of Administrative Studies at Lalovaea.”

Savage made history in 2008 with over 1.5 Million sold in combined digital singles making “SWING” the highest selling NZ and Polynesian single in US history. (Still selling over 25,000 units a week as we go to print!!)

Since his initial debut on the USA charts Savage has spent over 35 weeks in the US Billboard charts, making historical chart position’s on multiple formats including Hot 100, Hot Digital 100, Pop 100, Hip Hop & R&B 100 and Rhythmic 100.

TICKET OUTLETS: Tickets for the DIGICEL Bigger Better Savage ‘Return to the Island’ concert on Friday 17th April 2009 at Faleata Gym 1 are now available $20 at DIGICEL Chan Mow, Vaimea and Salelologa Savaii.

MEDIA ALERT: All media are invited to a Press Conference with SAVAGE at DIGICEL Head Office 10am on Wednesday 15th April 2009. Pass will be issued at the Press Conference for the DIGICEL Bigger Better Savage ‘Return to the Island’ concert on Friday 17th April 2009 at Faleata Gym 1.

LOCAL CONTACTS:

• Mr. Papaliitele Peter Fatialofa (Event Polynesia Entertainment) 724 4115

• Mr. Tuilagi MS Esera (Event Polynesia Entertainment) 751 9458

• Mr. Junior Lene (Digicel Marketing Manager) 770 0120

• Ms. Tui Hicks (Digicel Marketing ) 778 8884

• Mr. Dwayne Bentley (STA Marketing Manager) 777 1832

• Mrs. Beverley Barlow (Aggie Greys Hotel) 22880

• Ms. Lufi Rasmussen (ACEO Corporate SSFA) 777 1377
 

(Photo: ABC News)

AUSTRALIA: Opposition won't rule out return to Pacific Solution
Source: ABC News

The Federal Opposition has not ruled out advocating a return to the so-called Pacific Solution to deter asylum seekers from heading to Australia.

The most recent group of suspected asylum seekers arrived at Christmas Island having evaded detection by customs.

Opposition deputy leader Julie Bishop has criticised the Government, saying they have dropped the ball on border protection since coming into power.

But on the ABC's Lateline program, she would not say whether her party would be seeking a return to having asylum seekers processed in other Pacific countires.

"At this stage, we want to see the outcome of the Government's inquiry into why they believe there's been this increase - 12 boats, 400 people - since August," she said.

"We're not in government and at present, we are asking the government to review what has occurred since last August."

Earlier Immigration Minister Chris Evans says people smugglers are using more sophisticated technology to avoid being caught.

Photo Caption: The most recent group of suspected asylum seekers arrived at Christmas Island having evaded detection by customs.
 

(Photo: Eloise Aguiar, Honolulu Advertiser)

HAWAII: Hawaii land fund may conserve 5,700 acres
Source: Honolulu Advertiser

A decision by O'ahu voters three years ago to use a portion of county property tax revenues to purchase land or easements for conservation is about to produce initial results involving as much as 5,700 acres on the Island.

Six applicants are seeking some of the fund's first distributions. They include plans to:

• Save a Waimea ranch from a gentleman's farm residential subdivision;

• Block a luxury beachfront home development in Kahuku and;

• Keep former Central O'ahu pineapple fields in agriculture.

The proposals, all from nonprofit groups, have applied to spend $6.75 million of the $8 million available in the fund, and would use matching funds to acquire $24.8 million in land or easements from willing sellers.

The Clean Water and Natural Lands Fund represents a new effort at environmental protection on O'ahu that is expected to be continued with new proposals annually competing to tap the regenerating fund.

There is little danger that the fund could be raided to help the city balance its budget during these times of economic constraint because the fund was created by voters approving a charter amendment, advocates say.

The Clean Water and Natural Lands Fund was approved in 2006 by a 122,231 to 86,067 vote among O'ahu residents. The vote amended the City Charter to dedicate 1 percent of annual property tax revenues to funds for land conservation and affordable housing.

The 1 percent figure is split between the two efforts, and has been accruing for two years. The half-percent for land conservation amounted to about $4 million in each of the last two years.

A commission overseeing the fund met yesterday to hear presentations by the applicants and public testimony. The commission is expected to make funding recommendations to the City Council at a meeting scheduled for Friday. The final decision will be made by the City Council, which could approve some, all or none of the projects.

Denise Antolini, director of the environmental law program at the University of Hawai'i law school, said it took a lot of hard work to decide how the commission would work, including establishing criteria for applications.

Antolini chairs the nine-person commission, whose members were appointed a year ago. Terms expire over the next three years.
preservation fund

Generally, the fund is directed at efforts protecting the environment, including protection of watershed lands, historical or culturally significant areas, agriculture lands, forests, beaches and coastal areas.

The fund also can be used to protect significant habitats or ecosystems, reduce erosion or flooding, and improve public access to public land.

Another factor the commission and City Council weigh is whether an applicant is getting help from other sources to acquire property or a protective easement.

For the six initial applicants, money sought from the fund represents 2 percent to 57 percent of the anticipated purchase price.

