Letters

TUvaluan struggle continues

I read with interest Michael Field’s article “Leadership Struggle On Tuvalu” (PIM February 1998) and congratulate him on giving a balanced perspective of the particular issues in Tuvalu.

An aspect which was mentioned and covered in other news media concerns Prime Minister Bikeni Paeniu’s reactions to allegations of sexual immoral behaviour on a male youth from his own con stituency. As a Tuvaluan, I find Paeniu’s passive reaction to these allegations noteworthy, especially the absence of a counter charge in court to clear his good name. It is shameful and unforgiving for a Tuvaluan to be accused of such allegations. It is more distaste ful and utterly unacceptable for society to accept such a leader.

A few months ago, a senior Tuvaluan civil servant resigned in protest from the public service, giving a litany of alleged nepo tism and corruption on Paeniu’s part. Throughout the letter which was openly and widely circulated, Paeniu was continually labelled as a person who is allegedly indulging in the very acts that he was previously alleged to have committed. So far Paeniu has remained

relatively quiet.

Recently a complaint was filed with the police in Tuvalu, alleg ing sexual wrong-doings between Paeniu and one of his former male security officers. Surely, it is about time for Paeniu to clear his name as the “consummate politician”. Efforts in the past to bring justice to the allegations of Paeniu’s sexual assault were not “political ploys”, but were genuine concerns for the status, digni ty and integrity of the high office held.

Tinitini Taulakoa

Cowrie Street, Suva, Fiji

Picturing a rain forest I read with interest your cover story on logging in the March issue of PIM but even at this late stage feel I should make some comment on it. My faith in the reliability of your reporting was shaken by your choice of illustration. Your story was about log ging in PNG and Solomon Islands in the indigenous rain forest, yet every picture clearly showed logging operations in pine plan tations in Fiji.

Surely you must have been able to get some more appropriate pictures. If you can’t get the pictures right, how much credence should we give to the text?

Andrew Tolfts

Regional Forestry Coordinator Port Vila, Vanuatu, SW. Pacific.

Sporting statistics lacking

For the past few years, I have been researching the different international sporting events held in the Pacific area including the South Pacific Games, Mini South Pacific Games, Pacific Ocean Games, and the Micronesian Games.

Living here in Las Vegas has made it difficult to find informa tion about this subject. This is the main reason why I subscribed to PIM. I hope your coverage of the Micronesian Games will be belter than the recently held and as you said poorly Mini South Pacific Games. ' J 1 would hope you could possibly mention in PIM that I am in need for information and statistics concerning all these games, especially statistics on Final Medal Counts for the 1989 Mini

Games held in Tonga and 1995 South Pacific Games held in Tahiti.

I have written several letters to many different contacts. I hope one of your readers just may have the information I need.

Mike Gregory

981 Whitney Ranch Dr. #1727 Henderson, NV 89014. USA

Jenny in Wonderland?

Believe it or not, Jenny Ripley, er Shipley, chief executive and captain of the National New Zealand Dream, er Steam Party, has come up with a brilliant concept - a code of social responsibility! Donation boxes have been placed in selected banks encour aging the populace to support their local police station and volunteers now answer the phones. (Now that’s Law and Order for you!) With the closing of Psychiatric and

other Public Hospitals and the suggestion that our defence forces be moved away from Devonport and transferred to Canberra, New Zealanders can be proud that the Good Ship New Zealand is firm ly on course. The elements of Earth, Air, Fire and Water are now being privatised and the people are indeed thrilled to be living in Jenny's Wonderland of Social Enlightenment!

The Fire Service Commission announced on May 7 that it was sacking its entire front-line workforce of 1575 firefighters. The Minister of Infernal, er Internal Affairs Jack Elder said the gov

emment backed the service and “all New Zealand families should welcome the changes”. Meanwhile firefighters have warned the public to make sure their garden hoses were connected.

Martin Leo,

Otahuhu, NZ

New hotel in the Cooks?

I am a student at Deakin University in Geelong and would be most grateful for any information on the drama concerning the building of a new hotel complex (possibly the Sheraton) in the Cook Islands. I believe this project has had a chequered history and the information would assist me greatly in completing a cur rent anthropological assignment. I am basically investigating whether tourism aids or hinders development of Pacific Island countries.

F. French,

Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.

Aggie’s heritage established

Thank you for publishing my earlier letter and I thank all those people who wrote to me. As a result I have been able to establish that Aggie Gray’s father William John Swann was bom at Corby (now Corby Glenn) in Lincolnshire and that her grandfather James Butler Swann was bom at Carlton le Moorland, which is also in Lincolnshire.

Dr John Ketteringham

Lincoln, England