Lesson is to protect mana, integrity, Henare tells Ngapuhi

February 6, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz Labour MP Peeni Henare says Ngapuhi have allowed the mana of Te Tii Marae to be “dragged through the mud” with the way they handled a Waitangi Day invitation to Prime Minister John Key. Key refused to come to Waitangi because he said he was being gagged from speaking freely. Marae trustees had insisted he leave politics and any mention of the controversial Trans Pacific Partnership – signed on Thursday in spite of massive protests that blocked the central city in Auckland – out of his speech, and instead address the issue afterwards in an open forum in the speakers’ tent beside the marae. Henare told Radio Waatea the tikanga was that the person holding the floor should be listened to respectfully, and it was a missed opportunity the tribes could not hear what the Prime Minister had to say.

“You know there’s a lesson here for Ngapuhi and for the people of Te Tii Marae that regardless of whether or not they decide to invite him or not, I think the important thing is to protect the mana and integrity of the marae and I don’t think that’s what happened in this case. “I would rather see the mana and the ingregrity of the marae and the people up north here looked after, protected and enhanced not thrown through the mud like we’ve seen over the past few days.”

Radio Waatea’s reporter in Waitangi said the Prime Minister may have consulted a weather forecast before opting to skip the official Waitangi Day commemorations in the north. There has been rain off an on through the morning, including a heavy downpour as a hikoi of about 100 anti-Trans Pacific Partnership protesters led by Hone Harawira and Reuben Taipari waited to be welcomed on to the marae. >> Listen now to Radio Waatea — –]]>

‘The biggest protest this country has seen in years’ – Germans protest trade pact

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 6, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Zero Hedge

By Tyler Durdan, a blog commentary written after the anti-TTIP protests in Berlin last October when more than 250,000 people demonstrated.

FLASHBACK: When it comes to official and media opinion on President Obama’s crowning trade “achievements”, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade And Investment Partnership (TTIP), the party line is united.

As previously noted, Barack Obama has assured the population that this treaty is going to be wonderful for everyone:

In hailing the agreement, Obama said, “Congress and the American people will have months to read every word” before he signs the deal that he described as a win for all sides.

“If we can get this agreement to my desk, then we can help our businesses sell more Made in America goods and services around the world, and we can help more American workers compete and win,” Obama said.

The mainstream media’s chorus of support for these trade deal is likewise deafening: here are some indicative headlines from this past Monday:

The far less popular opposing view, one repeatedly presented here, is that like with every other “free trade” agreement that the US has entered into since World War II, the exact opposite is what will actually happen: the outcome will be that the US trade deficit (which excluding petroleum is already back to record levels) will get even larger, and we will see even more jobs and even more businesses go overseas, thus explaining the secrecy and the fast-track nature of the TPP and TTIP’s passage through Congress.

And while the US population, which is far more perturbed by what Caitlyn Jenner will wear tomorrow than DC’s plans on the future of world trade, has been mute in its response to the passage of the first part of the trade treaty, the TPP – after all the MSM isn’t there to tell it how to feel about it, aside to assure it that everything will be great even as millions of highly-paid jobs mysteriously become line cooks – other countries are standing up against globalist trade interests meant to serve a handful of corporations.

Case in point Germany, where today [10 October 2015] hundreds of thousands of people marched in Berlin in protest against the planned “free trade” deal between Europe and the United States which they say is anti-democratic and will lower food safety, labor and environmental standards.

TTIP critics fear that it would lead to worse safeguards in Europe, bringing down standards for consumer safety, food and health or labor rights down to those in America.

European nations have stricter regulations for things like genetically modified foods or workers benefits than the US does. There is also discontent with the secretive nature of the negotiations, which prompts sceptics to assume the worst about the document they would eventually produce.

The organisers – an alliance of environmental groups, charities and opposition parties – claimed that 250,000 people were taking part in the rally against free trade deals with both the United States and Canada, far more than they had anticipated.

Read the full commentary here

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TPP deal signed off as thousands take to central Auckland to protest – Te Reo

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 6, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Te Karere TVNZ

New Zealand is now officially part of the world’s largest ever free trade deal.

Local officials joined ministers from 11 other countries to sign the controversial Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.

But long before the ink was dry, the Auckland CBD rocked with thousands of people in protest.

Reported in Te Reo.

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TPP signing sparks dozens of protests across US over biggest trade pact

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 6, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz More than 35 protests were organised in US cities to mark opposition to the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a huge international trade deal between 12 Pacific Rim nations representing 40 percent of the global economy.

Protesters with the Stop Fast Track coalition rallied outside the White House in Lafayette Park on Wednesday to expose the consequences of the TPP and encourage people to join the campaign. Protesters held aloft a huge yellow banner that read, “TPP equals Betrayal.” The Washington, DC, protest kicked of two days of protests in 38 other US cities, as well as in seven other countries. The coalition claims that under the trade agreement, 9000 corporations could sue the US if laws are passed in the public interest that undermine their profits. The deal, negotiated between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam, is said to cut trade tariffs, improve access to markets and set common ground on labour and environmental standards, and intellectual property protections. The countries have two years to ratify or reject the pact. Secret talks However, the negotiations took place over seven years, in secret, and led to the suspicion that the agreement would largely benefit corporations and their shareholders. People only got an idea of how the extensive trade deal would affect lives when a draft copy was leaked on WikiLeaks and triggered worldwide protests.

The New York Times protest, Image: Public Spaces Party

In New York, protesters with an allied group called Flush the TPP held an equally large banner outside The New York Times news building on Thursday afternoon, criticising the newspaper’s lack of coverage on the biggest trade deal.

The Stop Fast Track coalition claims the TPP is a threat to jobs that will both outsource them to countries with lower wages and insource foreign corporations that would bring their business to the US along with their employees. Critics also argue the TPP threatens internet freedom and privacy, food safety and healthcare. Margaret Flowers of Popular Resistance, who helped organise the national protests,

“There is widespread opposition to the TPP by groups that advocate for a variety of issues. Relationships are strengthening across borders to oppose TPP because of the negative impacts it will have on people in the United States as well as other countries.”

More than 30 people turned out for an afternoon rally in Tampa, Florida, outside the Bank of America Building, and across the road from Morgan Stanley and Brown and Root, who organisers said were “corporate advisers” that had access to the negotiating text for seven years.

Corporate domination Harriet Heywood, the Florida coordinator for People Demand Action said in a statement that the TPP “will ensure corporate domination over virtually every aspect of our lives, cementing the neoliberal ideology that every aspect of life on earth can be equated to a cost-benefit analysis, to facilitate the fleecing of the 99 percent and the beautify of the planet, in order that a small number of the global elite can continue to steal the fruits of our labor and planetary resources.”

At an evening rally in Chicago, Illinois, people demanded a fair and sustainable future for “people and the planet”. And more than 10 people for the group TPP Hates Your Freedom protested in Champaign, Illinois.

The trade pact is likely to lead to a tough legislative fight in Congress in 2016.

“It is…expected to be very close, hanging on relatively few votes,” Peter Maybarduk, director of Public Citizen’s Global Accessible Medicine, told RT. “So far the Obama Administration does not believe that it has the votes to win this fight as people are increasingly learning about the negative consequences of the agreement for workers, for our environment, for the regulations that keep us safe.”

Union groups and political groups delivered petitions to Congress on Wednesday asking lawmakers to say #TPPNoWay. It was signed by more than 1 million people through groups like Credo, MoveOn, Sierra Club, PeopleDemandAction, and union organisations. —

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Jane Kelsey: All pain, no gain – why not a TPP-free zone?

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 6, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

In New Zealand, we dared to declare ourselves nuclear-free in the 1980s – dire warnings that ditching the Anzus alliance would make us a pariah, isolated and ridiculed never came to pass. Instead, we were celebrated as a small, independent nation with the guts to decide our own future. Why can’t we do the same with the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)?

The National government ignored widespread opposition from ordinary New Zealanders when it signed the secretly negotiated deal. Doubtless we’ll continue to be fed the old Anzus line that New Zealand can’t afford to not to be at the table.

National’s glitzy new “TPP fact” page is bad wine repackaged in new bottles. Here’s a few facts they don’t tell you: The projected economic gains of 0.9 per cent of GDP by 2030 are within their own margin of error, even before costs are factored in and disregarding unrealistic modelling.

More than 1600 US companies, the most litigious in the world, will gain new rights they can enforce through private offshore tribunals if/when regulation damages their value or profits.

The agreement guarantees foreign states and corporations a right of input into regulatory decisions, which Maori, trade unions, small businesses and local government would not have.

National never wanted us to debate these and other issues and hid instead behind a shroud of secrecy.

US veto power
The US has a veto on the TPP coming into force, which makes it captive to its domestic politics. A majority of Congress, including key leaders, oppose the TPP unless changes are made.

Top of the list are longer monopolies for new generation biologics medicines, which would blow out Pharmac’s budget, and promises that governments won’t stop tobacco companies suing them over smokefree policies.

Congress won’t approve the TPP before the presidential election unless New Zealand and other countries sign up to these changes. All presidential candidates polling over 5 per cent oppose the agreement and want to rewrite it too.

In its rush to get the TPP signed and into Parliament, the National government risks changing our laws and policies to implement an agreement that may never happen.

All pain, no gain. It’s time to declare New Zealand a TPP-free zone.

Dr Jane Kelsey is a law professor at the University of Auckland and has been New Zealand’s leading opponent of TPP. This article was first published in The New Zealand Herald on February 4 and has been republished here with the author’s permission.

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The TPPA and women: spot the difference

By Selwyn Manning -

February 5, 2016

Analysis by Carolyn Skelton. The potential impact off the TPPA on women, especially women of colour, gets very little coverage in the mainstream media. The agreement poses very strong risks for women, who are over-represented in low income jobs and as receivers of state benefits. Sometimes pictures really do tell the story that requires a lot of words to explain. Spot the difference: The feature image from the Malaysian Insider is of the member state representatives who signed the TPPA in Auckland on February 4th [NZ time]. There are two women and 10 men. Trade minister s TPPA Oct 2015 and Jan 2016: [caption id="attachment_8965" align="alignleft" width="351"] From Auckland News[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8967" align="alignleft" width="342"] Leaders from the TPPA member states 2010: From Wikipedia[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8966" align="alignnone" width="364"] Leaders from the TPPA member states: From Newstalkzb[/caption] [caption id="attachment_8953" align="alignnone" width="534"] Image by Del Abcede.[/caption] Compare the gender balance in the above leaders’ photos with that in the photo essay by Del Abcede, of the February 4 protests against the TPPA in Auckland, published on Asia Pacific Report. Women have been playing a strong role in opposing the TPPA, while the people negotiating are largely men, along with those in powerful corporations. This rundown of the TPPA on Scoop, by the US Trade Representative in Oct 2015, has only one specific section referring to women: “… and economic growth, including helping women build capacity and skill, enhancing women’s access to markets, obtaining technology and financing, establishing women’s leadership networks, and identifying best practices in workplace “ The focus is on women in leadership, “markets”, finance-acquisition, and workplace practices. Inequalities in the 21^st century result in extreme hardship for mothers of young children, and single mothers. Low paid workers are over-represented by women, and especially women of colour. The US Trade Representative’s press release highlights the TPPA’s provisions for protecting worker rights and labour relations, which are a step in a positive direction: “… a prohibition on the worst forms of child labour; and elimination of discrimination in employment. They also agree to have laws governing minimum wages, hours of work, and occupational safety and health. Each of the 12 TPP Parties commits to ensure access to fair, equitable and transparent administrative and judicial proceedings and to provide effective remedies for violations of its labour laws. They also agree to public participation in implementation of the Labour chapter, including establishing mechanisms to obtain public input.” So far so good. Excellent to see such things get consideration and a positive statement of intent. However, these promises are qualified by this:

“The commitments in the chapter are subject to the dispute settlement procedures laid out in the Dispute Settlement chapter.”

