Author: TMC Palau
Ardie Savea played a leading role in Moana Pasifika’s historic 2025 Super Rugby campaign. Photo: PHOTOSPORT Former Moana Pasifika captain Ardie Savea has told Japan Rugby media he is hopeful that the franchise will still be around next season. The club has wrapped up its operation, going into liquidation two weeks ago, after owners Pasifika Medical Association (PMA) revealed they do not have funds to continue. Savea, who helped Japanese club Kobe Steelers win the Japan Rugby League One championship by defeating the Kubota Spears 22-13 in the final at Tokyo’s National Stadium on Sunday, said Moana Pasifika was still…
[Source: Reuters] On the stone steps leading up Mount Tai, one of China’s best-known peaks, hikers can book and pay for “climbing buddies” to walk with them, carry bags and take photos for a few hundred yuan. The increasingly popular service is part of a broader “companionship economy” emerging in China, which includes paid partners for running, sightseeing and even eating out at hotpot restaurants – a meal traditionally shared with friends. Providers, often students or young gig workers, advertise on social media with promises of “emotional value”, conversation and practical help, turning what was once an experience or favour…
Another 26 parcels suspected to contain illicit drugs have been discovered on Ogea Island in Lau, leaving residents shocked and concerned. According to Ogea villager Finau Ledua, the parcels were first spotted last Friday afternoon by men searching for fishing bait along the shores of Ogea Driki. Ledua says additional parcels were discovered the following day, bringing the total number recovered to 26. Article continues after advertisement The villagers immediately alerted the Lakeba Police Station, and officers later travelled to the island to collect the parcels and transport them to Lakeba for further investigation. The packages are wrapped in brown,…
The government will receive an additional $24 million in grant funding from Australia to support the continued development of schools and health facilities across Fiji. Cabinet has endorsed Amendment No. 3 to the Direct Funding Arrangement between Fiji and Australia, allowing the new funding to be channelled through the Fiji Social Infrastructure Programme. The funding will support the construction and upgrading of education and healthcare facilities, with a focus on ensuring they are safe, inclusive and resilient to climate change impacts. It will also help advance priority infrastructure projects already underway in communities around the country.Article continues after advertisement As…
The south coastline of Papua New Guinea’s Manus Island has been buffeted by huge rafts of pumice created by an erupting undersea volcano in the Bismarck Sea. Located around 125 kilometres southeast of Manus, the volcano has emitted a large steam plume since early May, while built-up lava has produced masses of pumice floating to the surface. The rafts are being pushed by tides and currents into south coastal parts of Manus, complicating boat access and impacting the shoreline. A former Manus MP and crocodile hunter, Ron Knight, said there was one large raft up to 3 kilometres wide and…
The offshore quake hit at a depth of 35km off the island of Mindanao. (MetMalaysia pic) MANILA: A 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck off the southern coast of the Philippines on Monday, the US Geological Survey said, prompting a regional warning centre to issue a tsunami alert. The offshore quake hit at a depth of 35km about 24km west of Mindanao’s Sarangani province, USGS said. Videos posted to Facebook showed a shopping centre with a Jollibee fast food restaurant collapsing into rubble in the province’s General Santos City, while a building on a local school campus crumpled in another. The Pacific Tsunami…
[Source: Reuters] Donald Trump is facing widening opposition within his own party as Republican lawmakers in Congress, long reluctant to defy him, are showing a greater willingness to break ranks with the U.S. president. Just over the past week, multiple factions of Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives have stepped forward to rebuke his war against Iran, reject $1 billion in funding tied to his White House ballroom, force a retreat on his $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund and block his legislation on domestic spying. The House also defied Trump by passing a bill on Thursday to provide aid…
Koror, Palau, June 8 (CNA) Palau President Surangel S. Whipps Jr. expressed strong support for Taiwan during Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) visit to the Pacific ally, saying Sunday that failure to recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty would call into question the sovereignty of small countries.”If Taiwan’s sovereignty is not recognized, then who are we to say that we’re sovereign? Might as well eliminate all small countries,” Whipps said at a welcome dinner for Hsiao in Koror, Palau’s largest city.”We have to stand up for freedom. We have to stand up for democracy and we have to stand up for the rule…
[Photo: File] The Water Authority of Fiji has warned that shutting down water supplies without consultation could leave communities without access to safe water. Appearing before the Standing Committee on Social Affairs on the Public Health Amendment Bill (Bill No.4 of 2026), WAF raised concerns over provisions in the Public Health Amendment Bill that would allow authorities to close contaminated water sources. Chief Executive Seru Soderberg said any decision to restrict or shut down a water supply should involve consultation with WAF and the Ministry of Public Works. He said closing a water source can affect hundreds or even thousands…
Palau President Surangel S Whipps Jr expressed strong support for Taiwan during Vice President Hsiao Bi-khim’s (蕭美琴) visit to the Pacific ally, saying yesterday that failure to recognize Taiwan’s sovereignty would call into question the sovereignty of small countries.”If Taiwan’s sovereignty is not recognized, then who are we to say that we’re sovereign? Might as well eliminate all small countries,” Whipps said at a welcome dinner for Hsiao in Koror, Palau’s largest city. Photo courtesy of the Presidential Office “We have to stand up for freedom. We have to stand up for democracy and we have to stand up for…