Thursday 13 March by Cook Islands News

Te reo o te KUKI AIRANI

$2 Thursday, March 13, 2014

Wind warning for Northern Group Islands in the northern Group

are being warned to expect strong winds over the next few days as a tropical disturbance lingers to the west. arona ngari, director of the Cook Islands Meteorological service, said the system was sitting about 300 miles west of Pukapuka at 3pm yesterday. a strong wind warning was issued just after midday, with northerlies of between 20 and 25 knots predicted for the next few days. ngari said people in the northern islands should also expect moderate to rough seas. He said the system is not moving in any clear direction and has no deined centre. “The disturbance does not seem to have any organised cloud bands so we assume it’s one of

those systems that will peter out and lose strength in the next day or so.” It is unlikely that the storm will develop into anything more serious, he said. “The waters up there are not warm enough to continue the formation of a cyclone.” ngari said the system will probably not send any rain to Rarotonga – unfortunately. “We need more water, more rain for showers and domestic use. We’ll probably just need to go and work long hours for the carting of water to home owners,” he said. Tropical Cyclone lusi, which has hammered Vanuatu and is now heading for new Zealand, poses no threat to the Cook Islands, ngari said. - Ben Chapman-Smith

Parliament to sit before April 1? daTes have yet to scheduled,

but eight bills are ready to be addressed by Government during the next session of Parliament. Clerk of Parliament John Tangi said yesterday he is awaiting instructions from Prime Minister’s office before confirming sitting dates of the House. some of the bills on the draft order paper are the loan Repayment Fund Bill, development Investment amendment Bill, Public service amendment Bill, along with Income Tax and Value-added Tax amendment Bills. When asked about the lack of

a conirmed date for the irst sitting of 2014, leader of the Opposition Wilkie Rasmussen accused the ruling government of failing to address the issue of sitting days for Parliament - as cited by policymakers in the Cook Islands Party’s 2010 manifesto. “It’s disappointing because they made a lot of noise at the start of their term that they would address the sitting of Parliament and make it consistent,” he said. “They are worse than the previous government.” However, Rasmussen said the government may be forced to

announce the next sitting of the House, as they need to pass legislation for a scheduled increase in Value added Tax (VaT) due to come into effect on april 1. If the democratic Party hold on to their recent win in Murienua – which has been petitioned in the High Court by the CIP – that will give the party 10 seats in Parliament, compared with the ruling party’s 13 seats. The remaining seat is held by independent atiu MP norman George - a democratic member currently waiting to be admitted to the democratic party caucus

by Rasmussen – rounding out the 24-seat parliament. If the democrats obtain the Parliamentary support of George – who previously speculated a democratic win in Murienua could result in at least two CIP members to break away from Government – a stalemate of 1212 votes would result. Observers believe passing legislation through Parliament would then become a futile affair, throwing bills such as the Government’s proposed VaT increase into jeopardy. - Emmanuel Samoglou

Summer photo earns cool prize IT BeGan as a little scare, but a lucky occurrence on the reef in Mangaia turned into opportunity for two visitors from Rarotonga after winning the Cook Islands news Memories of summer Photo Competition. Connie Halligan and niece Charlee Maeva Mclean, both from Vaimaanga, were visiting the outer island of Mangaia for two weeks during the Christmas and new Year’s holidays. Connie said they would go for walks on the reef every day, and one day while they were picking shells, they unknowingly walked over a blowhole. “It gave us quite the fright,” she said. sensing the scene would make a memorable shot, niece Charlee pulled out her camera, waited for the right wave, and ended up snapping the winning photo. Connie – who was there when the photo was taken, just slightly outside the shot – said they also took some choice snaps of stray goats frolicking on the island airport’s runway, but ended up only submitting the winning photo. as a result of her photographic talents, Charlee won a nikon s330 Coolpix digital camera – picked up this week by aunt Connie as she was busy

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with school. More than 180 stellar images were submitted by readers over the duration of the contest, giving the judges considerable headaches in trying to pick a winner. Throughout the competition, winners were selected weekly, while CI news general manager Tony Fe’ao and deputy editor/photojournalist Matariki Wilson eventually broke down the list to ive select images. In the end, Mclean’s photo came out on top as the Cook Islands news Memories of summer Photo Competition. “We received Charlee’s photo in the first week of the competition and it was a standout straight away capturing the excitement of being in the environment and thrill of playing on the reef in Mangaia,” said Wilson. “We ran the photo on the front page to promote the competition and while we received some fantastic images – Charlee’s shot remained the standout and eventual winner.” Cook Islands news encourages readers to send in photos you think are newsworthy and worth running – we welcome all contributions from our readers. - Emmanuel Samoglou

Connie Halligan recently visited the oices of CI News to pick up a brand new Nikon digital camera, won by her niece Charlee Maeva McLean, who took the winning photo for the 2014 CI News photo contest. She is pictured here with Cook Islands News General Manager Tony Fe’ao. 14031116

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

worldneWs nuti no TeIa neI aO Heads bang in cat poop war A British man was cleared of an assault charge in the case of a ight between neighbours that began with an argument about cat poop. Matthew Lucas, 38, told the court he threw the poop over the fence because he was tired of his neighbour’s cat using his “garden as a lavatory.” An argument between the two men turned physical and during the struggle Lucas’ headbutted his neighbour in the nose. The cat’s owner sued Lucas for assault but the court found the headbutt might have been accidental during the struggle.

Where is Flight 370? Signs of desperation as search for missing airliner continues KUala lUMPUR – The last

communication received from a Malaysia airlines plane suggests everything was normal on board minutes before it went missing over the south China sea, Malaysian authorities say. Flight MH370 replied, “all right, roger that”, to a radio message from Malaysian air control, authorities said. The search has been widened to waters off both sides of the peninsula. The China-bound Boeing 777 aircraft went missing on satur-

world BRIeFs cHile’S preSident in for Second term chIle – Michelle Bachelet, 62, has been sworn in as the president of Chile, her second time in oice. The socialist leader was inaugurated in a ceremony in the city of Valparaiso after her election win over conservative rival Evelyn Matthei. Outgoing conservative President Sebastian Pinera wished his successor good luck. Bachelet is the irst Chilean president in over half a century to return for a second term. Bachelet won 62 per cent of the vote in the second round of the presidential election in December, well ahead of the 38 per cent cast for Evelyn Matthei. She campaigned on a promise to spend $US15billion on reforming education, improving health care and reducing income disparity.

ACTIVISTS CHALLENGE ANTI-GAY LAWS UGANDA – Ugandan activists Tuesday iled a petition in the Constitutional Court challenging the country’s new antihomosexuality law. The petition, iled by the Civil Society Coalition on Human Rights and Constitutional Law, challenges the act on a number of grounds. Among other things, it says the act violates the principle of equality and non-discrimination, that the penalty of life imprisonment is disproportionate, and that the bill was passed without a parliamentary quorum. It also asks that the media be prevented from publishing the names, pictures and addresses of alleged homosexuals, following a spate of public outings in local tabloids. The act punishes certain homosexual acts by life in prison. It also criminalises the “promotion” of homosexuality and “aiding and abetting” homosexuality.

DArWIN HIT bY mAjor poWEr bLACkouT AUSTRALIA – The northern Australian city of Darwin has been hit by a major blackout, forcing schools to close and knocking out traic lights. The power cut, which was caused by a tripped circuit at a sub-station, began in the early hours of Wednesday. It afected all of Darwin, closing government oices and the bus network. The outage hit the whole of the city of 130,000 and extended more than 300km south to the town of Katherine. The Northern Territory government is to hold an inquiry into what happened.

bLooD TEST mAY prEDICT ALZHEImEr’S USA – Researchers in the United States say they are close to developing a blood test that can predict the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. They showed that testing levels of 10 fats in the blood could predict very accurately the risk of the disease coming on in the next three years, the ABC reports. Scientists from Georgetown University Medical Center studied 500 adults aged over 70 for ive years. Blood samples from 53 participants who developed dementia were compared to 53 cognitively well adults. By looking at 10 bio-markers in the blood, doctors could predict with 90 per cent accuracy whether people would develop Alzheimer’s in three years. Professor Howard Federof says it’s the irst published report of a blood-based bio-marker test with very high accuracy. The indings are published in the journal Nature Medicine.

day with 239 people on board. It vanished about an hour after it took off from Kuala lumpur International airport, as it lew over the South China sea. Malaysian authorities revealed the plane’s last communication at a news conference held in Beijing for relatives of the 154 Chinese who are among the missing passengers. as the plane reached the boundary between Malaysian and Vietnamese airspace, the Malaysian air control announced it was handing over to Ho Chi Minh City Control. Minutes later, all contact with Flight MH370 was lost. China’s foreign ministry said there was “too much confusion” regarding the information released about the plane’s light path. “It is very hard for us to decide whether a given piece of information is accurate,” spokesman Qin Gang told reporters in Beijing. On Wednesday, Malaysia’s air force chief denied remarks attributed to him in local media that light was tracked by military radar to the Malacca strait, far west of its planned route. Gen Rodzali daud said he “did not make any such statements”, but the air force had “not ruled out the possibility of an air turn-back”. Meanwhile, Malaysia airlines said in a statement that it was “shocked” by reports made against its First Oficer, Fariq Ab Hamid, who is the co-pilot of the missing light. a south african tourist told australia’s Channel nine that she and her friend were invited to sit in the cockpit with Fariq ab Hamid and the pilot during a light in 2011, in an apparent breach of airline rules. Malaysia airlines said it took the reports “very seriously”. - BBC

after ive days of fruitless searching, there is an element of desperation creeping into the search for the missing Malaysian airlines Flight 370, a Boeing 777 similar to the one pictured above.

