Pacific Islands Monthly

Vol. 66 No. 3 ( Mar. 1, 1996)
1996-03-01 · uncorrected OCR from NLA scans

PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY INSIDE: VANUATU PM RESIGNS NAURU'S NEWEST PRESIDENT TALKS MARCH 1996

Is France Developing A

New Nuclear Warhead?

Dwwaißi rmwt irwrls mi American Samoa SUS2.SO: Australia 5A3.50: Cook Islands SNZ3: Fiji 5F2.50 Vat incl; FS Micronesia SUSS: Kiribati 5A2.50; Nauru 5A2.50: Niue SNZ3: Norfolk SA3; New Caledonia cpf2so: New Zealand 5NZ3.45 incl GST; Northern Marianas SUS 3; Papua New Guinea K 3; Palau SUS 3; Marshall Islands SUSS; Solomon Islands SA3; French Polynesia cpf 300; Tonga P 3; USA SUS 3; Vanuatu VT22O; Western Samoa T 3.25. These are recommended retail prices only.

BOUGAINVILLE CRISIS • SUPERLEAGUE • JONAH LOMU'S BIG DEAL

TELIKOM Papua New Guinea , m * i ( . --T mj r -«. v£i;V '"■JUft 11 : «pa A m J * I:> ■' : j ts .;i - i nntnumiimmm ’ L :i * -J : ii ife N :: ; 3 : -*3 i %-i t** ss 0 iSSSS*! s» '■.

Telikom has set the pace in providing state-of-the-art telecommunications links within PNG and to anywhere around the world as we enter the 21st Century. For all your telecommunications needs, write to us at this address: Assistant General Manager Telikom Marketing Department P.O. Box 291 Waigani, Papua New Guinea Tel: 675 300 5564 Fax: 675 300 5540 TELIKOM Houj we'te neaUif, taikUvcj,!

Carer by: GRAPHIC SYSTEMS PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY Vol. 66 No. 3

The News Magazine

MARCH 1996 PUBLISHER: Brian O’Flaherty EDITOR: Debbie Singh SENIOR WRITER: Sophie Foster CORRESPONDENTS: David North, Sam Vulum Ian Williams, Liz Thompson, Atama Raganivatu, Wally Hiambohn, Patrick Decloitre, and Chris Peteru COLUMNISTS: David Barber (Wellington), Futa Helu (Tonga), Jemima Garrett (Sydney), Alfred Sasako (The Forum).

ADVERTISING SALES: Manager - Ashok Lai Regional Sales - South Pacific Shailendra Kumar Tel(679) 304111, 303429, Fax (679) 303809.

Sydney, Canberra: Bob Hill Media Representation, Tel (61-2) 4164245, Fax (61-2) 4165064.

Brisbane: Jane Fewings Media and Advertising Associates Tel (61-7) 378 4522, Fax (61-7) 878 1071.

Adelaide: Hastwell Williamsons Representatives, Tel (61-8) 3799522, Fax (61-8) 3799735.

Melbourne: Brown Orr Fletcher Burrows (Aust) Pty Ltd.

Tel (61-3) 8265188, Fax (61-3) 8265644.

Auckland: McKay & Bowman, International Media Representatives Limited, Tel (64-9) 4190561, Fax (64-9) 4192243.

Japan: Universal Media Corporation, Tokyo, Tel (3) 3266626741, Cable: UNI-MEDIA Tokyo, Fax (3) 32626742.

Pacific Islands Monthly was founded in 1930 (USPS 9522480).

A Fiji Times Limited production.

Cover prices are recommended retail only. Registered by Australia Post, Publication No. NBP1210. © Copyright Fiji Times Limited, 177 Victoria Parade, Suva, Fiji.

Tel (679) 304111. Fax (679) 303809.

Pacific Islands Monthly is published monthly by Fiji Times Limited, a division of Nationwide News, 2 Holt Street, Surry Hills, Sydney, NSW 2010.

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Typeset and printed by The Fiji Times Limited, 177 Victoria Parade, Suva, Fiji.

INSIDE 6 COVER: Why did France conduct its latest spate of nuclear tests in the face of international opposition? A damning report tells why. 4: Letters 10: The price of French arrogance 13: Kava's growing concern 14: Will Forbes make a difference? 20: Shipping saga extraordinaire 23: Back to square one 25: Survival day 28: Stepping into the boy's club 32: Rebirth of a nation 42: Security tight on Bougainville 44: Porgera's pollution 56: A trip back in time SPORTS 48: Raiders almost rammed 50: Annihilation in Adelaide 52: The year of the Lam 54: Jonah Lomu's big deal VIEWS Alfred Sasako: Window of opportunity David Barber: A different kind of apartheid 3 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Forum Fisheries Agency

VACANCY

Network Administrator

Applications are invited for the position of Network Administrator for the South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) based in Honiara, Solomon Islands.

FFA is a regional organisation established to co-ordinate regional fisheries policies and to promote the development of fisheries resources to ensure that maximum benefits are achieved by the peoples of the South Pacific region from their fisheries. FFA has a membership of sixteen South Pacific countries and currently employs 50 staff. The work of the Agency is partitioned into five functional work areas (programmes): Economics & Marketing; Monitoring, Control & Surveillance; Legal Services; Information & Technology; and Corporate Services.

The Network Administrator comes under the Information & Technology Programme. Terms of Reference:- # Maintain the operational integrity of the FFA head quarters's Local Area Network (LAN) and stand alone PC based work stations, including the installation of operating systems software and applications software; # Responsible for the maintenance and support of FFA net's (FFA wide area network) electronic mail services. This includes Internet and MS Mail post offices both at FFA headquarters, and in island member countries; # Responsible for all system administration under the supervision from the Senior Analyst Programmer. This involves maintaining proper backups for network file servers and UNIX hosts, systems documentation, and providing status reports on major computing equipment; # Responsible for the proper operations of FFA Information & Technology Maintenance Agreements and Contracts, and develop good working relations with the Maintenance Contract Administration and Support personnel; # Assist with the installation of satellite communication network equipment, and the training of satellite terminal operators in FFA member countries; # Provide appropriate response to requests for assistance from FFA staff in relation to the operation of the LAN, stand alone work stations and satellite based communications equipment; # Undertake other duties as directed; Applicants should have: # Appropriate tertiary qualifications in Computer Science and/or Data Communications; # Experience in UNIX and Windows operating systems, network and Internet; # An ability to work as part of a small inter-disciplinary team and to Supervise staff; # An ability to work without detailed direction and meet deadlines under difficult circumstances; Salary range is U 5526,258 pa to U 5537,450 pa (base). The appointee will be based in Honiara, Solomon Islands, but will be required to travel occasionally, mainly within the South Pacific region. For those recruited from outside of Solomon Islands, salary is tax-free in the Solomon Islands. Remuneration package includes base salary, location allowance, housing allowance, child education allowance, limited medical insurance covers, recreation leave, and superannuation.

Applicants should detail their education and employment background with particulars of three referees with whom the applicant has been associated in a professional capacity for at least two years. All applications should be addressed to: The Director, South Pacific Forum Fisheries Agency, Box 629, Honiara, Solomon Islands. Email address; ualer@ffa.gov.sb; Phone: (677) 21124; Fax: (677) 23995. CLOSING DATE IS 31 MARCH 1996.

An information package is available upon request which will be posted.

LETTERS Truth Madam, The truth is as rare as a Stradivarius.

Illusions abound and are various - political hijinks, offensive explosions peculiar letters and abstract notions.

Crazy behaviour between “us and them” (that’s indeed where all troubles stem!) No matter the reason for its display, the ego it seems must have its own way.

As politicians strut with excuses lame, humanity suffers the warmongers game.

In the nightmare - men, women and children scream, but money and power the plutocrats dream.

In their reign of madness they divide and rule. But at heart they are indeed a fool - for in seeing all as “others” - they murder their very own brothers!

Martin Leo

Otahuhu New Zealand.

Rugby union Madam, I am one of your regular readers.

Recently in your issue, Vol. 65 No. 12, lad year you gave excellent coverage in sport about the involvement of Pacific Islmders particularly Samoans, Tongans anl Fijians in New Zealand Rugby Union.

What really interests me the most, is one of the team-mates, a Samoan by the nane of Danny Kaleopa. The surname somds like my great-grandfather’s name, Kaeoba, who has descendants in Samoa.

I, herefore, believe that I am related to hin, and would very much like to correspcnd with him. I would be very grateful if you could provide me with his address ant where I could contact him. n case we are not related, then I would reqiest any contact with the descendants of lareoba (an I-Kiribati crew) in Samoa.

Roreti Eritai

CGV/EBS ? O Box 265 likenibeu "arawa lIRIBATI 4 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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SIGNATURE NAME ADDRESS Post to The Fiji Times, G.P.O. Box 1167, Suva, Fiji, or Fax (679) 303809.

Friends Madam, I am building great hopes on this letter to you and I hope this request will be successful.

I hope to find, through your publication, penfriends among the population of the Pacific islands.

My name is Serge Romagnan, I am a 35-year-old French man. I was bom on October 9, 1959, in Nice, which is situated in the South-east of France, along the Mediterranean sea, near the borders of Italy and the principality of Monaco.

I am working as legal adviser for the Health Ministry.

My hobbies and interests are varied, I like collecting postcards, stamps, phone cards, coins and banknotes. I also like reading, music, films, sports, travelling, films, corresponding and languages. I am member of Greenpeace France and for this reason too I feel very interested in having friends in the Pacific islands.

Besides French and English, I can write in Spanish, Italian and Russian.

I would like to know about all the countries in the Pacific and will do my best to help others have a better knowledge of the real France, not the one of Chirac.

Serge Romagnan

Residence Les Tulipes 94 Avenue Raol Dufy 06200 Nice France Other letters From The Fiji Times , Suva Norplant concerns With surprise I have read the positive reception by Fijian clinics of the contraception Norplant.

I am not an expert on contraceptives but I know about the heated debates and the strong opposition by many European woman’s health organisations regarding Norplant. The side-effects experienced by women seem to be serious.

Moreover, some women have experienced that it is not easy at all to get the capsules removed. One woman underwent six attempts and after that was told that one of the six 34mm capsules will remain in her arm indefinitely.

In the UK 30 women have formed the Norplant Action Group to sue the distributors of the drug. Another negative connotation with Norplant stems from the enthusiasm with which it is used by suppressive regimes as forced birth control.

In some countries, Norplant capsules are implanted in women belonging to an unwanted minority, without the approval of the woman concerned.

The Indonesian authorities have stated that Norplant is an ideal contraceptive for the women in West Papua (Irian Jaya) because they are branded as too primitive to understand and use other methods of birth control.

I hope that the ones responsible for the introduction of Norplant in Fiji are well aware of the problems associated with the drug and that their decision is based on serious and objective contemplation.

Evelien Van Den Broek

Lami Fiji Sea turtles 1995 marked the passing of an important year, the Year of the Sea Turtle.

We have leamt what a great creature of the land and sea it is. For us, they may appear old and wise, slow but sure. But just how sure is its future?

In a year from now, are Fijians going to remember there was a moratorium on the taking or killing of sea turtles? Are those who inhabit these shores going to say no to the unnecessary slaughter of this now endangered species?

Under present legislation, taking or killing of sea turtles is prohibited during November to February. At the end of this sea turtles will again be vulnerable and killing will be permitted.

The Fijian law needs to be reviewed to impose a ban to protect turtles from annihilation.

Julie Sutherland

Lami Suva 5 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY-MARCH 1996 LETTERS

Cover Stories

Is France developing a new nuclear warhead?

By Alfred Sasako In January France ended more than three decades of using the South Pacific as a test site for its nuclear weapons programme. It seems it has now gathered the necessary data to enable it to switch to computer simulation.

At least, that’s the pretext France has used to conduct the tests.

But no one, except the French, will ever know the truth behind the necessity of the tests when computer simulation can easily perform such a role.

Paris’ comprehensive nuclear testing programme began in the mid 1960’s when it abandoned a similar programme in Africa.

Since 1966, it has been carrying out both its atmospheric and underground tests at the Pacific Experiment Centre (CEP) at Mururoa, France’s idyllic, windswept outpost in the South Pacific.

The first atmospheric test with a yield of 200 kilotons was conducted on a barge inside the tranquil waters of Mururoa lagoon on July 2, 1966. The second, with a similar yield, was detonated by an aircraft at an unknown altitude, about 85 kilometres east of Mururoa.

However, following severe international criticism, Paris called off the atmospheric tests and switched to underground testing in 1971.

By January 29 this year, when France finally announced the end of its nuclear testing programme, it had detonated more than 180 devices on both Mururoa and Fangataufa Atolls.

Of these, 41 were atmospheric tests undertaken within a eight-year period up to 1974. At least 11 of these blasts had an average yield of 1000 kilotons, according to figures released by the French Defence Ministry last July.

By comparison, the yield (force) of the bombs France used in the Pacific are six times more powerful than those dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki some 50 years ago.

Paris continues to insist its nuclear test programme is intended to perfect its nuclear system for its submarine fleet and to ensure the condition of its stockpiles are in a state of readiness and accuracy.

According to the French, this cannot be ascertained by computer simulation, hence the necessity to conduct the tests.

Death in disguise...protesting against 6 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY-MARCH 1996

However, reports state the power of France’s last test may have put the finishing touches to the development of a new nuclear warhead.

The French military shunned suggestions to this effect.

But despite the denial, experts are less convinced.

One of these experts is Dr Patricia Lewis, Director of the Verification Technology Information Centre in London.

Lewis appeared before a recent European parliamentary public hearing on nuclear testing. Her damning conclusion was contained in a report prepared by the former Prime Minister of Tuvalu, Bikenibeu Paeniu, who represented the South Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) at the hearing.

The conclusion by Lewis is that, “it is possible for the French to obtain the data they need for the development of their nuclear warheads from computer simulations without doing any more tests.”

According to Lewis, all that the French need to know could easily be obtained by feeding data obtained from previous tests into a computer. In other words, there is no need to continue the tests because scientific technology available today could simply do the job.

When asked why France insisted on conducting its nuclear weapons tests in the face of international condemnation, she said: “perhaps the French are developing a completely new nuclear warhead.”

As far as Lewis is concerned, this seems to be the only laudable explanation for France’s act of defiance and arrogance.

“There is really no need for a final series of tests now that computers can simply do the job,” Lewis was quoted as saying.

Given the fact that France has conducted more than 180 tests including 41 atmospheric tests on Mururoa and Fangataufa, there certainly is sufficient data lying about somewhere.

And so cynicism abounds. For instance, no one doubts the ingenuity of the French mind. Its advances in modem technology are beyond question. To suggest that France is lagging behind in computer technology, and therefore it needs to conduct the tests “manually”, is akin to suggesting that the Chinese are still learning to grow rice.

So it seems the truth behind the French 1995/96 series of nuclear tests will forever remain shrouded in state secrecy, except to the French establishment.

Resumption of French nuclear tests in the South Pacific last September stirred a shockwave of anger around the world.

In the Pacific, the South Pacific Forum was swift in its action to respond to France’s second test last October 2 by suspending France from its annual Post- Forum Dialogue Partners.

The upcoming South Pacific Forum in Majuro, Marshall Islands later this year, will decide whether to allow France back in.

In Europe, the resumption of French nuclear testing prompted the European parliament to summon, for the first time, its five committees to convene a public hearing on nuclear tests. Immediately, the committee on environment, public health and consumer protection; committee on social affairs and employment; committee on development and co-operation; committee on research technological development and energy and committee on foreign affairs and security, swung into action.

Their objective was to ascertain from the experts, the necessity for the nuclear tests, its impact on health and the environment. It was also intended to come up with long-term measures to deal with its adverse effects, especially on humans and the environment.

But unknown to many in the Pacific, the week-long hearing has uncovered what many in the region have hitherto only suspected, as far as the health of the people of Tahiti and their environment is concerned.

Up to 500 people packed the European parliament building in Brussels daily.

Experts spoke on the effects of nuclear testing on health and the environment while military-minded experts, defended the French nuclear test programme.

Of the three French experts invited to appear before the hearing, only one made it. Commander Jacques Cousteau was to have spoken on the impact (of nuclear tests) on developing countries, with special emphasis on the tourism industry and [?]rench nuclear tests in the Pacific 7

Cover Stories

PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY-MARCH 1996

Alain Barthoux, Director of Testing in Paris, was to have been a co-speaker (with Lewis) on real tests versus simulations.

Pierre Lellouche, a former member of the French National Assembly and former staff of the French Institute for International Relations in Paris was the only Frenchman who appeared before the hearing. He vigorously defended the French government’s decision to conduct the tests.

His cohort, who spoke in favour of the French nuclear testing programme, was a Colonel Andrew Duncan, a retired member of the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

He argued the tests were necessary to enable France to “explicitly arrive at an accurate and reliable nuclear warhead.”

Because of the rising anti-nuclear crusade in Europe, the European parliament also authorised two missions to visit both Paris and Tahiti prior to the hearing.

Janssen, a spokesperson for the second European Commission fact-finding mission which visited French Polynesia and Paris in September, was the first to appear before the hearing.

He told the hearing the mission was refused permission to look at the results of a number of tests and experiments both in Paris and Tahiti.

The mission was also refused access to a range of data and information relating to the series of nuclear tests. The reason was military secrecy.

Members of the mission were “rushed through” other facilities that they were able to see, according to him.

Janssen concluded his mission’s findings were not complete “due to lack of full co-operation from the French authorities both in Paris and Tahiti.”

But the findings of an earlier mission to Tahiti were an eye-opener.

The July mission was sent to investigate the health status of the local population and the impact on the environment and to determine any correlation with French nuclear testing in nearby Mururoa and Fanagataufa.