Any issues with respect to failure to provide for workers rights as laid out above, are to be dealt with by negotiation between parties. There is not authority with the power to resolve disputes, or hold member states to account in the interest of workers. In contrast, ISDS provisions give powerful international corporations the right to challenge the laws of member states that protect the rights of workers, in the interests of powerful employers. In contrast, a June 2015 advisory for the US National Organisation of Women outlines why the TPPA is a feminist issue. It looks to the impacts of past US trade agreements and identifies a pattern whereby when wages are lowered, women, especially women of colour are hit hard. They tend to work in low pay occupations such as retail, food service, nursing homes and day care. The advisory refers to statements by Senator Elizabeth Warren. The advisory summarizes: “Through a thorough investigation of how the United States implemented the labor provisions of in-place free trade agreements, the Government Accountability Office found “persistent challenges to labor rights, such as limited enforcement capacity, the use of subcontracting to avoid direct employment… [and] violence against union leaders” in many countries with existing agreements. Specifically, the Department of Labor found that ten countries that had free trade agreements with the U.S. (Colombia, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras, Jordan, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, and Peru) continue to use child labor and force labor to produce their goods, regardless of international laws in place to prevent it.” The advisory concludes on the basis of the evidence available, that the TPP will not protect worker’s, especially women workers’ rights, wages will be driven down, unemployment will rise, and there will be less access to affordable health care. The TPPA has largely been negotiated by powerful men and corporations, and it doesn’t look that good for women: especially women of colour and those on low incomes.]]>

Bauerfield runway ‘safe’, says Air Vanuatu independent report

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 5, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From Vanuatu Daily Post

Air Vanuatu has received an independent assessment of Bauerfield International Airport from the Airport Consultancy Group (ACG) in Australia and has announced it is satisfied the condition of the runway is safe to continue jet operations.

The report done by ACG found no sign of any foreign object debris of any size on the runway surface and recommended “runway sweeping operations should continue at its current frequency until such a time as surface rejuvenation is undertaken”.

The report further recommended contingency plans for Air Vanuatu in order to maintain safe operations, including the requirement for Airports Vanuatu Limited (AVL) to remove excess water from the runway prior to landing during heavy rainfall.

Air Vanuatu management says it has been attending daily briefings with Airports Vanuatu Limited (the operator of Bauerfield Airport) and the Civil Aviation Authority of Vanuatu (CAAV) and is grateful for the open and honest discussions.

“We have been pleased with the swift response of the authorities to increase precautionary measures at our request,” a statement said.

“We continue to share information with overseas carriers, some of whom have not attended any of these briefings nor conducted independent inspections, yet suspended jet services.

“As the national carrier, it is our responsibility to provide a safe and reliable service to passengers.

“We are continuing to do so.

‘Passengers welcome’
“We welcome passengers from other carriers to contact our offices in Auckland and Sydney to continue with their Vanuatu holiday plans.

“Our brand new Boeing 737-800 operated its first commercial service today [Wednesday, February 3] in safe conditions.

“It will be serviced and maintained by Qantas Engineering in Brisbane every week.

“Our flight captains have the final say should the extra safety measures in place, including daily mechanical ‘sweeping’ of the runway and removing excess water not meet our standards.

“Air Vanuatu operates under a safety first policy at all times and will continue to do so.

“Should conditions deteriorate before the planned upgrade of the runway commences, we will review services to Port Vila,” the statement said.

Airports Vanuatu Limited is reportedly working closely with stakeholders to ensure the planned upgrade of the runway takes place before conditions deteriorate.

Vanuatu airport crisis: Daily Post hits back on safety

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Lawyers for NFP demand explanation over suspension

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 5, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From The Fiji Times

By Tevita Vuibau and Nasik Swami in Suva

Lawyers acting for Fiji’s now-suspended National Federation Party (NFP) have demanded an explanation from the Registrar of Political Parties on its decision to suspend the party.

They say NFP will appeal against the suspension to the High Court unless the suspension notice is withdrawn.

On Monday, Registrar of Political Parties Mohammed Saneem suspended the NFP on what he said was a breach of section 26(1) of the Political Parties Decree 2013.

Under section 26(1) of the decree, audits of party accounts must be carried out “by an auditor certified by the Fiji Institute of Accountants”.

The Registrar said the NFP was in breach as the auditors of their accounts — APNR Partners — “did not hold a valid Certificate of Public Practice under section 22 of the Accountants Act.”

But in a letter dated February 4, 2016, Munro Leys partner Richard Naidu raised questions regarding the interpretation of the decree; their decision to immediately suspend the party without an opportunity to be heard on that decision; and why they believed the suspension would remedy the alleged breach.

Last night, Saneem confirmed receiving the copy of the letter.

However, he said it was their procedure not to divulge details of correspondence between his office and political parties.

‘Good faith’
“The Registrar always acts in good faith with the parties. As a result, we are not able to release any documents that a party submits unless it’s required to be published,” Saneem said.

In the letter, Naidu alleges the Registrar incorrectly interpreted Section 26(2) saying that “there is no such thing as ‘an auditor certified by the Fiji Institute of Accountants’”.

“You incorrectly suggest that this (an auditor certified by the Fiji Institute of Accountants) means a person holding a certificate of public practice under Section 22 of the Fiji Institute of Accountants Act,” Naidu said.

“The institute does not certify ‘auditors’. It certifies ‘members who are either provisional, licensed, affiliate or chartered accountants, certain of whom (we call them ‘CPPs’ for short) must hold certificates of public practice.

“You cannot, in interpreting the test for an auditor’s qualifications under the decree, insert into the test words that do not exist.

“It is not clear what the decree means, but you cannot hold NFP to a non-existent legal test.”

In the letter, Naidu noted that under the decree, the Registrar had discretion to suspend the party “to enable political party to remedy its breach”.

But he asked Saneem why he thought suspending the party would achieve this.

‘Remedy the breach’
“The power to suspend is not to punish. It is to enable compliance. Let us assume, for the purposes of argument, that you are right about the breach,” Naidu said.

“NFP can remedy the breach just as easily when it is not suspended. So why did you suspend it? How would suspension “enable” NFP to remedy this particular breach?”

Naidu also claimed the Fijian Elections Office was aware of complaints about NFP’s choice of auditors six weeks before the suspension and did not notify the NFP of this, thereby depriving it of a chance to remedy the situation.

“Why were these concerns not drawn to NFP’s attention immediately, as natural justice would ordinarily require, to allow NFP to address them directly with you, or to allow NFP (if it chose) to take the relatively simple step of obtaining another audit?”

Naidu also questioned the Registrar’s claim that a suspended political party could not operate, function, represent or hold itself out to be a political party as that prohibition did not exist in the decree.

He said political parties existed to voice the political interest and concerns of their members who are citizens of Fiji.

And he added that to deprive the members of NFP of those rights was inimical to the democratic process and a breach of their political rights under Section 23(1) of the Constitution.

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Controversial TPP pact signed amid huge New Zealand protests

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 5, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz – Al Jazeera – By Caitlin McGee in Auckland [caption id="attachment_8943" align="alignleft" width="300"] Yesterday’s TPP protest in Auckland … “a kind of Cold War by proxy of trade and investment agreements.” Image: Del Abcede/Asia Pacific Report.[/caption] One of the biggest and most controversial trade deals in history has been signed by ministers from the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas, as thousands of protesters hit the streets to denounce it. Security was stepped up across Auckland for representatives who travelled here to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) – a deal involving 12 economies worth about $28 trillion. Prime Minister John Key said the deal would benefit everybody. “The opening of our markets will enhance the lives of our people. The TPP will make new trade opportunities. It is overwhelmingly in the best interests of our countries and our citizens,” Key said. The TPP is a free trade agreement promising to liberalise trade and investment between the 12 nations, which make up about 36 percent of the world’s GDP. The deal – which will cut tariffs, improve access to markets and sets common ground on labour and environmental standards and intellectual property protections – was finally reached in October after five years of negotiations. It includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US, and Vietnam. Cheaper access The TPP is supposed to ensure everyone from Vietnamese shrimpers to New Zealand dairy farmers get cheaper access to markets and bring in economic benefits. Ministers received a traditional Māori welcome from members of the Ngati Whatua tribe – including a hongi, which involves the pressing of noses and exchange of breath. But the welcome wasn’t as warm in downtown Auckland where thousands of protesters from different groups blockaded the inner city in a rally against the deal. Many carried flags and banners and chanted outside the Sky City convention centre where the signing took place. ‘No balance of interests’ Rowan Brooks, a protest organiser, said he was concerned about the power the agreement would give to big corporations. “Basically it eats away at New Zealand’s sovereignty and the whole process was undemocratic… The agreement gives power to corporations and takes it away from the people,” Brooks said.

Jane Kelsey, a law professor at the University of Auckland, is one of the agreement’s fiercest critics.

She said she was concerned about how the deal could be used by the US to counter China’s influence in the region.

“It’s kind of a Cold War by proxy of trade and investment agreements,” Kelsey said. “And that’s a real worry because not only do the corporations who have special insights and input to this agreement get to be centre stage but there is no balance of interests.” The deal has not only triggered protests in New Zealand but has also drawn international criticism. Former World Bank economist Joseph Stiglitz said it “may turn out to be the worst trade agreement in decades”. Investors’ right to sue In an opinion piece for the Guardian, Stiglitz wrote: “It gives foreign investors the right to sue governments in private international tribunals when they believe government regulations contravene the TPP’s terms. “In 2016, we should hope for the TPP’s defeat and the beginning of a new trade era of agreements that don’t reward the powerful and punish the weak.” The TPP is expected to come into force within two years, once countries have completed their domestic legislative procedures. Questions have been raised over the ratification process as it coincides with the buildup to this year’s US presidential election. But US trade representative Michael Froman is confident it will be passed by the US Congress. “We all have our domestic processes to go through and ours is clearly laid out… I believe at the end of the day… We will have the necessary bipartisan support for it to be approved,” he said. Caitlin McGee is an Al Jazeera journalist and a graduate of Auckland University of Technology. Earlier story, video and more images –]]>

Regenvanu ‘available’ for position of Vanuatu’s next prime minister

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 5, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Regenvanu’s Graon mo Jastis party is one of 11 political groups including 36 MPs, which have signed a memorandum of agreement to form a new coalition.