Web bill of rights urged lOndOn – The inventor of the

World Wide Web is calling for a bill of rights to govern the internet in the wake of revelations about the depth of government surveillance. Tim Berners-lee made the proposal as part of the “web we want” campaign for an open internet, exactly 25 years after he irst presented a paper with plans for the World Wide Web. “We need a global constitution – a bill of rights,” he told the Guardian. “Unless we have an open, neutral internet we can rely on

without worrying about what’s happening at the back door, we can’t have open government, good democracy, good health care, connected communities and diversity of culture. “It’s not naive to think we can have that, but it is naive to think we can just sit back and get it.” The campaign calls on web users around the world to draft an “Internet Users Bill of Rights for your country, for your region or for all”. Berners-lee has constantly campaigned for fewer controls on the web, and has praised

former Us intelligence contractor edward snowden after he revealed details of how the Us government collects masses of online data. He warned that people’s rights were “being infringed more and more on every side” and that internet users were becoming complacent about their loss of freedoms. “so I want to use the 25th anniversary for us all to do that, to take the web back into our own hands and define the web we want for the next 25 years,” he said. - ABC

Death row veteran freed sHReVePORT – a man who

spent more than 25 years on death row in the Us state of louisiana has walked free from prison after his murder conviction for the 1983 killing of a jeweller was overturned. Glenn Ford, 64, had been on death row since august 1988. Us media reports say that he is one of the longest-serving death row inmates in modern

Us history to be exonerated. Ford had always denied killing jewelry store owner 56-yearold Isadore Rozeman. In 1984, an all-white louisiana jury sentenced Ford, a black man, to the death penalty. asked by a reporter how he was feeling as he left the high security prison in angola, louisiana, Ford said: “My mind is going in all kinds of directions

but it feels good.” He said that he did harbour some resentment because he had been locked up for almost 30 years “for something I didn’t do” and had lost years of his life. a Judge overturned Ford’s conviction and sentence because of new information that supported his claim that he was not present or involved in the jeweller’s death. - BBC

charming snake

911 CALLErS To kEEp ‘VIoLENT’ CAT USA – The US family forced to call 911 when they were attacked by their “violent” cat says they have no plans to get rid of the scary pet. Owner Lee Palmer told the Associated Press that a “pet psychologist” is due to visit his house to treat Lux, the 10-kilogram part-Himalayan cat that held his family hostage in a bedroom. Palmer said he’s had ofers to adopt four-year-old Lux since the tale of the cat’s rampage made worldwide headlines, but insists the pet isn’t going anywhere. Palmer called emergency services after the pet cat became enraged when it was kicked after swiping a baby. The family escaped the wrath of Lux by hiding in a bedroom, where Palmer was forced to make an unusual 911 call explaining that the “violent” cat was “charging” the bedroom door.

Today’s daily Bread We always thank God, the Father of our lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you.

Matthew 7:21-29 read: read: Colossians 1:3-14

Text: Matthew 7:26Verse 3 Text:

an Indian devotee dressed as Hindu God Lord Shiva holds a python ahead of the Holi festival in amritsar. Holi is the Hindu spring festival of colours and is observed in India at the end of the winter season on the last full moon of the lunar month. AFP

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

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Fireighters search through the rubble of a New york City apartment building which exploded and collapsed killing at least two people and injuring many others. AFP neW YORK – Two women have

died after a gas leak sparked an explosion which levelled two buildings in east Harlem, new York City, authorities say. Twenty others have been injured – some with life threatening injuries – in the incident, which sent smoke billowing into the city sky. More than 250 ireighters are tackling the blaze at the scene near 116th street and Park avenue. all train services in and out of Grand Central terminal have been halted following the incident near its tracks. new York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said in a news conference from the scene that the gas leak had been reported to the utility company just 15 minutes before the blast on Wednesday morning. de Blasio said the “major explosion” had destroyed two

buildings and heavily damaged other structures. at least a dozen individuals were still missing in the area as of Wednesday afternoon, Us media report. new York fire department has elevated the incident to the highest threat level possible. among the injured was a child said to be in a critical condition, Cnn reports. The utility company, Con edison, says a resident in a nearby building reported smelling gas shortly before the explosion. streets and pavements around the site were littered with broken glass from shattered windows. Witnesses reported the powerful blast knocked items off shelves in nearby stores. authorities in the area were said to be handing out medical masks to residents due to the thick white smoke at the scene.

a witness told the BBC “there was just a lot of panic” following the explosion. dan scarvino had just emerged on to a nearby train platform when “suddenly a plume of smoke came out of nowhere”. “I’ve never seen anything like it,” he added. a witness told the new York daily news she had smelled gas “for weeks” before the explosion. “We saw people lying out of the window, those are my neighbours,” ashley Rivera said. another witness told the newspaper he heard two loud explosions that shook the barber shop where he works. “It looked like the Twin Towers all over again. People covered in dust and covering their mouths.” - BBC/PNC

‘Leave Crimea alone’ WasHInGTOn – leaders of the

G7 group of nations have called on Russia to stop all efforts to “annex” Ukraine’s Crimea region. They said if Russia took such a step they would “take further action, individually and collectively”. The G7 leaders also said they would not recognise the results of a referendum in Crimea this weekend on whether to split from Ukraine and join Russia. separately, the Us president said they “will be forced to apply costs” if Russia does not change course. Barack Obama was speaking after holding talks with

Ukraine’s interim Prime Minister arseniy Yatsenyuk in Washington. Yatsenyuk told reporters Ukraine “is and will be part of the Western world”. earlier, Ukraine’s national security chief andriy Parubiy warned of a major Russian military build-up on Ukraine’s borders. He said Russian troops had not withdrawn since carrying out military exercises near Ukraine’s eastern and southern frontiers last month, and were now “only two to three hours” from Kiev. The Group of seven industrial nations – Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan

and the Us – along with the european Union urged Russia to “cease all efforts to change the status of Crimea”. “In addition to its impact on the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine, the annexation of Crimea could have grave implications for the legal order that protects the unity and sovereignty of all states,” they said in a statement released by the White House. They said sunday’s referendum, asking the people of Crimea if they want to be a part of Russia or Ukraine, has “no legal effect” as it is in “direct violation” of Ukraine’s constitution. - BBC

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

regionalneWs nuti no Te Pa enUa

11 dead from dengue outbreak More than 10,000 infected as Fiji ights to control fatal fever sUVa – Fiji’s Health department has conirmed 11 people have died and over 10,000 others have been infected during an outbreak of dengue fever. It is the worst outbreak of the mosquito-born illness for 16 years. The department has launched a major campaign to get rid of

possible breeding areas for mosquitos which carry the disease. The Health Minister dr neil sharma says the outbreak involves the type-3 strain of dengue fever which has never been seen before in the country. “The outbreak was detected in mid december, this is a dengue type-3 outbreak and this is

paciic BRIEFS SACkED mINISTEr STAYS LoYAL To o’NEILL PAPUA NEW GUINEA – Papua New Guinea’s sacked Treasurer Don Polye says he remains committed to the Peter O’Neill led government because he and his party are an integral element of it. Polye and another cabinet minister from his Triumph Heritage and Empowerment Party were sacked by the Prime Minister this week. Polye says that since he was instrumental in installing the O’Neillled coalition, he has a key stake in seeing through the policies they have made together. He says it would be immature and against the national interests for him to act abruptly or suddenly desert government. “The facts will have to be put on the table. The prime minister is responsible and I’m also responsible for all the decisions we make. So the best thing to do is that there’s enough time for us to correct any mistakes that we have made.”

ToNGA’S pm GIVEN uLTImATum To rESIGN TONGA – The Public Service Association in Tonga is calling for the Prime Minister to resign because of allegedly unlawful payments he made to the country’s satellite communication provider, Tongasat. The general secretary, Mele ‘Amanaki says Lord Tu’ivakano made a payment of $US18-million to the company in 2011, which is part owned by the King’s sister, Princess Pilolevu Tuita. ‘Amanaki says she wrote to the prime minister six weeks ago recommending him to voluntarily resign over the payment, but has had no response. She says it has given the Prime Minister two more weeks to resign before the PSA takes matters into its own hands. ‘Amanaki says the PSA spoke to the new Minister of Finance and National Planning, ‘Aisake Eke, who agreed the payment was unlawful. But she says Eke has not taken any action.

NAuru IGNorES juDICIAL CrITICISmS NAURU – The Nauru Government is declining to comment on damning criticism of their removal of the chief justice and resident magistrate. The controversial moves in January drew a rebuke from Paciic chief justices who gathered in Auckland last week. They issued a statement strongly condemning the deportation of the resident magistrate Peter Law and the revoking of the visa of chief justice Geofrey Eames. The justices say the events give rise to serious concerns about judicial independence and the operation of the rule of law in Nauru. A spokesperson for the government says the Justice Minister David Adeang has nothing to say about the matter.

