Author: TMC Palau

The family of missing Singaporean diver Robert Tan Soon Liang said they have “found some peace” in knowing the ocean is their father’s final resting place.”He held immense reverence for the ocean and has always expressed that, when his time came, he wished to return to the sea,” said the family in a statement shared by 360watersports.smb, the social media page of Scuba Schools International in Singapore, Malaysia and Brunei, on Sept 17.”Although we wish deeply that he could come home to us, we find comfort in knowing that he now rests in the place he loved so dearly.”Tan, 62,…

PacificMost Pacific countries were among 34 nations which did not vote on a decision to admit Palestine to the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).Leaders from across the region are making their way to New York for assembly week.The UN said the vote became necessary in the wake of a US decision to deny visas to, and revoke visas from, representatives of Palestine.Vanuatu voted in support of Palestine’s participation in the 81st UNGA, as did 151 other member states, while three were opposed and four abstained.VanuatuVanuatu is considering linking marine weather warnings to permissions for allowing varioius categories of vessels.The…

Flying Fijians interim head coach Senirusi Seruvakula may have coached his last match in the role following Fiji’s 20-15 loss to Japan in the Pacific Nations Cup (PNC) final in Japan on Saturday.Seruvakula is expected to find out his fate soon, with Fiji Rugby (FRU) having advertised the head coach’s position last month. The expression of interest process closes this week.FRU Board chairman John Sanday said Seruvakula was given the opportunity to show his worth and the FRU would review his and the team’s performance as per the system in place.He said they expect to make the announcement about the…

Fiji’s netball governing body says its national team will “regroup, rebuild and come back stronger” after failing to qualify for next year’s Netball World Cup in Australia.Tonga and Samoa secured the top two places at the Oceania qualifier last week. The Tonga Tala finished the tournament undefeated, while Tifaimoana Samoa finished second. In the process, both qualified for the 2027 Netball World Cup in Sydney.The Fiji Pearls ended their campaign with two wins, against the Cook Islands (65-63) and Papua New Guinea (61-40), and two losses to Tonga (60-72) and Samoa (56-50).Fiji was once the most dominant netball team among…

This is an edited version of an address delivered on 1 September 2026 to Asian Evaluation Week, hosted by the Asian Development Bank at its headquarters in Manila, the Philippines. This year’s Asian Evaluation Week theme, “Put Your Money Where Your Evidence Is”, is a powerful reminder that we have a responsibility to direct funding and resources towards programs that make a real difference. At its core, evaluation is about answering a straightforward question: did a policy or program improve people’s lives? That question is tricky to answer. We can observe what happened after an intervention was introduced, but we…

Vanuatu’s cabinet ministers have approved just over US$1 million (VU$126 million) in aid to communities in Penama Province affected by volcanic ashfall.The ashfall comes from activity at the Manaro Voui volcano on Ambae Island.The approval follows recent ground assessments on Ambae, for which the Council of Ministers had earlier approved US$170,000.The final assessment reports confirmed widespread impact on food gardens, water sources, and shelter due to heavy ashfall, requiring immediate government intervention.The government said help would be delivered quickly, with public funds used transparently and responsibly.The cabinet also approved funding for El Niño response packages for islands in Torba and…

The Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Palau is recruiting four Assistant Attorneys General to serve in its Civil and Criminal divisions. These latest appointments represent an amazinf opportunity for legal professionals to advance their careers while living beside some of the planet’s most iconic coral reefs. Legal Ranks in an Island Paradise Based in the commercial hub of Koror, the openings include two positions in civil matters and two in criminal prosecution. Because Palau operates as a Freely Associated State with a legal structure closely aligned with the US framework, attorneys credentialed in the United States or possessing…

By Lucy CraymerWELLINGTON, Aug 31 (Reuters) – Pacific leaders started to gather in Palau on Monday for the annual Pacific Islands Forum, but the absence of several heads of government has cast a shadow over a meeting intended to demonstrate ​regional unity.Fiji, Vanuatu, Samoa and Solomon Islands’ prime ministers and the Kiribati president ‌will not attend the leaders’ retreat in person.Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale was due to attend but left Palau to face a no-confidence motion at home. Kiribati said President Taneti Maamau was unable to travel because parliament was sitting and flights were limited. The absent leaders are…

Five days of search and rescue operations in Palau ended without recovery of two experienced tourist divers who went missing at the Peleliu Wall site on 7 September. But mystery still surrounds the circumstances of their disappearance. Divernet had originally reported the disappearance of the divers at the foot of an earlier report on a cylinder explosion in Italy. Palau authorities have since identified the missing divers as 62-year-old Singaporean national Tan Soon Liang (also known as Robert) and 43-year-old Chinese national Xiaoxi Wu (also known as Helen).  They had been diving from the liveaboard Black Pearl, part of the…

Palau’s reefs have done something many of the world’s coral ecosystems could not.They have largely avoided mass bleaching despite unusually warm water, turning the Pacific island nation into a living laboratory for scientists racing to protect reefs in a hotter future.Here’s what to knowA video report shared on TikTok by Al Jazeera English (@aljazeeraenglish) followed 101 East correspondent Eric Campbell as researchers in Palau looked for corals that can endure heat to then raise them for restoration — an approach that is one of the best hopes for safeguarding reefs globally. According to the report, the reefs around Palau have been…