CoveragePost
May 13, 2026
By Atereano Mateariki, RNZ Pacific journalist Previously it was reporting on governments or politics that brought trouble for Tonga’s journalists — now it’s reporting on drugs or gangs. Tongan journalists are coming to terms with new pressures on media freedom over reporting on the country’s drug crisis, and the role of gangs in it. This ... <a title="Tongan media faces new type of challenge, following threat" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/13/tongan-media-faces-new-type-of-challenge-following-threat/" aria-label="Read more about Tongan media faces new type of challenge, following threat">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 10, 2026
COMMENTARY: By Kalafi Moala The importance of media freedom is recognised each year globally on May 3. This year the Pacific Island country of Tonga commemorated World Press Freedom Day just a week after one of the most frightening threats to that freedom which took place at a media outlet. A hooded man brandishing a ... <a title="Tongan armed threat against journalist troubles Pacific media freedom" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/10/tongan-armed-threat-against-journalist-troubles-pacific-media-freedom/" aria-label="Read more about Tongan armed threat against journalist troubles Pacific media freedom">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 6, 2026
RNZ Pacific A female journalist in Tonga has been threatened at gunpoint following the broadcast of a news story about an Australian criminal deportee serving a life sentence in Tonga for methamphetamine importation. The incident, in which an unknown individual threatened the journalist at the Kele’a Publications office in Nuku’alofa 12 days ago — 23 ... <a title="Tongan police investigate journalist threatened at gunpoint after gang-related report" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/06/tongan-police-investigate-journalist-threatened-at-gunpoint-after-gang-related-report/" aria-label="Read more about Tongan police investigate journalist threatened at gunpoint after gang-related report">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 5, 2026
By Khalia Strong of PMN News Fiji has shot up the world rankings for press freedom but the victory feels hollow as journalists across the Pacific face a wave of court battles, police raids, and vicious online abuse. The 2026 World Press Freedom Index, released last Thursday by Reporters Without Borders, shows Fiji climbing to ... <a title="Fiji’s media win in World Press Freedom Index overshadowed by threats and court summons" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/05/fijis-media-win-in-world-press-freedom-index-overshadowed-by-threats-and-court-summons/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji’s media win in World Press Freedom Index overshadowed by threats and court summons">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
By Stefan Armbruster of Pasifika TV Fiji has recorded a dramatic jump in its media freedom rating to be in the top 25 nations globally while Samoan government press restrictions have seen its rating plummet in the latest World Press Freedom Index. Advocacy group Reporters Sans Frontières (RSF) said globally it was the first time ... <a title="Fiji jumps, Samoa plunges in World Press Freedom Index" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/fiji-jumps-samoa-plunges-in-world-press-freedom-index/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji jumps, Samoa plunges in World Press Freedom Index">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
May 4, 2026
RNZ Pacific Fiji has recorded the biggest improvement in the Pacific in the 2026 World Press Freedom Index, rising to 24th out of 180 countries. The index has been compiled and published by global media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) since 2002. Papua New Guinea moved up slightly on the index to 73rd. But Samoa ... <a title="Fiji climbs to 24th in World Press Freedom Index, biggest gain in the Pacific" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/05/04/fiji-climbs-to-24th-in-world-press-freedom-index-biggest-gain-in-the-pacific/" aria-label="Read more about Fiji climbs to 24th in World Press Freedom Index, biggest gain in the Pacific">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
April 18, 2026
The Pacific Islands Forum troika Leaders have agreed to activate the Biketawa Declaration, placing the region on a co-ordinated high alert framework to respond to the unfolding global energy security crisis. The declaration was made by the leaders of the Solomon Islands, Tonga and Palau following discussions in Nadi, Fiji, on Friday in light of ... <a title="Pacific Forum responds to current global fuel and energy challenges" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/18/pacific-forum-responds-to-current-global-fuel-and-energy-challenges/" aria-label="Read more about Pacific Forum responds to current global fuel and energy challenges">Read more</a>
CoveragePost
March 17, 2026
RNZ Pacific Pacific Island governments are urging their citizens not to panic about the supply of fuels amid the conflict in the Middle East between Israel, the United States and Iran. The conflict has resulted in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping route that carries around 20 percent of the world’s ... <a title="Pacific governments warn against panic buying as war on Iran threatens fuel supply" class="read-more" href="https://eveningreport.nz/2026/03/17/pacific-governments-warn-against-panic-buying-as-war-on-iran-threatens-fuel-supply/" aria-label="Read more about Pacific governments warn against panic buying as war on Iran threatens fuel supply">Read more</a>