FIjI YouTH uNSurE AbouT ELECTIoNS FIJI – The chief of the youth wing of one of Fiji’s political parties says many young people have not yet registered to vote because they are not sure whether the elections will be free and fair. The president of Sodelpa’s Youth Council Pita Waqavonovono says party surveys also indicate many have not yet signed up because they cannot get to the registration centres in urban areas. Waqavonovono says rurally-based youth don’t have the means to travel to towns where the six registration centres are located. Waqavonovono says the authorities should be using state resources to spread civic educational material instead of trying to secure the tenure of the current regime.

CHINA SENDING DoCTorS To VANuATu VANUATU – China is to send 16 doctors to Vanuatu to help its ight against dengue. China’s Ambassador to Vanuatu, Xie Bohua, has told Vanuatu’s Deputy Prime Minister, Edward Natapei, that CHINA will do its best to help the country eradicate dengue fever. The ambassador made the promise while signing letters of exchange for China to send eight doctors to work in Vila Central Hospital and another 8 for the Northern District Hospital in Santo. Two weeks ago the Chinese Red Cross Society donated $US300,000 to Vanuatu to help combat dengue.

ACquITTED AFTEr THrEE YEArS IN CuSToDY AMERICAN SAMOA – A jury at a federal court in Honolulu has acquitted an American Samoan man who was arrested in Pago Pago nearly three years ago and charged with involvement in what federal prosecutors called a major methamphetamine ring. Kaisa Tai, who has been in custody since June 2011, was acquitted after two weeks of deliberation and immediately released. Hawai’i media quotes Tai saying freedom is always something a person holds on to dearly. He had always maintained his innocence and refused a plea bargain ofered by the federal government last year. In all 19 people were initially charged in the case, with 3 going to trial and others, including two of Tai’s brothers accepting plea agreements.

new for Fiji,” he said. “But we know we are endemic for dengue infections periodically, every ive years we tend to have a surge.” There are also fears the number of people infected may be actually closer to 15,000 with under reporting a major concern. dr sharma says current testing procedures need to be strengthened: “We had well over 10,000 already and this is probably an underestimate as the reporting system needs to be strengthened a lot more”. “and of course some patients have a higher pain threshold and remain at home for mild illnesses, they don’t get tested. “When the testing does take place in patients they miss that window where the test would be positive, so they come back negative.” as part of the Fijian Health department’s campaign people are being encouraged to report their neighbours, if they suspect them of not cleaning up their properties correctly. dr sharma says communities need to work together otherwise this latest outbreak has the potential to go on for many more months to come. “We are looking at the previous outbreaks in 1979 and we are looking at trends and patterns,” he said. “If the rainfall subsides and

Fijian soldiers have joined members of the public in a massive health clean up campaign to control the spread of dengue fever and other mosquito breeding diseases. FIJI MINISTRY OF INFORMATION FACEBOOK our active intervention advocacy programmes of spraying and clearing domestic and commercial areas continues, then we hope we can stop it much earlier. “However, if it gets delayed because of increased rainfall, stagnant water and if we don’t do anything until the weather changes than we could be here in strife until July.” Fiji’s last major outbreak

of dengue fever was in 1998, when more than 8,000 people contracted the disease. The military regime claims there is “little chance” that the fever will hit its lucrative tourist belt. The outbreak that has swamped hospitals in Fiji may be headed for new Zealand, experts warn. In New Zealand the latest ig-

ures show a 41 per cent jump in the monthly reported cases of dengue, most of them in auckland. Reports from around the Pacific show a dengue epidemic has the potential to hit new Zealand, having already swept through northern Queensland, new Caledonia, French Polynesia and the solomon Islands. - ABC/PNC

Three dead in cyclone PORT VIla – at least three people have died in Vanuatu where Tropical Cyclone lusi has intensiied to a category three system. The three deaths which have been confirmed are a man in Pentecost, a boy in santo and a woman in Malekula. Reports from Pentecost say an anglican Priest, Father austin Hinge, was killed when hit by a falling tree branch. details of the other two deaths are not yet known. some 40,000 people have been affected in Vanuatu. damage to houses and evacuation centres have been reported, while many coastal and low-lying communities have experienced looding. There have been reports that groundwater sources have been contaminated due to damaged water infrastructure. In Torba Province, three

houses collapsed in Gaua and looding affected half of Vatop community in Vanua lava. Oficials are yet to make contact with many islands in the Torres Group, including Hiu, Tegua and Toga. In Penama Province, more than 50 people were evacuated to a church. schools are expected to reopen soon, except in Tafea Province. The cyclone felled trees, damaged houses, roads and crops. A senior oficer at the disaster management office, Philip Meto, says he has received reports that some underground water supplies have been contaminated by looding. “Most communities are using underground water. Because there’s a lot of flooding and a lot of looded areas, reports we get from the communities indicate that all the waters have been

contaminated from the lood.” The United Nations Ofice for the Coordination of Humanitarian affairs says lusi is moving away from Vanuatu towards new Zealand. Lusi has intensiied to a category 3 cyclone overnight and was estimated to have sustained winds of 120 kilometres an hour with momentary gusts to 170 kilometres an hour. The cyclone is heading south at about 20kmh, with only Vanuatu’s southernmost province of Tafea still under cyclone alert. In Fiji, a cyclone gale and heavy swell warning is in force for the Yasawa and Mamanuca group, western half of Viti levu, Kadavu and nearby small islands. a damaging heavy swell warning is in place for the same areas while there is a strong wind warning for the rest of Fiji.

another weather system, ex-Tropical Cyclone Hadi, is located in the Coral sea and being monitored. In the solomon Islands, a tropical cyclone and tropical disturbance watch is current for Temotu, Rennel and Bellona, Makira, southern Guadalcanal and Malaita Provinces. Cyclone lusi is expected to weaken before reaching new Zealand’s north island. director of Civil defence emergency Management John Hamilton expected a “dangerous storm” to arrive this weekend. Metservice has issued a severe weather watch with heavy rain expected in northland, auckland and Coromandel Peninsula. Computer models expected lusi to arrive over northern new Zealand on saturday or early sunday. - ABC/PNC

Palau prepares for Forum nGeRUlMUd – Palau will be

hosting the 45th Paciic Islands Forum scheduled to run from July 29 to august 1 this year. during the 44th Pacific Islands Forum, hosted by the Marshall Islands in 2013, Palau President Tommy Remengesau Jr offered to host the next Forum after the solomon Islands dropped out from hosting it. Remengesau expressed his sincere appreciation to the other leaders, especially to President emmanual Mori of the Feder-

ated states of Micronesia and President Christopher loeak of the Marshall Islands for their hard work in bringing the next forum to Palau. He promised that, as host of the next Paciic Islands Forum, Palau will carry the momentum of the climate change initiatives started by the Marshall Islands. “Climate change continues to be the issue that threatens our lives, so it deserves to be on the forefront of every Forum until our voices are heard,” Remenge-

sau stated. The president indicated that the planning for the Forum is now in motion with a task force created to handle the events. accommodation for the delegates who will be attending the Forum is also being planned by the task force. Remengesau said they are expecting at least 500 people to attend the event including heads of state. He said that during his recent visit to Japan, he extended an

invitation to Prime Minister shinzo abe to attend the forum. He urged Palauans to open up their homes to visitors who will be attending. The president said the government is considering bringing in liveaboard boats from Hong Kong and singapore to accommodate the visitors. The official languages of Palau are Palauan and english. It has a population of around 21,000. - PNC Sources

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Recordings of Manus protests aired lORenGaU – The aBC has obtained audio recordings made inside the Manus Island detention centre before and after the deadly violence last month. The recordings suggest protests in the days leading up to the riot were noisy but nonviolent. They also give new accounts of gunfire and tell of ongoing fears of further attacks. The audio was provided to the aBC by crime writer and Unicef ambassador Tara Moss, who has been posting information online from sources on Manus Island on her weblog. On her blog site Moss wrote: “I have been struggling with the ethics of sharing this information, but now, as the info I was given has been corroborated elsewhere, I feel I must. “One of my long standing crime research contacts informed me of what happened on Manus Island, shortly after it happened. “He is currently stationed there and worked on the now deceased Reza Berati for 20 minutes before he passed. “He described Berati as an ‘exemplary human being’ show-

ing ‘all the hallmarks’ of someone who would be ‘an asset to any community’. “My contact, who wished to remain anonymous because they all sign confidentiality contracts, gave me a full run down on the events, before the details became public – the ‘20 plus shots ired’ (not ‘a couple’ as previously claimed). The spent shells. The evacuation of staff (but not asylum seekers) before the violence began. The fact that people from outside came in and opened ire on the people there. “The fact that it happened deep within the compound where people were trapped, far from the entry gate. “all of his info has proved true so far. every last detail. and though he is stationed there, and can’t speak publicly, he wanted me to know that many of the staff there are excellent, highly-qualiied expat Australians doing the best they can in bad conditions, but that Manus Island detention centre should be shut down as unsafe. “since this conversation, my contact has been unreachable and I have not been able to get any further info or to ind out if

he is okay.” In an update Moss wrote on ber blog: “I have now been given access to independently veriied testimony from Manus Island asylum seekers, recorded shortly after the unrest that left scores injured and left Mr Reza Barati dead. “In the compelling testimony the asylum seekers, who cannot be named in this blog for reasons of safety, are explicitly asked by expat staff to explain their claim that PnG police opened ire on them in the Mike Compound, rather than simply iring warning shots into the air as some had claimed. “Were the police shooting at people, or in the air?” the men are asked. “No. Not in the air. Deinitely,” comes the reply. “so how come only one person was hit? Because I’d think that if the police were trying to shoot people with an automatic gun there would be many more that were shot.” “When they came in and shot the bullets, he was the irst one, and everyone ran,” the man explains of the shot asylum seeker. a week before the riots, this