On health, the mission found: • a serious lack of information on public health; • no epidemiological data on the local population of French Polynesia since the start of nuclear testing; • the last epidemiology study on the local population was conducted in 1965; • no cancer register had been kept by France since the start of nuclear testing, only when health was transferred to the territorial government was one started; • the mission was refused information on the number of cases of cancer of the thyroid gland; • the people of Tahiti want close surveillance of exposure of the local population to radiation; • ciguatera (fish poisoning) has increased dramatically since the start of nuclear testing - about 5000 cases per year, indirectly linked to nuclear testing; • there is evidence of social disorder caused by immigration to Papeete, the main island of Tahiti, from the atolls, resulting in high unemployment rates.

Overall, the mission found it difficult to conclude that nuclear testing in French Polynesia was harmless and strongly recommended a “long-term surveillance of the health status of the local population of Tahiti.”

It also found that the impact of nuclear testing on the environment is equally damaging.

According to its report, “even if the testing is stopped tomorrow, there is the need to monitor the test sites in order to determine volcanic and tidal wave activities and such monitoring should be carried out on a long-term basis.”

It said the United States and the United Kingdom shifted their tests away from atolls because they found the structural integrity of the atolls are not safe for uiderground testing.

The mission also stated that since the stirt of nuclear testing on Mururoa, landsides and compaction have occurred substintially causing 50 per cent of the atoll to shk.

It said the volcanic stability of the atoll hts been greatly disturbed with 78 per cent bcreholes dug under the subterrain of Miruroa. This could cause overlap of the fisures caused by the blasts.

“Mururoa Atoll is now more fragile thn ever and very unstable. This could crate a massive tsunami (tidal wave) sbuld the landslide continue,” mission fond.

“There is strong possibility that radoactive isotopes could leak into the su rounding ocean due to the overlap of fisures from the boreholes, and contaminae the food chain.”

Other experts who appeared before the heiring spoke of the lack of data on the hedth status of French Polynesians who art working on the test sites.

They agreed with the conclusion by the World Health Organisation (WHO) that it is mpossible to say that nuclear testing is hamless to human health.

Former Prime Minister Paeniu who alsD spoke at the hearing, made particular reference to the effects of nuclear testing ontourism in the South Pacific.

But a Vanuatu travel agency reported hadng to cancel 20,000 bookings for Taliti immediately after the rioting in Papeete last September.

In Fiji, where tourism is the number one foreign exchange earner, there was widespread concern when tourist arrivals from Japan reportedly fell by 30 per cent because of fear of radiation fallouts from the French nuclear tests.

To allay these fears, the Fiji Visitors Bureau mounted a special promotional drive in Japan last October, in a bid to assure travel agents and tour wholesalers that Fiji is relatively safe from nuclear fallouts.

Whether real or imagined, tourists’ fears appear to confirm what many island leaders dread; sooner or later, the islanders will begin paying heavily for France’s arrogance. B 8

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PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Asian Development Bank-Japan

Scholarship Program

Qualified citizens of member countries of the Asian Development Bank, who intend to pursue post-graduate studies in selected disciplines are invited to apply for scholarships under the Asian Development Bank-Japan Scholarship Program.

It is anticipated that upon successful completion of their graduate studies under the Program, the scholars will return to their countries and contribute to its socio-economic development. Scholarships are awarded for graduate studies at designated institutions in courses of study approved by ADB. The Program especially welcomes women applicants who are qualified but have limited financial means to obtain university education.

The Scholarships

* Level of education: Post-graduate (Diploma, Masters and Doctorate degrees) * Duration: From one to three years * Coverage: Tuition fees, books and subsistence allowance, insurance, return economy air fare

Eligibility Requirements

Prospective applicants must: * be a citizen of an ADB member country * have at least two years work experience * have gained admission to an approved course in a designated institution * be in good health (Staff of ADB and the designated institutions and their close relatives are not eligible to apply)

Designated Institutions

1. Asian Institute Of Management

MCC PO Box 898, Makati Metro Manilla, Philippines

2. Asian Institute Of Technology

PO Rnv 77R4 Bangkok 10501, Thailand

3. East-West Center/University Of Hawaii

1777 East-West Road, Honolulu Hawaii 96848, USA.

4. Indian Institute Of Technology

New Delhi 110016, India

5. International Rice Research Institute/

University Of The Philippines In Los

BANOS PO Box 933, Manila, Philippines

6. International University Of Japan

777 Anajishinden, Yamato-Machi, Minami Uonuma-gun, Niigata 949-72, Japan

7. Lahore University Of Management

SCIENCES 103-C/2 Gulberg HI, Lahore, Pakistan

8. National Centre For Development

STUDIES/AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVER- SITY GPO Box 4, Canberra ACT 2601, Australia

9. National University Of Singapore

10 Kant Ridge Crescent, Singapore 0511

10. Saitama University

255 Shimo-Okubo, Urawa City 338, Japan

11. University Of Auckland

Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand

12. University Of Hong Kong

Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong

13. University Of Sydney

N.S.W. 2006, Australia

14. University Of Tokyo

3-Hongo, 7-Chome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113, Japan

Application Requirements

Applicants should: * obtain application forms from the designated institutions of their choice * submit the completed application form and required documentation to the institution * indicate on the application form that the applicant wishes to be considered for an Asian Development Bank-Government of Japan Scholarship (From among those admitted by the institutions, ADB will select candidates for award of scholarships. A separate application to ADB is not necessary)

Approved Fields Of Study

Business Management, Development Management, Management.

Science and Technology (including Environmental Management and Engineering) Economics, Business Administration Science and Technology Fields related to Rice and Rice-Based Farming International Relations, International Management Business Management Economics of Development, Development Administration, Demography, Environment Business Management, Management of Technology Civil and Environmental Engineering and Related Subjects International Business, Development Studies, Environmental Science and Management, Engineering, Public Health.

Urban Planning, Urban Design Business Administration, Economics, Commerce, Transport Management, Public Health.

Civil Engineering and Related Subjects

The price of French arrogance By Sophie Foster On January 29, French president Jacques Chirac announced the “definitive” end to nuclear testing in the Pacific.

The announcement came 48 hours after France detonated its sixth underground nuclear device on Fangataufa Atoll in French Polynesia.

The explosion was six times the size of the atom bomb dropped on Hiroshima in Japan during World War 11.

Last September, France broke a moratorium on testing and indicated it would conduct up to eight blasts in the Pacific.

The tests sparked world-wide condemnation from governments, individuals and organisations including the United Nations which passed a resolution last December calling for an immediate end to all nuclear testing.

France persisted however, saying the tests were essential for its future nuclear programme.

“Today, I have the feeling of having accomplished one of my most important duties by giving France, for decades to come, the capability for its independence and security,” Chirac said in announcing an end to the tests.

But while the tests may have served to secure “independence” for France, the same may not be said for its territories in the Pacific.

For the indigenous people of French Polynesia, the end of testing has renewed their hopes for self-determination with the release of the Mururoa and Fangataufa test sites.

The French government has indicated it will close its military sites in French Polynesia because it will now rely on computer simulated results for its nuclear arsenal.

Forty-eight hours after Chirac stated the end of nuclear testing, the French National Assembly voted on legislation to increase the autonomy of French Polynesia.

The legislation outlines economic, social and cultural independence for the territory giving local authorities control over travel and communication links and the authority to regulate mining and sea rights.

It also states the local language will be given official status, along with French, after 153 years of colonisation.

But despite this, the legislation fails to highlight political independence for the territory.

The local pro-independence party stance has held that local autonomy within the territory was a “trap” to diffuse the self-determination questions emerging with the 1996 elections.

The day after the end of testing was Burning cars set alight by anti-nuclear demonstrators engulf Papeete airport in smoke last September 10

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PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

declared, president of the territorial government in French Polynesia and “political ally of explosions”, Gaston Flosse said Chirac pledged to return Mururoa and Fangataufa to French Polynesian control “in the state in which they started”.

Flosse said Chirac had agreed to a compensation package of SUS2OO million a year for the next 10 years for French Polynesia.

The settlement has been described as compensation for “economic problems” resulting from the end of the nuclear tests.

Leader of the Liberation Front of Polynesia (Tavini Huiraatira), Oscar Temaru says the compensation package is minuscule compared to the benefits France gained from French Polynesia.

“It is peanuts compared to the 30 years of damage and humiliation brought upon my people. France has become the third largest nuclear power because of our islands,” he says.

Temaru states it is a crime that his people are now “faced with the largest nuclear waste dump” in the world.

“It is a living time bomb,” he says.

Pacific Concerns Resource Centre assistant director for demilitarisation, Losena Salabula, agrees no monetary value could be placed on the damage done to the atolls and the life that exists there.

“Millions of dollars will never pay for the damage done to the atolls and the radioactivity will outlast over 400 generations of the people in the area,” she said.

Salabula refutes Chirac’s claim the tests have been an “assurance of peace” for France and its territories, saying, “what the test has left behind leaves no peace for the people of the Pacific”.

“How can a person suffering from cancer have peace? Chirac has not been to the territories and he has not seen the suffering for himself’, she said.

But she said if France was to allocate compensation to the people of French Polynesia, it should ensure the victims, and not bureaucrats, were the recipients of the money.

Using the Marshall Islands as an example, Salabula says victims tend to get caught up in the red tape surrounding compensation and end up with very little funds in their pockets.

“Direct descendants of the Bikini Islanders and Rongelapis get SUSBO every three months as part of the US multi-million dollar compensation deal,” she said.

The rest of the money is used on the Marshall Islands Nuclear Claims Tribunal, lawyers to fight claims and doctors to verify them.

“I hope it will not be the same with France”, she said.

Salabula hopes the French will set up a tribunal for victims of testing.

The French, she said, can not argue there was no one to claim compensation for re-location because the atolls were uninhabited when tests began.

“About 1000 people on Tureia Island close to the test sites had to be uprooted in 1968 because of radioactive fallout,” she said.

These people and the French Polynesians in general were, and will always be, denied access to land that is part of their cultural heritage”.

Salabula says the French were able to manipulate the Tahitians into “passively” accepting the tests when it would not have been condoned in metropolitan France.

French Polynesia also suited France’s interests because of the remoteness of the area.

The dangers facing French Polynesians, who rely on a rich marine life for income and food, have increased with confirmation by France of radioactive leaks from the atolls.

Its force commander in French Polynesia, vice-admiral Philippe Euverte, said the Mururoa and Fangataufa installations would be dismantled and the atolls “cleaned”, but his office later refuted claims of contaminated zones existing in the area.

In the days leading up to the last test, the controversy came to a head when French officials reluctantly admitted to detection of the leakage of radioactive iodine 131 after one of its South Pacific tests.

Greenpeace Disarmament Coordinator Josh Handler said such reports raised concerns over what other information the French may have withheld, and the environmental aftermath of global nuclear tests.

Bunny McDiarmid of Greenpeace Pacific said there was a definite possibility that the leakage is greater than what has been reported.

It is not the first time the French have admitted to leakages on Mururoa, she says, with several scientific missions reporting radio nuclides (radioactive particles) in lagoon sediments, water and plankton samples.

Research results from the Centre for Peace Studies at Auckland University and Aqueous Geochemistry Research indicate serious radioactive leakage is likely to be already occurring at Mururoa and Fangataufa atolls and will continue into the next century.

Auckland University’s new theoretical model, using research experience from US nuclear waste disposal and NZ geothermal activity, has produced data to predict serious leakages of longer-term radio nuclides from the atolls.

“The total amount of underground radioactivity that could potentially leak by this process is approximately 50 times larger than the total radioactivity from the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear explosions,” a report on the model said.

McDiarmid agrees the French public would never have allowed testing to take place in France because of the potential dangers.

She adds testing in Algeria had to be French Polynesian pro-independence leader Oscar Temaru 11

Cover Stories

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The French began tests on Mururoa and Fangataufa in 1966, and to this day have not fully disclosed details surrounding the area.

McDiarmid says it is important that a “truly independent” team of scientists study the area.

“Mururoa is now one of the largest high level nuclear waste dumps on the planet. It is like a time bomb,” she says.

In response to pressure for an independent team of scientists to survey the test sites, the French government has authorised the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) to carry out a study of Mururoa and Fangataufa atolls for aftereffects of the blasts.

But environmental groups including Greenpeace have disputed the IAEA’s appointment because France used its earlier studies to back its claim of non-effect.

For now, French Polynesian opposition and church leaders are more concerned that France stick to its word that the tests are over.

Chirac says France will sign the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty banning all nuclear tests in 1996.

However, Temaru is sceptical and says France “would not hesitate to resume her nuclear experimentation should world events turn sour”.

He says it is difficult to trust a government whose “word of honour” was responsible for the Rainbow Warrior incidents in New Zealand and Noumea.

Temaru says the “struggle for independence” will continue despite an end to testing and the beginning of local autonomy.

When, and if, French Polynesia gains its independence, the option to sue the French government for damages in the International Court of Justice will be open to them.

Meantime, governments around the globe including the US, Australia and New Zealand have stated they are willing to reconsider blackmarks placed on France when the tests began last year.

The South Pacific Forum also says it will ask its members to review the suspension of France as post-Forum dialogue partner.

But there is no doubt that, even if the rest of the world forgives France, the French Polynesians will not forget the legacy France has left behind. ■ Gendarmes charge at demonstrators during clashes last September at Papeete’s Faa airport 12

Cover Stories

PACIFiC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

BUSINESS Kava’s growing concern Australia considers import ban By Martin Tiffany A decision on the import ban of kava entering Australia in commercial quantities was expected to be made in February.

It is one which will be eagerly-awaited by regional kava exporters, especially Fiji, who are by far its leading exporters to Australia.

Australia slapped on the kava ban midway through last year, pending an investigation into its sale.

The current federal government review came about following an application by the Northern Territory government for kava to be sold legally in the Australian state.

Excessive concern has been expressed about the huge consumption of kava in some Aboriginal communities, which has resulted in social breakdowns similar to that cause by alcohol abuse.

The Australian government has reviewed the ban since its imposition last year. Currently Australian authorities have proposed a national Kava Management Strategy that requires Australian kava importers to be licensed. All imports will be on a restricted basis through Australian Customs.

There is also a requirement that all importers, wholesalers, retailers and distributors of kava must sign and abide by the Kava Code of Management.

This code includes provisions that signatories agree not to promote the use of kava, advertise it or sell it to minors.

A new Standard in the Foods Standard Code will include the requirements for mandatory labelling of kava, with statements such as: “Use in Moderation”; “May Cause Drowsiness” and “Sale of Kava in Australia is subject to the national Kava Code of Management”.

Another requirement for packaging directions is to state that kava can only be sold as a whole food and not added to other foods.

There will also be the option for the states/territories to have more restrictive legislation in place to address public health concerns in their particular jurisdictions. There will also be a follow-up by state/territory health departments for education and monitoring where kava abuse is a problem.

At present the only kava allowed into Australia is a 10-kilogramme limit per person for personal use.

Regional countries that export kava to Australia are Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu and Western Samoa. The total figure forkava exported to Australia last year was SFI.6 million (sUSl.lm.) Fiji is by far the leading exporter of kava to Australia, exporting 74,556 kilogrammes totalling $F606,538 ($U5418,268) in 1994.

Australia is also Fiji’s second-largest kava market, after Germany, so Fiji is naturally anxious for a decision to be reached soon.

Fiji sent a representative to a national work-shop in Darwin on August 3-4 last year, to form the basis of the government’s regulative response to the kava trade.

Two options came out of the workshop.

One was for a prohibition to be placed on all kava imports to Australia and that kava only be allowed in for use in cultural events.

The other option was for unrestricted imports of kava to be allowed in, and for local and state authorities to be responsible for regulating ijs use.

The proposed National Kava Management Strategy suggests the second option is preferred, and people in the industry expect the import licensing option to be adopted.

Last year, the South Pacific Trade Commission in Sydney, in conjunction with the Forum Secretariat, made representations to the Australian government to lift the kava ban.

The substance has been under scrutiny by various bodies in Australia for a number of years. With some not quite sure of how to treat it.

Australia’s National Health and Medical Research Council previously discouraged the use of kava because of its psychoactive properties and it was listed as an S 4 poison (to be available only on prescription) in 1990.

In 1993, kava was reclassified from a drug to a food product but listed as “not to be sold’.

Dr Andrew Theophanous, parliamentary secretary to the Australian Prime Minister, said at the Darwin meeting last year that the federal government would consider outlawing kava, which was threatening to become a serious problem among indigenous communities.

Meanwhile, across the Tasman, unrestricted imports from regional countries into New Zealand have seen the export of kava steadily grow.

Pacific countries also have a lucrative kava export market in Europe, where it is used for pharmaceutical purposes. ■ 13 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

POLITICS Will Forbes make a difference?

By David North The next president of the United States may be a man who owns an island in Fiji.

The fast-rising presidential candidate is multimillionaire Steve Forbes, 48, a New York publisher and a conservative seeking Republican nomination.

The island is seven-square-mile Laucala just off Taveuni, Fiji’s fourth largest island. Laucala is some 200 miles north and east of the capital Suva, and has a private airstrip of its own. It was the favourite private resort of Forbes’ late father, senator Malcolm Forbes, once the most colourful of America’s rich publishers. The senator is buried on Laucala.

But with the exception of one very unfriendly piece in the Washington Post, Laucala has not been mentioned in the younger Forbes campaign. The version of his media biography faxed to PIM did not mention it, nor did his campaign, as requested, come up with any material on the island.

The Post article covered the history of the island in a few lines, mentioning, in passing, King Cakobau as a “brilliant cannibal.” The thrust of the article was to compare the candidate’s island to a highly popular American television comedy series of a few years back, Gilligan’s Island . Post writer said Forbes’ role on his real-life island was like that of the stuffy, demanding millionaire of the television show.

Politically, Steve Forbes was unknown six months ago. Then he decided to enter American politics at the top, as did Ross Perot four years ago, by running for president. Like Perot he has a strong ego, and a willingness to spend millions of his own dollars on the campaign.

And like Perot, his millions got him the public’s attention; people started to listen to his somewhat simplistic message. At this writing, he was giving the Republican front-runner for the nomination, Senate leader Bob Dole of Kansas, a tight race for the lead in the early primaries in lowa and New Hampshire. it help the region to have this Pacific landowner in the White House?** Forbes has three things going for him: He is a genuine outsider, with no Washington ties.

