Vanuatu earthquake death toll rises to 14 as rescuers continue search
Updated: 11:15am (AEDT) Wellington, New Zealand Reuters Rescuers in Vanuatu on Wednesday searched for people still trapped after a 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck the Pacific nation’s capital Port Vila on Tuesday, killing 14 people, and damaging reservoirs, commercial buildings, embassies and a hospital. At least 200 people are being treated for injuries at the capital’s […]
Pacific delegation says collaboration needed in troubled New Caledonia
Reuters Three Pacific Islands leaders on a fact-finding visit to New Caledonia heard divided views on the cause of deadly riots that erupted in May, as the region’s diplomatic group seeks to support efforts to de-escalate tensions in the French Pacific territory. The Pacific Islands Forum said on Facebook on Wednesday that the delegation, including […]
Pacific Islands endorse $A400 million regional policing plan
Sydney, Australia Reuters Leaders of several Pacific Islands said on Wednesday they have endorsed an Australian-funded $A400 million plan to improve police training and create a mobile regional policing unit, as Canberra looks to reduce China’s security footprint in the area. The leaders of Tonga, Fiji, Palau and Papua New Guinea said the programme would […]
Fiji’s king-maker party set to meet on coalition agreement as military remains on call
Wellington, New ZealandReuters Fiji’s Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA) is due to meet on Friday to decide if its decision to form a coalition with the opposition stands, a move that comes after the Pacific country’s military was called in to help police maintain law and order. Fiji is waiting for its president to recall […]
Fiji military called in to ‘help maintain order’ after disputed election
Reuters Fiji’s military will help police maintain law and order, Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama said on Thursday, citing growing concerns of ethnic tension after an election last week resulted in a hung parliament. The Pacific island nation, which has a history of military coups, has been pivotal to the region’s response to the competition between […]
Fiji’s ruling party leads provisional count after national election
Reuters The ruling Fiji First party led provisional national election results, boosted by a 31.42 per cent vote for Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, with half of polling stations counted in the Pacific island nation after Wednesday’s vote. Bainimarama, who came to power in a coup 16 years ago, is contesting his third democratic election since […]
Fiji heads to national election on Wednesday
Sydney, Australia Reuters Fiji, a Pacific island nation pivotal to the region’s response to strategic competition between China and the United States, will hold a national election on Wednesday, the third since its leader came to power in a coup in 2006. Under Fijian election laws, a media blackout on campaign coverage was imposed on […]
“Time is up”: Countries trapped in climate crisis raise alarm at UN
United Nations Reuters Countries on the front lines of the climate crisis are fed up. During the annual gathering of world leaders at the United Nations this week, low-lying island nation Vanuatu stepped up a fight to get the world to focus on combating global warming by calling for a fossil fuel nonproliferation treaty. “The […]
Fiji, moving villages inundated by rising seas, wants big emitters to pay
Serua, Fiji Reuters Boats moor next to living rooms on Fiji’s Serua Island, where water breaches the seawall at high tide, flooding into the village. Planks of wood stretch between some homes, forming a makeshift walkway as saltwater inundates gardens. Village elders always believed they would die here on prized land where their chiefs are […]
“No place like home”: Climate change threatens Fiji’s rugby nursery
Namakatula, Fiji Reuters The white sands of Namatakula have nurtured generations of world-class rugby talent but rising sea levels threaten to force the abandonment of the palm-fringed village on Fiji’s Coral Coast within a few years. The village is deemed “at risk” by Fiji’s government and headman Josevata Nagausaukula contemplates a future in which children […]