Chief justice resigns YaRen – The chief justice of

nauru, australian Geoffrey eames, has resigned two months after his visa was revoked by the government. Justice eames says it was impossible for him to continue and he had no option but to tender his resignation. He says the cancellation of his visa and the forced deportations of resident magistrate Peter law and former media adviser Rod Henshaw in January amount to serious breaches to the rule of law. “The nauru government simply don’t accept that as the case,” Justice eames said. “and as long as they don’t understand that and don’t accept it then the rule of law is in a very parlous state.” Justice eames says the nauru

government has declined to reverse its decision to cancel his visa, making it impossible for him to perform the duties of chief justice from Melbourne. at the time, nauru faced accusations of having a political motive behind the moves, but rejected that as an “attack on nauru’s sovereignty” and said it was acting to combat cronyism in the judiciary. Justice eames says it’s “extraordinary” that the australian government viewed the situation as a “domestic dispute” and says Canberra made a mistake by not taking stronger action against nauru. He says negotiations with the nauru government conducted by the australian and new Zealand foreign ministers have failed to produce a public

acknowledgment by nauru that their actions constitute an abuse of the rule of law. “The second they characterised such a gross and patent violation of the rule of law – the second they trivialised it by making it sound as though it was a fight over parking spaces – they lost all prospects of being able to get through to the nauru government that this was a serious breach, and a serious breach to the rule of law matters.” speaking in January, australian Immigration Minister scott Morrison said that the events were down to internal nauruan politics and had nothing to do with nauru’s role in detaining and processing asylum seekers trying to get to australia. - ABC

Australia’s ‘angry summer’ CanBeR Ra – australia has

endured another summer of searing temperatures, with more than 150 weather records broken, a new Climate Council report shows. Climate scientists say australian has endured an ‘’angry summer’’. The Climate Council’s latest angry summer report analyses climate data from across the country for the 2013-2014 summer, the aBC reports. The report says adelaide experienced 13 days above 40°C, including five days in a row above 42°. The south australian capital also had its hottest ever February day, reaching 44.7°. While south australia was described as the summer’s “ground zero”, it was also the driest summer on record for 38 spots in new south Wales and 45 in Queensland, while syd-

ney had its driest summer in 27 years. Melbourne had its hottest 24-hour period, with an average temperature of 35.5°, and Perth had its hottest-ever night and its second-hottest summer on record. The council’s lesley Hughes says the hotter, drier weather conditions are heightening the risks of bushires. “Bushires, if they’re started, are able to carry and spread faster, and more seriously and more intensely, the hotter and drier the conditions,” she said. “so if we have really hot days, dry weather that’s dried out the fuel - those are the conditions that are conducive to bushires spreading and causing really serious impacts.” Victoria’s February ires burnt 280,000 hectares of land. Ms Hughes, a Macquarie University professor, says the

weather patterns are clearly due to climate change and governments need to address it. “It’s consistent with the predictions of what happens as the globe warms up. “Climate change is making the whole weather system different to what it used to be and along with that is an increase in extreme events.” The council says the nature of heatwaves is changing, and they are now tending to start earlier, last longer and occur more frequently. some of the records were for above-average rain which fell over parts of Cape York Peninsula, the northern Territory, Western australia and along south australia’s coast. The report called for “urgent and deep reductions in the emissions of greenhouse gases” to stabilise the climate. - ABC

is how guards were describing the protests within the detention centre in their radio communication: Callsign Fox sierra One: “approximately 50 in the gym. It’s not really getting off the ground. People are still watching movies. There’s no footwear being thrown, they’re still in lip-lops.” Command: “Copy.” Callsign Mike sierra One: “Command, Mike sierra One. They’re now singing what I believe to be a national peace song from Iran. and the leaders that were present yesterday are now present tonight.” Command: “Copy that.” Callsign Fox sierra One: “Command, Fox sierra One. Chanting and whistling, clapping has completely ceased. The agitators that came down to the gym have moved away. People in the gym continuing to watch television. so at this stage, quiet.” That quiet did not last long, but gates remained locked and the situation contained. Chant leader: “What do we want?” Group chant: “Freedom!” Chant leader: “What do we want?” Group chant: “Freedom!” Callsign Fox sierra One: “Oscar Bravo, Fox sierra One, conirm all gate towers of Foxtrot are locked. Over.”

These noisy protests were repeated daily. Two expatriates working for security firm G4s at the time say staff warned centre management not to hold a meeting to address questions about asylum processing and resettlement, believing the situation to be volatile. The meeting went ahead on the afternoon of February 16, with PNG immigration oficials reportedly telling asylum seekers the only option for resettlement would be Papua new Guinea. This came a week after PnG’s foreign minister told parliament the government had not decided whether to accept refugees for resettlement. Hours after the meeting at the detention centre, riots began, turning deadly the next evening. an australian working at the centre and two asylum seekers say they heard bursts of automatic gunire, exceeding police reports of a few warning shots. The australian worker interviewed two asylum seekers. The staff member provided this audio at the risk of losing his/ her job and possible legal action for breaching a conidentiality clause. The australian asked the asylum seekers how many gun shots they heard: asylum seeker B: “Five, six

times.” Interviewer: “so six times. Only six bullets? Or ive or six times, many times?” asylum seeker B: “no, no. Five or six – many times. He shoot not one.” Interviewer: “Yes, that’s what we heard.” an asylum seeker says he tried to hide in a room but was dragged outside to where G4s guards, police mobile squad officers, local residents and asylum seekers were clashing. He says he was stomped, kicked, punched and hit in the face with a heavy object. asylum seeker a: “Please, please, please don’t kill me, don’t kill me, don’t kill me.” The asylum seeker says a Papua new Guinean G4s guard intervened to get him away from the violence. That same night, nearby, 23-year-old Iranian Reza Barati was killed. days later, a funeral service was held inside the Manus Island detention centre. The asylum seekers say they live in fear of further retribution. The aBC contacted G4s and Immigration Minister scott Morrison for a response. Both said investigations were underway and declined to comment further. - ABC

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Nine male dogs who had not been desexed gathered around a female dog in heat on Friday, creating a hazard for motorists. 14030703

Dogs must be de-sexed, says CISPCA OWneRs not de-sexing their

pets were the cause of a pack of dogs that ran wild on the roads on Friday, says the president of a local animal welfare group. The frenzied group of canines, which was reported in CI news on saturday, was seen running between Punanga nui market and Taputapuatea, wandering onto the road and forcing motorists to stop and honk their horns. sharon Reichardt, president of the Cook Islands society for the Protection of Cruelty to animals (CIsPCa), said the pack included one female dog on heat, and nine male dogs that were also not de-sexed. “ There is no excuse for this. Because these dogs had one thing on their mind they were running around ighting on the roads. We were lucky there was no accident,” said Reichardt. CIsPCa managed to pick up some of the dogs, who live near the library and Museum in Ta-

putapuatea, and took them to esther Honey to be de-sexed. “The law says all dogs need to be de-sexed,” she said. “The good news for the public is we were able to pick up one very tired, exhausted little girl and get her to the esther Honey Foundation to get ixed up.” Four of the male dogs were also taken by CIsPCa to esther Honey for the operation. Reichardt said CIsPCa is happy to transport animals to esther Honey for the operation, free of charge. “The sPCa will pick up any dog or cat and deliver and return them back to their home at no charge. The esther Honey Foundation will also de-sex these animals at no charge. The service is there, free.” de-sexing dogs and cats helps slow population growth of the animals on the island and will also curb undesirable behaviour, such as making dogs less anxious and less

likely to roam or bite people. dogs that have been desexed are still territorial and, in fact, make better watchdogs

than whole dogs, because they are less inclined to wander in search of a mate and will stay around to protect the home.

