Author: TMC Palau

October 14, 2026 — 3:51pmSaveYou have reached your maximum number of saved items.Remove items from your saved list to add more.No gift articles leftYou’ve used all of your gift articles. 3 more will become available on the 1st of every month.CloseAAAPalau President Surangel Whipps Jr and other Pacific leaders have rejected criticisms that climate talks co-hosted by Australia in the Pacific last week were a failure.“I have just returned from pre-COP in Fiji and Tuvalu, which Australia helped to organise and co-fund, and I have followed the media commentary here about who attended and what the gathering cost,” Whipps said,…

After a short acclimatization in Koror, our team of four, along with all our food and equipment, supplies for the island, and some returning Sonsorolese people board the Kenzing II which will take us to Sonsorol. Once we arrive 24 hours later, everything needs to be transferred to a smaller boat to be taken ashore, and each trip needs to navigate through a small channel through the fringing coral reef. Having unloaded all the equipment and people off the ship, we’re the last ones to head to shore. As we navigate the swells and get inside the reef, our boat…

The President of Palau has slammed criticism of the Albanese government’s pre-COP climate summit while in Canberra, warning the measure of the event’s success is “not by who was in the room but by the result we collectively achieve”.President Surangel Whipps Jr attended Pre-COP in Fiji and Tuvalu earlier this month.The event, co-organised by Australia and its Pacific neighbours, faced criticism over its steep $20m price tag and the lack of world leaders in attendance. While representatives of more than 50 countries attended, only 14 foreign heads of state were present and only two, Timor-Leste and Mauritius, were outside the…

China has rejected an allegation by the United States that it is backing malicious cyber activity that targets the Pacific Islands.The allegation came in a series of statements from the US Embassy in Suva, which claimed that “in the Pacific Islands region, the United States continues to observe state-sponsored cyber threat actors linked to China targeting foreign governments, multilateral organisations, and telecommunications networks”.The US Embassy said that China remains an active and persistent cyber threat, and in a later post on X (formerly Twitter) said it recently informed Fiji’s government and a regional organisation based in Suva that the US had identified a suspected compromise of this…

A Fijian cabinet minister’s attempt to have an “honest” discussion about salary increases for members of parliament due to their various traditional and community commitments has divided opinions.Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka’s fisheries and forestry minister Alitia Bainivalu took it upon herself to “talk openly about the salaries we receive as government ministers” on her official Facebook page on Wednesday morning.In the lengthy post, Bainivalu said that while the topic of salary increases for MPs was sensitive, “many people may not fully understand the financial expectations that come with holding public office”.Her comments sparked immediate debate, with social media users split…

A church leader in West Papua has backed a call for a visit from the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner.Father Alexandro Rangga, the director of the Franciscan Office for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation in Papua, told the Union of Catholic Asian News that those in the church meet people who have been displaced or have lost family members every day.”That is real, not a story,” he said.”Let the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights come and see the situation firsthand. It would be better for an independent party to come and assess conditions on the ground.”Fr Rangga said…

Papua New Guinea police have seized a cache of high-powered semi-automatic rifles, firearm parts and manufacturing equipment in Port Moresby.Police commissioner David Manning said the cache is linked to an international firearms trafficking syndicate.According to Manning, police acted on intelligence shared by international partners, and following covert surveillance conducted by PNG police.Police investigators and specialist units executed search warrants at a residence in Gerehu last Thursday (8 October).Items seized include fully assembled semi-automatic rifles, rifle parts sufficient to assemble multiple weapons, magazines, 3D printing technology, accessories used for firearm assembly, and documentary evidence.”This seizure highlights the serious threat posed by…

Earth Sciences New Zealand is predicting elevated cyclone activity for parts of the Pacific in the coming cyclone season.Cyclone season starts 1 November.In its outlook released on Wednesday morning, developed with contributions from New Zealand’s MetService, the University of Newcastle in Australia, and various Pacific Islands metservices, Earth Sciences said a range of seven to eleven named cyclones could occur in the Southwest Pacific.For north, central and northeast areas – including Samoa, Tokelau, and parts of Kiribati – there is an elevated risk.Significant differences are expected between the west and east, with the risk of impacts expected to be higher…

When we speak about the independence of an anti-corruption commission, we often begin with distance: protection from political direction, fair appointments, secure funding and the freedom to follow evidence without fear or favour. These safeguards are essential, and international standards such as the United Nations Convention against Corruption and the Jakarta Principles are right to insist on them. But what does independence look like when everyone knows everyone? In small island societies, relationships are not incidental to public life. Family ties, church affiliations, village connections, school networks and professional relationships overlap in ways that are normal and unavoidable. The person…

Attendees at a Māngere candidates forum say they want clearer answers from those seeking to represent the electorate, particularly on issues affecting local communities.With New Zealand heading to the polls for its general election in less than a month, the panel on Monday brought together candidates vying for the Māngere seat.It included Lemauga Lydia Sosene (Labour), Michel Mulipola (Greens), Rosemary Bourke (National), Vicky Hau (NZ First), Dr Timoti Te Moke (Independent), Kelvyn Alp (NZ Loyal), Hine Afeaki (NZ Outdoors & Freedom Party), Ben Lane (The Opportunity Party), and Alani Fisher Taione (People’s Party).They tackled questions on a number of issues…