It came after days of closed door negotiations and also features the Vanuaaku Party, led by former Prime Minister Joe Natuman, and the party of the jailed former prime minister, Moana Carcasses Kalosil, the Vanuatu Green Confederation.

Regenvanu said the agreement was not hard to reach, but whether the coalition would hold together even for the next week before Parliament sat, was another matter.

Lobbying intensifies to form next Vanuatu government

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Tokelau’s new ferry Mataliki slips quietly into Apia port

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 5, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Tokelau Office

By Jaap Jasperse in Apia

The brand-new Tokelau ferry Mataliki slipped quietly into Apia port this week, awaited by staff of the Tokelau Transport and Support Services (TSS) Department.

The ship was designed in London and built in Bangladesh at a total cost of more than NZ$12 million, funded by the New Zealand government.

Upon arrival on a beautiful calm morning on Wednesday, Mataliki was decked out in international signal flags for numbers and the letters of the alphabet.

This ancient form of marine communication is unlikely to ever be used seriously, as the ship is equipped with the most modern satellite navigation and communications technology – there is even wifi on board for its crew and passengers.

TSS Director Asofa Fereti said the new ferry’s arrival was the end product of years of negotiations and team work between colleagues in NZ MFAT and TALO. Many technical people were engaged to provide input into the initial design and further modifications.

“It’s a dream come true for Tokelau”, Fereti said.

“We have been waiting for this moment for a long time; let’s hope the vessel proves worth the wait.”

Year behind schedule
Delivery of the ferry from Bangladesh was a year behind schedule because there had been problems with the stability of the boat in its initial design.

This has now been fixed and the boat has been making its successful voyage from the shipping yards in Chittagong, Bangladesh since December 29.

Mataliki stopped over in Singapore for a week, departing there on January 12 and making refuelling stops at the ports of Dili, East Timor, on January 18 and in Honiara, Solomon Islands, on January 27. The vessel’s crew comprised mostly Tongans, including chief engineer Tolati Fifita.

They had first been flown in from Tonga for the sea trials last year, and then again for the entire voyage to Apia.

The crew included one Tokelauan, Lamesa Mataga. Both the master, Steve Christieson, and first mate, Allan Dillon, had been flown in from New Zealand for the journey.

The new Tokelau ferry replaces a succession of charters from the Samoa Shipping Corporation: the Fasefulu and Lady Naomi have been supplementing trips by the PV Matua which has been doing regular, fortnightly trips for several years until its engine broke down in July last year.

Operations of the new ferry will be jointly managed by the Tokelau Transport Department and the company Transport and Marine – whose operations manager Dick Mogridge was on hand to also sign off on arrival of the ferry in Apia.

Tokelau atolls
Mataliki is capable of transporting up to 60 international passengers at a time, and a relatively small amount of cargo for the three Tokelau atolls Atafu, Nukunonu and Fakaofo. It can carry up to 120 passengers between the atolls.

Tokelau’s population of about 1400 people is entirely dependent on shipping for people and goods, as there are no flights to and from the islands.

The length of the trip to Tokelau will not change much as a result of the new ferry. With a cruising speed of 11.5 knots, Mataliki is still expected to take at least 24 hours for a one-way journey from Apia to the nearest atoll, and 4-6 hours between the three villages.

Mataliki is intended to continue a fortnightly service between Apia and Tokelau, interspersed with freighters such as the Fasefulu that will still be chartered for goods and particularly fuel transport.

Mataliki has been designed mainly for passenger transport, and passengers will find it a lot more comfortable than previous vessels. There are a greater number of proper berths to sleep in; there’s even a sick room for medical evacuations between hospitals.

Solar panels will be mounted on the rooftop of the passenger deck to help reduce power consumption.

Mataliki’s maiden voyage to Tokelau is planned to start on March 1.

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PM Key needs to answer for his actions, says Harawira

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

apr-tpp-rally-auckland-bradbury-tdb — ]]>

AsiaPacificReport.nz – Radio Waatea

Mana leader Hone Harawira says Prime Minister John Key has deliberately set the stage for protest at Waitangi.

The former Te Taitokerau MP, who joined today’s march against the signing of the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement in Auckland, said that protest now moved back to the north. But news media reports said tonight Prime Minister Key had pulled out of his Waitangi schedule, but denied he was “running scared”. He said he would not attend after failing to get a response from Te Tii Marae at Waitangi to his queries over an attempt to prevent him making a political speech. Television One News tonight quoted him saying: “”I can’t go and I won’t go to Waitangi with a gagging order on me, especially when elders are encouraging acts of violence.” Radio Waatea reports Harawira had said the TPPA was a treaty between governments and corporates and the citizens of the 12 countries involved have been ignored and kept in the dark. “The Prime Minister seems happy to not only sign it but to sign it two days before the Treaty of Waitangi Day and then … expect to get a pat on the back for it. “No, I think he’s asking for trouble. I think he’s created a flashpoint and I think he needs to answer for his actions, ” said Harawira. Before the cancellation, the Prime Minister had been due to be welcomed on Te Tii Marae in Waitangi tomorrow morning, after the arrival of the hikoi.

Demonstrators today along the length of Auckland's downtown Queen Street, popular with shoppers and tourists. Image: The Daily Blog

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Māori lead massive TPPA democracy protest in NZ

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz – From Café Pacific – Video by Del Abcede in Auckland Māori protesters at the forefront of a massive people’s protest for democracy in Auckland today against the controversial Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA). Trade ministers from the 12 countries involved in this agreement signed the biggest trade deal in history. But a growing groundswell of opposition has shaken politicians. Many Māori and other New Zealanders believe the pact will erode democracy and undermine the country’s founding document, the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi. — –]]>

Protesters peacefully blockade central Auckland as ministers sign TPPA

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

Russel+Norman+New+Zealand+Gears+Up+General+ECTkDoXwvPql — ]]>

AsiaPacificReport.nz Pacific Media Centre

The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement has been signed at Sky City in Auckland today as the downtown heart of New Zealand’s largest city ground to a halt while protesters mounted a massive peaceful demonstration.

According to some reports, up to 20,000 people were taking part in the protests around the city as trade ministers signed the controversial TPP.

[caption id="attachment_7072" align="alignleft" width="300"]

Russel Norman, former Green Party co-leader and executive director of Greenpeace NZ.[/caption]Greenpeace executive director Russel Norman, a former co-leader of the Green Party, said:

“Peaceful protest is the beating heart of any democracy. And that’s why today’s peaceful protests in Auckland are so important.

“They’re a direct way for people to show their feelings to the politicians and the large corporations, whose interests all too often appear to be in conflict with those of the people. And that’s certainly the case with the TPP,” he said.

“I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we see more large-scale peaceful protests in New Zealand this year.”

Climate change was an example of the government doing nothing.

“And this means that we’re facing floods in our homes, and drought on our farms. People don’t want that, and that’s why this could be a year of peaceful protest.”

Live streaming today
The Daily Blog and Waatea News are live streaming protest actions today.

On the hour, they have live radio coverage and a scrolling twitter account using #TPPabuse as the hashtag.

The live screen with Waatea News is loading on the front page of TDB and started from the 9am blockade and cover the large demonstration at midday.

TPPA ‘out of step with human rights’

TPPA: It’s our future

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Lobbying intensifies to form next Vanuatu government

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From Vanuatu Daily Post

By Jane Joshua in Port Vila

Lobbying for numbers to form Vanuatu’s next Government is continuing in earnest after the official declaration and the count down before Parliament sits – seven days from today.

Twenty four hours is a long time in Vanuatu politics thus seven days is a very long time.

Apart from the norm “camp” tactics, now more than ever shrewd politicians have to step up their bargaining as ‘horse-trading’ intensifies and will continue to do so in the Parliament chamber.

History has shown MPs crossing floors and switching their allegiances in the last minutes before voting, not a last minute decision but part of the plan.

A bid by the Unity For Change (UFC) bloc and the Leaders Group (LG) led by Tanna elect MP Jotham Napat to sign a memorandum of agreement towards the formation of a coalition government yesterday did not eventuate.

On the same day, the Moderates which included members of the incumbent caretaker government and several newcomers convened to solidify and boost their numbers to form the new government.

Negotiations are going to be tough as the results of the snap election after the dissolution of the 10th Legislature in the aftermath of being governed by a minority government, indicated a fragmented Parliament.

Big names
Big names such as the Union of Moderates Party (UMP), Vanua’aku Pati (VP) and the Graon mo Jastis Pati (GJP) all have six MPs each, and the Leaders Group with numbers to be reckoned with also.

The Iauko Grouping and the National United Pati both have four MPs each.

It is early days to be speculating about numbers, however the next few days will indicate the allegiances of these major political groupings and political parties with one, two and three MPs each, all which will decisively result in the formation of the new government.

And when parliament sits the people will finally know who will be holding the reins of leadership in the 11th Legislature.

The onus is on the newly elected 52 MPs to strive for political stability, for the good of this nation.

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German judges oppose ‘investment courts’ for Europe trade deal

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

In a statement, Germany’s largest association of judges and public prosecutors has firmly rejected the European Commission’s proposal to create an investment court system in TTIP – the European equivalent to TPPA being signed today in Auckland.

By Felix Heilmann and Friederike Rehn

After unprecedented controversy over far-reaching rights for foreign investors in the proposed European Union-United States trade deal TTIP – also known as Investor-State-Dispute-Settlement or ISDS – the European Commission had presented a revised proposal for the issue in autumn 2015, allegedly replacing the much-loathed ISDS with an “Investment Court System”, or ICS.

The proposal drew heavy criticism from civil society groups rejecting the Commission proposal as a mere re-branding exercise, which would resolve none of the fundamental concerns about granting special privileges for foreign investors, undermining national laws and bypassing domestic courts.

The latest statement released by Germany’s largest professional association of judges and public prosecutors echoes these voices and presents a heavy blow to the Commission.

In today’s statement the judges and prosecutors call “special courts” for only one group in society “the wrong way” to ensure legal certainty and security. They also raise serious concerns over the independence of the judges in the Commission proposal, ranging from lack of financial independence to unclear selection criteria.

According to the statement, “this makes the ICS not look like an international court, but more like a permanent arbitration tribunal.”

The paper also stresses that there is no need for the establishment of a special court for foreign investors as EU member states provide and guarantee equal access to justice to all litigants, including investors.

The judges also question the competence of the European Union to establish the proposed court system which would not only constrain the EU’s and member states’ legislative powers but fundamentally change the existing court systems within the European Union.

Now that citizens’ concerns have been confirmed the question remains: If legal professionals and citizens reject this idea, whom is the Commission actually serving, if not corporate interests?