Those needing help with transporting their pets for desexing operations can contact C I s PCa on 25005 between

10am and 2pm. To book the procedure, contact esther Honey on 22336. - Briar Douglas

leTTeRs reta

Conirm PM costs please dear editor, If the Prime Minister’s visit to nZ last week was “personal” can the Prime Minister's Office confirm whether Cabinet approved for $2000 from the civil list to assist in covering his travel costs? I understand that $1000 was for “entertainment” and the remaining $1000 to cover other so-called travelrelated costs. Furthermore, can the Prime Minister’s Office also confirm whether $6000 of taxpayers’ funds was recently approved to purchase TaV-made school

uniforms for prefects attending Manihiki’s primary school? Curious (name and address supplied)

Response from Ofice of the Prime Minister: The recent trip was a private one by the PM. However, while in auckland the Prime Minister took the opportunity to have a formal meeting with the companies that provide shipping services to the Cook Islands. These companies are Matson shipping line and Greater Paciic Shipping (GPS). Present at the meeting were representa-

tives of the two companies and our secretary of Transport, Mr ned Howard. The PM received funding from the Civil list to cover accommodation and allowances for two nights while attending to official business on behalf of Government. These entitlements were approved by Cabinet and were for the two days where official business was undertaken. no costs were sought for airfares. The Prime Minister also spent an extra two nights in auckland, where he

No need to buy ‘toys’ with public funds dear editor, Most will agree with letter writer ex CIP supporter complaining about Minister Kiriau Turepu’s three vehicles parked at his home. Is there a real need to buy a brand new Mazda four wheel drive double cab pick-up valued at $35,000? The same can be said about the Prime Minister’s brand new Hyundai car worth about $50,000 – what’s wrong with the PM’s PM1 vehicle? Then we have the deputy Prime Minister Teariki Heather buying the most expensive double cab pick-up – a Ford Ranger worth about $70,000. Why couldn’t he use the car and old pick up at the ofice? all this wasteful and extravagant spending goes to show how out of touch this Government is with reality and the struggle of

Cook Islands News Building Maraerenga Avarua Rarotonga PO Box 15 Rarotonga Tel (682) 22999 Fax 25303 Email: editor@cookislandsnews.com or adverts@cookislandsnews.com

www.cookislandsnews.com Daily Monday to Saturday

opened the Cook Islands Village at the Pasiika Festival on Saturday March 8, at the request of the Cook Islands Community. no extra costs were sought for the extra two nights spent in auckland. The uniforms for the prefects of Tauhunu and Tukao primary schools were purchased from Mareko Island Creations at a cost of $640 – not from Tavs at a cost of $6000. These costs were covered by the Community Capital development Fund and approved by Cabinet.”

everyday people in this country. all this personal “show and glory” is all part of a façade to look and feel good while the ordinary Joe Citizen pays for the bus, hitches a ride, cycles, walks or uses the old bomb to get about. To make matters worse, all this hard earned money through taxes doesn’t even belong to Cabinet and politicians. It belongs to the people. Government was put there as caretakers and leaders for the people, so they can use this money wisely for the beneit of the community. not to waste it and buy expensive toys so that they can show off. To me, the bigger the toys the bigger their egos are. Get back to earth and listen to the little people – hear their cries, their struggles and their needs. Observer (name and address supplied)

Publisher John Woods john@cookislandsnews.com chief Executive Oicer Liz Woods lizw@cookislandsnews.com General Manager Tony Fe’ao tony@cookislandsnews.com Editor Mark Ebrey mark@cookislandsnews.com Deputy Editor Matariki Wilson matariki@cookislandsnews.com Reporters Emmanuel Samoglou emmanuel@cookislandsnews.com Ben Chapman-Smith ben@cookislandsnews.com Rachel Reeves rachel@cookislandsnews.com Court Reporter Merita Wi-Kaitaia merita@cookislandsnews.com Online & Social Networking Editor Briar Douglas briar@cookislandsnews.com Sales and Marketing Manager Susan Tealby susan@cookislandsnews.com Advertising Assistant Ledua Vivian Engu vivian@cookislandsnews.com Advertising adverts@cookislandsnews.com Oice Manager Tere Joseph tere@cookislandsnews.com Accounts Manager Tangi Tauira tangi@cookislandsnews.com Reception Kura Tauira reception@cookislandsnews.com Oice staf Apii Tua apii@cookislandsnews.com Graphic Design & Layout Mahai Daniel mahai@cookislandsnews.com Adam Tutuvanu adam@cookislandsnews.com Web Developer Daniel Rolls dan@cookislandsnews.com Print Manager Dan Johnston danj@cookislandsnews.com Printers Dennis Campos, Lai Gukisuva

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Tiki Matapo with Japanese ambassador yasuaki Nogawa.

Cook Islands High Commisioner to New Zealand Tiki Matapo with Cuban ambassador Maria del Carmen Herrera Caseiro. 14031204

14031205

CI Ambassador meets Cuban and Japanese counterparts COOK Islands High Commis-

avarua School students learning to swim with the Cook Islands aquatics Federation. 14030733

Water safety day for children YOUnG people will be learning how to stay safe in the water this weekend. Cook Islands Water safety and surf life saving Council (CIWssls) is running a water safety day at the Rarotonga sailing Club on saturday, for children between seven and 14 years. There will be two sessions from 9-10am and 10.3011.30am, with some of the class involving time in the water.

Water safety Council Vice President shannon saunders, who will be helping to run the sessions along with the council’s President Brent Fisher and secretary Georgia langdon, said children will learn about waves, currents, basic rescue techniques and how to be sun smart and safe at the beach. Chris Webber from new Zealand’s Piha surf life saving Club, who has featured on the television programme Piha

Rescue, will be attending as a guest speaker and Westpac staff will also be there to help out on the day. Saunders said this is the irst time the safety day has been held, but there may be more in future. “If it goes well we hope to do one a term,” she said. To register interest in attending one of the sessions, contact shannon saunders on 54144. - Briar Douglas

sioner to new Zealand, Tiki Matapo is strengthening ties with major nations through his diplomatic duties from his ofice in Wellington. Recently Matapo met with the Cuban and Japanese ambassadors where he thanked them for their nations’ support of development in the Cook Islands. When Matapo met with Cuban ambassador Maria del Carmen Herrera Caseiro, he thanked her and the Cuban government for renewing its medical scholarship offer to the Cook

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Estall trial reveals victim’s injuries CRasH victim Kulani Takai had

no obvious injuries on the night of the accident that later claimed his life, with Crown witnesses saying he was conscious and walking around that night. The trial of manslaughter accused James estall started without a hitch on Monday with the choosing of the jury of three men and nine women running smoothly in the morning, and four Crown witnesses giving evidence throughout the afternoon. Further witness testimony and cross examination continued on Tuesday, including those involved in the crash, police and ire safety oficers who attended the crash, and medical oficers that attended the victims. The driver of the white minivan that estall crashed into, described the accident a sudden “bang, speed, bang” as estall “clipped” the left rear of her car while another bike sped past on

her right and hit a taxi turning right into the airport entrance. she described getting out of her car and attending to Takai, who was lying on the side of the road but was conscious and complaining of a sore back. she said that while she was trying to get through to emergency services, she saw estall standing a few metres away to the side of the road next to his bike, which had been moved and parked. R e t i r e d d o c t o r Te a r i k i no’ovao, who attended to Takai at the hospital, also testiied on Tuesday. He told the court how Takai had come in stable, but that an x-ray revealed he had a broken vertebral column. He described how he had used ultrasound to check Takai’s internal organs and found he had suffered “blunt indirect trauma”; he had lacerations to his kidney and liver, but for the moment was still stable. no’ovao told the court how he had made the de-

cision to postpone any surgery and monitor Takai instead, but that he had suddenly deteriorated and “crashed”; dying in hospital almost two days after he was admitted. Presiding judge Justice sir Hugh Williams told the jury the speedy pace with which the trial is progressing, it could come to a conclusion on Friday morning, remaining Crown witnesses testiied on Wednesday and Estall testiies today. 15 Crown witnesses in the trial have so far testiied in court, revealing the details leading up to, during and after the two separate crashes that occurred in front of the entrance to the airport on June 2012. estall, 22, is charged with manslaughter, dangerous driving causing death and excess breath alcohol. The highest penalty estall faces is life imprisonment for manslaughter. - Merita Wi-Kaitaia

for Grassroots Projects (GGP), Japan has provided in excess of nZ$400,000 over the last year and a half towards refurbishment of a Mental Health Centre in Rarotonga, equipment for the Mangaia Fishing association and much needed medical equipment for some of the southern group islands. embassy First secretary Reki Kataoka will visit the Cook Islands next week to finalise further assistance including towards maire production in Mitiaro. - Matariki Wilson

Islands for 2014. Currently, the Cook Islands have three students studying medicine in Cuba namely nooroa Vakalalabure, norman Tangi and Keanneidigh Miles. anyone interested in the scholarship to study medicine in Cuba can contact the Cook Islands High Commission ofice in Wellington for more details. Matapo also met with Japanese ambassador Yasuaki nogawa at the ambassador's residence this week. The meet strengthened ties as through the Grant assistance

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Tangi Tauira studies the Cook Islands section in the just-released photography book “Our Voyage: Stories of Triumph in the response to HIV and other STIs in the Paciic”. 14031213

Cooks chlamydia treatment a success story in new book COnsIdeRaBle progress has been made in reducing the level of chlamydia in the Cook Islands following an aggressive campaign to highlight the disease, according to the secretariat of the Paciic Community (SPC). In a media release issued to mark the launching of the photography book “Our Voyage: stories of Triumph in the Response to HIV and other sTIs in the Paciic” in Suva, Fiji, the SPC says the incidence of chlamydia in the Cooks has dropped from one in five (20%) in 2009 to 11.5% in 2012. In the Cook Islands, targeted heath communications are one of right components of the regional sTI control strategy successfully implemented, the sPC release says. “another key component of this strategy was targeted population-based presumptive chlamydia treatment. such presumptive treatment – whereby infection is presumed in people

at high risk of infection whether or not they show symptoms – rapidly reduces the chlamydia rate in targeted groups.” “azithromycin was provided to individuals with water, and they took the tablets on the spot. Booth style clinics were set up around the island so that people could drop in and take their medication,” explains Cook Islands national HIV sTI Coordinator ana File. “A team of certiied counsellors, a doctor and a laboratory assistant provided mobile voluntary conidential counselling and testing on the islands of aitutaki, Pukapuka, atiu, Mitiaro, Mauke and Mangaia in an effort to make sTI testing more accessible. More than 800 people took advantage of the mobile testing service, including prison inmates. “Mobile testing is important because the outer islands do not always have access to HIV or sTI testing. Making the effort to go

to them means we can provide on the spot counselling, testing and treatment and conidentiality is assured,” Ms File says. success in sTI control is just one of 10 stories featured in the photography book commissioned by sPC and the Pacific Response Fund Committee; the body responsible for guiding the management of the grant. Other highlights in the book include achievements in tackling stigma and discrimination and supporting people living with HIV in the Paciic; national strategic planning and laboratory strengthening, as well as meeting the sexual health needs of vulnerable groups such as men who have sex with men, sex workers, seafarers and at risk children. Those would like to know more about the book, or receive a copy, should email janeetas@ jointsecretariat.net. - Release/Mark Ebrey

Cook Islands Ministry of Health’s National HIV STI Coordinator ana File, as pictured in the photography book “Our Voyage: Stories of Triumph in the response to HIV and other STIs in the Paciic”. 14031214

disk jockeys George Williams (left) and Mii Taokia work the airways on radio 88FM, while the right hand page shows former red Cross counsellor Lalit Prasad. 14031217

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Vaitau School head girl Teinakore Tapora.

