Press

From the

Islands

From the Office of Samoan Information’s News Bulletin,

Pago Pago, American Samoa

Our ancestors have suggestive names for certain stars and constellations. Some of these are still remembered by many not-so-old folk still in Samoa. Mars is called Mata-memea or red face; Sirius is Telegese or slow-moving; Pleides is LVi whence the name for chief, ali’i; the Great Bear is the A nava or war club; the Morning Star is Fetu Aoot daylight star; and Jupiter is Tupua !e Case or undying idol.. . One of the dreaded stars is the Taelo :>r stinking striker. The star appears bright red in color, twinkles constantly, and has a jagged appearance at the edges. When this star is visible and it rarely is our ancestors would say that Samoa is sure to be soon stricken by a severe hurricane. It is relieved that the Taelo appeared a few days before the big lurricane of 1889 and also shortly before the destructive one in lanuary 1966 ...

Tom Pitcairn Miscellany

Tom its earliest days of settlement women have played a very mportant part in the life of Pitcairn. This was recognised 140 fears ago, when in 1838, male and female Islanders over the age )f 18 years were given a vote in selecting an Island Magistrate ind Council. This was some 91 years before women in Britain

vere given the vote ...

Tom Ailans Nius, Rabaul, PNG . . Spectators caused the game not to end at the right time >ecause they were abusing the referee; so he stopped the match ibout two minutes before the end ...

Lpeli Hau’ofa writing about Tonga in the Tohi Tala Niue, amenting ‘Our crowded island’ dutton flaps from New Zealand, second-hand clothes and shoes rom America, and karate films from Hong Kong, are minor xamples of the kinds’of imported rubbish with which we have ittered our country. We are polluting desecrating and destroying /hat we already have through our misdirected aspirations. As ar as I can see, our only hope for a reasonable future lies in fie reversal of the present trends and an eventual return to the ind of Tonga we know and love: a country of small, contented nd united populations; and a nation of men and women who fiink of themselves as being abundantly endowed by the

dmighty.

Tom Hailans Nius, PNG, report on attack on a Mount

lagen resident

. . A programme is planned and will probably be carried out is soon as possible whereby each employed person will be issued vith an identification card. Anyone from another province who las no identification card will be classed as a vagrant and resumed to have no employment, and so would be asked to leave

the province. Another measure which may also be instituted is a midnight curfew, and anyone seen on the streets after midnight each night could be arrested by police . ..

From News Drum, Solomon Islands Sir Frederick Osifelo has resigned as Speaker of the National Parliament... Sir Frederick said there was no ulterior motive about his resignation, i am simply acting within the new constitution which says that the Speaker . . . cannot hold two jobs.

At present I am Chairman of the Public Service Commission and I wish to remain in that job for which lam paid’... He explained that he was only working voluntarily as Speaker. This was because under the old constitution it was not a paid job. ‘But under the new constitution the Speaker ... is a full time paid job.’ ... If the National Parliament wanted to re-elect him as Speaker he would

be willing to accept. ..

From a caption in the PNG government Office of Information Hiri Lae shop assistant, Gessy Augustine, found it hard to believe that the 50 mark note she is holding could be worth about K6OOO but once convinced of its value, she decided she would be happy if someone gave it to her. There is not much chance of that because the note, put out by the Australian authorities during the occupation of German New Guinea in 1974 . . .

Leading article in PNG Post-Courier Get that sinking feeling! Come to Paradise and submerge yourself in beauty. Sneak along under the Solomon Sea in a sub! No jokes please! The proposal that Air Niugini could become the first airline in the world to operate a submarine isn’t subterfuge. It’s a suggestion of real substance, the best to surface in years .. . Let’s hope the government doesn’t torpedo this brilliantly subtle

suggestion.

From a leading article in the Samoa Times, Apia, Western Samoa Surely one of the best speeches made in the assembly recently was that of Mrs Sina Annandale. At least, this is the belief of several political observers. What distinguishes the speech is its outspoken criticism of certain government shortcomings especially in the agricultural area. We feel that more such speeches is healthy for the growth of democracy in Samoa. Too often people don’t speak out the truth when they should be, at least the truth as they see it...

PNG Post-Courier's contribution to the 'submarine' debate.