TPPA ‘out of step with human rights’

TPPA: It’s our future

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Across the Ditch: TPP Signing + Protests Today + Waitangi Day + NZ Beat Aust in Cricket

By Selwyn Manning -

February 4, 2016

In this edition of Across the Ditch, Peter Godfrey of Australia’s radio FiveAA and Selwyn Manning of EveningReport.nz discuss: The New Zealand Government will host the representatives of twelve Trans Pacific Partnership nations today for the signing of the TPP agreement at Auckland’s Skycity. Police have been training with riot gear and protests are organised where people will march up Queen Street in Auckland’s CBD and another shadowy group is committed to direct action. Waitangi Day: Also discussed, New Zealand Aotearoa will commemorate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi back in 1840. Controversy this year has framed the event over whether the Prime Minister John Key will be welcome at Waitangi with Maori and many other groups angry that the Government failed to consult over the TPP negotiations. Cricket Chappell-Hadlee ODI: Also, New Zealand’s Blackcaps Cricket team beat World Champions Australia by 159 runs in the first of the three Chappell-Hadlee one day international games at Auckland’s Eden Park.Now all the attention has shifted to the second match scheduled for Saturday at Wellington’s Westpac Trust Stadium.

Across the Ditch broadcasts live on Australia’s radio FiveAA.com.au and webcasts on EveningReport.nz LiveNews.co.nz and ForeignAffairs.co.nz.

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Iwi don’t have Treaty right on TPP issues, says Turei – protests today

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 4, 2016

Green Party co-leader Metiria-Turei — ]]>

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From Waatea News

Greens co-leader Metiria Turei says the Treaty of Waitangi protection clause in the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement isn’t as strong as the New Zealand government claims it is.

Concern over whether the 12-country pact will hamper the crown’s ability to protect Māori interests under the Treaty is driving Māori opposition.

The government says it has negotiated a Treaty of Waitangi exemption into all the trade deals it has negotiated over the past decade.

But Turei says the Greens’ analysis shows it does not give iwi Māori any right to have a say over issues that affect them.

“If the implementation of the treaty is contrary to the TPPA, either government won’t implement it or we risk being sued by companies overseas who see profits being lost because of that implementation.

“THe classic example is WAI 262, our interests in fauna and flora here in New Zealand, all of that becomes much more difficult under the TPPA.”

Turei says despite the Prime Minister’s assurances, Pharmac will also be adversely affected because the TPPA means the government drug-buying agency will have to set up an expensive review process to allow outside parties to appeal against its choices.

The TPPA will be signed by trade ministers in Auckland tomorrow.

Live streaming today
The Daily Blog and Waatea News will be live streaming protest actions today.

On the hour, they will have live radio coverage and a scrolling twitter account using #TPPabuse as the hashtag.

The live screen with Waatea News will load on the front page of TDB and will start from the 9am blockade and cover the large demonstration at midday.

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High Court ruling leaves asylum seeker families facing deportation to Nauru

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 3, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From SBS News

Scores of asylum-seeker families, including babies born in Australia, face the prospect of deportation to Nauru after a High Court ruling, reports AAP/SBS News.

The full bench of the court today rejected a legal challenge to the federal government’s offshore immigration detention regime.

It did so after considering the case of a pregnant Bangladeshi asylum seeker who was brought to Australia from Nauru for treatment for serious health complications.

She faced the prospect of being returned to the Pacific island with her one-year-old child.

In a majority decision the court said the woman’s detention on Nauru was not unlawful.

It also ruled the Commonwealth’s role in her detention was authorised under Australian migration laws, and the government’s offshore processing deal with Nauru was valid under the constitution.

Majority ruling
“The High Court held, by majority, that the plaintiff was not entitled to the declaration sought. The conduct of the Commonwealth in signing the second MOU with Nauru was authorised by s 61 of the Constitution,” the judgment said.

“The Court further held that the conduct of the Commonwealth in giving effect to the second MOU (including by entry into the Administrative Arrangements and the Transfield Contract) was authorised by s 198AHA of the Act, which is a valid law of the Commonwealth.”

The ruling has implications for 267 other people – including 91 children – who are in Australia for medical treatment.

Of the 54 children, 36 are attending Australian schools.

The federal government is now under pressure to show compassion towards the group.

Human rights lawyer Claire Hammerton from the advocacy group for child refugees said the concern was now for 90 children set to be returned to Nauru.

“ChilOut is extremely worried about these children and their families, and in particular the 37 babies who were born in Australia, who will be deliberately sent to a place the Australian government knows is unsafe for children,” she said.

Child protection role
Save the Children, which has had a child protection role on Nauru, called on Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to show some compassion towards the 37 babies and older children.

“If found to be genuine refugees, we urge him to do the decent thing and offer these vulnerable people permanent protection here in Australia,” spokesman Lee Gordon said in a statement.

Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson Young said the prime minister would be authorising child abuse if the families were sent back to Nauru.

“The evidence is clear and its undeniable that Nauru is unsafe for women and children and sending them back would be torture,” she said.

Amnesty International said it was concerned that asylum seekers would be subjected to human rights violation – referring to reports of sexual harassment and abuse – if returned to Nauru.

“Amnesty International, as well as numerous other organisations and individuals, has submitted several formal requests to visit Nauru with the intention of independently reviewing the conditions and assessing the overall human rights situation, but to no avail,” Amnesty International Australia’s Refugee Coordinator, Dr Graham Thom said.

Ahead of the ruling, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton insisted the government was acting in the best interests of asylum seekers brought to Australia for health care.

Mindful of message
But the government had to be mindful of the message being sent to people smugglers.

Australia also has a detention centre on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea.

Although Dutton wanted to reduce the number of children in detention to zero, people smugglers were channelling a message to potential customers that “Dutton’s a soft touch and you can put women and children on boats and be successful”.

The federal government, with Labor’s support, had retrospectively changed laws to bolster the Commonwealth’s ability to pay for the offshore facilities last year.

Its case in part hinged on a sudden decision last October by the Nauru government to allow asylum seekers to roam around the island nation at will.

Backgrounder: Australia stands firm on hardline policies

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Raided journalist: ‘If you phone a source, you’re a bloody idiot’

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 3, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz From Pacific Media Watch By Bill Goodwin in London New Zealand investigative journalist Nicky Hager was working in Auckland when the police raided his Wellington home. His daughter, who was alone in the house, was forced to dress in front of a female police officer, while five detectives began searching through her private letters, photograph album, her clothes drawers, and computer. Over the course of 11 hours, they photographed documents, seized computers, phones and memory sticks as they scoured the house in search of clues to the identity of a confidential source behind one of the biggest political scandals in New Zealand. Hager still feels bad that he was away that day. “They had some ludicrous theory perhaps that my daughter had a memory stick hidden and she would flush it down the toilet. It was just so unlikely,” he told Press Gazette. Prime minister John Key implicated in dirty tricks Eight weeks earlier, in the run up to the general election in September 2014, Hager, New Zealand’s best known investigative journalist, had published a book, Dirty Politics, that rocked the political establishment. It revealed that the prime minister John Key and his officials were secretly colluding with bloggers in a huge dirty tricks programme, smearing and discrediting political opponents and critics of the governing National Party. The book provoked a furore that dominated the news for weeks and led to the resignation of the prime minister’s longest serving official and the justice minister. Dirty Politics was particularly controversial, because Hager had made use of a cache of incriminating emails and messages obtained by a hacker, known as Rawshark, who had broken into the computer systems of a notorious right wing “attack blogger”. Rawshark had intended to release the documents on the internet, but the hacker agreed to let Hager use the documents to write a book exposing political dirty tricks, in return for a promise of confidentiality. Hager knew that the source had committed a crime, but his lawyer advised that if a case came to court, he would win eventually if the public interest were strong enough. Hager was confident that it was. However, experience has shown that every source who approaches a journalist, is likely to be in breach of some law. That might be breaking the Official Secrets Act, or a confidentiality agreement with their employers. “I have had many dozens of important and deep confidential sources in my life and in most of those cases, the vast majority, the person concerned has broken the law when they’re getting the information.” Hager took an early decision to be up-front in his book and press interviews; that his revelations relied on hacked information, and that he had promised his source confidentiality. He made it clear that there was nothing in his house that could link him to his source. “I had secured everything, I removed everything from the house,” he said. “Because I knew it was incredibly controversial.” Sensitive documents seized But there were other materials in the house, including documents from Edward Snowden, that worried Hager, when the police arrived. “I had all kinds of printed-out materials around the house where I was piecing together different stories about surveillance in the Pacific region. So, in my mind, I imagined the police going through all that as well. It was exactly what you don’t want to happen,” he said. Hager claimed journalistic privilege in a phone call to the detective in charge of the investigation. The police had a plan in place for that eventuality – seize everything, seal it, and let the court decide its relevance to the investigation. It later emerged that the investigators had failed to play by the rules and had attempted – without success – to access confidential internet accounts and cloud-storage services used by Hager’s past sources, after finding details written down on papers in the house. Hager is in no doubt that the raid was politically motivated. “I don’t think we will ever find any evidence of it. But I think there is hardly anyone in New Zealand who doesn’t think this was politically pushed,” he said. The raid provoked a wave of public outrage in New Zealand. One member of the public organised a crowd-funding campaign, which raised tens of thousands of dollars to help Hager fight the case in court, while other funds poured in from the Freedom of the Press Foundation in the US. ‘Incredibly generous’ “It was an incredibly generous joint effort by all these different people to make sure this case would happen. A case like this is a big one for a country. It is a very important case, they don’t come along very often,” he said. In the aftermath of the raid, Hager found his existing sources had become more jumpy and new sources were more wary. “Of course there were people saying to me, ‘was my stuff sitting around your house? Do you think they’ll find out about me?’” For Hager, the police actions were symptomatic of a growing intolerance from governments worldwide towards whistleblowers and a tendency to attack and criminalise legitimate media activity. At the same time, government surveillance capabilities have expanded to a frightening level of intrusiveness, and police forces are using surveillance powers to hunt for journalists’ sources. “Journalists themselves are scared. Whistleblowers are fearful, partly because they don’t understand properly what’s possible and what’s not, what’s realistic and what’s not,” said Hager. Protecting sources from state snooping Hager refuses to work with any source with political motives. Even if the information is true, journalists can become contaminated by the timing and motivations of any source with a political agenda. “When you’re doing stuff where reputations are at stake and huge issues of accountability going on, where major clashes of right and wrong happen, we have to be super scrupulous,” he said. After over 20 years at the coalface of investigative journalism, Hager prefers to take a low-tech approach to protecting confidential sources, and that means face-to-face meetings, rather than phone calls. “If you’re meeting a source, you don’t ring them, you don’t text them, you don’t email them and you don’t take your phone. That’s pretty simple,” he said. “If you contact the source by phone, you’re a bloody idiot these days.” There are some things, he said, that should simply never be written down, and any journalist working on sensitive stories should have encryption on their computer. “Its not James Bond stuff anymore.” “The final thing I do is, for some stories, but never with a confidential source, I use encrypted email. I wouldn’t use encrypted email with a source because you still get an email data linking you and that person’s email address.” Police fight disclosure Hager’s legal team filed an application for a judicial review in October 2014. The police fought a rear-guard action to avoid disclosing details of their investigation, but Hager’s legal team were able to secure documents that showed the police had applied for the search warrant, before following up a large number of other leads that might have identified the source. They also revealed an alarmingly cosy relationship between the police and the banking industry. Despite initial denials, Hager discovered that the police had obtained ten months of banking and credit card records, without having to produce a disclosure warrant. “It really upset me, I didn’t like it. Not because I was embarrassed by anything, but just the idea of some detectives sitting somewhere going through where I had coffee, who I generously gave money to because I cared about them. Just the details of my personal life,” he said. Hager’s lawyers drew on case law from around the world to show that the search warrant had been issued without proper consideration of the chilling effect it would have on journalism, and the right to free expression. They included the case fought by freelance journalist Robin Ackroyd in the UK against Ashworth Special Hospital, over the source of a story about the Moors murderer Ian Brady. And my own case in the European Court of Human Rights, Goodwin v UK, which set a new legal precedent for protection of sources across Europe. Judge Denis Clifford found against the New Zealand police in a judgement in December, ruling that they had not been open with the courts about the potential chilling effects of the search warrant on journalism. There was “a material failure to discharge the duty of candour” by police, and the police’s “reasonable belief” that they would discover information about the source was little more than “a hope,” the judge concluded. Case ‘utterly flawed’ “The police’s case was utterly flawed,” said Hager. “They believed they could turn up here, raid the house, turn it over and go through all my stuff and then, when most of the damage was done, after everyone knowing that they’ve been here, they could just tidy it up in court afterwards.” Last month [ending 29 Jan], the police said they would not appeal against the judgement. Its immediate impact is that courts will now have to consider the public interest in protecting journalistic sources seriously before they issue search warrants. The case has almost certainly brought to an end the police’s ability to obtain bank details without a proper warrant, a practice that has probably affected thousands of people each year in New Zealand. But more importantly for investigative journalism, the whole country has seen the police take on a controversial case and lose, said Hager. They are unlikely to be so cavalier again. “They threw themselves into what they knew was going to be a controversial act, they put a lot resources into it and they had comprehensively been defeated on it,” he said. The judgement, Hager believes, is likely to help journalists in other countries, as governments everywhere take an increasingly hostile approach to the media and whistleblowers. “People have to take advantage of each other’s success and progress wherever it happens so that we push things back around the world,” he said. Bill Goodwin is a British freelance journalist who won a landmark 1996 case against the united Kingdom government over breaching a journalist’s right to protect sources of information. — –]]>

