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Mar 5, 2005

Kava
Several European countries could find themselves in court if they refuse to lift their ban on kava. Fiji, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu have threatened to file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organisation, alleging an unfair ban on products linked to the kava root. Kava was banned in Germany and the UK, following reports it was linked to liver failure. Many Pacific island nations have refuted this argument and have fought for years to reverse the decision.
Lawsuit
Kava Controversy

Global Warming
As the Kyoto Protocol on climate change enters into force today, a former Prime Minister of Tuvalu says that island leaders must speak out more strongly on the issue of global warming. Bikenibeu Paeniu is Tuvalu's Finance and Planning Minister, and a long time campaigner for the international climate agreement. Mr Paeniu believes there's enough scientific evidence for developed countries to take more action on greenhouse gas emissions - a belief reinforced by the king tides that washed over Kiribati and Tuvalu last week.
Global Warming

Marshall Islands
From this morning, credit card and cheque facilities in the Marshall Islands will be severely restricted. This comes as the country's biggest Bank, the Bank of the Marshall Islands, lost its US partner, as a result of the US Patriot Act. The Guam-based Citizens Security Bank has withdrawn all credit card services and authorisations and all so-called 'payable-through' links, to the Bank of the Marshall Islands. This is because of fears that a continued connection could leave it exposed to multi-million dollar Patriot Act fines. That means businesses banking with BMI will be unable to pay on, check the validity of or gain authorisation for any credit card transaction, and businesses and individuals alike will be unable to use their cheques to pay for goods imported from the US.
Patriot Act

Crown of Thorns
It's called "The Crown of Thorns", it's a common starfish and it's become a nightmare for marine biologists and diving operators in the Pacific. Dubbed the 'cancer' of coral reefs, the starfish multiplies rapidly and destroys the reefs just as fast. While Australia has attempted to control them via injections of dry acid, the Cook Islands have stuck to the tedious approach of removing them manually. But it looks as if the humble shellfish might soon take over that laborious task.
Crown of Thorns

Remittance
The man behind a new newspaper for Tongan Americans has warned Tonga that one day, remittances to the country from expatriate communities will simply come to an end. Richard Wolfgramm is the publisher of the Ano Masima News, which focuses on Tongans and other Pacific Islanders in the American state of Utah. He says his paper is deliberately published solely in English, to appeal to the growing number of younger Tongans who see themselves increasingly as American. Mr Wolfgramm says although remittances sent back to Tonga by families overseas are critical to the Kingdom's economy, the new generation in the United States has its own priorities. And those priorities do not include sending money back to a country they don't see as home any more.

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