Since he is spending his own money, a major loophole in US election laws allows him to outspend his opponents who must rely on contributions and matching grants from the government.

He advocates a popular (if potentially damaging) policy, the flat income tax.

The US income tax, because it tries to be fair, is a nightmare of complexities.

Richer people pay at higher rates than poor ones, generally, but many deductions make the picture more complex, and the task of filling out the income tax forms is time-consuming and a test of mental agility most people do not welcome. (The rich usually hire others to complete these forms for them.) According to Forbes’ critics, the flat tax would cut taxes sharply for the rich (including the candidate in question) and would, at the rates suggested by Forbes, lead to the same situation America had during the Reagan years, when the White House backed lower taxes of the rich, and got them, along with a rapidly growing deficit. Some calculate that Forbes’ 17 per cent rate would increase the national deficit by S2OO billion a year.

But despite his populist stance on taxes, his ready money, and polling numbers that place him second to Dole in many states, and first in Arizona, Forbes may be shunned by the Republicans for several reasons.

First, he, alone among the major candidates for president, has refused to release his own past income tax returns. This is a mainland ritual, so far unknown in the island, in which major candidates release photocopies of the past income taxes - to show they have nothing to hide, financial iy- Forbes has also been hurt by his wooden personality. Further, his total lack of public sector experience turns off many leaders of local Republican organisations who have spent years working up to be a mayor, a sheriff or a state legislator.

Had young Forbes followed in his daddy’s footsteps in local government, he would not have this final disadvantage.

I knew his father - we both ran for the New Jersey state legislature, in adjoining counties, in 1951. But the older Forbes, after beating the local political machine, made it into the State senate as a Republican while my Democratic race for the Assembly ended differently.

The state senator had earlier been elected to the village council in the New Jersey suburbs after knocking on virtually every door in the community. After arriving in the state senate he made two vigorous, but unsuccessful, races for the New Jersey governorship.

In later years, Malcolm Forbes would become known as the nation’s most dashing millionaire, with his motorcycles, his 14 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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That’s where the South Pacific Trade Commission comes in. Our primary purpose in life is helping business people in the Pacific Islands become more successful.

Not only can we introduce you to key importers, agents or retailers around the world, we can also put you in contact with potential investors.

And we can assist exporters attend Australian trade fairs and exhibitions.

To give you an idea. In recent months we helped Western Samoa Breweries find an Australian agent to promote and distribute Vailima beer. We helped Teikabuti Fishing Co. redesign their tuna jerky packaging to conform to Australian standards. We arranged for the enrollment of five trainees in technical training courses in NSW and Qld. And we paid for six South Pacific companies to attend Fine Food Fair‘94 in Melbourne.

So if you need some help making the right contacts, just contact us. After all, you’ve nothing to lose and the rest of the world to gain.

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Laucala’s indigenous population was pretty much wiped out during tribal wars in pre-British Fiji. Nearly empty and beautiful, it had been owned for years by Morris Hedstrom, the Australian firm.

Senator Forbes bought it in 1972 for $ 1,000,000 and then proceeded to spend five times that much on creating a resort for his family, and his vision of a model community for its Fijian residents, who worked at the resort and who produced copra.

Towards the end of his life, the senator started sharing the island with a few paying guests. They were picked up by a Forbes private plane at Nadi, and then housed in their own private cottages, with a chef coming around each evening to fix dinner.

But will it help the region to have this South Pacific landowner in the White House? I doubt it.

On the positive side, it would assure the region that the president had some sense of the geography of the South Pacific, famously missing in many American politicians.

But the negatives with Forbes are overwhelming. He apparently has not been to Fiji since his father’s death.

His lower-the-taxes-for-the-rich stand suggests he is less interested in an active government than most candidates, and it is only activist governments that reach out to distant parts of the globe, like the insular Pacific.

More narrowly, his close relations with US corporate interests would suggest no change in the current sugar importation policy, favoured by those interests, which virtually bars both Fiji and PNG from shipping sugar to the US.

As further indication of his lack of interest in the region, we tried to get his campaign press office to respond to the Post’s use of the term “brilliant cannibal” in the previously mentioned column Nothing happened.

Maybe the Forbes campaign, anyway, still thinks in terms of the cannibal islands. ■ POLITICS

OPINION Window of opportunity The government of Japan has approved more than $U5250,000 towards establishing a South Pacific Forum office in Tokyo.

Together with its annual SUS7OO,OOO grant to regional programmes administered by the South Pacific Forum Secretariat, the SPEESC funding has made Japan the number one non-Forum donor to the Suva-based Secretariat.

The office, to be formally known as the South Pacific Economic Exchange Support Centre (SPEESC), will be a “clearing house” for growing business activities between Japan and members of the Forum, in particular Forum Island Tokyo’s decision, formally conveyed to the Secretary-General of the South Pacific Forum, Hon. leremia Tabai, in late December came as a nice surprise for member countries.

Over the years, member governments, through the annual visit to Japan by the chair of the Forum and other channels, raised with successive Japanese governments possible assistance for setting-up the office.

As there was no progress on the longstanding proposal, a suggestion was made recently that a feasibility study be undertaken to determine the project’s viability.

These were to no avail.

Last April, however, there was a change of heart. Tokyo had informed the Secretary- General in a letter that Japan had agreed to help fund and take part in a joint feasibility study.

Until then, even the idea of a feasibility study was not entertained. This was due largely to costs which, in Tokyo, are almost prohibitive. Because of this, it was argued, the benefit from such an office may not justify the cost.

Full credit must go to the former president of Nauru, Hon. Bernard Dowiyogo, who during his time as Chair of the Forum in 1993/94 convinced the Japanese government to agree on the feasibility study.

Equal credit goes to the government of Japan for its decision to provide funding for the SPEESC office. It is a decision which must be seen as further proof of the co-operative relations between Japan and the Fomm.

For many member governments, the momentum has never been faster. In the space of five months (April-August 1995) the study was completed by the Forum’s Trade and Investment Division and submitted by the Oceania Division of Japan’s ministry of foreign affairs to the ministry of finance (MOF) in Tokyo for funding in 1996.

Four months later came the good news that Japan had agreed to provide 25 million yen (about $U5250,000) for the setting-up and running of the office for six months beginning in October this year. A new funding proposal will then be submitted to the government of Japan for 1997.

The funding approval seems to have brought with it a new spirit of optimism and enthusiasm on both sides. The speed with which SPEESC evolved from a mere concept (at the time of the feasibility study) to reality also appears to suggest THE FORUM Countries (FICs).

ALFRED SASAKO 16 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

that there is scope for an additional market for island products.

Tokyo appears to have satisfied itself that SPEESC has a role to play in boosting the warm and cooperative relations between Japan and the region. The approval also seems to be a vote of confidence in the potential for the expansion of the existing market.

Some may wonder why an office in Japan is necessary, especially in the capital where it seems the sky is the limit, when it comes to the cost of office space rental. Why, critics may ask, is such an office necessary, especially when the trend world-wide is to cut costs?

Well, there are always three sides to a story - the version of the one who tells it; the version of the person about whom the story is told and the true version.

Whatever critics may say, everyone realises that one of the established principles of doing business is that you onlyget out what you put in. In other words, if you do not invest, you do not expect any return.

FlC’s leaders know there is a market in Japan. They know the potential for expansion is also there. They do not have the money, but they have the time, so they invested in time in pursuing the SPEESC office proposal.

They are convinced that an on-theground presence through the establishment of a SPEESC office in one of the world’s biggest and most complex markets is essential to promote and strengthen existing trade, tourism and investment links.

Their conviction is one of the reasons why they persevered in the face of initial setback to the idea. The leaders realised that, like everything else, it takes two to tango. In this case, they recognise the importance that an input by the Japanese government, monetary or otherwise, can make.

Apart from Australia and New Zealand, Japan’s proximity and its status as a Pacific Rim country are important considerations.

According to the World Almanac, there are about 124 million people living in Japan today. Of this, about 17 per cent are between the ages of zero and 14 years, while 60 per cent of the population account for the 15-60 year old age bracketin 1991, Japan’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was estimated at SUS 2.3 trillion. Its international foreign reserves (minus gold) were estimated at SUS 73 billion in March 1993. Gold was estimated at 24.23 million oz.

Japan’s per capita GDP in 1991 was SUSI9,IOO, suggesting a powerful buying power.

But perhaps more relevant to the region are figures on trade between Japan and some FICs, namely Papua New Guinea, Western Samoa, Vanuatu, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Kiribati, Nauru, Tuvalu, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau.

Although the level of trade has fallen between Japan and some individual FICs, generally the total value is on the increase.

For instance, the value of Japanese imports of FICs products rose from SUS9OO million in 1993 to well over SUSI billion (SUS 1,055,190) in 1994.

On the other hand, Japanese exports to FICs fell by almost SUSI 39 million in the same period.

On a country-by-country basis, some FICs have recorded stunning increases in terms of the value of their imports to Japan, according to official Japanese figures.

Take, for example, Papua New Guinea, RMI and Fiji, to cite a few. In 1993, PNG’s exports to Japan (mainly copper concentrate and timber) were valued at about SUS 673 million.

By the end of 1994, this had gone up to $U5748.43 million. On the other hand, Japan’s exports to PNG actually took a dive from about SUSIBB million in 1993 to about SUSI 79 million in 1994.

A similar pattern emerged in the trade between Japan and the Marshall Islands in the same period. From a mere $U5864,000 in 1993, RMI exports to Japan grew to $U524.26 million over the next 12 months.

Fiji’s exports to Japan also grew handsomely in the 1993/94 period. In 1993, Fiji exported products valued at around $U533.52 million. By 1994, total exports to Japan had exceeded SUSS9 million.

Japanese exports to Solomon Islands, Tonga, Western Samoa, Kiribati and Palau also grew markedly in the same period.B The Japanese national stadium which was constructed for the 1964 Olympic Games 17 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996 OPINION

A new kind of apartheid It could not be said that 1995 was a good one for race relations in New Zealand, marked as it was by a spate of Maori land occupations, including the bitterly contested 79-day sit-in at Moutoa Gardens in Wanganui.

Militant Maori groups, increasingly angry with lack of progress on their land and compensation claims, tried to take the law into their own hands.

Protesters indulged in a range of actions, including trying to chop down the landmark pine on Auckland’s One Tree Hill, decapitating European statues, advocating arson and violence and wrecking the annual Waitangi Day celebrations.

Pakeha patience with the radicals, who launched a new campaign for Maori sovereignty, wore thin and there was mounting resentment at what many Europeans saw as the government’s readiness to bend over backwards to accommodate Maori concerns.

Behind it all was the government’s socalled fiscal envelope - a $1 billion compensation package to settle all Maori claims under the Treaty of Waitangi and wipe the slate clean on a century-and-ahalf of grievances. Maori throughout the country rejected the proposal as a series of angry hui and pakeha despaired of ever being able to satisfy their demands.

In the aftermath, some Europeans argued that they were becoming secondclass citizens, disadvantaged because of special privileges given to Maori, both in terms of Treaty of Waitangi issues and social and economic assistance. They said Maori protesters consistently got away with illegal acts for which pakeha would be jailed and warned a system of reverse apartheid was slowly, if unwittingly, being put in place.

Far from being the one people envisaged by Lieutenant-Governor William Hobson when he signed the treaty on Queen Victoria’s behalf at Waitangi in 1840, brown and white New Zealanders seemed in grave danger of drifting even further apart.

The one bright spot in the year was the settlement of the Tainui tribe’s 131-yearold land grievance against the Crown, the most significant Treaty of Waitangi agreement yet.

Under the deal, the Tainui people of the Waikato received a $l7O million settlement package and a formal Crown apology for the confiscation of a large chunk of their land last century. The Tainui gave up further treaty claims and the whole pact was enshrined in legislation signed by the Queen when she visited New Zealand.

The test for Maori-pakeha relations in 1996 is whether that exercise can be repeated with other tribes, thereby whittling down simmering Maori resentment and bringing the racial harmony all New Zealanders - whatever their attitude towards the fiscal envelope - want.

There are some encouraging signs, with Ngai Tahu, Bay of Plenty and Taranaki tribes indicating a readiness to move into serious negotiations with the Crown. Another 30 tribal groups are reported to be at various stages of negotiation on their claims with the Treaty Settlements Office.

But with about 500 claims before the Waitangi Tribunal, which has reported on less than a tenth of them so far, and Maori generally still giving the fiscal envelope the cold shoulder, there is a long way to go- The government, which has announced its intention to settle the issue once and for all and thereby remove the continuing threat to harmonious race relations, is to a large degree working on its own.

When it called for submissions on its proposals last year, many Maori made their objections known. But when it sought Maori participation in drawing up a report on the submissions, Maori refused en bloc to take part in the process, saying they had never been properly invited or consulted.

This echoed Maori claims that consultation on the fiscal envelope, with its $1 billion cap which the government insists is non-negotiable, was totally inadequate that it was a take-it-or-leave-it offer slapped on the table without due discussion on what Maori actually wanted.

What Maori actually wants is difficult for the government to define - mainly because Maori are so divided, on this, and it seems every other issue.

Many claims have not reached the stage of negotiation with the Crown because the tribes and their hapu (subtribes) cannot agree among themselves. In some cases, for instance, there may be half a dozen different claimants to one parcel of land. In Taranaki, Treaty Negotiations Minister Doug Graham says, there are eight tribes claiming rights on the mountain (Mount Taranaki) and within each one six to eight hapu, some seeking to negotiate individually.

There was a lot of sparring over how to celebrate this year’s Waitangi Day at Waitangi after the government decided to move its official ceremonies to Wellington following last year’s fiasco at the treaty house.

It is increasingly apparent that an end to inter-tribal bickering is the first requirement if 1996 is to see further progress on New Zealand putting more than 150 years of Maori grievances behind it.. ■ WELLINGTON DAVID BARBER 18 OPINION PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Trade Mark Cautionary Notice

Notice is hereby given that Telstra Corporation Limited, a corporation duly organised and existing under the laws of Australia, and having ACN 051 775 556, the Corporate Secretary being located at 242 Exhibition Street, Melbourne, Australia is the sole proprietor of the following trade marks:- TELSTRA ijelstra ijslstra Used in respect of:— Telecommunications and communications equipment, apparatus and systems, including but not limited to electronic and optical telecommunications and communications equipment, apparatus and systems; satellite and earth station telecommunications and communications equipment, apparatus and systems; Telephone equipment, apparatus and systems, including but not limited to telephone; telephone receivers; telephone handsets; telephone network, telephone exchanges, telephone switching, telephone answering, telephone card vending and telephone dialling equipment, apparatus and systems; Transmission, receiving and storage equipment, apparatus and systems, including but not limited to facsimile, telegraph, telex, teleprinting, cable and paging equipment, apparatus and systems; data and video networking and conferencing equipment, apparatus and systems; data processing, message handling and switching equipment, apparatus and systems; digital equipment, apparatus and systems; electronic, voice, text and facsimile mail equipment, apparatus and systems; electronic directory equipment, apparatus and systems; Computer equipment, apparatus and systems, including but not limited to computer programs; computer software; computer hardware; computer terminals; computer memories; computer networking equipment, apparatus and systems; computer manuals in this class; modems; Video and audio equipment, apparatus and systems, including but not limited to sound and image recording, transmission and reproduction equipment, apparatus and systems; video cassettes and tapes; compact discs; records; digital, electric and electronic radio equipment, apparatus and systems; magnetic tapes; cinematographic, television and amusement equipment, apparatus and systems; amusement machines; All associated parts and accessories being goods in class 9, paper, cardboard and goods made from these materials; printed matter including directories, journals and manuals and afi goods in class 16; advertising, promotional, consultancy and business services; compiling, arranging and publishing directories; telephone answering services; market research and statisticafservices; being services in class 35, repair installation, maintenance and construction services; being services in class 37, telecommunication services being services in class 38, amusement, entertainment, education and information services; multi-media services; being services in class 41, research services; computer programming services; retail and wholesaling services; consultancy services being services in Class 42'.

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SHIPPING Shipping saga extraordinaire By Sophie Foster The year was 1989, the place - Suva.

The Fiji Government had just won a $F9.5 million (SUS6.6m) contract to build the largest and most sophisticated vessel its shipyard had ever attempted.

It was a brilliant strategy to upgrade the Government Shipyard from state-workhorse to internationally recognised boatbuilder. But it went horribly wrong.

And six years and seven project managers later, as the Reef Endeavour finally sailed over the horizon and out of Suva Bay in January, Government is still reeling from the impact of the losses it incurred through the deal.

The shipyard management, which has changed since 1989, protested last year that they were misled by their Australian counterparts when they entered into the deal.

But it has also been revealed Government signed the contract against legal advice.

The contract, between the Government Shipyard and Sydney-based Ship Design and Management stated a 73-metre vessel would be constructed in Fiji for $A7,712,640 (SUSS.6m) The purchaser was a Qantas/Captain Cook Cruises joint venture.

The deal was finalised after seven months of negotiations between the parties.

But a report by Fiji accountant and senator Don Aidney, who was commissioned by Government in January 1992 to study the deal, states shipyard representatives were not adequately prepared during negotiations.

The report found the shipyard arrived at cost estimates and a building schedule on inadequate design data and equipment specifications.

“In doing so, it was persuaded to accept cost estimates and material quantities submitted by the purchasers,” it said.

The shipyard informed Aidney that during negotiations, it placed preliminary cost estimates at $Fl5m (SUS 10.3 m), but then lowered the price after accepting costs quoted by SDMA.

On July 31, 1989, the shipyard advised SDMA it had revised its price to $A8,125,868 (SUS6.Im) excluding certain equipment.

But the figure was rejected by SDMA who said: “Construction and fitting out budget for this ship is $A7.4m (SUSS.6m).

Our estimates indicate that this budget is realistic”.

In August 1989, there were further price revisions by both parties, which resulted in the shipyard accepting $A7.3m (SUSS.Sm) as the contract figure.