"That's the smart, new way to do it," Antolini said. "It allows the city to support conservation in a new way. The potential is really enormous."

Antolini said the commission expects to solicit applications and disperse money annually, which will help bolster voluntary land conservation plans.

The environmental law professor said programs in Hawai'i that help landowners voluntarily sell their property or restrict use to protect land historically have lagged behind other states, though in the last five years significant ground has been gained.

Such programs differ from condemnation actions where the government typically finances an acquisition often from an unwilling seller.

Borrowing money or finding it in a state or county budget is especially hard in tough economic times, which makes it difficult to complete conservation projects such as Gov. Linda Lingle's plan to buy Turtle Bay Resort.

Some land conservation efforts similar to the new O'ahu project include funds on the Neighbor Islands, the state Legacy Land Conservation Program created by the Legislature in 2005, and state incentives to preserve important agricultural lands.
revenue sources

The state Legacy Land fund gets about $4 million a year from a share of recently increased property conveyance taxes for high-value homes, and helps nonprofits and local government agencies buy private property.

The important agricultural lands program was passed last year by the Legislature, and provides several incentives to encourage farming such as tax credits and loan guarantees for landowners designating their land for perpetual agricultural use. A controversial piece of that program allows owners of prime agricultural land to convert 15 percent of their property for urban or rural use in return for dedicating the balance to perpetual farm use.

Robert Harris, director of the Sierra Club Hawai'i chapter, said it's especially important that efforts such as the state Legacy Land and city Clean Water and Natural Lands funds have dedicated revenue sources that are supported in tough economic times when the tendency can arise to cut such programs.

One such fund on the Big Island, he said, is in danger of being raided because it wasn't established by charter amendment.

"Now is a great time to go out and purchase land with prices down," he said. "It's a good acquisition strategy."

Photo Caption: Keep Kahuku Country is asking for $1.6 million from the city's Clean Water and Natural Lands Fund in an effort to prevent the development of luxury beachfront homes.
 

TONGA: Tonga to launch electronic registration for companies soon
Source: Matangi Tonga

Tonga will introduce Electronic Company Registration in September, said Penisimani Latu, the Deputy Registrar of Companies, at the Ministry of Labour Commerce and Industries, today.

Penisimani said that they would trial run the new electronic system next month in preparation for its launching in September. The server and database of registered companies will be stored in New Zealand but the ministry can access it from Tonga.

"The existing manual paper registration system will still be available, but the electronic company registration system will definitely speed up the process," he said.

One of the reasons for introducing the electronic system is that all the old databases were destroyed in the riots of November 16, 2006. He said that the new system is also a simpler, self-enforcing means of ensuring compliance.

The inclusion of the new electronic company registry system is one of the amendments under the First Exposure Draft of Companies (Amendment) Bill 2009 that was publicly debated in the capital in February.

Funded by the Asian Development Bank and co-financed by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID), the proposed amendment to the Act is aimed at removing many of the administrative barriers thus lowering the transaction costs for companies operating in Tonga.

Penisimani said that he was in the process of completing the draft amendments to the Tonga Companies Act 1995 to reflect the development and changes of the New Zealand Companies Act 1993, upon which Tonga's Act is based.
 

(Photo: South Pacific Regional Environment Programme)

WORLDWIDE: Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change Programme underway
Source: South Pacific Regional Environment Programme Press Release

After several years of planning and preparation, a US $13.125 million climate change adaptation project is now underway in the Pacific region.

The Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change (PACC) project is funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as its implementing agency and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) as implementing partner. The project is scheduled to be conducted from 2008 to 2012.

The PACC project will cover 13 Pacific islands countries and help develop three key areas that will build resilience to climate change in Pacific countries: food production and food security, coastal management and water resource management. Adaptation projects will be implemented nationally, and were selected after an intensive consultative process with the implementing agencies.

Under the project, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands will focus on food production and food security. The Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Samoa and Vanuatu are developing Coastal Management capacity and Nauru, Niue, Tonga and Tuvalu are looking to strengthen their water resource management.

“The Pacific countries have continued to indicate at the regional and international forums, the problems they are already facing from climate change, like salination of underground water, inundation of low lying areas and coastal erosion,” said Taito Nakalevu of SPREP, who began his new role as the PACC Project Manager on 6 April.

“These are already impacting on the livelihoods of our Pacific people and the very resources they actually depend on. This project is part of the answer to help assist them in addressing this problem,” Nakalevu added.

An inception workshop for the region wide project will be staged in June to build the capacity for countries to be able to fulfil the administrative requirements of the Project and to introduce other technical backstopping support.

Nakalevu is currently working with countries bilaterally to help establish project management units that will coordinate PACC on the ground in the Pacific.

“Climate change is an important issue, it just won’t go away. We have to adapt, we don’t have any other option.”

For more details please contact PACC Project Manager Taito Nakalevu;

Email: [email protected] Telephone: (685) 21929 Fax: (685) 20231 Website: www.sprep.org

Photo Caption: Saoluafata, Upolu, Samoa.