14031019

Vaitau School staf were proud to have the community join them at the school’s prefects and peace ambassador inauguration ceremony last week. 14031018

Vaitau School names its prefects, ambassadors

Vaitau School head boy Itu davey.

a sPeCIal day to invest prefects and peace ambassadors was held at aitutaki’s Vaitau Primary school last week with much pride shared by the whole school community. Traditional, religious and political leaders were among the invited guests who certainly enjoyed the day illed with school pride, singing and colour. The school hall was decorated with pareu and ei and all the

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COST FOR FULL YEAR 14.00 26.00 62.00 38.00 47.00 44.00 82.00 26.00 38.00

school children were adorned in ei to join in with the celebrations. The speeches presented by the head boy Itu davey and head girl Teinakore Tapora were both humbling and gracious. The presentation of the badges to the prefects and peace am-

bassadors was full of emotion for the students, their parents and families including the community who were so proud to be a part of this occasion. The younger children were overwhelmed and sang their special songs with such vibrancy and tenacity.

Our Member of Parliament Mona Ioane and his wife Grace were very pleased to be a part of this auspicious moment for the school and we thank them both for making it back home for our special day. - Vaitau School

Funding available for conservation projects CHaIRMan of the Pacific development and Conservation (PadeVCOn) Trust Peter Kiely is encouraging groups and individuals with an interest in sustainable development and conservation projects to consider applying for grant funding from the Trust. PadeVCOn distributes about $250,000 each year to communities, organisations and individuals in the South Paciic for a range of development and conservation projects. “The funding round is now open and applications for the funding close on March 31 and we would strongly encourage anyone who is interested in sustainable development and conserva-

tion to ind out more about the funding available,” says Mr Kiely. The grants are administered by the department of Internal affairs’ Community Operations staff and they can assist you with the process, says Mr Kiely. “If you are uncertain about whether your project is eligible for Trust funding, I would encourage you to make contact with the team.” The Trust funds a range of development and conservation projects such as eco-tourism, ecological restoration, building restoration (where the building is of historical or cultural signiicance), community workshops, and archival projects. last year the Trust granted

$250,000 to 19 projects. Projects that received funding included: $18,975 for Gisborne-based Project litefoot to measure the eficiency of resource consumption and the level of greenhouse gas emissions in sports clubs; and $20,000 to the Unitec Institute of Technology to save and restore the apia Courthouse to its original 1910 state. To obtain an application form, or to learn more about the Trust, visit the Community Matters website: http://www.communitymatters.govt.nz/Funding-andgrants---Trust-and-fellowshipgrants---Pacific-developmentand-conservation-trust or phone 0800 824 824. - DIA release

PCF welcomes new board members TWO neW Board Members, Mr

andrew Wilson and Ms Rachel skudder have been appointed to the Board of the Paciic Cooperation Foundation. PCF Chairman Peter Kiely welcomed the new Board members to further develop its connections between the public and private sectors in new Zealand and the Paciic region. andrew Wilson is General Manager of Beca International Consultants ltd, a new Zealandbased company formed for the delivery of international work for the Beca Group. Beca is new Zealand’s leading international engineering and related consultancy services organisation, specialising in the design and management of projects throughout the Asia Paciic Region. Mr Wilson is also a director of

Beca’s International companies and is responsible for its overall international business and the development and implementation of a wide range of projects throughout the asia Pacific region. He has extensive management experience, with a career spanning more than 35 years. andrew has worked and travelled extensively and has overseen a number of Beca’s infrastructure development projects throughout the Paciic. Rachel skudder is a director of BEST Paciic Institute of Education. BesT is new Zealand's largest Pacific-focused Private Training establishment, with more than 3000 students and 200 staff across ive campuses in auckland. Ms skudder, with both teaching and law degrees, has for some years been widely involved

in developing successful Paciic educational, youth, leadership and employment initiatives. Mr Kiely says the appointments offer signiicant new strengths for the Foundation. “PC F has experienced a growth period, solidifying some key partnerships between the public and private sectors for Paciic regional growth. Mr Wilson and Ms skudder will assist PCF in both its business development support activities and pursuing new niche programmes in areas where the Foundation’s unique strengths can enhance new Zealand’s cooperation with our Paciic neighbours.” PCF Trustees Graham Walshe and Grant sinclair ended extended periods of valuable service to PCF as Board members in January 2014. - Release

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Zika outbreak numbers rise THe MInIsTRY of Health has received another 17 reports of people showing zika symptoms in Rarotonga. Total reported cases now stand at 188, including 10 from aitutaki, but none from the other outer islands. director of Community Health services dr Rangi Fariu said the 17 new victims are showing symptoms associated with the zika virus, including fever, aches and pains and skin rashes. Twenty-three blood test results came back from Tahiti earlier in the week, showing 18 people tested positive for zika, four were negative and one was inconclusive. Fariu said the Ministry is still waiting on the results of about 60 more blood samples sent to Tahiti last week, which will provide an even clearer picture of the situation. “We’re keeping our ingers crossed they’ll come back this week. The sooner we know that the better it is for us.”

H e a l t h i n s p e c t o r s h av e identiied a number of people suffering from the zika virus – who have not been to a doctor – during this week’s Tutaka health checks. The Ministry is sending teams out to spray around their houses, as well as the houses of those who do report to their doctor. Meanwhile, speculation about a zika-related death in Rarotonga is untrue, according to dr Henry Tikaka Henry, director of services at Rarotonga Hospital. dr Henry said an elderly man did pass away at the hospital this week but zika was not a factor. The virus outbreak in Rarotonga, which started early last month, was initially thought to be dengue but is now believed to be zika. Most people have taken less than a week to recover and nobody has been hospitalised by the illness yet - Ben Chapman-Smith

Government to roll out leak repair programme THe GOVeRnMenT is preparing to roll out a programme to address minor plumbing issues and leakages in households around Rarotonga. With the near completion of Project City – which included the upgrade of water distribution infrastructure in avarua and the surrounding town area – lacklustre plumbing in individual homes has been revealed to be an issue, particularly with leakage. The pilot programme hopes to address these issues, said Peter Tierney and Tai nooapii from the Ministry of Finance and economic Management’s development Coordination division – who are working together to set up the project. at this stage, the plan is to have the programme work much like the water tank subsidy programme, where a subsidy is put up by the government to cover a certain amount of costs, and any amount over and beyond covered by individual households. “We want people to ring us up

and tell us how severe the leakages are,” said Tierney. Once notiied, the government will have a plumber visit the home to test for pressure and assess the amount of work required to be undertaken. a related plan has officials checking for leakages as part of the Tutaka health checks. The Project City area has been identiied as a potential pilot area, as water meters previously installed at affected homes

can be used to test where water is being lost due to bad plumbing. Oficials hope to have a list of certified plumbers and tradespeople with a certain level of experience available for homeowners, who will be able to choose whom they wish to complete the work. MFeM’s development Coordination division – which will be managing the project – is aiming to conduct audits of 10 per cent

The government plans to tackle the problem of dripping faucets and leaky pipes in households through a pilot programme being rolled out over the coming weeks. 14031209

of all households that undergo repairs to ensure a certain standard of work is achieved. The exact subsidy has yet-tobe determined, however $1 million in funding has been set aside by government, coming from new Zealand’s $15 million contribution towards the Te Mato Vai water infrastructure project. Bad plumbing is cited in the TMV draft master plan, which is referred to as “customer side leakage”. aeCOM – which drafted the document – recommends for the commencement of a programme to address household leakage, including a water usage eficiency awareness campaign and the allocation of resources to address the issue. Officials believe the programme - which will focus on preparing households for the new water system – will also provide a substantial boost for the local economy, benefiting local plumbers, hardware suppliers, and tradesmen. - ES

classiieds pupu kite ngai okotai EMAIL

PhONE

adverts@cookislandsnews.com

Fax 25303

DEADLINES Deadline for next day’s classiieds is

22999

preferred

1pm sharp. Material deadline for display adverts 24 hours prior.