But it was not until the next month, that the shipyard received preliminary drawings of the Reef Endeavour and in October, inspected a similar ship, the Lady Hawkesbury, in Australia.

Two days before the contract was signed in Sydney on December 22, 1989, the shipyard received a hand-written revised estimate from SDMA containing their own cost figures placing the estimate at $A7.7m (SUSS.6m).

Aidney’s report says the shipyard could not have been able to verify cost figures in the 48 hours before the contract was signed.

The resulting contract gave the shipyard little room to move.

“A contract was then entered into, which was strongly biased towards the purchasers, which contained no provisions for variances in material and equipment costs (including those items based on the purchaser’s estimates) and which gave little protection to the shipyard in the event of default,” the Aidney report states.

Legally, Government is said to have entered into the agreement on an uneven footing.

Indeed, the shipyard was advised by the Solicitor-General’s Office in 1989 that certain clauses would have to be reviewed.

According to the Aidney report, “several undesirable features” of the contract were pointed out to the shipyard but these issues were not dealt with by SDMA.

Flaws in the contract that were highlighted included the disadvantages of New South Wales law (where the contract was drawn up), and the provisions for delay which were dependent on labour standards.

Government sources have confirmed protests against the contract were made repeatedly until they were “blue in the face,” but these warnings were not heeded.

But although the Solicitor-General’s office objected to some of the clauses, one of their representatives was a signatory to the 1989 contract signed in Sydney.

The director of marine, who had travelled to Australia to visit the Lady Hawkesbury, was the other Fiji Government signatory.

The director stepped-in for the then Government minister who had cancelled his visit to Sydney.

Last May, the shipyard’s new manager, Ratu Mosese Duilomaloma, told Qantas Group executive Geoff Dixon there was “something fundamentally amiss” about the contract.

He said it was based on misrepresentation because SDMA had provided misleading figures on which the contract was based. 20 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

The figures were proven to be “grossly incorrect”, he said.

Duilomaloma said the shipyard accepted SDMA’s advice because of lack of experience in the industry.

He said Qantas was also to blame for the mis-representation.

“You, also, put your trust in SDMA and you, also, accepted SDMA’s price, when it is well-known in the industry that a vessel like this could not possibly be built for this price,” he said.

Qantas responded they could not be held responsible i because the shipyard should have exercised “due diligence” before signing the contract.

When the question of authorisation for the contract surfaced, it was stated the shipyard manager was responsible to the director of marine, who was responsible to the minister of infrastructure and public utilities.

Although no authorisation for the manager to enter into contracts or to seek outside authorisation was sighted, the Aidney report said it would “appear” all negotiations up to the conclusion of the contract were done by the manager.

In July 1989, during the early stages of negotiations, the shipyard manager, in a progress report to the director of marine, asked that Cabinet approval be sought on the contract. This did not evoke a response.

The first sign of trouble was during the first few months of 1990, when work on the ship began.

By then it was apparent, according to Aidney, that the cost of substantial equipment would be more than SDMA estimates.

The report added the specified list of equipment given to the shipyard in March 1990 was also more “extensive” than that provided while estimates were being prepared.

But Aidney says there was little evidence of “effective protest” by the shipyard.

The shipyard also did not effectively challenge SDMA when it rejected their claims for extension of delivery time because of delays in equipment and design.

By 1992, the shipyard had overspent $F579,412 (SUS3.9m) on steel, $F177,214 (SUSI.2m) on propellers and shafting, $F17,365 ($U511,974) on the bowthruster, $F158,277 ($U5109,147) on the main engines and generators and $F81,029 ($U555,877) on winches, anchors and cables.

The shipyard estimated $F2.4m (SUS 1.6 m) in excess costs over the SDMA quotes, and was advised to cut its losses and cancel the contract.

But Government attempts to re-negotiate the contract were not fruitful because the parent contract did not allow for this.

It became obvious the shipyard was out of its depth in the arrangements.

According to the Aidney report, the shipyard probably had grounds for terminating the contract before the end of 1990 through “default and non-performance of purchasers” but construction continued.

It was only after relations between the shipyard and SDMA broke down following further delays and changes in design data and the termination of the credit letter that construction stopped in September 1991.

By then the shipyard was faced with lawsuits from both the Qantas/Captain Cook Cruises joint venture as purchasers, and SDMA.

The contract stipulated the shipyard would have to pay for delays which led to its failure to meet the completion deadline.

In January 1992, SDMA placed its claim at approximately $A2.5 (SUSI.B) million, and the joint partners theirs at $A7m (SUSSm).

The Fiji Government was under pressure to run litigation by legal advisors in Sydney, failing which SDMA and the joint partners would win their cases by default.

In such circumstances, the marine department would have been faced with a total loss of up to $Fl9m (SUSI3m).

Faced with such prospects.

Government entered into a $F7.6m (SUSS.2m) agreement with the joint partners at the end of 1992, without the involvement of SDMA, and work on the Reef Endeavour re-commenced.

Two years later, in November 1994, following delays caused by problems installing the air-conditioning system, decking, and threats of industrial action by workers, the Reef Endeavour was launched.

Shipyard manager Duilomaloma said at the launch that the ship was built “against all odds” without modem equipment and facilities.

He added the vessel was of the highest international standard “equal to any such vessel built anywhere in the world today”.

What remained was the completion of outfitting work and engine trials which put the delivery date to May 1995.

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The seventh project manager, Chris Tsantikos, said he had tried to halt the project when he took over in 1990.

He said even then he knew it would have been “cheaper in the long run” to stop building and pay the contractual penalties.

Building continued however, with heavy Fiji Government subsidies for the shipyard to complete the project.

It was not until work on the ship was completed in November 1995 that Government seized the Reef Endeavour in an effort to regain costs.

It refused to release the ship to the joint partners until payments and claims were sorted out.

The shipyard was being charged a late delivery penalty of $F650,000 ($U5448,240) which was being disputed by Government.

Both the Fiji Government and the joint partners agreed to legal arbitration in the New South Wales Supreme Court.

The Government was paid $F4.4m (SUS3m) as a settlement and took control of the vessel.

But Tsantikos emphasised the shipyard would not have survived had it been a commercial enterprise with limited liability.

“If the situation surrounding the Reef Endeavour had happened in a commercial shipyard, the shipyard would have gone under very quickly,” he said.

The total cost of the vessel has been placed at $Fl9m (SUS 13.1 m). The contractual price was $F9.5m (SUS6.Sm).

Government lost $F9.5 (SUS6.Sm) through the deal. ■ More problems surface And just when the Government thought it could breathe easy after the Reef Endeavour sailed out of Fiji waters, controversy surfaced again in the form of the sale of its shipyard.

This time over the legality of the proposed sale of the public enterprise to joint venture company MCI/Carpenters Fiji Limited.

The debate, over the interpretation of Section 62 of the country’s Finance Act, has led the country’s Opposition party to take legal action against the sale.

Section 62 of the Finance Act states that “serviceable public stores” not for Government purposes may be given to any person in Fiji at the discretion of the minister, provided the value does not exceed $lOOO and in other cases, with the approval of the House of Representatives.

The country’s public enterprise minister said the $6.25 million sale of the shipyard needed only the approval of the finance minister.

Legal opinion was sought on the sale from the Attorney-General’s Office which stated the sale was legal.

The A-G said section 62 did not apply to the shipyard. This was disputed by the opposition who said the shipyard was a “public store”.

The A-G was advised against the sale of the shipyard without parliamentary approval because present legislation does not cover such assets.

Parliament has yet to pass the Public Enterprise Bill which would control the sale of all ventures which are 100 per cent governmentowned.

But on February 1, the opposition filed a writ in the High Court challenging government’s decision to sell the shipyard and slipway without parliamentary approval. ■ 22 SHIPPING PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

REGION Back to square one Following the formation of a coalition government last December 21, Vanuatu has been plunged into political turmoil: new prime minister Serge Vohor resigned on February 8 to avoid facing a motion of no confidence. And the country was awaiting the formation of a new government before the end of February.

By Patrick Decloitre On February 8, Vanuatu’s prime minister, Serge Vohor, announced his resignation, 48 days after his election, last December 21.

Vohor, who was leading a coalition of Union of Moderate Parties (UMP, 17 seats in parliament) with former prime minister Walter Lini’s National United Party (NUP, 9 seats), announced in a nation-wide broadcast he had called a meeting of the Council of ministers to announce his decision.

Vohor’s resignation comes after six MPs from UMP allied with opposition Unity Front (UF, 22 seats in parliament) to sign a motion of no confidence against the newly-elected prime minister.

In a recent memorandum of agreement signed between Donald Kalpokas’s UF and the UMP dissident faction led by MP Amos Andeng, it was hinted Tuesday the next prime minister would be Vohor’s predecessor and rival Maxime Carlot, and his deputy Kalpokas.

In this planned government, UMP would have five ministries (including prime ministership) and UF seven (including deputy prime ministership).

The agreement, which is supported by 28 MPs (in the 50-seat parliament) follows a memorandum of understanding signed last January 27 between the same parties. who filed a notice of motion of no confidence at the end of January to oust Serge Vohor.

UMP (17 seats) formed a coalition government last December 21 with former prime minister Walter Lini’s National United Party (NUP, 9 seats) led by prime minister Serge Vohor with Lini as his deputy, excluding UF from power.

The motion was to be discussed on February 8 in an extraordinary session of the island state’s parliament. It was postponed due to a boycott by the government opposition, which, it was seen here, only represented 20 empty seats out of 50, not enough to meet the two-third quorum required at a first seating.

Parliament met again the following Monday (February 12) with every MP present in the house, but was again unable to elect a new prime minister. After the session was opened, NUP MP Hilda Lini pointed out parliament was called to debate a motion of no confidence and not solely to elect a prime minister.

The agenda of the seating, which called MPs to debate the motion of no confidence, was no longer relevant since Vohor’s resignation.

After a one and-a-half hour break, opposition leader Donald Kalpokas and UMP dissident Amos Andeng withdrew their motion.

The Speaker, former prime minister Maxime Carlot (who is likely to come back at the head of government if the motion is passed), after receiving advice from the island state’s attorney-general, agreed to close this session and immediately call another extraordinary session for February 20.

The new agenda would include the election of a new prime minister, whereas the first extraordinary session’s agenda was the debate of a motion of no-confidence.

Walter Lini 23 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Three days before, on the eve of February 9, Vanuatu president, Jean-Marie Leye publicly admitted he tried that day to dissolve the state’s parliament following “bad legal advice”, before reversing his decision.

In an interview broadcast nation-wide, the Head of State said his first intention to dissolve the 50-seat house was a “misunderstanding”, following “requests” made to him.

“Now, after receiving good legal advice, I know that as a president, I cannot dissolve parliament,” Leye told Radio Vanuatu.

“I want the population to remain calm and not to take the law into their own hands. Let the politicians solve their political problems in parliament,” he added.

“What I’m saying, I’m saying as Head of State, I won’t change my mind again. I don’t want to fall down like what happened to Sokomanu,” Leye asked.

Ati George Sokomanu, who was the first president of Vanuatu from 1980 to 1988, attempted to dissolve the Vanuatu parliament in 1988.

Charged with sedition by then prime minister Walter Lini, he was jailed, then demised.

In a joint communique, Kalpokas and Andeng asked for Leye’s “immediate resignation”.

“Otherwise, we’ll take action through parliament to remove him from office,” they said.

According to the Vanuatu constitution, the president has the power to dissolve parliament, but only upon the advice of the Council of Ministers.

“There shall be no dissolution of parliament within 12 months of the general elections following a dissolution under subarticle (2) or (3)”, the latter referring to a self-dissolution by the house or a presidential dissolution, the island state’s constitution says.

Leye dissolved the former parliament last October 3, before Vanuatu’s general elections.

The day after, on February 10, Supreme Court, stressing parliament had not been dissolved, ordered Vanuatu’s Broadcasting and Television Corporation (VBTC) that “no statement shall be broadcast stating or implying or otherwise leading people to believe that parliament has been dissolved” and that “any person breaching this order shall be arrested forthwith and brought before the court to show cause why they should not be committed to prison for contempt of court”.

Since the end of January, police have set up special operation (code named “Nasara”) designed to maintain law and order. The exercise involves 24-hour patrols in the capital and police and Vanuatu Mobile Force officers being posted at strategic points of Port Vila, including Parliament, Radio Vanuatu, the prime minister’s office and State House.

Meanwhile, all political parties have resumed lobbying and negotiating to elect Vanuatu’s next prime minister. ■ Chief justice to stay In early February, Vanuatu’s Justice minister, former prime minister Walter Lini, in a surprise move, renewed Chief Justice Charles Vaudin d’lmecourt’s contract in spite of earlier threats Lini made that the British judge would have to leave the country at the end of March.

Lini, and then prime minister Serge Vohor approved another two-year contract for the judge, who arrived on the island state four years ago under a British-funded contract.

In May last year, Australian justice Robert Kent (from Melbourne Queen’s Council-Australia), who had been working in Vanuatu since early 1994, resigned from his position because he was “concerned over the independence of the chief justice”.

At the same time, opposition leader Donald Kalpokas’s Vanuaaku Pati (VP) and Lini’s National United Party (NUP), called for d’lmecourt’s “immediate resignation”.

In 1994, after London refused to further fund his position, he remained Vanuatu’s chief justice, but his present contract, which expires next June, has since been paid by the Vanuatu government with help from overseas donors.

Since last year, the Vanuatu government has received funds for this position from Technical and Cultural Co-operation Agency, a worldwide association of French-speaking countries, mainly financed by France and Canada, to cover “on an exceptional basis” some SUS 100,000 for the remaining half of last year.

Vanuatu’s government has since last year requested about SUS2OO,OOO from the European Union for the chief justice in 1996, but until no\lv, no reply has been made by Brussels, the Planning Office earlier said.

It is not known yet where overseas aid to fund d’lmecourt’s new contract will come from, Lini admitted in February.

“There was no recruitment procedure engaged to replace M. dTmecourt when we came in this government so it seemed as though we could only keep him. If he had left, we would have been left without a chief justice. During these two years, we’ll try to recruit someone else”, Lini said.

Prime minister Serge Vohor stressed the importance of having a bilingual French-English judge in Vanuatu.

The Justice ministry here has said there was a need to keep dTmecourt to ensure “everything is done properly during this period of political instability”.

A crucial forthcoming case related to complaints fded in the Supreme Court about alleged irregularities during last November’s general elections and affecting some 40 MPs (out of 50), also needs to be dealt with by the British judge. ■ 24 REGION PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

CULTURE Survival day By Liz Thompson and Non-Aboriginal Australians queue for tickets to Survival Day.

On Survival Day, Aboriginal people celebrate the fact their community has survived white invasion, assimilation policies and attempts at cultural genocide. In coming into contact with the white community the Aboriginal people were subject to diseases they brought with them.

As their land was taken from them and they were moved into reservations and dealt with a multitude of new influences and ensuing problems, they required legal advice and assistance but had access to none. When the misguided assimilation policy came into play and children with any white blood bom to Aboriginal women were immediately removed and placed in care, later to be fostered out to white families, there was little recourse for Aboriginal families.

Today, though many inequalities remain, things are changing. It is widely agreed that the assimilation policy was an abomination of human rights. The Aboriginal community has established it’s own legal advisory service. Concerned that as children attend school and no longer learn from their elders Aboriginal publishing companies are taping, tram scribing and publishing traditional stories from old people.

As a result, when young children go to school and leam to read and write they can continue to leam of the stories of their ancestors.

One of the loudest voices of the Aboriginal community has been heard through the arts. In the last decade Aboriginal playwrights, actors, poets, writers, musicians, painters and fdmakers have addressed their experience and their history through their art. My Place, a book written by Aboriginal writer Sally Morgan documenting her harrowing experience of trying to discover her own identity was extremely successful and for the first time, brought the experience of many Aboriginal On January 26, when many Australians celebrate Australia Day marking the beginning of white colonisation of the country, Aboriginal Australia celebrates Survival Day.

In Sydney army tanks roll, trucks, ambulances, all in the familiar khaki green of battle. People driving the open jeeps wear helmets and the Australian flags fly.

A 20-minute drive away at La Perouse, a headland on the Southern side of Sydney the now familiar black, red and yellow Aboriginal flag is raised above the rooftops. A mixed audience of Aboriginal Blekbala mujik 25 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Forum Secretariat

W VACANCIES Applications are invited from suitably qualified and experienced persons, who must be nationals of a member state of the South Pacific Forum*, for two positions in the Economic Development Division at the Forum Secretariat.

The Forum Secretariat was established in 1972 by the South Pacific Forum to encourage economic and political cooperation between its member states, and between those states and the more industrialised countries. Under the control of the Secretary General, the Secretariat has undertaken activities in a number of areas: economic development, legal and political, civil aviation, energy, maritime, telecommunications and trade. These programmes have been funded by member contributions and a range of aid donor countries and organisations including Australia, New Zealand, Japan, France, EC, Canada, UNDP and, recently, Taiwan and Korea.

The Secretariat will, over the course of 1996, be comprehensively restructured in order to move from its current dual focus upon regional policy issues and the delivery of technical services, to a much greater focus on policy analysis, development and coordination. To begin to effect this change, the current Economic Development Division requires two new staff members to work in the Economic Policy and Development Planning, and the Development Cooperation Sections of what will become the new restructured Division.

Development Cooperation Officer

The Development Cooperation Officer will work in the Development Cooperation Section and be responsible to the Director of the Division.

The officer will assume day-to-day responsibility for the operations of the Forum Secretariat Fellowship Scheme; the Smaller Island States Development Fund; the Kanak Fellowship Scheme; and the Short Term Technical Assistance Scheme. The position will also require ongoing participation in other activities relevant to the implementation of the Division’s Annual Work Programme, particularly with regard to the Secretariat role in regional donor coordination. (I) Desirable characteristics: • Advanced degree in economics or a related field e.g. political, science, development studies, sociology, anthropology, human geography, with no less than 3-5 years relevant work experience: • A sound working knowledge of the economies of Pacific Island Countries, with an understanding of issues within both the monetised and semi subsistence sectors; • Familiarity with donor government and agency procedures; • Sound analytical skills and an ability to think laterally in order to provide advice to member countries in the development of project proposals; • Awareness and understanding of broader development and sectoral issues, e.g. environment, population, gender, social/human development; • Good oral and written communication skills in English; • Ability to work as part of a small team as well as individually, with minimal supervision, and to tight deadlines; • Willingness and capacity to assist with a variety of other tasks as determined by the Division; • Willingness to travel (mainly within the region) as required.