TPP out of step with human rights – don’t sign, says UN expert

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 3, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz From United Nations – Special correspondent in Geneva United Nations human rights expert Alfred de Zayas has called on governments not to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership without reaffirming their human rights treaty obligations and their recent pledges to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. “The TPP is fundamentally flawed and should not be signed or ratified unless provision is made to guarantee the regulatory space of States,” says the UN Independent Expert on the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order in a statement. [caption id="attachment_4974" align="alignleft" width="300"] United Nations Plaza-42nd Street – Image by Selwyn Manning.[/caption] De Zayas called for a new generation of trade agreements for the 21st century, which would incorporate human rights and development into their provisions, saying “the TPP is based on an old model of trade agreements that is out of step with today’s international human rights regime”. The expert’s appeal comes on the eve of the gathering of the trade ministers in Auckland, New Zealand, tomorrow to sign the TPP, a trade agreement among 12 Pacific Rim countries that will strengthen the position of investors, transnational corporations and monopolies at the expense of the public. It will lso impact negatively on labour standards, food security, health and environmental protection. De Zayas reaffirmed his call on the UN system and governments across the world “to put an end to free trade and investment agreements that conflict with human rights treaty obligations,” made last year during the presentation of a report on free trade and investment agreements to the UN Human Rights Council. “Trade is not an end in itself, but must be seen in the context of the international human rights regime, which imposes binding legal obligations on states, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,” he said. “Trade agreements are not ‘stand-alone’ legal regimes, but must conform with fundamental principles of international law, including transparency and accountability,” said de Zayas, who is professor of international law at the Geneva School of Diplomacy. “They must not delay, circumvent, undermine or make impossible the fulfilment of human rights treaty obligations.” In his statement, the Independent Expert expressed concern that, despite “enormous opposition by civil society worldwide, twelve countries are about to sign an agreement, which is the product of secret negotiations without multi-stakeholder democratic consultation.” “The options are not to sign the TPP as it stands, as civil society demands, or not to ratify it, which is the responsibility of democratically elected parliaments,” the expert noted. “Should the TPP ever enter into force, its compatibility with international law should be challenged before the International Court of Justice (ICJ)”. “If a public referendum were held in all 12 countries concerned, it will be solidly rejected,” de Zayas said. The UN Independent Expert’s statement on the TPP –]]>

Cut back on $530m smelter bond, Freeport mine tells Indonesia

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 3, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From ETAN

By Wilda Asmarini In Jakarta

Freeport McMoRan Inc has asked Indonesia to reduce a US$530 million smelter bond the local unit of the US copper mining giant must set aside before receiving an extension of its export permit, says Indonesia’s mining minister.

Freeport’s 6-month copper concentrate export permit expired last week amid a deadlock over the bond, which Indonesia has requested as a guarantee that the miner will complete construction of another local smelter.

“They have appealed to ask whether we can postpone it or give them a discount, but we asked them to show their commitment in another equivalent way,” Energy and Mines Minister Sudirman Said told reporters, referring to an exchange of letters with the Phoenix, Arizona-based company.

Freeport, which runs one of the world’s biggest copper mines in Indonesia’s easternmost province of Papua, usually produces about 220,000 tonnes of copper ore a day. A prolonged stoppage in shipments would hit the company’s profits and deny Jakarta desperately needed revenue from one of its biggest taxpayers.

Indonesia wants the deposit as a guarantee that the mining giant will complete construction of another local smelter. The amount would add to an estimated $80 million Freeport set aside in July 2015 to obtain its just-expired export permit.

Freeport Indonesia could not be reached for comment on Tuesday. The US miner wants to invest $18 billion to expand its operations at Grasberg, but is seeking government assurances that its right to mine at Grasberg will be extended.

Its current contract – which gives it the right to work and develop the Grasberg complex – expires in 2021. By Indonesian law, this contract cannot be extended until 2019 at the soonest.

A memorandum of understanding agreed in July 2014 between the government and Freeport, which ended a seven-month export stoppage and outlined a timetable for a contract extension and smelter construction, had now expired, Said said.

An agreement that would maintain operations and investment preparations ahead of contract renewal talks in 2019, was a way to resolve the current problems, he said.

Indonesia blocks Freeport copper exports from Papua in deadlock

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Climate model tool shows warmer South-East Asia future

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 3, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From SciDev.Net

By Dyna Rochmyaningsih in Jakarta

Scientists in South-East Asia and the United Kingdom’s Met Office have teamed up to develop a model that predicts how the climate in the region will be like in the next 100 years.

According to the model, the region will be generally 2-4 degrees Celsius warmer by 2060 and continue to heat up around 3-5 degrees Celsius until 2100.

The strongest warming will occur in mainland South-East Asia. Extreme rainfall events will occur in the northern part of the region, which covers northern Vietnam, Laos, parts of Thailand and northern Philippines.

From June to August, the region will face significant reduction in rainfall. From September to November, rainfall rates will increase. In the archipelago, the difference between wet and dry seasons will be more pronounced.

The project, called Southeast Asia Climate Analysis and Modelling (SEACAM), was initiated by the Centre for Climate Research Singapore (CCRS) in collaboration with the UK Met Office’s Hadley Centre. Scientists from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam were involved.

SEACAM and the Met Office have put up a climate change tool website for South-East Asia based on a climate modelling system dubbed PRECIS, which stands for Providing Regional Climate for Impacts Studies.

“One of the main aims of the SEACAM project is to enhance collaboration and capacity-building among South-East Asian countries in climate research,” says Raizan Rahmat, CCRS project coordinator and senior research scientist.

Climate scenarios
He adds that prior to SEACAM, there had been limited collaborative research in South-East Asia to create climate scenarios in the region.

“Given the geography of South-East Asia, with its complex terrain and maritime characteristics, it was necessary to generate more detailed climate simulation at a higher resolution than that provided by global climate models used in the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports,” he says.

Unlike global climate models, PRECIS has a higher resolution that can more accurately predict the future climate of the region. Several climate parameters such as temperature and rainfall have been analysed.

Developed by the Met Office, PRECIS is beneficial for smaller islands in South-East Asia because the climate model shows these islands as land masses rather than ocean points. Lands respond to climate change differently from the ocean.

David Hein, a software engineer from the Met Office, says the model is user-friendly. Scientists can simulate regional climate parameters with a mouse click.

“PRECIS allows anyone with a desktop or a PC to be able to run a climate model. It is simply a matter of clicking ‘Run PRECIS’ and PRECIS will produce data which can be used to study possible climate change in the region,” he says.

This article was produced by SciDev.Net’s South-East Asia and Pacific desk.

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PNG court martial of accused Komo mutineers adjourned again

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Deputy Defence Force Judge, Justice Allan David, reviewed the case today but adjourned the hearing to give state lawyers and the PNGDF more time to complete court files.

Counsel representing the state, Captain David Kuvi, told the court they were yet to conduct record of interview with four of the 11 officers who were charged for mutiny and misconduct on an operational service under the Defence Force Act.

He indicated that most of the witness statements the state would be relying on had been collected.

They would now need more time to complete investigations which includes record of interviews for the four remaining soldiers.

They will return to court on February 16 for a hearing and further directions while the 11 officers remain on a bail of K1500 (NZ$760).

The accused officers are commanding officer Major Benjamin Edimani, Warrant Officer Ludwig Miugle, Warrant Officer Robin Melerot, Warrant Officer Scotty Kaule, Sergeant Alex Agiru, Sergeant Amos Kaupe, Sergeant Mairi Mairi, Sergeant Joel Yupanga, Sergeant Urban Guria, Corporal Walter Waimi and Corporal Henry Worihun.

Two deaths
In an earlier report by PNG Today, the Army’s Acting Chief of Staff, Colonel Raymond Numa said the soldiers would face a military court over the death of two of their comrades when they were engaged with locals in Helu province (formerly part of the Southern Highlands).

“All the soldiers that were based at Komo, including their commanding officer, are now in Port Moresby and investigations are already in progress,” Colonel Numa said.

The accused soldiers from Murray Barracks Force Support Battalion had taken the Army to court over their outstanding allowances and refused orders to return.

However, they were later disarmed and brought back to Port Moresby under guard.

