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 […]
Kiribati moving towards authoritarianism, former President warns
Sydney, Australia Reuters The Pacific island nation of Kiribati is moving towards authoritarianism, its former President said in an interview on Wednesday, after the government suspended all judges from its appeal and high courts. Kiribati withdrew from the regional bloc, the Pacific Island Forum, in July, with China denying it had influenced the decision by […]
“Not worth the risk”: Palau, Fiji call for deep-sea mining moratorium
Lisbon, Portugal Reuters Concerned about the potential impacts of deep-sea mining on ocean biodiversity, the Pacific islands of Palau and Fiji on Monday launched an “alliance” to call for a moratorium of the nascent industry. The backing of a moratorium comes amid a wave of global interest in deep-sea mining but also growing pressure from […]
“Death sentence”: low-lying nations implore faster action on climate at UN
United Nations Reuters Faced with what they see as an existential threat, leaders from low-lying and island nations implored rich countries at the United Nations General Assembly this week to act more forcefully against a warming planet. The failure by developed economies to effectively curb their greenhouse gas emissions contributes to rising sea levels and […]
More than 200,000 people attend evangelistic festival in Colombia
More than 200,000 people were reached in the Colombian capital city of Bogotá during a recent city-wide campaign featuring US evangelist Andrew Palau, according to organisers. The campaign, which culminated in a mass rally on the night of Sunday, 19th August, came 52 years after Palau’s father, Luis Palau, held his first historic major evangelistic […]