Poucy Development Officer

The Policy Development Officer will work in the Economic Policy and Development Planning Section and will be responsible to the Director of the Division. This position will require the ability to focus upon contemporary economic issues within the region. The successful applicant will need to be able to translate sound economic analysis into clear policy papers for discussion/consideration by officials and/or Ministers in a variety of contexts. The position will also require the person to work with other regional and multilateral organisations in capacity building projects in Forum member government bureaucracies, particularly Planning and Finance. (li) Desirable characteristics: • Advanced degree in economics or finance with at least five years relevant work experience; • Ability to carry out economic analysis of current development issues in the region, e.g. structural reform. Particular emphasis on macro-economic issues, including both fiscal and monetary policy. Ability to analyse and interpret economic statistics, explain trends, etc; • Experience in development and delivery of policy advice in the areas of finance and/or economic development; • Technical capabilities in development planning and the ability to transfer these capabilities, e.g. through workshops, in-country consultations, etc; • Awareness and understanding of broader development and sectoral issues, e.g. environment, population, gender, social/human development: • Good oral and written communication skills in English; • Ability to work as part of a small team as well as individually, with minimal supervision, and to tight deadlines; • Willingness and capacity to assist with a variety of other tasks as determined by the Division; • Willingness to undertake significant travel both within the region and internationally as required.

"These appointments carry an attractive remuneration package. For non-Fiji citizens this is tax-free and includes housing and education allowance.” Other benefits include payments in lieu of superannuation, and medical life and personal accident insurance coverage.

Appointees will be based at the Secretariat headquarters in Suva. Appointments will be for three years initially, and are renewable by mutual agreement.

Applications close on 29 March 1996. They should contain full information on education and career backgrounds and should give names, addresses and telephone numbers of at least three referees with whom the applicant has been associated professionally.

Applications should be addressed to: The Secretary General Forum Secretariat Private Mail Bag, Suva, FIJI.

Telephone 312-600; Telex: FJ2229; Fax: 305-573.

Further Information Is available on request from the Personnel Officer, on 312-600 Extension 334. * Member states of the South Pacific Forum: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Papua New Guinea, Palau, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu and Western Samoa. 131617v3 J

people to the mainstream Australian public. Glenyse Wards book Wandering Girl’ provided an equally tragic account of being removed from her parents as a very young child and working as a house maid for rich and often obnoxious white employees. The stories, recounted in songs, in plays, books, films and paintings are emotionally harrowing ones which have finally forced many of the Australian public to face the less appealing and often hidden side of their own history.

This process of rewriting Australian history through art has been responsible for a significant change in attitudes of both non-Aboriginal and Aboriginal Australia.

Non-Aboriginal Australians could not fail to acknowledge the history on which Australia was founded. This new picture is a far cry from historical perspective dominant within the education system and reinforced by much early Australian painting which described a heroic arrival of pioneers and explorers who conquered a barren landscape and brought civilisation to a primitive people. For Aboriginal people there has been a continuing flow of creative expression which continues to gain strength and momentum.

Survival Day is a celebration of this voice and of the fact that it’s sound confirms that Aboriginal people have survived the atrocities to which they were subjected with the coming of whites to their land.

Survival Day marks what is known in the Aboriginal community as Invasion Day not Australia Day.

At the Survival Day concert an impressive line-up of Aboriginal bands and performers fill the stage on a sweltering afternoon. Many of the songs lyrics are political. Kev Carmody one of the best-known Aboriginal singers and songwriters in the country is a poet with a guitar. One of his most poignant songs, Thou shall not steal’, plays on the message of white Christian morality and the fact that Aboriginals land, children and lifestyle were stolen from them. The Bangarra Dance Company’s performance included a powerful sequence in which four male dancers, concealed behind twisted tree branches, rose up in time to the music and slowly spread white paint, a traditional body decoration, across their bodies and faces before they began their dance sequence. Archie Roach and Ruby Hunter, well-known singers and songwriters performed as well as Coloured Stone, Blekbala Mujik and many others.

During the afternoon, the minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Robert Tickner, the New South Wales Premier Bob Carr and other politicians arrived to present awards.

Kev Carmody was presented with an award as one of the most popular musicians. Later when he came on stage to perform, he made it clear he was happy to receive it but that it was for everyone, that in Aboriginal culture there were no superstars.

Around the main theatre area were numerous stalls selling T-shirts designed by Aboriginal people or advertising and promoting various organisations. Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association, CAAMA, were there, selling recorded cassettes of performers who appeared throughout the day. CAAMA is responsible for recording numerous Aboriginal singers and songwriters and is constantly producing new talent. ‘Black Women’s Action in Education Foundation’ were handing out newsletters, ATSIC or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission were giving out Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island flags and information about their organisation.

Both the Aboriginal and the Torres Strait Island flag reflect Aboriginal peoples relationship with the land. The Aboriginal flag is divided into equal halves of black and red with a yellow circle in the centre. The black symbolises Aboriginal people and the yellow the sun, the red is a sign of the earth and the ochre which Aboriginal people use in their ceremonies. The Torres Strait Island flag is made up of three horizontal coloured stripes, green at the top and bottom which represents the land, blue in the centre which represents the sea. Thin black lines which divide the stripes represent the people. A white dhari (headdress) sits in the centre with a five pointed star beneath it.

This star symbolises the island groups and is used for navigation. It is also a symbol of the seafaring Torres Strait Islanders.

White represents peace. Both flags reflect the people and the land on which they live.

Survival Day is a day which celebrates the continuation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island pepple and cultures and their relationship with their land. It demonstrates their resilience and strength in the face of invasion. It is a powerful reminder of what Australian Day celebrations tend to ignore. ■ Members of the audience with the aboriginal flag 27 CULTURE PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996 (From page 25)

Stepping into the boy’s club By Sophie Foster ideal community where individuals are accepted as they are, where human barriers are continuously being broken down, where there is love, forgiveness, reconciliation, then where else can such a community exist?”Lomaloma says.

She says the church is the best avenue for providing a model of an ideal society where being a woman does not disqualify one from their “calling”.

The Dean of the Holy Trinity Anglican Cathedral in Suva, Father Winston Halapua, who was instrumental in moves to ordain Pacific women, is adamant about equality in the church.

“There is no other way for the church except to love God and love your neigh- Priesthood has been a male domain for longer than religion has been in the Pacific.

But in keeping with the tides of change, the Anglican Church in the Pacific took a dynamic step over the Christmas period when it ordained its first indigenous woman priest.

Reverend Sereima Lomalofna was ordained last December 17, in keeping with the church’s decision to provide access to priesthood for women.

The ceremony was a milestone in its efforts to include women at all levels in the church.

“If the church cannot show the world an hour. It simply means to love your neighbour - race, colour, status, gender should not matter. Treat everybody the same”, he says.

Lomaloma says gender should not be an issue where ordination is concerned, especially when the Bible is often used as an excuse to block the path to priesthood.

“I do not see it as a gender issue ... when people actually use that kind of argument and support it by quoting from the Bible or highlight the fact that Jesus only had male disciples, I am flabbergasted!”

Apart from the 12 disciples argument, many say it is “customary” for women not to become priests.

While Lomaloma agrees there is a Reverend Sereima Lomaloma with Sister Claire Masina outside the Anglican Church in Suva 28 RELIGION PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

“heavy predominance” of males in the ministry, she insists it is not just a male domain.

“But I also recognise that there are some people who have reservations or who do not support women’s ordination.”

Indeed more than a decade ago, such free expression of female equality in the church would have been unheard of.

The drive towards including women at all levels in the Anglican Church resulted from a recognition of the importance of women’s roles and changing attitudes of the clergy and community.

But it was not until 15 years ago that the church accepted that women could follow “God’s calling”.

It was then the Diocese of Polynesia, which includes Fiji, Tonga and Samoa, made the decision to allow women to be ordained.

Halapua, who was a part of that monumental debate, says a lot of the criticism of women’s ordination stems from a power struggle.

“It has to do with power and dominance. Some people think that by being a man they have extra power.

“The church needs to open up and dismantle boundaries that have (been) built over the years because of historical beliefs of other countries.”

According to the Centre for Women’s Global Leadership, there is no value in protecting parts of culture and religion that serve to keep women in subordinate positions.

Women have a right to help change those parts of religion or culture that are in direct conflict with their human rights, the Centre says.

“Women...should be able to challenge regressive practices within their own traditions as well as protest human rights abuses without feeling that they are denying their entire culture or religion,” it says.

Halapua agrees saying cultural practices that discriminate against a certain part of the population should be removed.

“Biblically, God made us to be partners, as in culture. And if there are cultural values that are irrelevant, they should be destroyed. We shouldn’t harp on cultures that reduce another human being,” he said.

“That is the problem with the church today. They highlight bits that serve their own interests.”

The use of cultural practices to prevent women from exercising their rights as individuals is universal, but Lomaloma says it is a pity it has permeated into religion.

“There are indeed cultural barriers that exist that prevent women from exercising their ministries. And this is the greatest tragedy of all.”

Since the introduction of female ordination, only three women, including Lomaloma, have progressed towards becoming part of the clergy of the Anglican Church.

Part of the problem, Lomaloma says, is women are not aware of their right to join the priesthood of the Anglican Church.

“At one of the meetings I attended, one of the women there said she did not know that the ordination of women had been approved.

“She also said that if she had known then perhaps other women may have come forward earlier.”

The lack of a support network for women wanting to be ordained, says Halapua, can be attributed to the priorities of priests in charge of parishes.

“There are a lot of things going on in the church here (in the Anglican Church) and outside and some of them depend very much on the leadership of the priest-incharge because what they like seems to be put forward and encouraged. There are some things like women’s ordination which perhaps are not their priorities.”

Priests play a major role, says Lomaloma, in encouraging and supporting women who feel they have a calling.

“Unfortunately in some parishes, the clergy themselves will need to be emancipated”, she says.

Halapua admits the Anglican Church is divided on the issue of female ordination, purely because different branches of the church make their own decisions.

He says the church in Melanesia does not condone female ordination.

Although Fiji could be considered Melanesian, its progressive views are a result of its inclusion in the Diocese of Polynesia, whose missionaries came from Australia.

But by far history’s biggest opponent to female ordination has been the Catholic Church.

Indeed, when the question of ordination first arose in the Anglican Communion in 1975, Pope Paul VI reminded the Archbishop of Canterbury of the Catholic Church’s firm stance against females entering the priesthood.

The church’s reasons include the example that Jesus chose his 12 apostles from amongst men and its teaching that the exclusion of women from the priesthood is in accordance with “God’s plan”.

But Halapua says the ideology against the ordination of women overlooks the real issue of the Christian ministry as being God’s calling.

“If women coming in enriches the ministry, a ministry that belongs to somebody else - it belongs to God - we have to acknowledge it in the church.

“It’s like a house where you open the windows and suddenly you see the light come inside and you feel warm. And you think why haven’t we opened the windows in all those years.”

Perhaps the best way forward Halapua says, would be to lead by example and -pray for change.

But for now, Lomaloma is providing a much-needed role model for other Pacific Island women wanting to be ordained.B 29 RELIGION PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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Rebirth of a nation Nauru’s newest president sets himself a daunting task By Jemima Garrett Nauru’s new president Lagumot Harris has set himself a task which he describes as no less than the “rebirth” of his nation - the greening of Nauru’s mined-out phosphate lands.

The phosphate reserves, which have been an economic bonanza for Nauru for most of this century, are now almost completely exhausted and the wasteland of jagged limestone pinnacles which covers 80 per cent of Nauru’s central plateau is to be transformed for human habitation.

It is a dream that has long been held by Nauruans. As early as the 1950’s they started putting money aside in a special trust fund for the day when rehabilitation could begin and the topsoil from minedout areas has been carefully saved in a huge mound in the centre of the island.

A recently-completed feasibility study prepared a detailed plan for the rehabilitation. If implemented in full, it would transform Nauru from a land poor country in a land rich country. The closely spaced pinnacles, which occasionally reach 10 or more metres high, will have to be knocked over and crushed before topsoil is laid.

New forests would be planted and houses would be built, along with other amenities.

Land would also be set aside to protect Nauru’s historical sites and endangered species. A number of places have been identified for an airstrip. Most of these would have the added advantage of acting as a water catchment for a new lake which would solve Nauru’s chronic shortage of fresh water.

It is an ambitious plan but one which is flexible enough to change with people’s needs. By using equipment already on the island and implementing the project over Nauru’s mined-out pinnacles 32 REGION PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

23 years the cost could be brought down to SA23O million, excluding housing which will have to be paid for by individuals rather than the government.

President Harris probably knows more about the possibilities for rehabilitation than anyone on the island. He is a civil engineer and, before taking his country’s top job last November, was Nauru’s chief advisor on the feasibility study.

“I believe we should be looking at it as a vision for the future and while we have not yet put everything on the table for our people a lot of our people are talking about rehabilitation and what this will mean for the future of our children and the future of Nauru,” the President told PIM.

For the president the first priority once the rehabilitation gets underway is housing. Most people live on the narrow coastal strip which at its widest point is just 400 metres from the beach to the cliffs that mark the beginning of the mined-out plateau. In some cases 20 or more people are sharing a single house and around 400 houses are needed immediately if the housing shortage is to be dealt with.

Before any work is done on “Topside”, president Harris plans a wide-ranging public discussion of the proposals which he describes as a “Nauru theme”. The “Nauru theme” is intended to ensure landowners ideas are included and that the plan, much of which has thus far been drawn up by Australian consultants, becomes uniquely Nauruan.

As would be expected with any big project, there are some difficult issues which must be resolved before the first pinnacle can be knocked over. One is the question of land. Most of the land on Topside is divided into small parcels each of which is owned by a single landowner. Before any rehabilitation can occur the landowners must agree to the plan.

With some land marked out for leafy housing sites and others for sewage works or industrial areas president Harris does not under-estimate the difficulty in winning their approval. Various proposals have been put forward to ensure all get returns from their land. President Harris is optimistic that, with his insistence that a solution comes from the people and the obvious fact that the land is useless in its current form, the project will go ahead.

The other stumbling block is money.

With mining winding down Nauru’s phosphate revenues have dropped sharply. In the past few years it has lost millions of dollars from share deals on the Tokyo stock market and more still to international conmen. The island’s foreign debt stands at SA2OO million and its cash flow problems have forced the bank of Nauru to place a cap on the amount of cash depositors can withdraw.

The new government is confident that with serious belt tightening, some asset sales and the help of international accounting firm Price Waterhouse, it will be able to come up with a debt servicing plan and put Nauru’s economy back on a sustainable path.

Other measures, some of which were started by the Dowiyogo government, are already starting to show results. The corporatisation of Air Nauru in particular, has stemmed a big drain on the budget. Under the guidance of Peter Roberts, who helped Vanuatu turn its airline into a profit-making venture, Air Nauru is now doing more with one plane than it was before with two, and hopes to show a profit within three years.

Even so, the solution to Nauru’s money troubles will not be easy. President Harris has used his public addresses since taking office to warn his people that they will have to make sacrifices and on January 31 appealed to Nauruans to look at the example of strength and fortitude shown by Nauruans who lived through the starvation and forced labour imposed on them by the Japanese during their two and-a-half years of exile during World War 11.

Lagumot Harris was a small boy of seven when the war ended. His Works and Community Services Minister, Roy Degoregore, who was a young man during the war, endured the sustained allied bombing of Nauru and many beatings from the Japanese. Degoregore’s experiences have made him keen to see young Nauruans learn from those hard times. If the rehabilitation goes ahead it will pose many challenges as well as open many new training opportunities for young Nauruans.

More immediately, president Harris is considering a range of possibilities to deal with his country’s unfamiliar economic circumstances, including reforms to the public sector, deregulation, privatisation, increased productivity and the establishment of a fishing industry and small-scale agriculture.

In his New Year’s address to the nation president Harris nominated rehabilitation of the mined out lands as “foremost on this government’s agenda” and predicted that it would become “the focal point of Nauru’s economic activity in years to come”. ■ Ludwig Keke showing the WWII bomb crater in his backyard which is now an ornamental lake 33 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996 REGION

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Australia makes its mark Big is not always beautiful. Small Australian businesses are increasingly joining their large counterparts in translating good domestic performances into offshore market strategies.

These businesses’ primary offshore destination continues to be the South Pacific.

First-time visitors are struck by the high visibility of Australian institutions, products and services throughout the region. Australian household names - Westpac, ANZ, QBE Insurance, Amotts, Golden Circle, Edgell, BHP and Foster’s are all there, most often as market leaders.

In several countries, Australian television channels are accessible and in some cases the Australian dollar is the national currency. In New Caledonia, the local people play a unique version of cricket probably introduced by early Queensland cattlemen; in Nauru, they play Australian Rules while everywhere else, Rugby Union has become a passion.

Australia is usually the main influence and source of supply, and its quality standards are frequently adopted as benchmarks by neighbouring countries.

Australian banking, insurance, accounting, legal and other service providers are throughout the region, providing valuable support and facilities to new and established exporters alike.

Despite the come-hither attractions of the present glamour markets like China and South East Asia, the South Pacific remains a big export market for Australia.

It is the world’s largest consumer of elaborately transformed manufactures (ETMs) and 25 per cent of Australia’s global ETM exports go to the region.

ETMs now constitute 60 per cent of Australia’s total exports to the South Pacific while market shares in the region in 1994-95 were larger than elsewhere - 22 per cent in New Zealand (where market share is rising slightly); 50 per cent in 34 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Papua New Guinea (where market share is being maintained); 12 per cent in New Caledonia (despite unrestricted duty-free entry for European exports) and 30 per cent in the non-French Pacific Islands.

