Asia Times: Pacific Islands Report


	September 12, 2001	atimes.com

Oceania

PACIFIC ISLANDS REPORT

Fiji's new prime minister faces problems
SUVA, Fiji - Deposed Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry's Labor Party is presenting newly elected Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase with a major problem by accepting Cabinet posts in the new government. Qarase said shortly after his swearing-in on Monday morning that the constitution obliged him to offer at least eight of the 20 ministries to the Labor Party. He also said that if Chaudhry accepted the offer it would lead to an unworkable government. That is the situation Qarase now faces. Chaudhry has accepted Qarase's offer. It means the new prime minister now has a very difficult task ahead of him trying to work out how to organize his Cabinet while still giving some of the ministries to the minor parties and independents that will form and support Qarase's coalition government.

Nauru makes asylum deal with Australia
CANBERRA, Australia - Cash-strapped Nauru is likely to take hundreds more boat people off Australia's hands under an agreement worth at least US$10 million. Officials from the two countries approved the deal during a meeting in Nauru's capital, Yaren, on Monday. It calls for Nauru to take the mostly Afghan asylum seekers now on board the HMAS Manoora sailing to Port Moresby, after being rescued from a sinking ferry off Australia's Christmas Island, and additional refugees believed to be Iraqis picked up during the voyage. The agreement also calls for Nauru to consider further requests by Australia to house and process additional asylum seekers on a case-by-case basis. In return, Nauru, which is beset by electricity problems, will receivethree new power generators and diesel fuel, cancellation of medical debts, and 20 education scholarships for young Nauruans each year. Australia has also guaranteed that it will pay the full cost of feeding, housing, processing and caring for the asylum seekers while they are on Nauru.

Saipan releases drug seizure figures
SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands - Officials have seized over US$10 million worth of methamphetamine hydrochloride, or "ice", and almost the same amount worth of marijuana since 1992, government records show. Heroin worth $1.4 million was seized in 1997. Legislator Dino Jones disclosed the figures to help bolster his proposal to require all candidates for elected office, as well as incumbent officials to undergo drug testing. Data from the Department of Public Safety also show that there were 131 arrests made involving possession of illegal drugs from January 2000-July 2001.

American Samoa civil servants may get pay rise
PAGO PAGO, American Samoa - Civil servants will receive a pay increase if a proposed sales tax of 7 percent is approved by the Fono (legislature). Senator Faafetai Lefiti has introduced a bill recommending that the new tax be applied to all goods sold at retail outlets in the US territory. Proceeds would be earmarked for the territory's Economic Stabilization and Emergency Fund, the LBJ Hospital, the Port Administration and the Parks and Recreation Administration. Also, one cent out of every tax dollar collected would be earmarked for an across-the-board pay increase to government employees.

China donates generators to Papua New Guinea
PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea - More rural residents will soon get power for lighting and such things as refrigerators and school computers through a new electrification program using both wind and solar power. Secretary of National Planning and Monitoring Philip Kikala has signed letters of exchange with Chinese Ambassador Zhao Zenyu for the donation of 50 sets of wind-solar generators worth about US$250,000. The assistance project includes the stationing of four Chinese technicians in the country to help install the generators and train local technical staff.

The complete PACIFIC ISLANDS REPORT is available on the Internet at: http://pidp.ewc.hawaii.edu/PIReport.

Pacific Islands Report is a service of the East-West Center and the University of Hawaii. For news in depth, link to the PIR website: http://pidp.ewc.hawaii.edu/pireport