Author: TMC Palau
Sourced from https://alliancebioversityciat.org/ Fiji is already prepared for any potential El Niño event in the coming months. Minister for Public Works Ro Filipe Tuisawau says the necessary preparations are already embedded within ongoing national planning, including long-term investments in water infrastructure and coordination among key government agencies. El Niño is a climate pattern that can bring prolonged dry conditions, reduced rainfall and drought to parts of the Pacific, affecting water supplies, agriculture and hydroelectric power generation. Tuisawau says existing water security and disaster mitigation measures will help Fiji respond to the impacts of a potential El Niño event.Article continues after…
Stringent procedures and mechanisms are in place to protect evidence, exhibits, and investigative files. Acting Deputy Police Commissioner, Meli Sateki gave the assurance in response to complaints about missing case files and unsuccessful prosecutions. Sateki says ¤the Police Force follows set protocols and oversight systems to ensure compliance. “We have unit in charge that are directly responsible at the station level, at the police post level, at the division level. All these hierarchy, it’s within their job description, the work that they are paid and they are expected to do. We now, we not now, we have an independent internal…
King Boxing promoter Naroon Buksh during the annoucement of their upcoming bout. For the first time, a children’s category will be included in a major local boxing event. Kings Boxing promoter Naroon Buksh confirmed the development while announcing an event scheduled for the 25th of next month. Buksh said the initiative is part of the organisation’s efforts to develop the sport from a young age and nurture the next generation of boxing stars. “We believe that developing these kids and giving them fights this early will be good for the future.”Article continues after advertisement The event will feature a total…
Bougainville’s President Ishmael Toroama Photo: NBC Bougainville – Maus Blong Sankamap Bougainville’s government has accused Papua New Guinea’s leaders of breaching a landmark agreement between the two parties, following the national parliament’s latest move on Bougainville’s vote for independence. The PNG parliament last week adopted a sessional order to facilitate how MPs will deliberate on whether to ratify the result of Bougainville’s 2019 non-binding referendum in which 97.7 eprcent of people voted for independence from PNG. Autonomous Bougainville Government (ABG) President Ishmael Toroama said the national parliament’s decision to adopt a draft sessional order on the referendum result, without the…
Pic: Taken by FBC News at the Suva Bus Stand All schools across Fiji will resume normal operations from tomorrow following an improvement in weather conditions around the country. The Ministry of Education has confirmed that schools are safe, accessible and ready for the resumption of teaching and learning activities, with students and teachers expected to return to classes as scheduled. Education Minister Aseri Radrodro says the decision was made following consultations with the National Disaster Risk Management Office, the Fiji Meteorological Service and other relevant authorities. While classes will resume nationwide, parents and guardians are being urged to exercise…
[Source: Reuters] In the span of just a few months, Irene Roggero Ugues watched her daughter Rossella’s behaviour change as social media fed her an increasing stream of self-harm content, before the 12-year-old died by suicide. Only after Rossella’s death did Irene and her husband unlock her devices. They found that she had been using social media far more than they had known, including maintaining a secret Instagram profile called ‘Just a dead pers0n’ with a zero instead of an o. In September, 2023, they said, Rossella began searching for depressive material which mirrored how she felt. Social media algorithms…
[Source: Reuters] An Australian court on Wednesday banned former Star Entertainment (SGR.AX), opens new tab CEO Matthias Bekier from managing companies for six years and fined him A$700,000 ($494,620) over failure to handle money laundering risks at the casino operator. The judgment comes months after the Federal Court found Bekier and former chief legal and risk officer Paula Martin breached their duties by failing to sufficiently address risks at the troubled group. In March, the court said that Bekier did not properly deal with a KPMG report that identified deficiencies in Star’s anti-money laundering and criminal activity processes and failed…
Donald Trump signed the ‘Restoring American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific’ executive order on 11 June. Photo: 123RF Top Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) officials have welcomed US President Donald Trump’s executive order, which will open up nearly half a million square kilometres of protected Pacific waters for commercial fishing, despite warnings from conservation advocates the move could weaken protections for culturally and environmentally significant waters. Trump’s ‘Restoring American Commercial Fishing in the Pacific’ executive order, signed on 11 June, applies to the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument around Hawai’i, the Islands Unit of the Mariana Trench Marine National…
[Source: Reuters] South Korea will shift a line running parallel to the military border with North Korea to narrow the area that restricts civilian access to reflect an evolving security environment and for the convenience of local residents, the defence minister said on Wednesday. The so-called Civilian Control Line is currently as much as 10 km (6.2 miles) to the south of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) drawn up at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War. Authorisation by the military is required to enter the area. Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the change that will shift the civilian access…
The Palau-flagged vessel disabled by the US military in the Gulf of Oman dismissed nearly 60 verbal warnings and other shows of force before its engine room was fired upon, killing three Indian sailors, a report on Sunday stated. According to an Associated Press report, which cited a US official, the tanker M/T Settebello’s crew ignored at least eight shows of force by US military aircraft that included fired flares and flyovers. Final directives and blockade violations Two additional final warnings were also issued to the vessel that had 24 Indian crew members, before the American forces fired at the…