But the big figures do not obscure the fact that this is not the territory for multimillion dollar opportunities. They are rare on the ground except, perhaps, in New Zealand and through the infrequent commitment of a major mining project in PNG or New Caledonia. Regional infrastructure projects generally require aid or concessional funding packages.

Australia’s comfortable position in the region is based on the long-term, solid performances of small operators and, in general, the importers of the South Pacific are happy to keep it that way.

Australia’s merchandise exports to the South Pacific in 1994 were valued at $6.2 billion, the main individual markets being New Zealand ($4.4 billion), Papua New Guinea ($968 million), Fiji ($351 million) and New Caledonia ($l5O million). Australian exports to the rest of the South Pacific, to places such as Tahiti, Vanuatu and Tonga, amounted to a further $3OO million.

Reflecting the key importance of the four primary markets, Austrade’s South Pacific offices are situated in Auckland, Port Moresby, Suva and Noumea. In Suva, assisted by its Noumea office and Australia’s diplomatic staff in other Pacific missions, staff are also helping exporters with information, local briefing, contacts and appointments in small island markets.

The chief Australian focus in the South Pacific is on manufactured exports, with the lion’s share going to NZ ($3.1 billion in 1994), eclipsing the US and Singapore as customers.

New Zealand is the export market where most Australian manufacture exporters get started and where they continue to prosper after striking further afield.

PNG is also an important ETMs market for Australia ($409 million last year) and ETMs sales to Fiji reached $lB6 million, placing that country ahead of South Africa, France, Canada and India in the top 20 of Australia’s ETM customers.

Even New Caledonia, where French and other European Union exporters have duty-free access, is a growing outlet for Australian manufacturers. Australian products already established in these affluent Franco-Melanesian markets include mining equipment, various household appliances, car parts, motor mowers, garden sheds, casual and beach apparel, pleasure boats, solar water heaters, house-building systems, above-ground pools - even barbecues and the charcoal to fuel them.

Additionally, the region is a good market for processed food and beverages, which constitute a large part of the $7OO million of rural products Australia exported to the South Pacific last year. The main competition food exporters usually encounter is from their NZ counterparts, who service customers assiduously and are generally price-competitive despite the recent appreciation of the NZ dollar.

In 1993-94 Australian services exports to the world were valued at $18.3 billion.

A breakdown by individual countries is not yet available, but in the preceding year the main markets were Japan ($3.2 billion), the US ($2.1 billion), and Britain ($1.7 billion). Service exports to the South Pacific region were valued at $1.7 million, or around one-tenth of Australia’s global ser- Australian goods on display at a trade fair held in Suva in January 35

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The list of services is extensive and includes the important sector of education and training. Several Australian educational institutions are providing various courses to South Pacific students in both Australia and in their own countries.

Research last year showed that more Australian services exporters begin their international marketing in New Zealand than anywhere else - just like manufactures exporters. Having cut their teeth there, they then expand into the larger markets of the main OECD economies.

Added to the merchandise exports of $6.2 billion, Australia’s services exports to the region bring the total Australian export market to $8 billion with ETMs and services predominating.

Australia is an important supplier to the South Pacific. Its share of total imports into the region varies from more than 50 per cent in PNG to about 35 per cent in Fiji and neighbouring islands, 22 per cent in New Zealand and 12 per cent in New Caledonia.

According to Austrade’s general manager for the South Pacific, John Tinney, the region’s primary attractions for Australians - especially new and established exporters - can be summed up thus: low costs and user-friendliness.

“A Queensland exporter can make a four or five-day business visit to Papua New Guinea for less than $3OOO, including fares, accommodation, meals, hire car and driver and incidental costs,” says Tinney.

“A business trip to New Zealand or Fiji would cost about the same and somewhat more for New Caledonia, where costs are higher. But these costs pale into insignificance when you line them up against a week in Japan or the American west coast.”

Tinney says language and business practices are familiar (it helps to have some French in New Caledonia, but many exporters succeed there without it) and transport and communication links are generally easy and efficient. Time zones are similar to eastern Australia and PNG is on the same time as Queensland.

“South Pacific firms are more comfortable dealing with small Australian companies and prefer working with firms based in regional Australia rather than in the large southern capitals,” advises Tinney.

“Queensland in particular has the added advantage of having a similar climatic, pastoral, forestry and horticultural environment to that of many South Pacific countries. This matching of scale and common experience can facilitate small-scale joint ventures as well as the simple export of goods and services.”

Austrade says the present opportunities in the main South Pacific markets are in New Zealand, PNG, Fiji and New Caledonia.

In New Zealand, the areas most attractive to exporters are wastewater processing technology and equipment, agricultural equipment, fishing boats, ferries, pleasure boats apparel and fashion-lifestyle products, processed foods, railway equipment, information technology, software and medical, scientific and hospital equipment. , In PNG, potential areas for investigation are road projects, education and training services, health services, mining technology and equipment, building materials and equipment, food and beverages, information technology, software, boats and telecommunications.

In Fiji, exporters should look at the fields of consumer products, engineering products, automotive items, food and beverages, building materials, construction, education and training services and telecommunications.

In New Caledonia, the most attractive markets are in fruit and vegetables, grocery lines, agriculture horticulture, livestock, construction, meat, boats, and mining systems and equipment.

The South Pacific is user-friendly, and cost-effective for all exporters, particularly for potential and new exporters. Yet, surprisingly, companies tend to overlook this market on their doorstep and opt for more difficult markets further afield in a bid to boost their business, says.

“Australia ,is the leading economy and favoured business partner in the South Pacific region and it is important that Australian exporters comprehend this, take advantage of it and develop trade with the region even further,” he says. ■ 36

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PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Trade agreement being considered A bilateral trade agreement between Fiji and Australia, which could supersede SPARTECA, will not eradicate the need for Fiji businesses to improve their international competitiveness.

According to Australian officials, Australia’s open economic policy means countries like Fiji will have to develop a more competitive edge to survive in the international market.

The Australian Foreign Affairs and Trade magazine. Insight, said Fiji’s reliance on preferential trading could not last long with the continuous erosion of SPARTECA’s margin of preference through Australia’s drive to open its economy.

A bilateral trade agreement had been the objective of the Fiji Government and some industry sectors for some time.

Fijian foreign affairs minister Filipe Bole and Australian minister for Development Co-operation and Pacific Island Affairs Gordon Bilney agreed to begin non-binding consultations on the possibility of a bilateral trade agreement late last year.

The possible shift to a bilateral trade agreement was expected to be the subject of extensive discussion and negotiation over 1996.

Both Australia and Fiji recognise the need for wide private sector consultation during the discussions.

To help facilitate private sector input, the Fiji/Australia Business Council set up a sub-committee, chaired by Shell’s Peter Noble to look into the possibility of a bilateral trade agreement..

The sub-committee would provide recommendations to the Fiji Government on the framework and parameters of an agreement..

One of the areas that would be given consideration was the fact that a number of industries in both countries were still protected.

The sub-committee’s findings could be presented to government by as early as the middle of the year.

Both Bole and Bilney made clear that any potential agreement would be reciprocal and phased in on an industry-by-industry basis.

Fiji/Australia Business Council head Ross Addison said the current preferential trade agreement, SPARTECA, was a onesided agreement designed to stimulate Pacific economies.

The agreement was signed on July 14, 1980 between Australia and New Zealand on one hand, and the South Pacific Forum Island countries on the other.

It came into force on January 1, 1981 to “enhance economic, commercial/industrial, agricultural and technical co-operation among the signatory nations with a view to accelerating the development of the FIC”.

However, it will be difficult to come up with an agreement with more advantages for Fiji than that currently offered under the SPARTECA deal.

SPARTECA gives Fijian exporters preferential access to Australian and New Zealand markets.

There are two categories, goods wholly obtained in a FIC and goods partly manufactured in a FIC.

Essentially, mineral products such as vegetables, fruits, plants, wood, and goods made exclusively from them are considered wholly obtained from a FIC and are duty-free into Australia and New Zealand.

Goods partly manufactured in a FIC come under the 50 per cent rule but the last process of manufacture must be done in a FIC.

Manufacture does not include restoration processes such as reconditioning, rejuvenating, renovating or overhauling.

Packaging of articles imported in bulk into retail form and dissembling goods into broken down form are also not considered part of the manufacturing process.

But in most cases, packaging could be included as part of the 50 per cent value added in the FIC.

There were no restrictions on quantity for goods wholly obtained from the FIC.

The rule revolves around the principle that 50 per cent of the value of the finished goods has to be added in the FIC by the island manufacturer.

The ROOs clause was written into the SPARTECA agreement when it was first established.

On January 18, last year, however, amendments were made to the rules of origin for FIC exports.

In addition, the Australian Rules of Origin Package under ANZCERTA (CER) were carried over to SPARTECA as a package amendment.

Amongst other issues, a two per cent margin of tolerance was now condoned under SPARTECA where unforeseen circumstances could be taken into account if they caused goods to fail the 50 per cent rule.

However, some Fiji manufacturers had problems complying with the general ROOs guidelines on local content in the past.. (Continued page 39) Australian development co-operation minister Gordon Bilney 37

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The result was a failure in certain goods qualifying as duty-free under SPARTECA.

In response to such problems, both the Australian and Fiji governments took steps to implement a self-help system for manufacturers to comply with ROOs criteria.

This led to the establishment of the Informed Compliance Programme which helps local manufacturers identify those items which could be listed as FIC content.

For example, the ROOs criteria included factory costs, but not all such costs were allowable under the system.

A protocol was signed in Suva on October 30 by Filipe Bole which governed customs procedures for goods entering Australia under SPARTECA.

It established a mechanism for ensuring that ROOs was being observed by Fiji exporters by giving them clear guidelines on which costs could be included to make up the 50 per cent local content.

A joint ministerial statement released after the October meeting said the protocol would allow Fiji manufacturers and Australian importers to trade in a ““clear and predictable environment”.

According to Australian officials, this gave FIC exporters a chance to smarten-up their act and reduced the need for the Australian Customs Service to police such exports.

Adherence to the ICP enabled Australian customs personnel to concentrate on those who were breaking the rules intentionally.

The next round of ministerial talks were due to take place in Canberra but a date had not been confirmed as yet.

Meanwhile, trade between Australia and Fiji is progressing well with sophisticated products hitting the both markets almost simultaneously.

One of the latest products to be released is a high pressure water blaster called the “concept” suitable for both domestic and light industrial applications.

With a series of standard features not found on conventional machines, it has a standard lance which can work at both high and low pressures at a touch.

Such Australian products are becoming more accessible to people in Fiji through better communication and trade links between the two countries. ■ New trade commissioner takes up office By Sophie Foster Austrade has a new Trade Commissioner for the Pacific Islands.

He is Mark Levings, who took up his appointment in late January.

Levings has been with Austrade for the past 11 years and comes to Fiji from Queensland where he was regional manager.

Levings says one of the reasons he was appointed was because of similarities between Queensland and most Pacific islands in terms of climate, crops, and nature of industry.

Austrade’s main focus, he says, will be to encourage face-to-face contact between Australian exporters and Pacific Island importers, especially at the small enterprise level.

Such exporters are a lot more comfortable dealing with the Pacific, he says, because of proximity and the relative ease of doing business here.

Levings says that Austrade, through its regional manager network, identifies several thousand new exporters each year.

“We want Pacific Island importers to know that many new Australian exporters are keen to do business in the Pacific, and Austrade can help to put the two parties together.”

Austrade was continually updating its database on Australian exporters and potential exporters, as well as re-evaluating Pacific markets, Levings says.

“The nature of demand is such that it is constantly changing, and for our part we will be out there (in the marketplace) keeping abreast of these changes.”

Levings is a graduate of Griffith University in Queensland with a Bachelor of Administration majoring in economics.

He speaks intermediate Korean, which he studied for three years.

He has experience in areas relevant to the Pacific including as project manager for Australian sugar technology exports, in Austrade’s horticulture section in Melbourne, and involvement in the export of Australian education services.

Levings term' as trade commissioner will run to the middle of 1996, when he returns to his position as regional manager for South Queensland, and a senior trade commissioner will be appointed to replace him. ■ Mark Levings: Trade commissioner Pacific Islands 39

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PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

One big market The following is the edited text of an address by Deo Chand, Marketing Officer, Austrade, to mark Australia Day, January 26, 1996.

Historical and traditional linkages have significantly contributed to the growth of trade between Australia and Fiji and the other countries of the South Pacific.

The dynamics of the business culture and ever-changing needs of customers continues to exhaust conventional means of doing business.

As trade barriers give way to deregulation and communications links between markets improve, the world is more than ever becoming “one big market”.

The responsibility of developing trade and economy in many South Pacific countries is now being passed from governments to the business community.

To be able to survive in this one big market, business operators have to become internationally competitive and have to take the initiative in developing trade and attracting investment.

Business linkages are being increasingly recognised as an important tool to promote trade and investment.

Successful business linkages can prove equally, or even more, successful as formal trade agreements.

A recent example of putting the concept into practice was in August last year when Emperor Gold Mines, together with a Fiji government ministerial mission, jointly managed to secure investment funds by talking together with potential investors in Australia.

Austrade played an important part in the mission thus confirming the Australian government’s commitment to Fiji.

Emperor, as a direct result of this concerted effort, have announced plans to spend $35 million on capital expansion, plus two new mines in Fiji, by the year 2000.

The company plans to invest $4.5 million each year on exploration works and possibly $5O million on the development of new mines. the company anticipates that it will be producing 200,000 ounces of gold per annum by the turn of the century, amounting to some $llO million per annum.

The South Pacific continues to remain a big export market for Australia; the market is the world’s largest consumer of Australia’s Elaborately Transformed Manufactures (or ETMs).

It constitutes 60 per cent of Australia’s total exports to the South Pacific.

Australia views the South Pacific as an important and valuable market.

Australia’s trade collectively with the South Pacific market for the 1994/95 financial year was worth approximately $A6.5 billion.

Amongst the region, Australia sees Fiji as a valuable export market.

Australia’s export to Fiji has risen steadily each year, from $229 million in 1990 to A 5377 million in the 1994/95 financial year. (In the first 10 months of 1995, the total exports to Fiji was valued at A 5336.5 million).

Fiji’s export to Australia in 1994 were valued at SFI74 million.

Australia’s principal exports to Fiji include processed foods, telecommunications equipment, petroleum products, machinery and equipment, building material and hardware supplies, and textiles and fabrics.

A range of expertise and professional services also constitute an important export component.

Australian firms have continued to invest in Fiji; a total of 19 projects originating from Australia were implemented in Fiji in 1995.

The 19 projects involved total investment worth more than $l6 million and were in the tourism, garment and service sectors.

These investments created employment opportunities for more than 600 people.

The willingness by Australian companies to invest in Fiji and the continued growth of Australian exports clearly demonstrates the commitment to Fiji by Australian companies.

Austrade will continue to act as a catalyst for business and trade promotion between the two countries to enhance the growth of trade.

The commitment and willingness to satisfy a range of South Pacific customers needs demonstrates the degree of seriousness and importance that Australian suppliers place in the market.

Australia is undoubtedly recognised as a reputable source of a comprehensive range of internationally competitive goods and services at the door step by a large majority of Pacific Island customers.

Australia is committed to the development of two-way trade between Australia and Fiji.

Austrade views that two-way trade between Australia and Fiji is an integral part of continued friendly relationship and to this effect it is on constant lookout to facilitate this wherever possible.

Austrade is committed to providing support and assistance to the Fiji- Australia/Australia-Fiji Business Councils in their endeavours to foster and facilitate trade and commerce between the two countries.

The Fiji-Australia and Australia-Fiji Business Councils have now formed a very mature and enduring relationship as was evident in the very open and forthcoming discussions during the very successful meeting in Sanctuary Cove in Brisbane in 1995.

The councils have the blessings of both the Fiji and Australian governments in their efforts to develop, promote and facilitate successful linkages. ■

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REGION Security tight on Bougainville By Sam Vulum Security forces on Bougainville will continue to maintain security in care centres and along the Papua New Guinea/Solomon Islands border despite the recent upsurge in activities by the Bougainville Revolutionary Army.

PNG Defence Force chief of staff Colonel Jack Tuat said military operations on Bougainville were under the control of the national government and any change of strategies would be based on government decision.

In an interview with PIM, Tuat said: “In general we are aware of the location of the BRA. Their main strongholds are the Panguna and Kongara areas. However, the direction of the government is not to go on the offensive. Our deployment is to maintain security.”

He said the security forces were aware of BRA presence near Arawa and they were only monitoring their movement.

However, if the BRA were closing in on Arawa and the situation became serious, the government would have to rethink its strategies.

The chief of staff also said that apart from the BRA activities, there was adequate supply of food, fuel and ammunition for a military strength of between 500 to 600 men and about 100 policemen on Bougainville. Their operations were supported by a fleet of vehicles, mainly army land rovers and two Iroquios helicopters.

He said allowances for the security forces were also being paid. Tuat reiterated earlier comments that recent BRA activities, which left two soldiers dead and civilians injured in January, were an attempt to sabotage the government’s peace efforts.

In the first killing incident, an army lieutenant was killed by rebel elements in the Haisi area of the Siwai district when the rebels entered the Haisi Catholic Mission care-centre on the pretext of talking peace. Reports from the area said the rebels then ordered the civilians to move before shooting the soldier.

In the second incident, the BRA waylaid a soldier who was walking with members of the civilian group to a funeral at Matukori village in the Siwai area and killed him.

Tuat said: “We believe that BRA is pushing its ultimate goal and that is more than self-determination. It is stepping-up its activities in an attempt to win back the hearts of many Bougainvilleans who wanted peace.”

He also said the recent BRA activities were in direct retaliation to the attack by security forces on BRA leaders, adding: “What we knew was that they were to travel by helicopter to Bougainville.”