PUBLIC NOTICES

The Cook Islands National Disability Council Annual General Meeting Please note, the date of this meeting has been changed. It will now take place on Thursday 27 March at 4.30pm at the Creative Centre, Tupapa. We currently have vacancies on the Board, including a Representative for Mitiaro. All welcome.

Rob’s Charcoal Chicken brings to you The Charcoal Chicken for your Sunday Lunch. One whole chicken, $22. Call 27627 or 58839 to pre order your Charcoal Chicken by 12noon, Friday 14 March.

Takuvaine Netball training will be held on Thursday 13th March, 5pm at the Avarua School Grounds, All new comers are welcomed.

Kia Orana Mama Mata’s Free Cook Islands Maori class inished on 6 March 2014. Looking for a new venue and will notify the public. E noo ra.

77550 /36908 /2225

77536 /36899 /1931

77563 / /2118

PUBLIC NOTICES

TE MARAE ORA, MINISTRY OF HEALTH COOK ISLANDS

Wednesday 19th march 2014 5:30pm at the school

Takitumu Primary School

EXPRESSION OF INTEREST FOR ThE PROCUREMENT OF SERVICES FOR ThE PURPOSE OF ThE EVALUATION OF ThE hEALTh SPECIALIST VISIT (hSV) PROGRAMME

AGEndA • • • •

2013 AGm minutes Chairperson’s Report Treasurer’s Report Principal’s Report

• General business • Election of 2014 – 2015 PTA

Refreshments will be provided. All Parents and Caregivers are encouraged to attend. 77449

COOK ISLANDS TEACHERS’ INSTITUTE (CITI)

ANNOUNCEMENT ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING thursday, 20th March, 2014 3:30pm Room 2 Tereora College E kapikianga uipaanga teia na tatou e te au puapii. Ka kite ia kotou ki ko i te Apii Tereora a te Paraparau. 2013-2014 CITI Executives.

77554

Classiieds • Phone 22999

• adverts@cookislandsnews.com

PUBLIC NOTICES MINISTRY OF FINANCE AND ECONOMIC MANAGEMENT & THE MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS GOVERNMENT OF THE COOK ISLANDS

PUBLIC NOTICE REGARDING VAT PRICE IMPACTS

77543 /36902 /1931

AnnUAl GEnERAl mEETinG nOTiCE

Casual ads must be prepaid. Cancellation fee $6.40 incl. VAT. Quotations on request.

77505 /36847 /1931

PUBLIC NOTICES

ZUMBA Kent Hall Shake & Shape 5.30pm.

RATES Minimum $5.80 incl. VAT for 1-15 words.

The Ministry of Health (MoH) invites Expression of Interest (EOI) from qualiied and experienced parties for the purpose of the evaluation of the Health Specialist Visits (HSV) Programme. HSV is a tripartite arrangement between the MoH, the Cook Islands Ministry of Finance and Economic Management (MFEM) and the Aid Programme of the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Afairs and Trade (MFAT). The EOI documents will be available from the oice at the Ministry of Health, Avarua Rarotonga or downloaded from the Ministry of Health website http://www.health. gov.ck/ Complete EOI proposals must be delivered to the address below before 12pm, Cook Islands time on 13 March 2014 in a sealed envelope and clearly marked “hSV EVALUATION” to the following address: Ministry of health PO Box 109 rarotonga Cook Islands All enquiries to: temarama Anguna Email: m.anguna@health.gov.ck Phone: +682 29664. 77239

On 1 April 2014 the VAT will increase from 12.5% to 15%. This may cause the prices of some goods and services to rise. Most Cook Islanders will have received a personal income tax cut, minimum wage increase, or increase in social welfare payments on or before 1 April. On 1 April 2014 the import levies on pork, eggs, seasonal fruit and vegetables, and ice cream will be eliminated. These reductions are larger than the increase in the VAT – prices of these goods are expected to decline. In regards to VAT, retailers are advised that the maximum price change they can attribute to the VAT change is 2.2% of the previous retail price. An example using a $10 purchase is illustrated below:

Price not including VAT plus the VAT component Original Retail Price

in 2013

From 1 April 2014

$8.89

$1.11

$1.33

$10.00

$10.22

Price increase:

$0.22

Retailers may choose to not pass on the full cost of the VAT change, and some retailers may have already increased their prices in anticipation of 1 April, so their prices may not change. Other retailers may increase prices by more than 2.2%, but any increase above 2.2% is at their own discretion and is above and beyond the expected impact of the VAT change. The VAT is a value added tax and does not accumulate from one vendor to the next. Vendors registered for VAT can claim VAT on expenses as credits, and hence, do not incur VAT if they are purchasing goods from other VAT registered businesses. Still unsure about how much VAT will impact on prices? A simple spreadsheet has been made available at www. mfem.gov.ck/tax for consumers to estimate what price changes may be due to the VAT, and for suppliers/ retailers to estimate the impact on their revenues if they choose to absorb some of the rate change. 69221

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

One win, one dream for ambitious Cooks In JUne, the Cook Islands will play the most important game in their short but colourful history – a game against Fiji to determine who will qualify as Oceania one for the Rugby World Cup 2015 in england. The Cook Islands is one of the IRB’s 14 Oceania Member Unions and has been in this situation before while attempting to qualify for the 1999 and 2007 tournaments. On the verge of qualiication in 1997, they lost to Tonga and Fiji, and in 2006 lost a two-test series to Tonga. so excited by the prospect of having another shot at qualifying, the Cook Islands Rugby Union has created a community campaign called “One Win, One dream”. The campaign’s aim is to build community awareness of the match, support the union’s voluntary work and to raise funds for talent identiication, warm-up ixtures, team travel, team camps and preparations. The union president lara sadaraka reveals: “In 2013, we won the Oceania Cup by defeating Papua new Guinea (37-31), solomon Islands (39-12) and Tahiti (38-5). This was stage one of the qualifying process for the Rugby World Cup. The next phase of the qualifying process is a one-off test against Fiji.” “In essence, the Cook Islands are ‘One Win’ away from participating at rugby’s showcase event. This presents the Cook Islands with a wonderful opportunity and we are excited with the potential this holds for our proud nation. We are not overwhelmed by the task at hand. We are ready and raring to embrace it and give it our very best shot.” It is a big task given that Oceania Rugby has been dominated for many years by Fiji, samoa and, to a lesser extent, by neighbour’s Tonga. The Pacific Islands do represent one of the world’s most amazing rugby nurseries and the IRB is investing signiicant funds in on-going development through high-performance programmes in the three senior island nations. nonetheless, rugby has been played in the Cook Islands since the 1920s. In 1954 the Rarotonga Rugby Union was formed but it was only in 1989 that a national body, the Cook Islands Rugby Union, was established in an

attempt to centralise the game in Rarotonga and the other 14 outer islands that make up the country. In March 1995, the Cook Islands Rugby Union became a Full Member of the IRB. like many of the Pacific Island nations, a large number of Cook Islanders live and work in new Zealand, where many play rugby. Many players of Cook Island heritage have played for new Zealand, including most recently, Rene Ranger. and, for such a small nation, they compete at some of the highest levels of the game. The Cook Islands men’s sevens team participates each year at various tournaments and has qualiied to compete at this year’s Hong Kong sevens and also the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, scotland. Undaunted by their Fijian opponents, the Cooks have been busy preparing for the qualiication match and, according to the team’s manager Cam Kilgour, this campaign will be a strong one. “The past 10 months have seen big changes in and around Cook Islands Rugby in terms of our structure and the player base. Barry George (Fifteens head coach), Chad Tuoro (sevens head coach) and myself know how important it is to have the Cook Islands as a tier two nation and we believe we have the talent to do that, both in the Cook Islands and around the world, especially new Zealand.” “First and foremost, if we are to succeed in this goal we need to have improved programmes for all our players and set up strong competitions between them. The 2013 Oceania Cup in PNG was the irst step and a big step forward for our plan to develop. now we have the chance to play Fiji in a one-off match.” “This is our biggest opportunity to date. We have some very good players and, with the amount of players who have now made themselves available to play for the Cook Islands, we believe it’s not a long shot like in the past.” “spearheading the challenge will be prop stan Wright (auckland, leinster and now stade Francais) who, as a professional, has great inluence on other overseas Cook Islands players. His leadership, on and off the ield, carries huge respect in the Cook Islands community.

Cook Islands rugby Union president Lara Sadaraka with the nation’s most well-known and inluential rugby men on and of the ield, Stan Wright (left) and Francis Smith. 14031207 “Hooker Francis smith (Tasman Makos) and wing Chay Raui (auckland) bring more leadership and experience to the squad with ITM Cup experience. Other notable players high on our radar are Tim Bateman (nZ Maori), Joe Kamana (Melbourne Rebels) and sam anderson-Heather (Otago), plus others in Japan and in europe. “We now have great competition for spots and the fact that we are only 80 minutes away from opening Rugby World Cup 2015 against england at Twickenham is a huge incentive. Over the past few weeks we have added Brent semmons as forwards coach and current auckland sevens coach Paul Feeney as our backs coach, adding even more strength to our challenge,” added Kilgour. Fiji is currently ranked 11th in the IRB World Rankings while the Cook Islands are ranked 46th. Fiji has 8500 registered senior male players compared the Cooks’ 500 spread across 29 clubs. so you can see why the Cooks Islands are excited by the challenge of having the opportunity to play Fiji and to qualify for RWC 2015. If they pull it off it would be a major but welcome surprise, the realisation of a dream that begins and ends with one win. - Greg Thomas

The national men’s rugby team perform a pe’e after winning the Oceania Cup that has lead them to the upcoming one-of test against Fiji for the inal Oceania spot at the rugby World Cup in 2015. 14031203

Cook Islands national rugby union stalwart Francis Smith shows his strength.

