Neu: 2001-08-28 Contents of this issue: 1. Clean-Up 2. Unhappy Ship 3. Tonga Cleared 4. Study Request 5. Village Showday 6. New Route ======================================================================== August 28th, 2001 1. Clean-Up: Nauru's President Rene Harris has thanked Parliament for supporting the successful passage of historic anti-money laundering legislation. President Harris also thanked international organisations that helped prepare the Bill, and he warned of the dangers caused to Nauru's reputation by those behind money laundering. Nauru is amongst small island states tax havens and offshore finances centres which have come under pressure from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), linking some of the richest nations. The Pacific Islands finance centres have said they will move against money laundering. But they have said they will continue to oppose moves by rich countries to restrict their tax haven and offshore banking businesses, which are important income sources for small island states. Niue is at present consulting with NZ legal specialists in a bid to set up a financial monitoring unit. (PINA Nius). 2. Unhappy Ship: Hundreds of asylum seekers adrift on a Norwegian freighter in the Indian Ocean have gone on hunger strike and are refusing medical treatment after Australia turned them away from its shores. "As soon as they were told they had been refused entry by Australia they all went on a hunger strike. They are refusing to accept any food, water and medicine," the ship's chief mate Chris Maltau told Reuters on Tuesday. The 434 asylum seekers are suffering dysentery, fatigue, scabies and dehydration after days at sea. They had been fed bowls of soup, boiled eggs, bread and water after being rescued by the freighter on Sunday trying to sail from Indonesia to Australia. Indonesia, the nearest country when they were picked up, and Norway have also refused to accept the mainly Afghan group. Early on Tuesday, the Norwegian-registered Tampa was being buffeted by strong winds and a two-metre swell as it drifted in the dark in international waters within sight of Christmas Island, 1500km west of Australia. 3. Tonga Cleared: Tonga has been removed from the list of Pacific countries labeled as tax havens. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development says Tonga will no longer be included on its list of uncooperative jurisdictions as a result of changes that have been made by the government. Tonga recently made legislative changes and took administrative action to address areas that led to its identification by the OECD in June of last year as a "tax haven." The decision to remove Tonga from the uncooperative list was made following a bilateral meeting with the OECD in Auckland, New Zealand. 4. Study Request: Organic growers on Niue want New Zealand to fund a feasibility study into the sustainability of farming on the island. Around 40 farmers have expressed interest in organic produce. In the past 12 months a number of workshops and seminars on organic farming have been held on Niue as increased crops of kava, vanilla and nonu are being trialled along with vegetables such as cabbages, lettuces and tomatoes.for local consumption. Some growers say if Niue can be marketed as an organic tropical fruitbowl it will encourage niche groups of tourists. 5. Village Showday: Tuapa stages its annual showday Saturday on Niue. The village is renowned for its handicraft displays. Organises say there will be lots of food and produce on sale and activities for everyone. 6. New Route: Polynesian Airlines is exploring a new route from Hawai'i to New Zealand via Tonga and Samoa, which have signed an "open skies" agreement to open airline travel between the islands. The "open skies" agreement was signed by the Samoan and Tongan governments during the Pacific Islands Forum Summit in Nauru earlier this month. Under the agreement, Polynesian Airlines will create a route originating in Honolulu, stopping in the Samoan capital of Apia, then stopping in Tonga's Fuamotu International Airport before ending in Auckland, New Zealand, said John Fitzgerald, acting chief executive of the Samoan government-owned airline. Arrangements for the route are expected to be completed next month, Fitzgerald said. Polynesian announced earlier that it was adding a second flight between Apia and Honolulu at the end of October, after the delivery of its second B-737-800 aircraft.(PIR). __END__