He said despite the BRA activities, restoration of services and other peace efforts were continuing. He also denied reports that security forces were stopping immunisation and relief workers from entering Bougainville.

Tuat also said plans were under way for officials from the Australian High Commission in Port Moresby to visit Bougainville to see the restoration programme and talk to the premier, chiefs and people.

He said the Engineering Battalion would assist in sealing Buka airport and will probably work on the roads around the island.

The Arawa town hospital, headed by PNGDF’s Dr Gideon Kendino was also operating well with medical supplies coming from both the PNGDF and the health department.

Meanwhile, prior to the planned March/April all-Bougainville leaders deliberations, Bougainville transitional government premier Theodore Miriung said there would be two technical meetings and the first will be held as soon as a venue was agreed on.

He said the BTG generally supported the national government’s position that the venue be in Bougainville or anywhere in PNG. However, if BRA leaders have other plans on the venue these will have to be approved by the national government.

Any prospects for an immediate peace meeting were unlikely with the burning down of the luxury home of Honiara-based rebel spokesperson Martin Miriori on February 2.

Miriori, who is the secretary of the socalled Bougainville interim government, the political wing of BRA, escaped the blaze with his family and relatives.

While the cause of the fire was not known, BIG Sydney-based representative Mike Foster has created doubts on the staging of the talks. Foster claimed arson was involved. He asked for a guarantee if they entered PNG for talks as suggested by prime minister Sir Julius Chan.

He said the blaze happened within hours of them receiving a letter stating Chan’s stance that BIG officials come to PNG for two preparatory meetings before the scheduled March/April meeting of all Bougainvilleans.

Chan said: “There are rebels fighting against rebels, I can’t speak for them.”

In other developments, the Honiara District Court has cleared BRA sympathiser Rosemary Gillespie and her daughter Kirrallee Anie Gillespie of charges of illegally entering the Solomon Islands.

In Port Moresby, prime minister Chan said there was nothing the government could do because it had been a matter for the Honiara court to decide on. ■ 42 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

0 gte) Regional Forestry Project in collaboration with the South Pacific Forestry Development Programme Office 29 Pender St., Suva, Fiji Postal Address PO Box 14041, Suva Telephone (679) 305 983/300432 Fax 679) 315 446/305 212 Advertisement Vacancies The Pacific German Regional Forestry Project (PRFP) started in October 1994 and is a Project of the German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ). Through consistent target group orientation, innovative approaches and strategies, GTZ counts as one of the leading development agencies in the world. The PRFP aims to strengthen partner countries' capabilities to sustainably manage their resources.

The PRFP is based in Suva, Fiji. We are looking for 3 additional staff to assist in the fields of * Indigenous Forest Management * Agroforestry * Environment Education Forester (1): Main responsibilities: * introduction of indigenous forest management instruments in selected countries * assistance in adaption, further development and improvement of indigenous forest management tools * training of field officers, landowners and other selected field staff * assistance in developing an inventory network * assistance in developing training programmes and training/awareness materials Agroforester (1): Main responsibilities: * developing agroforestry strategies for selected countries * assistance in the execution of tne strategy * assistance in conducting farm surveys and gender analyses * assistance in developing training programmes and training/awareness materials Public Relation person (1): Main responsibilities: * assistance in developing awareness strategies for different target groups in different countries * assistance in the execution of the awareness programme * assistance in collecting, adapting, developing, testing and implementing of training and awareness materials * coordinating/Raising with different organisations Required Skills/Personality University degree in forestry agriculture public relation and/or educational with environmental education experience * Three to five years of professional experience in the above mentioned fields or related areas * Ability to work with people in a team spirit, flexible, independent, reliable and mature * Strong creativity, communication and presentation skills * Proven management skills and an ability to handle projects simultaneously * Fluency in English We offer an attractive remuneration and benefit scheme and the opportunity for career development in a growing and changing environment. Applications (including Cv, photo and current salary) should reach: Teamleader, Regional Forestry Project, PO Box 14041, Suva, Fiji, no later than 20 March 1996.

ENVIRONMENT Forgera's pollution By Liz Thompson Once again, reports of environmental damage are emerging from Papua New Guinea. This time it’s not Bougainville or Ok Tedi but Porgera mine and the pollution of the Strickland River. Porgera is mined by PJV which comprises of Placer Pacific, Goldfields Limited, Highlands Gold (a subsidiary of Mount Isa Mines) and the PNG government. All the companies involved are largely Australian-owned. The report coneludes that the pollution resulting from Porgera mine is on a par with the terrible pollution of the Fly River attributed to BHP’s mine at OK Tedi. Porgera has now become the focus of landowner discontent and environmental concern.

The track record of multi national companies operating in countries such as Papua New Guinea is abysmal. You cannot help but ask why it is Australian companies continually fail to apply similar environmental standards to resource exploitation activities in PNG to those they know they are obliged to abide by when operating in Australia. It seems extraordinary that companies will knowingly enter into operations which will pollute river systems, damage gardens and wildlife and generally lower the standards of the local communities whose resources are being exploited. You would like to believe that humanitarian concerns speak louder than dollars but clearly this is not the case. Australians speak out against much publicised atrocities on the international arena but remain largely unaware of the damage Australian companies, supported by the Australian share-holding public, are doing to our indigenous neighbours.

The Porgera File: Adding to Australia’s Legacy of Destruction is a recentlyreleased report on the environmental and social impacts of the Porgera mine in PNG. It has been compiled by the Mineral Policy Institute, Australian Conservation Foundation, Community Aid Abroad and World Wide Fund for Nature. While the operations of CRA’s Panguna Mine in Bougainville, PNG, and BHP’s Ok Tedi Mine have been subject to intense public scrutiny, (the latter particularly in recent months), operations of Porgera Mine which is also located in the Fly River catchment have continued largely unnoticed.

In common with all major Australianowned and operated mines in PNG, the Porgera mine discharges all its tailings directly into the environment, in this case the Strickland/Fly River system. The tailings contain high levels of potentially toxic metals. Even though these dilute as they travel further down the river system the river is still contaminated with arsenic at least 65 kms from the mine site. In the mines Environmental Impact Statement it was estimated that the river bed would rise by several metres on the basis of the millions of tonnes of residue from the mine which would enter the river. Ground ore is piled-up alongside the river and during heavy rainfall is carried downstream. The estimate of water rises was based on the idea that the material would spread through the length of the river, however according to David Butcher, the director of World Wide Fund for Nature, (WWF) “where the river is low-lying it has already risen by several metres and covered low-lying surrounding areas which are mainly gardens with centimetres if not metres of very fine material”.

The second part of the problem according to WWF is that when ore is treated it produces a whole suite of other elements, mainly heavy metals such as mercury, lead and arsenic. The assessment of materials is on a soluble basis.

Since these elements are not terribly soluble the government of PNG has effectively said that as long as the soluble component does not go beyond a certain level the practice of dumping in the river is alright.

However, according to Butcher the soluble component is several thousand times what in some instances would be allowed in Australia. He argues that whilst it is insoluble when it is dumped, “in the longer term with differences in pH and so forth, solubility is just about assured”.

Part of the problem is undoubtedly the stance of the PNG government who are going out of their way to protect the rights of large international companies involved in resource extraction. Any public disaf- PNG’s National Theatre Company are using performance as a tool to reach the people 44 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

fection on the part of landowners is a possible threat to future investment. If landowners continue to make attempts as they did in trying to take BHP to court over Ok Tedi it is highly likely that future investors will become extremely nervous at the potential for long-term problems.

The forcible closing of Bougainville mine has already shown just how dramatic this impact can be. The government of PNG are keen to generate a profit from the resource industry and rather than protecting the indigenous inhabitants and their resource rights they are in business with the foreign companies. This became most obvious when the government passed legislation which made it impossible for landowners to bring a court hearing against BHP in PNG.

On their part, PJV vehemently deny all allegations made in the recent report.

Placer Pacific’s company secretary said there was no evidence of toxicity in the river downstream of the mine and insisted that the recent deaths landowners blamed on the eating of fish and pigs which they believed had been poisoned by the river water, had nothing to do with the mine.

The local community have been warned however, not to drink the water.

Butcher urges the Australian government to apply the same environmental protection criterion it does in Australia to Australian companies working overseas.

What happens in the USA he points out, is that the government usually manages to enforce environmental protection, “through it’s Export Finance Insurance system. What tends to happen when companies work in another country is that this system insures the risk. If the companies’ standards do not meet the protection criterion the insurance is not provided”.

Recently, there was an example of another major development in PNG being knocked back by the USA and picked up by Australia. Butcher argues that for the Australian government to underwrite poor environmental performance in another country simply because it is economically viable for it to do so is a very poor reaction. He believes the Australian public can make a significant impact by refraining from buying shares in companies that fail to comply to similar environmental protection criterion to those adopted in Australia.

He feels it is highly embarrassing for Australians to be seen as accepting the application of poor environmental standards to other countries.

The Porgera File report concludes; “The discharge of tailings and waste rock sediments into river systems and oceans must cease. This practise has been banned in the US for at least 15 years. The Porgera, Ok Tedi, Misima mines (all in PNG), and the Freeport Mine, in West Papua, should all be subject to these conditions.

New operations unable to meet ‘best practice’ operational perimeters, including complete containment of tailings, should not be allowed to proceed. This would include the Lihir Mine, the Tolukuma Mine (Dome Resources) and the proposed Nena/Frieds mine.

A major part of this move towards sustainable development would be the development of a legally binding code of conduct for the operation of Australian mining companies in the developing world and the removal of aid and insurance assistance for companies not meeting such operational perimeters. Development of such a code should be part of an internationally binding convention for the operations of Trans- National Corporations.

The phasing out of mines that cannot meet such reasonable operating perimeters should take place as part of an overall progression towards the development of sustainable practices in mining and other industries, such as forestry, fisheries and tourism. This should include significantly higher levels of local control over these industries, an increase in small scale operations and substantially higher returns to the PNG people.”

A writ on behalf of 7000 landowners has been lodged in the National Court of PNG claiming unspecified damages against PJV for environmental damage and ill health suffered by villagers. How far this will get given the recent legislation is unclear. However, what it does show without dispute is that landowners are becoming consistently more vocal about their dissatisfaction. They will no longer tolerate massive inequality in the share of profits and terrible damage to their environments. As Bougainville, Ok Tedi, Freeport Copper Mine in Irian Jaya and now Porgera show grassroots communities are beginning to insist on their rights. It is untenable that large companies continue to behave with the same disregard for local environments and communities they have shown to date. ■ Freeport Mine in Irian Jaya. Here, a nearby river shows the effects of tailings pollution, a problem similar to that being experienced at Porgera. 45 ENVIRONMENT PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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A vital part of Fiji’s growing timber industry Tropik Wood Industries Limited owns and operates Fiji’s largest sawmill and is the country’s only major processor of pine timber. The company is owned by Fiji Pine Limited (majority shareholder). Commonwealth Development corporation and European Investment bank with assets valued at around SF4S million. The processing complex which is spanned over an area in excess of four hectares (10 acres) at Drasa, 13 kilometres from Lautoka, includes a weighbridge, log yard, sawmill, chipmill, kilns, treatment plant, moulding shop, power generation plant, workshop and despatch facilities. The plant generates all its electricity requirements from wood residues.

Tropik also owns and operates facilities for storage and export of woodchips at the Port of Lautoka.

Tropik Wood’s objectives are: • Utilisation of the substantial plantation pine forests planted by Fiji Pine Limited and Fiji Forest Department as these forests become economically feasible to harvest; • Provision of a reliable renewable source of sawn timber to meet the needs of the Fiji domestic market thereby enabling the conservation of Fiji’s indigenous timber species; • Creation of employment opportunities for local residents and landowners in particular; 46 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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Tropik logging operations which provide the raw resource for the sawmill, harvest more logs than the sum of the rest of Fiji’s timber industry. The majority of the total log supply of some 390,000 tonnes per annum is of Pinus caribaea with a small proportion of Pinus elliottii. The trees are grown on land leased by Fiji Pine Limited or on private woodlots.

In a technically demanding and highly competitive industry, the Tropik facilities consist of a substantial element of modem technology, machinery and equipment.

The company employs quality people in varying jobs with differing experience and background, all of whom are essential to the successful operation of the company.

Ongoing development of employees is ensured with the attendance of FNTC, FIT and other educational courses.

Tropik Wood Industries has always encouraged participation of local landowners in all its activities. Many employment opportunities have been created from director and staff levels to sawmill hands and chainsaw operators.

Tropik’s logging operations harvest more logs than the sum of Fiji’s timber industry.

The company employs 380 people directly and in the vicinity of an additional 400 (approximate) on contract basis. Work performed on contract includes logging, cartage, cleaning, catering shipping and roadworks.

To assist local landowners become established in business, Tropik has provided comprehensive training and has financed the supply of equipment on a lease basis to landowner logging contractors. With advice and assistance from Tropik and Fiji Pine Limited staff, there are positive signs these small companies will develop into profitable and efficient enterprises.

Tropik Wood has established an excellent reputation as a supplier of high quality woodchips to Japan.

A wide range of high quality sawn timber has been successfully marketed in Fiji and elsewhere in the Pacific, particularly in Australia. The grades manufactured include house framing, material treated for outdoor use, boards, profiles and furniture clears.

Posts and poleq are also produced, treated to various levels and marketed throughout Fiji and the Pacific.

Tropik, for the foreseeable future has introduced concepts enabling the company to grow. Sales emphasis will be on continually finding new markets to sell products, increasing the volume of domestic sales and capitalising on the quality image established in the export market. ■

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SPORTS Raiders almost rammed By Gabriel Singh Super League has made a major breakthrough in wooing over Fiji’s rugby union-mad public.

And it was all because the mighty Raiders almost got raided in Suva. Super League’s most expensive team - the $5 million-a-year plus Canberra Raiders came on a promotional raid to Fiji and only just survived a most embarrassing raid on their reputation.

Raider-tumed-Ram Steve Stone led Super League’s newest franchise, the Adelaide Rams, to a glorious debut in the opening series of pre-season matches which now has Fiji hooked.

What was to have been an exhilarating display of things come nearly turned sour for Laurie Daley’s star-studded Canberra outfit.

In the end they needed a last gasp try from centre Ruben Wiki to steal a 38-36 victory at Suva’s National Stadium on Saturday, February 10.

And with 8000 people turning up on a windswept, dull, grey typically Suva afternoon, rugby league officials were grinning in delight at the response from Fiji fans.

The turnout at the stadium, where the Raiders and Rams clashed in the climax of Super League Fiji’s National Nines Championship was equal to or better than two major rugby union sevens tournaments being played at the same time in other towns on Viti Levu.

It was as though the gods had blessed Super League’s debut in the South Pacific.

The Rams, resplendent in their Blue and Red outfits, proved a feisty combination out to show they were not just in to make up the numbers.

The pre-season match in Suva had special appeal because it was the first time Fiji’s most famous rugby league son, Namatakula Village flyer Noa Nadruku, was playing in the Mean Green Machine colours on home soil.

Nadruku, who had a nightmarish start, showed both sides his rugby character in a match which produced 13 tries - some of them breathtaking runs along the length of the field - 10 conversions and a penalty to produce almost a point a minute.

The high scoring game went down well with fans who had paid $2O and $8 to see the game.

Adelaide Rams skipper Steve Stone looks for a way out during the Superleague clash at Suva's National Stadium 48 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

“Money well spent,” said Jovesa Kalokalo, a fan who travelled from the Western side to watch his hero, Nadruku, in action for the raiders.

Super League innovations like playing in four 20-minute quarters and the scoring team kicking back to the opposition got a strong reception from the fans.

But it was Nadruku, although there was another Fijian involved in the game, that the fans wanted to see.

The former Fiji rugby union Hong Kong Sevens star elicited an agonised hush as he knocked-on with his first touch of the ball.

But the player who will earn $A 190,000 a season for three years pulled himself together after that.

Nadruku turned on the brilliance only seen on television screens in Fiji previously to score the first of two superbly taken tries.

The bone-crunching hits and sheer pace of play had fans on the edge of their seats throughout.

Though it was a typically early season error infested match, the scoring was at times brilliant.

Nadruku was set up after five minutes by skipper Daley. But the Fijian hero did not have everything his way.

He was hounded by another fellow Nadrogan, Josese Tamani, making his rugby league debut for the Rams.

Tamani, who was playing union for Randwick in Sydney last season, is a powerhouse player, using brute strength to repeatedly break through tackles.

Tamani left the Raiders stranded to put the Rams 10-6 ahead and the play seesawed throughout with the Rams leading 36-32 with five minutes on the clock.

It was then that Wiki, who had a quiet game, exploded, bursting through two tackles and making the tryline. The conversion brought an almost audible sigh of relief from the Raiders camp.

The match featured 10 capped players one Fijian, three Papua New Guineans, three Kiwis and three Kangaroos.

Nadruku was the lone Fijian international.

Kumuls were Raiders second row David Wesley, and Rams triallists Elias Paiyo and Bruce Mamando.

Paiyo was later named captain of the Kumuls for the 16-nation Super League World Nines to be played at Suva’s National Stadium over February 22-24.

Mamando too was named in the PNG team.

The Australian capped players were all in the Raiders ranks - skipper Laurie Daley, Bradley Clyde and David Fumer.

Nadruku was named in the Fiji Bati squad but Tamani missed out.

The Suva game was one of several played over the weekend.

In Rarotonga, the Newcastle-based Hunter Mariners surprised 1995 Australian Rugby League premiers Canterbury Bulldogs 12-10 with former Auckland Warrior Willie Poching landed a penalty from wide out in the last minute.

The Mariners had lost 18-16 to the Bulldogs the previous week.

Like Suva, Cook Islanders turned up in force, almost 6000 of them, to watch Super League action live.

The win was lauded in Fiji because Mariners coach Graham Murray had taken charge of Fiji’s team to the sport’s inaugural World Cup in Britain last October where Fiji trounced South Africa and then was pounded into submission by England and eventual winners Australia.

