Tonga

Pohiva Tu'i'onetoa says New Zealand and Australia have provided the 30-foot vessels which will mainly be used for search and rescue tasks.

Dr Tu'i'onetoa says one boat each will be used in Tongatapu, Ha'apai and Vava'u.

He says the the other islands of 'Eua and the Niuas won't get the same resources but once operational costs are confirmed for the boats then the Minister will look into their situation.

The game was the second by the visitors during their short visit to Tonga. In their first game against a Tonga A team on Thursday, they completely demolished the local team 64-14.

The local Rugby League officials were not very happy with the outcome, with the visitors winning both of their games. The annual visit to Tonga by a selected Australian rugby league team is an effort to raise the standard of Rugby League in the country.

Deodat said that getting Tonga to start working on a long term plan on how to develop its Blue Economy, “is a priority area for us in the Commonwealth and for Tonga as well.”

He pointed to the fact that most small island states have very little land mass but they have thousands of square kilometres of sea territory and the “Blue Economy” is a marine-based economy.

He said that traditionally in underdeveloped countries when you think economic development you think about agriculture and the building of infrastructure on land.

Viliame Manu, from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, says the 800 cartons of expired frozen chicken had been imported from the United States.

Dr Viliame says the government has put out an emergency order to take all repackaged chicken off the shelves, and has set up a taskforce to deal with the issue.

Radio Tonga News reports the young man from Nakolo is a teacher at Popua Government Primary School.

The six victims are from 6-11 years of age.

All the young victims complained of assault, and three filed for indecent assault. 

Police Superintendent Tevita Fifita confirmed to Radio Tonga News the accused is on bail and will appear in Court next Monday. 

Fifita said assault on children is common in Tonga but not indecent assault.

Tonga coach Kristian Woolf said: "Not only is there a lot riding on the game in terms of a spot in the 2017 World Cup, it is also a chance for us to get together as a team and keep building on the momentum created after the May Test against Samoa.

"I know that our men can't wait to get together again in camp and to pull on the Tongan jersey and represent Tonga to the best of their ability."

Additional players will be added to the train-on squad following finals matches this weekend and next weekend and confirmation of eligibility.

“The private sector continues to be a very important priority for Tonga, for the government. We are working towards a more enabling environment, I should say a more business friendly environment,” he told guests at the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new retail centre.

OE Home Centre is located above the Office Equipment Ltd. shop in Fatafehi Road that has been recently acquired by Tapuvakai Panuve. Selling a range of home and garden appliances, whiteware, sound sytems furniture and bedding, the Home Centre is an extension of the OE office supplies and quick print business.

The case is in the village of Vaini from where several people were hospitalised with typhoid a year ago.

Radio Tonga reports the town officer saying the villagers have been told that public gatherings or feasts in the village have been prohibited for a month.

Meantime the boarding school located in Vaini - Beulah College - has sent its students home until the prohibition is lifted.

Since taking office in January, the Prime Minister who is also Minister for Education, has embarked on an audit of results of students passing primary and senior secondary school exams to determine a way forward for the development of education in Tonga.

In his preliminary findings, PM Pohiva was able to confirm that the pass rate has been declining since 2002 in the Secondary Entrance Examination (SEE).

The workshop was held for Pacific Island countries to address whether, how and why to ratify the Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards (1958) New York Convention and whether to adapt their laws to the UNCITRAL Model Law on International Commercial Arbitration.