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Bowie Retrospective part 3: feminism, music an a’ that

By Selwyn Manning -

February 2, 2016

Ziggy-Stardust-playing-Rebel-Rebel-David-Bowie — ]]>

Feature by Carolyn Skelton. For many LGBTI people, and others feeling alienated from today’s society, David Bowie’s innovative performance and music struck a chord. As I said in my previous pieces, he was not the only one who provided such connections and inspiration. Bowie’s song “Rebel, rebel” celebrates androgyny as an act of rebellion. https://youtu.be/eF551z9KlA8 The increasingly fragmented music scenes since the 1970s include a complex tapestry of mainstream and alternative influences. The 2^nd wave women’s movement was in full swing when Bowie first came to prominence in the UK in the 1970s. UK Women’s Liberationists were both influenced by and reacted against the mainstream music industry. This resulted in a lot of the music of the UK movement seeming to be lost to posterity. Bowie’s name was mentioned several times in the 1970s and 80s Women’s Liberation magazine, Spare Rib [searchable archives of the magazine here]. They are mostly positive, especially with respect to his androgynous style. Articles tend to value the way Bowie challenged the aggressive masculine posturing that had become quite dominant in mainstream rock music. A 1973 article reports on a concert at Earls Court with a photo of Bowie dressed only in his undies, and says: “Who can explain the phenomenon of this frail androgyne… It is known that he’s not at all well, but sadly it seems he’s made his choice and opted for a meteoric existance. ” The monthly magazine also focuses on women’s music and the fact that female androgyny and drag kings, didn’t get as much attention as male performances of androgyny, as mentioned in this 1983 article. In recent decades, NZ’s Topp Twins have also done a fair amount of political, songs as well as some gender bending and androgyny. [caption id="attachment_8854" align="alignleft" width="300"] From CranesAreFlying blog[/caption] https://youtu.be/ULLnrJsA6CY A 1979 Spare Rib article by Lucy Toothpaste, is critical of the way rock music is dominated by the macho posturing and misogynist lyrics of “cock rock”, while women artistes are promoted or tolerated so long as they are not too threatening to the gender status quo. Consequently, according to Toothpaste, many feminist musicians prefer jazz, folk, funk or other less macho forms, and reject the commercial music scene. However, Toothpaste also argues that rock has “an energy and enthusiasm” that is “potentially subversive”. See for instance X-Ray Spex’s late 1970s, Oh Bondage Up Yours: https://youtu.be/ogypBUCb7DA The Spare Rib archives provide valuable evidence of the alternative women’s music scene that existed in the 1970s and early 1980s in London. Women’s liberation musicians tended reject individualism and the promotion of stars, as well as having a collaborative approach. This can be seen in the linked 1983 article about the Holloway Allstars, a group of men and women which included musicians from some all women bands like Sisterhood of Spit. Members of these bands include Lydia D’Usteybyn and Laka D’Asical – pseudonyms, probably thumbing their noses equally at pretentious style and patriarchal naming practices, and that would not be out of place in some 21^st century online forums. A video of the Holloway Allstars: https://youtu.be/fOW_xE15bxo Guest stars was a women’s band that included some of the same women mentioned in the above linked article. They are seen here promoting a reunion performance in 2013: https://youtu.be/OQPwViZjSgs This Spare Rib page of 1983, refers to a Guest Stars Gig and a benefit for Greenham Common. In the 70s and 80s, it is likely that the unwillingness to embrace both gendered and corporate dominated music trends rendered them unappealing to many outside the women’s movement. If not for the following website, most of this music would now be lost: Women’s Liberation Music Archive: feminist music making in the UK and Ireland in the 1970s and 1980s. The page at this link provides details about Sisterhood of Spit, which included some of the Guest Stars’ line-up and a link to the audio file of one of their songs. The archives show much of the socialist themes running through the 70s and 80s UK music scene, from songs and/or gigs in support of the miners’ strike, and the protests against the US nuclear base at Greenham Common, to Carol Grimes, Mau Mau song that critiques European imperialism. Grimes performed with mixed male and female bands, plus some of the continually morphing women only bands. The soundcloud has audio of Bad Habits’ Greenham song, which has a Reggie beat: Increasingly in the 80s, Thatcherism deliberately undermined the strong grassroots, left wing and alternative networks in UK cities. At the same time, in the mainstream entertainment industry, and girl-power style appropriated elements of feminism. Queer style and a sexualised form of female empowerment became highly sale-able, as seen with Madonna. Here Madonna pays homage to Bowie and his influence on her by performing “Rebel, Rebel”: https://youtu.be/lnBwJQnHH8o In the article by Lucy Toothpaste linked above, she identifies the appropriating processes of the mainstream music industry as seen in the 1970s. Since then, the corporate dominated media became ever more sophisticated in appropriating rebellion. They sell it back to the people as fashion, and as accessories to individualised identities. So, where to now for music and cultural productions generally that challenge the status quo, socially and politically?]]>

Australia stands firm on hardline policies against asylum seekers

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From ETAN/The Straits Times

By Jonathan Pearlman in Perth

Australia has adopted some of the world’s toughest policies against refugees in recent years and will not relent despite criticisms over measures such as towing boats back to Indonesia and transferring all arrivals by sea to remote Pacific Island detention centres

The controversial approach has been aimed at preventing the flow of asylum seekers who attempt the risky voyage to Australia from transit camps in Indonesia.

In a heavy-handed approach that has damaged relations between Canberra and Jakarta, the federal government has warned that “any people smuggling boat … will be detected, intercepted and safely removed”.

“(Australia) will continue to stop anyone who attempts to come illegally by boat – regardless of where they are from,” Australia’s Department of Immigration said in a recent publication on its website.

Australia’s Navy and Customs vessels seek to intercept boats carrying asylum seekers before they reach Australian waters and force them to turn back, sometimes providing fresh lifeboats.

Australian officials have allegedly paid some people smuggling crews to head back to Indonesia – a move that experts say is illegal under international law. Canberra has refused to comment on the allegations.

Those migrants who make it to Australia by boat are transferred to remote island detention centres in the Pacific island nation of Nauru, or on Manus Island in Papua New Guinea. As of the end of last October, there were 621 detainees in Nauru, including 95 children, and 929 on Manus Island.

Failed deals
Australia has attempted to strike various deals with nations across the region to accept these detainees but the efforts have largely failed.

Cambodia agreed to take refugees from Nauru in return for about A$40 million from Canberra in increased aid. But just five migrants took up the offer to move to Cambodia and one of them – a Myanmar Muslim – reportedly ended up moving back to Myanmar.

Numerous other countries across the region have been proposed as possible venues for resettlement, including Malaysia and East Timor. The latest discussions have apparently focused on the Philippines.

Australia’s controversial approach has been heavily criticised as unlawful and cruel by the United Nations and human rights groups but has proven brutally effective.

Following the adoption of the harsh tow-back policies by former Prime Minister Tony Abbott after he was elected in September 2013, the flow of asylum seekers all but stopped. There were 17,204 arrivals by boat in 2012, 20,587 in 2013 but none in 2014.

Current Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has insisted he will follow Mr Abbott’s tough approach but acknowledged that the consequences of the policy were “harsh”.

‘Harsh policy’
“We do have a tough border protection policy, you could say it’s a harsh policy, but it has worked,” he said after becoming leader in September.

“It is tough, but the fact is we cannot take a backward step on this issue.”

Canberra has insisted its tough approach was aimed at ending deaths at sea following numerous tragedies in which rickety boats sank while attempting the passage from Indonesia to Australia.

Responding to criticisms last year, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said the government could not “stand idly by in the face of these repeated tragedies”.

“Our policies are lawful. They are safe. And they work,” he said in a statement in September.

“They save lives. They reduce the risks run by our border protection personnel. And they have stopped the evil people smuggling trade to Australia.”

During a session of the UN Human Rights Council in November, Australia’s approach came under heavy criticism from numerous countries.

Security ally
Australia’s closest security ally, the United States, urged Canberra to promote “humane treatment and respect for the human rights of asylum seekers”, including those processed offshore in Papua New Guinea and Nauru.

Despite its hardline approach to boat people, Australia accepts large numbers of refugees under its humanitarian programme.

The government has agreed to take 12,000 refugees fleeing Syria and Iraq this year, in addition to its current annual intake of 13,750 people.

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Indonesia blocks Freeport copper exports from Papua in deadlock

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

From ETAN

By Bernadette Christina Munthe and Fergus Jensen

Freeport McMoRan Inc has lost its right to export copper concentrate, valued at more than $1 billion, from one of the world’s biggest mines as talks with Indonesia’s government remained deadlocked over payment for a new metal smelter.

Freeport’s six-month licence to export concentrate expired last Thursday and it was unclear how soon a new one would be issued as the two sides have yet to resolve a government demand that the US firm first pay a $530 million deposit, reports Reuter.

“Without an export permit, there can be no exports. The exporter knows that,” Didi Sumedi, Indonesia’s director of mining and industrial products said via text message.

However, it was not clear if exports had actually stopped at Freeport’s Grasberg mine in the province of Papua, one of the world’s largest copper and gold mines.

Asked if overseas shipments had ceased, a Freeport spokesman said “everything is normal”, without elaborating.

Last year, Freeport sold 744 million pounds of copper concentrate from Grasberg, valued at around $1.73 billion, according to the company’s fourth-quarter financial results.

Prolonged stoppage
A prolonged stoppage in exports would hit Freeport’s profits and deny the Indonesian government desperately needed revenue from one of its biggest taxpayers. It could also buoy global copper prices, which have slipped more than 3 percent so far this year on worries about oversupply.

But in the short-term, traders do not expect any major market reaction.

“If it lasts a couple of months, sure we may see an impact. But with the new mines and mine expansions this year, the market is fairly well covered at the minute,” said a concentrates trader in Asia.

Indonesia has said it was open to negotiations with Freeport on the $530-million deposit and that if the company did not want to pay, it must provide an alternative to demonstrate its commitment to expanding the country’s smelter capacity.

Indonesia wants the deposit as a guarantee that the Phoenix, Arizona-based company will complete construction of another local smelter. The amount would add to an estimated $80 million that Freeport set aside in July 2015 to obtain its current export permit.

Freeport CEO Richard Adkerson said late on Tuesday the government’s demand for a smelter deposit was “inconsistent” with an agreement reached between the two sides in mid-2014.

Greater share
According to that agreement, Freeport must sell the government a greater share of the Grasberg mine, and invest in domestic processing to win an extension of its mining contract beyond 2021.

The US mining giant wants to invest $18 billion to expand its operations at Grasberg, but is seeking government assurances first that it will get a contract extension.

Freeport’s long-held desire to continue mining in Indonesia beyond 2021 has been beset by controversy, including cabinet infighting, resignations and a major political scandal that led to the resignation of the parliamentary speaker.

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Biman Prasad: Is our Fiji democracy really working?