The Raiders points came from tries from Nadruku (2), David Furner (2), Ruben Wiki, Simon Woolford and Luke Davico.

Fumer and Matthew Wood kicked two goals each while Jason Ferris got the other points for Canberra.

Adelaide’s points came from a hat-trick of tries to Solomon Kiri, two to Rod Maybon and one to Tamani.

Kurt Wrigley kicked six goals for the Rams.

Nadruku and the Raiders played a round of golf in Nadi on Monday before flying out for Nuku’alofa, Tonga, where on Saturday, February 17, they played Murray’s Mariners in the Friendly Islands.

And Raiders chief executive Kevin Neil brought considerable cheer to Super League Fiji which had named its 15-member team for the World Nines.

Neil promised the Fijians the Raiders would sign on any Fiji Bati who had their contract with an Australian Rugby Leaguealigned club cancelled because they were appearing in a Super League tournament.

It was welcome news for Pio Kubuwai, Niumaia Korovata, Hi Toga and lan Sagaitu.

Kubuwai and Korovata play for the Yanco Group 20, Toga for Griffiths and hooker Sagaitu for the Sydney Tigers - all ARL linked.

But Neil made it clear the Fijians would only be drafted i,nto the Canberra Group Eight or country competition.

They would then have to play their way up through the Raiders ranks if they wanted to emulate Nadruku, Fiji’s most successful rugby league player yet. ■ 49 SPORTS PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Annihilation in Adelaide By Atama Raganivatu The Oceania Olympic Qualifying Tournament, which ended in early February, gave Pacific islands soccer fans much food for thought.

The previously wide-held belief that Oceania’s minnows had begun catching up with Australia was rudely revealed to be nonsensical as “The Olyroos” clinically administered hammerings to the national under-23 selections of Solomon Islands, Fiji and Vanuatu - the latter two suffered 10-0 and 12-0 humiliations respectively.

Fiji’s annihilation was particularly harrowing. Their squad travelled to Adelaide with high expectations of success; having just beaten Oceania’s second ranked senior team, Tahiti, and completed an undefeated tour of New Zealand.

However, before local supporters become too depressed by those seemingly horrendous setbacks, they should reflect upon how immensely handicapped their teams are when facing Australia. It is a sad, but often overlooked, fact that the Australians enjoy huge superiority in the two most important materials in the building of a winning soccer team - player numbers and financial resources.

Although soccer is only the third most popular football code in Australia, 512,271 people are registered as playing the sport there. This compares with 3215 players in Fiji, 2688 in the Solomons and 1980 in Vanuatu! Those figures, surely, put the defeats into perspective.

To compound that colossal advantage, the Australian government annually injects huge amounts of money into soccer’s development. This cash has enabled the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra to evolve into being amongst the most proficient cultivators of young footballing talent in the world and given the Olyroos opportunities to continuously hone their skills against prominent foreign teams.

They undertook a month-long tour of Europe and were pitted against several powerful overseas sides on home soil during a preparation programme that commenced early in 1994.

Australia has also enthusiastically exploited her position as a “nation of immigrants”. Most Australians, because of their ancestry, can acquire visas to enter and work in European nations relatively easily. This enables gifted young Aussie soccer players to travel overseas and join high profile professional clubs who provide a polish that only those resident in the French, territories have access to in our region. Olyroos Craig Moore and Mark Viduka are currently attached to world famous outfits Glasgow Rangers and Dynamo Zagreb respectively.

The odds, then, were stacked against Fiji, Vanuatu and the Solomons. Flowever, a few crumbs of comfort were salvaged from the Hindmarsh Stadium. Fiji gained a meritorious 2- 1 victory over runners-up New Zealand and, in strikers Livai Duguca and Manoa Masi, had two players the Fiji under-23 skipper Esala Masi (front) plays against the Solomons at Adelaide’s Hindmarsh Stadium 50 SPORTS PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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Still, the “local” teams were, overall, light years behind Australia in both technical ability and fitness. The gap will only be closed if our players’ preparations are improved at least tenfold.

Australian soccer’s archilles heel is the often woeful ineptitude of its administrators and it is they who give the smaller island nations cause for hope. That incompetence became apparent to the world when a player not listed on the Olyroos’ team sheet was fielded against the Solomons and the original 4-0 win turned into a 2-0 loss as a consequence.

Everybody connected with Australian soccer has at least one horror story to tell about Soccer Australia, as the Sydneybased administrative body now call themselves. Their everyday “housekeeping” is notoriously haphazard. If the Fiji Football Association, Solomon Islands Football Federation and Vanuatu Football Federation can get their acts together they will, at least in one respect, gain a distinct edge.

The F FA’s first goal should be to take serious steps in getting to grips with the abysmal disciplinary problems which have blighted their selections for many years now, whilst the Vanuatu and Solomons federations urgently need to widen their domestic infrastructures so that the many capable players from the outer areas feature in national combinations. At the moment, they don’t look beyond Vila and Honiara.

With those steps taken, our teams will be much better equipped to meet sides of Australia’s calibre. But to be competitive, they require vastly superior groundwork for major tournaments than has been available to them in the past. That, alas, takes a large cash outlay and there seems little likelihood of the sums needed becoming available within the foreseeable future.

As visiting coaches have, for decades, observed, our young players have great potential. Sadly, it seems probable that potential will never be realised. ■ SPORTS

PROFILE The year of the Lam By Atama Raganivatu season for Sydney City Roosters in the Winfield Cup, rugby league’s toughest domestic competition; played a major role in Queensland’s surprise State of Origin series success over New South Wales; been voted top halfback at the World Cup in England and become a national hero in PNG.

One only slightly-flippant Port Moresby journalist told Lam, after he travelled to the country of his birth recently, “Adrian, rugby league is a religion in this nation. And you, my friend, are God.” It takes visitors to PNG very little time to realise this assessment of Lam’s status there is very near the truth. His face can be seen everywhere - on advertisement hoardings for meat, cigarettes, apparel and petrol; on poker machines; on potato chip packets and on best-selling calendars. He is almost as omnipresent on local radio and television.

Adrian, though, is not the only family member to achieve fame. PNG prime minister Sir Julius Chan is a distant relative and his father, Fred Lam, was once known as “The Elvis Presley of P N G”!

Fred is still remembered in PNG as the lead singer of a group called “The Tremors”. Although based in Rabaul, they were immensley popular throughout the country and released several hit records.

Papua New Guinea rugby league captain Adrian Lam could have been forgiven if he celebrated New Year with less enthusiasm than most. Not that he had any philosophical or religious reasons for failing to enter into the spirit of the occasion; just that Lam would have been reluctant to see 1995 end.

When the year began, Lam’s career appeared to be going nowhere. He was playing reserve gradefootball in Sydney and second-fiddle to Aquila Emil in the PNG national selection.

Since then, Lam has enjoyed a superb 52 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

Seeking to further his musical career, Fred moved with his immediate family, including then infant Adrian, to Brisbane in the early 1970’s and it was at the Queensland capital that the younger Lam first displayed his considerable sporting talents.

He helped Wests win the Brisbane Rugby League Premiership in 1992 and 1993 and also gained a place in the Australian national touch football team.

However, Winfield Cup clubs were slow in displaying interest in him and, in Australia, the Winfield Cup was the only club competition that really mattered.

The Roosters made a tentative move to bring Lam into the big time in 1991, before deciding that they preferred New Zealand international Gary Freeman as their halfback. Three years were to pass before the Bondi Beach based club again approached him. Within 24 hours of receiving their second call, he had moved to Sydney.

The initial few months in Australia’s largest city and rugby league’s greatest hotbed were not easy, though. It took Lam a full season to win a regular place in the Roosters’ first team line-up but, once that had been achieved, he made momentous strides.

Lam stepped into the Queensland shoes of the great Alan Langer, who had been discarded after aligning himself with the outlaw Super League organisation, when “The Maroons” met New South Wales in the 1995 State of Origin series. He was a revelation; playing brilliantly in all three games of the series. The northerners achieved a rare clean sweep and Lam won the Man of the Match accolade after the final encounter.

October saw Lam gain further Man of the Match awards for both PNG’s games at the World Cup in England - their draw with Tonga and unlucky defeat by New Zealand. What is more, he was named as the tournament’s top halfback. 5000 people greeted the PNG team at Port Moresby airport as they returned home from their Cup expedition. While leading the team he had captained down to the tarmac, Lam was almost overwhelmed by the fans’ noisy welcome.

Lam has a following in PNG that only pop superstars can dream of elsewhere.

When in his home nation, he can anticipate being continuously contacted by admirers just wishing to speak to him and, if travelling by car, it is essential for him to lie down on the back seat, for the vehicle would be immediately swarmed should he be recognised.

Lam is beloved not only because of his playing ability, but also due to his dedication to PNG rugby league. He has turned down opportunities to be involved with the national teams of Australia and Britain (his mother’s birthplace) to continue wearing the Kumuls’ jersey and believes time will prove that he made wise decisions.

“I choose to play for my country because I am certain we are on our way up,” he said recently. “The squad which travelled to the World Cup learnt a lot in England and there are many promising young players coming through, including some based in Australia who will be much keener to represent the Kumuls after we played so well last October.”

Time will indeed tell whether or not Lam’s faith in PNG rugby league is justified. Even if it is not, he has at least proved the country is capable of producing a player of the highest calibre and that is itself a very important milestone.

Lam’s immediate future is as difficult to predict as PNG’s long-term prospects.

The Roosters have just added John Simon, a NSW representative halfback, to their playing staff and he has pledged to oust Lam from his favourite position.

Lam is equally resolved in his determination to keep the halfback spot, although there is considerable speculation in Sydney rugby league circles that Roosters coach Phil Gould will switch him to hooker - a position he loathes. The PNG has rejected the soft option offered by Queensland Crushers, who attempted to bring him back to Brisbane. Lam would have been virtually free to dictate his own terms had the Crushers’ overtures been successful.

Most observers believe that Simon enjoys an edge in tackling and positional kicking, but Lam proved at the World Cup he has no peers in organisational ability, passing and making territorial gains with his hallmark darting runs.

One thing can be guaranteed however.

Irrespective of what number is on the back of his jumper during the coming season, Adrian Lam will have immense difficulty in capping his feats of 1995. ■ 53 PROFILE PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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CONTACT: PASCALE MARCONNET, BP 4757 NOUMEA, NEW CALEDONIA. TEL: (687) 28 7450. FAX; (687) 26 3248 SPORTS Jonah Lomu’s BIG deal By Atama Raganivatu Jonah Lomu, already the world’s most famous Tongan, is well on the way to also becoming the richest, following a deal he has just signed with British sportswear manufacturer Reebok.

The full details of Lomu’s four-year contract with the company have not been disclosed, however, he is believed to have been guaranteed several million US dollars for spearheading a high-powered international marketing campaign which will involve him appearing in television commercials throughout the world.

The deal represents a major coup for Reebok, as it endeavours to gain an edge over arch rivals Nike, Adidas, and Puma in the Asian and North American markets.

Lomu now transcends rugby union.

Although the sport has a very small following in the United States, he was named amongst the top 10 sports performers of 1995 by that country’s leading news magazine, Time. In Asia, participation in rugby extends little beyond South Korean and Japanese college students and Hong Kong’s expatriate community, yet clips of him rampaging through would-be tacklers are regularly shown on television sets all over the continent.

It is not only Lomu’s athletic ability which makes him such an attractive proposition to Reebok. A devout Christian, he is shy, charmingly modest and affable. Most importantly, his personal life is exemplary.

At a time when the contemporary world’s best known soccer player is a selfconfessed drug addict; the biggest name in modern boxing a convicted rapist; American football’s most lionised personality, at the very least, a wife beater; and the greatest natural talent in golf today an 54 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

alcoholic, universally acclaimed sporting role models are in short supply. Reebok, therefore, must be delighted to have secured Lomu’s presence at the vanguard of their biggest-ever promotion campaign.

Reebok’s credibility has been enhanced by their association with Lomu, for he is selective about the products he endorses.

Several potentially lucrative advertising opportunities had previously been spumed because they required the promotion of items he disliked. Another idea for a television commercial was rejected because it 66 Lomu now transcends rugby union 9 featured footage of England fullback Mike Catt being trampled by a one-man stampede during last year’s World Cup semifinal. That would have been too embarrassing for Catt, Lomu decided.

However, he has no qualms about appearing in advertisements in which he is subjected to a little discomfiture. One, on British television, shows him being dispossessed of a pizza pie by the diminutive Malaysian mother of England wingers Rory and Tony Underwood and left, due to the ferocity of her fend, stunned on the floor.

In New Zealand, Lomu has made very few advertisements. But, his mother, Hepi, father Semisi and brothers Sione and Talanoa regularly appear in an amusing cheese commercial on Kiwi television.

Hepi, a good-natured, matronly, archetypal Tongan matriarch, was seven months pregnant with Jonah when she and Semisi flew to Auckland from Nukualofa in 1975 seeking a better life for themselves. One can easily imagine her response if told the baby she then carried would, 21 years later, earn a fortune for extolling the virtues of sportswear! ■ Lomu...on his way to becoming the richest Tongan 55 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996 SPORTS

EVENT A trip back in time By Sally Andrew A full-size replica of Captain James Cook’s square-rigged HM Bark Endeavour arrived in New Zealand in December, completing the first international voyage by the two-year-old Australian sailing ship. Her visit has been laden with spirited welcomes and peaceful protests.

In Auckland, Mahuhu Ki Te Rangi, an intricately carved, 125-foot Maori canoe, and her 80 paddlers guided the 110-foot Endeavour and a flotilla of yachts and historic sailing ships into port where thousands of spectators lined the shore. After a ceremonial welcome from local Maori Ngati Whatua, the prime minister and governor-general, the Endeavour was opened for inspection.

Stepping aboard the replica Endeavour, you can easily imagine yourself stepping back in time. Cannons, hammocks, diaries, barrels of salted beef, the smell of Stockholm tar, the sound of wind in the rigging, the creaking of w00d... everything but Cook’s 3000 gallons of Madeira wine can be found on board. While berthed at New Zealand’s National Maritime Museum in Auckland, a steady stream of visitors, nearly 40,000 in three weeks, came aboad to experience the ship.

But the Endeavour’s three-month visit to New Zealand has not been without controversy. Some of New Zealand’s indigenous people have a long memory and, in Auckland, 12 Maori protesters attempted to board the Endeavour requesting that it leave New Zealand, claiming the ship was a symbol of colonial oppression and racism. One member of the group said it should be sunk.

In Gisborne, local kaumatua (elders) said they would be unable to guarantee the safety of the Endeavour if she sailed into Poverty Bay and requested apologies for murders committed by Captain Cook’s men. They also wanted to make sure the The Endeavour - definitely a ship from another age 56 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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Eventually, a resolution was reached and all three tribes in the Gisborne area gave their blessing to the ship’s visit. In spite of initial threats to the replica’s safety and in contrast to the clash of cultures during Cook’s first contact with Poverty Bay Maori in 1769, the Endeavour’s visit seems to be fostering a spirit of reconciliation and goodwill between Maori and Pakeha.

Maori iwi in all scheduled ports of call (Auckland, Opua, Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier, Wellington, Picton, Lyttleton, Timaru, Dunedin, Bluff) have promised traditional powhiri (welcomings) and, in each city visited to date, a waka and crew have gone out to escort the Endeavour into port.

Launched in Australia in December 1993, the Endeavour took six years and $18.5 million to build. She is 110 feet long and 30 feet on the beam, built as close to original specifications as possible. Where differences exist, these are to meet modem safety standards and/or to ensure the vessel will have as long a life afloat as possible.

According to the H.M. Bark Endeavour Foundation, the main differences between the original ship and the replica are in the timber and the metal fittings used, and in the use of man-made materials for masts, ropes and sails. Instead of traditional elm, oak or spruce, the replica was built mainly Maori protesters object to the Endeavour’s arrival in NZ 57 PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996 EVENT

from jarrah, a native West Australian hardwood which will ensure a long life for the ship. Old growth Douglas Fir, specially imported from North America, was used for the masts, spars, topsides and decks. To prevent rotting and for crew comfort the replica has better ventilation than the original ship and both modem and traditional preservatives were used on the timbers.

Iron fastenings are galvanised; the running rigging is polyester; the standing rigging is manilla; the sails are made of a synthetic canvas which looks and handles the same as flax canvas.

Crew accommodation is in hammocks, though less crowded than on Cook’s Endeavoiy where nearly twice as many people lived aboard. The replica Endeavour carries 14 professional mariners, 30 volunteer crew, two media people, and 10 paying passengers. Ship’s master is Captain Chris Blake, no relation to Kiwi yachtsman Sir Peter Blake!

Concessions to the 20th century include two 405 HP auxiliary engines, generators, a desalination unit, electric galley, freezers, bilge pumps, showers and modem heads.

The toilet was over-the-bows for the crew of the original Endeavour, with chamber pots for the officers and gentlemen. Navigation and communications equipment includes HE and VHP radio, weather fax, radar and GPS, and is installed in what was the original ship’s hold, hidden from view.

Cook’s Endeavour arrived in New Zealand 227 years ago, sighting land at Young Nick’s Head in October 1769.

Making landfall at Turanganui, Cook found that the area “afforded nothing that we wanted” and named the area Poverty Bay. The name still annoys modem Maori.

His ship, the HM Bark Endeavour, was a three masted square-rigged collier bark, or coal carrier, solidly built with flat bottoms, large holds and thick hulls. A slow but sturdy vessel, she was a sea-kindly expedition ship and safe even in rough weather.

Captain James Cook made great contributions to the world’s knowledge of seamanship and navigation, as well as geography. Cook was not the first person nor even the first European, to discover New Zealand and Australia, but the first to accurately chart a substantial part of their coastlines. His chart of the coast of New Zealand was so accurate it was not improved for 100 years.

After a refit in Fremantle in October, Endeavour will undertake a circumnavigation of the world via South Africa, Britain, the United States and the Pacific. ■ Carving on the Endeavour replica 58 EVENT PACIFIC ISLANDS MONTHLY - MARCH 1996

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