The Island Press

Reports from the papers, compiled by John Carter

NIGHT clubs, discos and bars in Port Moresby will automatically lose their trading licences if they are found to allow sex on dance floors.

That was the warning from city man ager Mr Bill Skate yesterday.

To make sure it’s done properly, he will personally check on the city’s night spots and he will go as far as checking under the tables.

Mr Skate gave the assurances after al legations by former Forests Minister Tom Horik that night clubs were allowing people to have sex on the dance floors.

From the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier , Port Moresby AS most of the country celebrates 10 years of independence, many high level posi tions in its institutions are staffed by for eigners, a large part of its public expenditure is funded by foreign aid and much of its commercial activity is fi nanced by foreign investors who pocket most of the profit. This cannot be in the best interests of Solomon Islands.

The government should now put every effort into fostering the country’s self- re liance and autonomy. This means en couraging Solomon Island talent, so that dependence on foreign skills can be re duced. It means positive efforts to use for eign aid to create a solid base on which Solomon Islanders can build their own fu ture. It means firm control of foreign com panies who want to exploit the country’s precious natural resources for their own short-term profit.

These resources should be for future generations of Solomon Islanders to con serve and use as only they know how non-destructively and for the benefit of their own people.

From the Link , Honiara

TUVALU Centre is entering the age of technology with determination. Centre Director Margaret Pearson reports that the computer is working we 11... “it took a long time, but we finally got there.” Now the centre is waiting for required papers in or der to have its telephone equipment in stalled and to acquire a bicycle.

From the Bulletin of the University of the South Pacific, Suva THE modern age has brought the good life, including booze and tobacco, to the island nations of the South Pacific, described in books as palm-lined isles of Paradise.

But this has also changed the lifestyles of the population. They become more and more dependent on imported processed food and even rice, mostly from the US mainland and Asia.

This in turn has spawned for them selves new major health problems: non communicable ailments, particularly high blood pressure, heart attack, diabetes, cancer, obesity, tooth decay, alcoholism, gout, smoking-related diseases and child hood malnutrition.

From WHO’s Health and Development , Manila.

I WOULD like to inform all Library users that the Library doors will shut 10 minutes before closing. This is to enable staff to clear the library building before closing.

Your co-operation on this is greatly appreciated.

From The Reporter, PNG University of Technology, Lae AN extremely rare carved wooden head from Rarotonga is expected to sell for about $747,000 when it is auctioned in London next month.

This is according to reports from the United Kingdom where Polynesian arte facts, including preserved Maori (human) heads from New Zealand last century are sold for thousands of dollars.

From the Cook Islands News , Rarotonga NEARLY 100 killings for which people were tried by the National Court last year were the result of husbands beating up their wives. This was revealed by Mr Justice Woods in the National Court yesterday during the hearing of an application to re voke MP Arum Matiabe’s bail.

Mr Justice Woods made the revelation after Matiabe admitted that he used to beat up his wives “if they do not toe the line”.

From the Papua New Guinea Post-Courier , Port Moresby PRIME Minister Ezekiel Alebua has called on island nations to accept women as equal partners in development.

He said Pacific states tend to think that a woman’s role is merely to cook, rear chil dren, look after the house and take care of the husband’s needs, but not to get in volved in the affairs of the nation.

From the A7i/s, Honiara KIRIBATI students studying at the PNG University of Technology in Lae have called on the Ministry of Education in Tarawa to consider the safety of students and to think twice before sending them to study in PNG.

The call by the students was made in a letter written to the Ministry following a crime wave that had university staff and students fearing for their lives.

From the Cook Islands News , Rarotonga