Mission & Justice

12/5/08

Betel nut chewing contributes to the degradation of coral reefs, was a message among others that stood out at the launch of the Pacific year of reefs 2008. People who enjoy chewing betel nuts were told to think twice about how much damage their habit has done to the reefs. An observer at the stall display pointed out that in the Maringe District of Isabel Province, people have damaged the coral reefs in order to produce the lime for betel nut chewing.

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Joanna Siherheti; 6/5/08

There is nothing like walking through Honiara to come across a young man standing around the busy street with an owl. It turned out that the young man, who caused public stir on Friday with his rare catch of an owl, was actually waiting for a potential buyer. In an interview with the young man from north Malaita, Mickey Gwalu spoke of his interest in keeping birds and selling them to expatriates.

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6/5/08

Government identifies three key sectors to take over from logging Tourism, Fisheries and Agriculture sectors have been identified by the CNURA government to take over from logging. Acting Finance Minister, Gordon Darcy Lilo made the announcement in a press conference with local media last week. “It is so important to prepare ourselves structurally, with the sector that will be able to take over the burden of generating economic benefits to the country that is currently being done by the logging sector.”

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3/5/08

Greenpeace activists clashed with a Taiwanese long-line fishing boat in the Pacific Ocean, painting the word “pirates” on the side of the vessel and raiding its lines. Greenpeace accused the vessel of hunting down precious marine species - including an endangered turtle - in international waters north-east of the Solomon Islands, which the green group wants declared as reserves. According to Greenpeace, activists confronted the long-line vessel, called the Ho Tsai Fa 18, and began to free the fish, sharks and endangered turtle caught on its hooks. They then took one of the vessel’s radio beacons and a fishing line.

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Brendan Nicholson; 28/4/08

Resentment is growing in the Solomon Islands over the extent to which the Australian-led peacekeeping mission there is driving up prices and leaving the local people much worse off, a foreign aid watchdog group has warned. A report by the private organisation, AID/Watch, to be released this week, says the $1.3 billion operation has triggered rapid inflation and inflicted “aid trauma” on the islanders. It says many of the aid workers, soldiers, police and contacted companies involved have a strong interest in keeping the operation going. Australia has spent $1.3 billion heading the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands peacekeeping operation, launched after a chronic breakdown in law and order there in 2003. Some 95% of RAMSI personnel are Australian.

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18/4/08

The 29 catholic bishops of PNG and Solomon Islands (SI) who gathered in Port Moresby last week for their 2008 annual conference expressed concern at the level of violence which pervades the two countries. They said these violent criminal acts of domestic, community and personal attacks being experienced widely throughout the two nations are eating into the very fabric of their Melanesian societies. In a joint statement released yesterday, the bishops said: “Melanesians are known as smiling, happy and welcoming people, who enjoy showing hospitality to visitors to their shores. “So where do these killings, gang rapes, child abuse, and violent home robberies come from?” They added that such violent actions come from inside each person who is himself unhappy, unfulfilled and angry, who spontaneously reacts in a violent way to even the slightest provocation.

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Betel nut chewing contributes to the degradation of coral reefs, was a message among others that stood out at the launch of the Pacific year of reefs 2008. People who enjoy chewing betel nuts were told to think twice about how much damage their habit has done to the reefs. An observer at the stall display pointed out that in the Maringe District of Isabel Province, people have damaged the coral reefs in order to produce the lime for betel nut chewing.

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14/4/08

Young people in Honiara can now access improved STI and HIV services at the Rove and Kukum clinics run by Honiara City Council. Over the past six months eighteen Registered Nurses and Nurses Aids attended training run by Save the Children’s HIV Prevention Program regarding adolescent health and the guiding principles of youth friendly HIV and STI services. Save the Children is running this project with the support from AusAID. Both clinics now have qualified Voluntary Confidential Counseling and Testing (VCCT) staff and private, comfortable rooms in which to conduct the counseling of confidential health matters of young people.

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14/4/08

Transparency Solomon Islands (TSI) is concerned at the involvement of politicians in assessing the export value of logs. In press statement the TSI states that there are well-authenticated stories circulating in Honiara that the government is losing SBD$1m to SBD $2m a week in revenue because the price on which export duty is paid on logs is too low-and that this has been going on for several years, losing hundreds of millions of dollars that should have gone into improving government services. The press statement stated that export duty is paid at a rate fixed by the Minister of Finance.

See: http://solomontimes.com/news.aspx?nwID=1613

Genesis Kofana; 7/4/08

The National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) has welcomed the announcement by the Prime Minister, Dr. Derek Sikua, to set up a Commission of Inquiry into the management of the tsunami rehabilitation funds and resources in Western and Choiseul Provinces. Prime Minister Sikua announced the establishment of the Commission of Inquiry into the tsunami relief and rehabilitation assistance on the floor of Parliament late last week. However the details of the Commission, including the composition of its membership and terms of reference, were not made public as yet.

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