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz [caption id="attachment_8862" align="alignleft" width="150"] Dr Biman Prasad.[/caption] Dr Biman Prasad, leader of Fiji’s Opposition National Federation Party, suspended for 30 days yesterday by the Fijian Elections Office, assesses the country’s “deeply flawed” post-coup democracy. This article was written and published before the latest move against his party. The exuberant mood among the Fiji people after the 2014 election is fast fading. The realities of the high cost of living, low wages and deteriorating health and education services have not gone away. This is because of a dysfunctional political system born of a deeply flawed and imposed Constitution, and economic policies designed to boost the government’s image, not Fiji’s long-term economic future. The FijiFirst government has been big on announcements, but poor on implementation. Many of their publicity stunts are carefully crafted by government-hired and publicly-funded public relations firms like Qorvis, with the help of pliant media bodies like the Fiji Sun, a grateful beneficiary of exclusive government advertising contracts. But what good is this for the rest of us? Dysfunctional political environment Serious questions continue to be raised about the independence of Parliament, state institutions and the civil service. The highest bipartisan political institutions are parliamentary standing committees. In these, the people’s representatives — from the government and the Opposition — listen to the views of everybody on important legislation. Then they issue their reports making their recommendations. In most “true democracies”, the government listens and responds meaningfully to these findings. Not in Fiji. One such instance is the Standing Committee on Justice, Law and Human Rights. Last year this committee discussed the amendments to the Employment Relations Promulgations (ERP) Bill. We agreed unanimously — government and Opposition members together — to recommend changes which complied with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions. But before these changes could be presented to Parliament, the Bill was changed overnight, without the knowledge of the Opposition members. The committee process, therefore, was just about window-dressing. A bipartisan committee had carefully considered how to achieve the best laws; the government just went ahead and did what it wanted. In a similar way, the Standing Committee on Defence and Foreign Affairs considered and issued a report that Fiji should unconditionally implement the UN Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (UNCAT). The government did not go back to the committee. Instead it moved a motion in Parliament to reject the Standing Committee’s report. So the government members of the committee were forced to vote in Parliament against their own report! Recently, the Attorney-General interfered in the work of the Standing Committee on Defence and Foreign Affairs by asking the government-appointed chair of the committee to stop deliberating on allegations of torture made by lawyer Aman Ravindra-Singh. The Attorney-General said in his view this was not the work of the committee. But his view should not guide the work of a bipartisan committee. He has an obvious interest in these allegations not being heard because they do not reflect well on his government. But Parliament — an independent institution — has no budget for independent lawyers to advise it. Draconian Media Decree The draconian Media Decree remains in force. State radio and television media organisations and the pro-government newspaper (which is rewarded by exclusive government advertising contracts), continue to deny the opposition any voice. They openly parrot government propaganda. Media organisations operate under the threat of their editors being hauled before the Media Tribunal and subjected to huge fines and other punishments. The lack of access to a free and independent media has been the single most frustrating obstacle for the opposition parties when they try to make the government publicly accountable on various national issues. The only positive thing in all this is that, as I travel around the country, I realise that the people have begun to clearly see through this facade, and the real news has begun to seep through the firewalls. The government continues to interfere in how parliamentary funding is allocated. The original allocation of funds by the secretary-general — who is supposed to be independent of the government was abruptly changed in December 2014. Under the new formula the NFP, with three MPs, gets only $45,000 per annum to run its parliamentary office and conduct its parliamentary activities. The FijiFirst party, despite the fact that half of its MPs are ministers with their own taxpayer-funded civil servants, gets the same amount per MP as the Opposition parties. In most “true democracies”, the Opposition receives a minimum amount of funding to operate on — to pay for researchers, support staff and travel. This is because “true democracy” recognises the importance of a well-resourced and informed Opposition to hold the government accountable. Unbelievably, Opposition political parties are required to apply for permits for meetings with party members and others. This makes a mockery of democracy. Why do the people’s representatives need permits to meet the people? The government, on the other hand, continues to use state resources to do roadshows, meetings and consultations. The Prime Minister seems to be on a permanent taxpayer-funded political campaign tour. This sort of political dysfunction in Fiji has a direct negative impact on the accountability and transparency of government activities. Because the government does whatever it wants and does not listen to anyone else, many of its policies and programs are poorly thought out and implemented. If they listened more to other views, the people would get better policies and services. Inconsistent economic policies In 2013, no doubt with the 2014 election in mind, the Bainimarama government started spending on everything — tuition free education, bus fare subsidies and other social welfare programs. These would be good things if we could afford them and they were delivered well. But they are certainly not delivered well. School textbooks might be free, but they are useless if they don’t reach students on time. Unbelievably, the government has messed up textbook delivery for the second year running. Now it has called in the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption (FICAC) to “investigate” its own inefficiency. Health services continue to stagnate and deteriorate with appalling standards of service in hospitals and health centres. The free medicine scheme, another worthwhile idea run badly, is turning into a disaster. Now FICAC has been called in to “investigate” drug shortages in hospitals. All of this FICAC investigating might help the ministers pass on the blame to someone else, but it is doing nothing much for the people. The Tertiary Scholarship and Loans Scheme (TELS) program continues to disenfranchise poor students and their parents by imposing debts on them which they will struggle to pay in the future. A better designed TELS and scholarship program based on means-testing would have brought about better distribution of the benefits and the burden of debt on individual households. The government of course is spending big on roads. That is a good thing, if this spending is run efficiently. Only a few days ago, the Prime Minister himself was reported demanding that the Fiji Roads Authority deliver results. If the Prime Minister is complaining, how confident can we be that these hundreds of millions of dollars are being spent well? After all, these funds don’t belong to the FijiFirst party. They belong to the taxpayers. We are the ones who will be repaying the loans taken out to build these roads, for many years to come. Based on 2013 figures, each woman, man and child in Fiji had a debt burden of about $4440. A child born today automatically inherits a debt of $4440 upon birth — before they’ve even opened their eyes, grown their first tooth or taken their first steps. This debt figure burden rises with every passing year. Government debt levels Government debt stands at about $4.4 billion which is close to 50 per cent of GDP. This means that, like any household that borrows money to spend, we are becoming too deep in debt to be able to borrow any more. The debt table below shows information government’s Budget Estimates and financial data is sourced from the website of the Ministry of Finance. These are devastating figures. Remember that government’s actual revenue figures for 2014 and 2015 will only be known next year. So the percentage of debt to actual revenue will undoubtedly increase if government’s income projections are not met (like previous years, when they have not been met). The government is very proud of its economic growth figures for 2013, 2014 and 2015 years. It is worth noting that this economic growth is much lower than in many Asian countries. But the real test of our economy will be how it grows when the government stops borrowing and spending. The government’s own projections for economic growth has been revised downwards to 3.5 per cent in 2016 and about 3 per cent in 2017 and 2018. Growing debt repayment requirements mean government has to find new sources of income to pay interest and principal every year. In the end, this can only be paid for if taxes increase or Government spending decreases. Either way, it is the people who will bear the consequences. It is the poorest people who will bear the biggest burden if Government services decline. In the 2016 budget, the FijiFirst government was forced to break its election promises. In the election they promised they would keep the policy of zero VAT on basic food items. In the 2016 budget they broke that promise. Most people see little change in their household bills and the poor people only see their costs rising. People think that the Opposition just opposes government policies and offer no alternative. But the NFP, in its manifesto, had carefully proposed a reduction in VAT to 10 percent, leaving VAT on basic food items at zero. We had a credible plan to reduce wasteful expenditure that would not have created much pain for our lowest-income households. The government recently claims that poverty has been reduced. Even if that is true, for the amount of public money it has spent, the reduction is very small. Unfortunately, the government has kept its statistics secret for so long that it is getting harder to trust their objectivity. It seems that the government will only release the statistics that show good things. But, as Professor Wadan Narsey recently pointed out in an article in The Fiji Times, all the information should be available, for everybody to see, as soon as it is ready. In that way, all of us — the government, the Opposition, NGOs and the public — can work together to achieve the best solutions. Of course these claimed reductions in poverty are before the 2016 Budget. Now the cost of basic food items has gone up, wages are not increasing and a huge number of people remain unemployed. So it is the next set of figures that will be the real test. Will the government delay releasing them if they aren’t good? Economic management in Fiji has become dictatorial, confused and inconsistent, mostly reflecting a complete lack of understanding of how business and markets work. Tax and tariff policies seem to veer in different directions in every budget, depending on which favoured businesses the government is listening to at the time. Meanwhile some businesses are being forced by the government to do business they do not want to do. For example, government is forcing private pharmacies to participate in government’s free medicine scheme, even though these pharmacies cannot even recover their costs in doing so. If the government wants services from private business it should, like the rest of us, be required to pay those businesses properly and fairly. The culture of servility and sycophancy has become so deeply ingrained under the FijiFirst government that some business people behave like obsequious fools. Few are prepared to criticise government policies. Big businesses who are benefitting from bad government policies will pay the price in the long term. Their sycophancy and servility will to perpetuate a culture of bad governance, favouritism and ill-will. If the next government does not favour them, they will be the first to be demanding good governance — but it will be too late. Deception The economic and political deception of the FijiFirst government is likely to cost the country and our people dearly. First, there is the political deception that has been created that Fiji has a “true democracy” under the 2013 Constitution. The government is forever talking about its “true democracy” — in its speeches, statements, even its advertisements. If this is “true democracy”, I wonder why it has to remind us so often? Is it because perhaps people aren’t convinced? Many of Fiji’s international partners, including the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), have called for a review of the 2013 Constitution. They know it does not promote genuine democracy. The separation of powers, the derogations in the Bill of Rights, the ouster clauses, and the existence of draconian decrees all render the Constitution undemocratic. More importantly, they make it unsustainable in the future. The dubious claim that this Constitution ensures “equal citizenry” (another favourite mantra of the government) is another deception. Just because we are now calling everyone a “Fijian” does not ensure the protection of minorities and other ethnic groups. The reality on the ground is a stark reminder to many that there is no such thing as equal citizenry. Appointments in the civil service, government boards, and other government-controlled organisations, and selective awarding of government contracts continue to be based on patronage. Recently the Fiji Sun has reported that the government is investigating staff members of Fijian Holdings Ltd (a private company) for “political agendas”. Apparently their crime is not to support the FijiFirst political agenda! In the Ministry of Education, some staff have been promoted 5-7 ranks upwards in a single sweep, bypassing many qualified and experienced people. Similar cases have been highlighted in the Health Ministry. This is a result of the lost independence of state institutions responsible for these appointments. The provision in the Constitution that all appointments below permanent secretary level will be done by the respective permanent secretaries, in consultation with the minister responsible, is a recipe for disaster. Ministers will demand senior positions for their cronies and yes-men. Already we see ministers deciding which people are recruited, promoted and sacked at their whim. The current reform of the civil service by creating a Ministry of Civil Service and removing the Public Service Commission as an independent institution responsible for the civil service, is going to spell further disaster in the future and will be difficult to reverse. Flawed economic policies, aimed mostly at looking good for politics, will cause much economic pain in the future. Fiji’s economy has grown modestly in the past few years on the back of remittances, tourism, borrowing and tax cuts. But borrowing and tax cuts are one-time tricks. After the so-called asset sales to fund spending in 2016, what will be the next rabbit that government will pull from its hat? That is when the economic pain will deepen, which will take a long time to reverse. Can we get out of this rut? It is time to change course The time for dictatorship and arrogance is over. It is now time for dialogue, it is time for bipartisanship in Parliament, it is time to free the media, and it is time to engage meaningfully with our development partners. It is time for the people to demand better. Moreover, it is time to change course. The NFP has always advocated dialogue as a means of resolving national issues and our political record shines proudly untarnished from this approach. I once again call upon the Prime Minister to shed his government’s patronising and dictatorial attitude and initiate a process of sincere dialogue on key national issues such as the review of the Constitution, a process to address the grievances of the indigenous Fijian people, the repealing of draconian decrees, and a process to address the deep concerns within the sugar industry. Telling Opposition leaders to “jump in a deep pool”, telling gay people to shift to Iceland and shackling the nation with debilitating debt is not much of a political legacy. True nationhood, common and equal citizenry can only be achieved if we work together. Reciprocity, humanity and national interest should be our guiding values if we are to succeed at bipartisanship, and not arrogance and condescension. We continue to offer our hands for bipartisanship. It is now up to the government to reciprocate with sincerity and respect, in the national interest. Dr Biman Prasad is an economist and former university professor. This article was first published in The Fiji Times on Saturday, 30 January 2016 and has been supplied to Asia Pacific Report. Two days after publication in the Times, the National Federation Party was suspended from Parliament. Fiji’s National Federation Party suspended –]]>

Fiji’s National Federation Party suspended for 30 days over accounts

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Report from Fiji Village

By Vijay Narayan in Suva

Fiji’s opposition National Federation Party has been suspended for 30 days with immediate effect for contravening the Political Parties Registration, Conduct Funding and Disclosures Decree.

The Registrar of Political Parties, Mohammed Saneem, said the NFP’s accounts were not audited by an accountant certified by the Fiji Institute of Accountants.

Saneem said this was brought to the Fijian Elections Office’s attention last December by the Fiji Institute of Accountants.

He said the Elections Office asked the company engaged by NFP if it was a registered member of the Fiji Institute of Accountants, and senior management confirmed that it was not.

Saneem said this constituted a breach of the Political Parties Decree.

The decree required the accounts to be audited by an accountant certified by the Fiji Institute of Accountants.

Saneem said the NFP had 60 days to remedy the breach or face deregistration as a political party.

During this period of suspension, the NFP could not operate, function, represent or hold itself out to be a political party.

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De Brum, Nuclear Zero lawyers nominated for Nobel Peace Prize

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Report from the International Peace Bureau

By Colin Archer in Geneva

The Oslo-based International Peace Bureau has nominated former Marshall Islands Foreign Minister Tony de Brum and the republic’s legal team for their “courageous step” in filing lawsuits against the world’s nine nuclear powers.

Under de Brun’s leadership, the republic sued the states for failing to comply with their obligations under international law seeking the elimination of nuclear weapons.

Tony de Brum was one of the four winners of last year’s Right Livelihood Award, also known as the “Alternative Nobel Prize”. The people of the Marshall Islands were joint recipients.

The IPB is dedicated to the vision of a World Without War.

We are a Nobel Peace Laureate (1910), and over the years 13 of our officers have also been recipients of the Nobel Peace Prize. Our 300 member organisations in 70 countries, and individual members, form a global network bringing together expertise and campaigning experience in a common cause.

The IPB’s full citation says:

Geneva, 26 January 2016
Norwegian Nobel Institute
Henriks Ibsens gate 51
0255 Oslo

Dear Sir/Madam

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE NOMINATION 2016: Tony de Brum and the legal team of the
Republic of the Marshall Islands.

The International Peace Bureau is pleased to convey to you its nomination for the 2016 Prize: former Foreign Minister Tony de Brum and the legal team appointed by the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) to handle its nuclear weapons cases.

On April 24, 2014, the RMI filed landmark lawsuits against the nine nuclear-armed nations for failing to comply with their obligations under international law to pursue negotiations for the worldwide elimination of nuclear weapons. As the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation underlines: “The Republic of the Marshall Islands acts for the seven billion of us who live on this planet to end the nuclear weapons threat hanging over all humanity. Everyone has a stake in this.”

The RMI has made a courageous step in challenging nine of the world’s most powerful states at the International Court of Justice. The tiny Pacific nation has launched a parallel court case against the USA at the Federal District Court. RMI argues that the nuclear weapons‐possessing countries have breached their obligations under Article VI of the Treaty on the Non‐Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) and customary international law by continuing to modernise their arsenals and by failing to pursue negotiations in good faith on nuclear disarmament.

RMI’s former Foreign Minister Tony de Brum has played the key political role in gaining support and approval for this initiative. He in turn has been supported by a highly effective legal team. De Brum and RMI have already received at least two important international prizes for their action.

The Marshall Islands were used by the USA as testing ground for nearly 70 nuclear tests from 1946 to 1958. These tests gave rise to lasting health and environmental problems for the Marshall Islanders. Their first‐hand experience of nuclear devastation and personal suffering gives legitimacy to their action and makes it especially difficult to dismiss.

The Marshall Islands are presently working hard on the court cases. Hearings on preliminary issues in the International Court of Justice will take place in March 2016, and an appellate hearing in the case in the US court will take place in 2016 or possibly 2017. The award of the Nobel Peace Prize would do much to draw public attention to this extremely important initiative and to help ensure a successful outcome.

It is certainly not the case that the RMI, with its some 53,000 inhabitants, a large proportion of whom are young people, have no need of compensation or assistance. Nowhere are the costs of a militarised Pacific better illustrated than there. The country is burdened with some of the highest cancer rates in the region following the 12 years of US nuclear tests. Yet it is admirable that the Marshall Islanders in fact seek no compensation for themselves, but rather are determined to end the nuclear weapons threat for all humanity.

The world still has around 16,000 nuclear weapons, the majority in the USA and Russia, many of them on high alert. The knowhow to build atomic bombs is spreading, largely due to the continued promotion of nuclear power technology. Presently there are 9 nuclear weapon states, and 28 nuclear alliance states; and on the other hand 115 nuclear weapons‐free zone states plus 40 non‐nuclear weapons states. Only 37 states (out of 192) are still committed to nuclear weapons, clinging to outdated, questionable and extremely dangerous ‘deterrence’ policies.

IPB has a long history of campaigning for disarmament and for the banning of nuclear weapons (www.ipb.org). The organisation was, for instance, actively involved in bringing the nuclear issue before the International Court of Justice in 1996. The IPB sincerely believes that the Marshall Islands initiative will prove to be a significant and decisive step in ending the nuclear arms race and in achieving a world without nuclear weapons.

Further details about the lawsuits and the campaign are available at www.nuclearzero.org

Yours sincerely

Colin Archer
Secretary‐General

Nuclear Zero

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Vanuatu to install tsunami signs, sirens in urban areas

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

Port Vila and Luganville will be introduced to a complete tsunami warning system by the end of this year.

This includes the installation of tsunami signage and sirens, says the Vanuatu Meteorology and Geo-Hazards Department (VMGD).

The VMGD, in partnership with stakeholders, is working hard to complete the final phase of the Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction (MDRR) Project.

Funded by the Japanese government, MDRR aims to strengthen urban planning and tsunamis preparedness in the urban areas of Vanuatu.

The project started in 2013, it comprises of three components:

Risk mapping to support urban preparedness and planning (Vt66million [NZ$884,000]);
Establishing a tsunamis warning system for Port and Luganville (Vt136.5 million[NZ$1.84 million]); and
strengthening the national advisory board on climate change and disaster risk reduction (Vt21million [NZ$281,000]).

Workshops that have been held with the municipal and provincial authorities have assisted mapping out danger zones, drawing up evacuation maps, selecting evacuation routes and signs as well as evacuation key messages.

Starting from this week until July, the project team will be carrying out consultation to communities.

According to the project coordinator, Sylvain Todman, more than 60 consultations are expected in Port Vila and Luganville before the finalisation of evacuation routes, signs location and evacuation messages.

Todman said the project is looking at installing around 500 signs in every community.

He added that the project would distribute tsunamis brochures and make available a dissemination notice board to communities that needed one.

According to VMGD staff, this tsunami warning system is also used by countries like the Philippines, Samoa, Thailand and the United States.

VMGD staff said a live exercise would be conducted in both towns once the system was installed.

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Workers Voice: TPPA protests, climate change post-Paris and Waitangi Day

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 2, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

PlanetFM

Protests against the TPPA protests, the climate change movement post-Paris 2015, and the run up to Waitangi day …

Unite Union’s Joe Carolan talks to climate activist Gary Cranston, E TU organiser Chris Rigby and the Mana Movement’s Repia Trei on this week’s Workers Voice at PlanetFM radio in Auckland.

>> Listen to PlanetFM

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11,000 plus women abused a year, reports PNG police family unit

By Asia Pacific Report -

February 1, 2016

AsiaPacificReport.nz

PNG Today/PNG TV

Up to 35 abused women go to the Boroko Family and Sexual Violence Unit a day in Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby and 90 percent of them report being raped.

This would amount to 11,479 forceful sexual penetration cases processed by the unit, on a yearly average, says Senior Constable Juliana Epe, the officer in charge.

Senior Constable Epe reported that since 2009 the intake of victimised women at her unit had staggered – and the spectrum of cases included the upper echelon of society, such as female politicians.

“We take in between 20 and 35 women a day – I have dealt with women who are managers, departmental heads, secretaries and even female ministers,” she said.

“These women survivors show up with reports of being physically assaulted, bashed up, forcefully raped – others are traumatised with scars, deep wounds on their bodies inflicted by objects and bruises on their faces,” Senior Constable Epe said.

Girls barely out of their teenage years and women old enough to retire from work had become prey to perpetrators of violence-related crimes, according to Senior Constable Epe.

“Females between the ages of 15 – 55 are what we receive, but we regularly receive women between the ages of 30 – 42 who are either single mothers or housewives and we listen carefully to their reports and establish how they would like us to assist,” she said.

Partners charged
“Most of them do want their partners charged and arrested so we assist them to acquire a protection order through the PNG Developing Lawyers Association (PNGDLA),” Senior Constable Epe said.

The number of incest cases that involved male relatives sexually penetrating their daughters or nieces had also seen a rise.

But the inability of the young victims to step forward and give evidence had proven to be a barrier that prohibited “the wheels of justice from turning”.

“Most of the cases involving children are sexual touching and sexual penetration and they are too shy to come out because the perpetrators are known to them – it could either be their father or uncle or cousin brothers,” she said.

“We send the serious cases to CID or the Sexual Offences Squad and they deal with it.

“These cases are futile if the young victim is unwilling to confirm the report and the perpetrator because who will appear in court? It’s a waste of time because it will be thrown out of court,” Senior Constable Epe explained.

She said the dangerous trend of violence-related crimes inflicted on women was increasing every year and she encouraged society to stand up against it.

“The victimised women and their families must step forward and give information as the inability to do this leads to suicides and other social problems, while the perpetrators walk free,” Senior Constable said.

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