14031206

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

PUBLIC NOTICES

SERVICES

FOR SALE

SITUATIONS VACANT

The Cook Islands Netball Team Fundraiser. Quiz Night on Thursday 20th of March at the CI Game Fishing Club. 6 players per team at $120. There are Great Prizes to be won. Tasty food will be selling on the night. All proceeds will go towards the preparations for Team Cook Islands to the Paciic Netball Series here in Rarotonga on the 2nd to the 7th of June 2014. Contact Tupe on 50081 or Inano 54243 to register your team or otherwise email: admin@netball.co.ck We welcome everyone to come and enjoy the night with us for a fun-illed evening.

The A Team Lawn Mowing & Hedge Trimming Services: All jobs big or small. We can do it. Free quote. To prevent Dengue Fever. Give clerk a call on 74081.

11 month old pigs for sale Price $200 Call phone 75661.

All AROUND BEAUTICIAN - at least 5 yrs work exp.in a salon, reliable, hardworking, honest, customer-friendly and able to work with minimum supervision. Please email your CV at korana@oyster.net.ck Application closes 17 March 2014.

77559 / /2113

MARIGNY INC. An International Business Company (In Voluntary Liquidation) Notice is hereby given by Liquidation Services Limited that MARIGNY INC. a company incorporated under the International companies Act: - is in dissolution; - commenced dissolution on the 07th day of March 2014; - Liquidator Services Limited is the sole liquidator whose address is at BCI House, PO Box 208 Avarua, Rarotonga COOK ISLANDS Dated the 13th day of March, 2014.

77497 /36841 /1931

FOR RENT 1 bedroom unit Arorangi, close to main road & shops Phone 21444 or 73530. 77438 / /2419

Modern apartment in the KAKERA complex, Ngatangiia. Available now, three bedrooms, two bathrooms. Email kakera@hotmail.co.nz for full details. 77499 / /1931

3 bedroom house for rent, Ngatangiia, Avana. Phone 23333/55071. 77406 /36680 /1931

FOR RENT A prime retail space of approximately 340 sq mtrs plus 56 sq mtrs of covered verandah space will be becoming available for rent in approximately 2-3 months. The rent is very reasonable due to the improvements done by the existing tenant and this will need to be reimbursed relative to the time remaining (7.5 years) on the existing lease. Ph 21060 Don C.

FOR SALE

6 metre aluminium ishing boat with 50hp. Yamaha 4 stroke engine in very good condition. Comes on a solid trailer, $22,000 ono. Phone 54322. 77560 /36915 /2247

77430 / /1853

Cook Islands Motor Centre Tenders are invited for item listed below, as is where is. 2012 Daelim Citiace REGO: AAQ180 Please see Allister Webb, Sales Manager 77498 / /1916

SERVICES Self Storage Raro U Store it!! -Secure & Private -Short or Long term -For oice, Shop or Home Storage. Phone 22188 or 26189. Email beach@moanasands.co.ck

77546 /36911 /1931

VEhICLES FOR SALE Toyota Vitz for sale. As is. Good runner. $9,000. Call 22904 for genuine enquiries 77532 /36877 /1931

1x Tiger Smart motor bike (Blue) only 8 months old, going out price $1600. Phone 78191. 77564 /36906 /1931

GARAGE SALE When: Thursday 13, Saturday 15 Where: Ruatonga Rd, look for sign. What: Kitchen & household items, linen & clothes galore, tools etc.

SITUATIONS VACANT Labourer/All rounder honest, sober habits, own transport, varing tasks. Phone 70489. 77525 /36856 /2061

Laptop computer, new. Toshiba Satpro C850 15.6’’, LED, DVD writer win 7 pro, under 3/3 new price Auck, $650. Transcend 500 GB ext hard drive, new, $90. Telephone 21079.

77216 /36830 /1933

ShOP MANAGER 3-5 yrs work exp.in retail business to oversee the full operation of the shop but not limited to shopkeeping, cashiering, banking & stock inventory. Important qualities: reliable, trustworthy, polite, honest, customerfriendly, non-smoker and nondrinker. Please email your CV to ciral09@yahoo.com and application closes 17 March 2014. 77217 /36831 /1933

Male Baker, preferably with at least 5 yrs work exp.in the same ield that specialises in baking, pastry, and cake. Hardworking, honest, team player and goal oriented person. Please email your CV to ciral09@yahoo.com and the application closes 17 March 2014.

77528 /36870 /1931

Taro pa’i, all varieties @ $100/25kg bag. Phone 55441. 77547 /77547 /2442

Goat electric fence with energizer, wires and posts, $1500 ono. Phone 51089. 77533 / /2505

73696 /36871 /1744

Sales Assistant Honest, team player, computer literate, reliable. Phone 25537 or 74552. 77527 /36856 /2061

ChEF WANTED Castaway Resort is looking for a Chef to join our friendly team to work evenings. Must be experienced, honest, reliable, team player, customer friendly and polite. A top hourly rate will be paid. E-mail: pash@oyster.net.ck or ph: Paul Ash 74-393.

SITUATIONS VACANT Mike Rennie Builders ltd is seeking an experienced carpenter to join our team on a full time basis. Please ring 21375 to arrange interview. 77534 / /2371

WANTED TO BUy (Semi)/automatic bike. $500-$1000 Call/txt 70483.

77502 / /1873

GROUNDSMEN/PICKERS Cook Islands Noni Marketing requires two people to mow/ grass-cut/maintain and pick noni plantations. Must have agriculture background and mechanical skills to maintain equipment. Drivers licence/ own vehicle an advantage. Please send CV and references to: CINM, PO Box 104.

77541 /36900 /1931

WANTED Wanting to rent 2 bedroom house plus. Please call 56189,75451,22254. 77553 /36914 /1931

AuTiSM Cook islands PH 24065/55976

tiateura@oyster.net.ck

77516 / /2019

BIRThDAy

77241 /36842 /1933

cafe staf wanted. Ph 28465.

Fulltime Kitchen hand LBV Muri is looking to employ a hard working, reliable person to work 6 days per week. Shift work and lexible hours. Come to our stores (Avarua / Muri) to ill out an application form. Fulltime Baker Experience required, and on the job training ofered. This is a sole charge position with scratch baking. Shift work and lexible hours. Come to our stores (Avarua / Muri) to ill out an application form.

Assistant Sales person needed at The Dive Shop. Female at least 25yrs old, honest and reliable, customer friendly, must know how to sell surf clothing, indent ordering, Please send CV to PO Box 418. Applications closes 17 March 2014. 77377 /36883 /1999

Live in Nanny required to look after 3 adorable babies, please email kavera@oyster.net.ck with your CV and references. 77389 /36652 /1931

LABOURER/PLANTING/ CLEANER Job involves digging, planting, cleaning. Must be reliable, lexible and hardworking. Call me, phone 55041. 77432 /36850 /1931

APPRECIATIONS

Mama

Ina Troy 12 October 1932 - 09 March 2014

Meitaki Maata to Dr Aung and the Medical Ward staff at Rarotonga Hospital for going above and beyond to take care of our Mama in her inal days, Charles at CI Funeral Services for your help and support, all the friends and family that visited Mama in hospital and assisted with funeral preparations.

77119 /36668 /2358

SITUATIONS VACANT

77542 /36901 /1931

Variety of Palm trees for sale, for landscapers @ afordable price, have to go. Contact no 20777 or mob 77876.

SITUATIONS VACANT

77322 /36616 /1982

77522 / /1741

ShIPPING NOTICES

TENDERS

Pigs for sale, $100-$200. Phone 50270 or 56870.

77549 /36910 /1931

77556 / /1972

Cook Islands Towage Ltd (Barge) Shipping Notice The barge will be loading next week Thursday 13 March and Friday 14 March for Atiu Mauke and Mitiaro. Receiving cargoes from Monday 10 March and onwards. For further information please contact oice on 27674. Meitaki Maata.

77523 / /1931

SITUATIONS VACANT

Due to an internal promotion we now have the position of Finance Oicer available in our professional oice. This role will suit an experienced person able to maintain general ledger to trial balance. Key responsibilities in receivables. Multi-currency and excel skills to advanced level an advantage. All applications must be sent by email with a cover letter and CV to ofshore@southpac.co.ck no later than 9am on Monday 17 March 2014.

Thank you to The Titikaveka CICC and Arorangi CICC for conducting the service and burial. Aere ra e taku Mama

AKAMAARAANGA

77524

PUBLIC NOTICES

TRADE MARK CAUTIONARY NOTICE IN COOK ISLANDS Southern Comfort Properties, Inc., a California corporation, of 4040 Civic Center Drive, Suite 528, San Rafael, California 94903, United States of America, does hereby provide notice that it claims proprietorship of the trade mark SOUThERN COMFORT in relation to: Alcoholic beverages; including distilled spirits Southern Comfort Properties, Inc. cautions that any use of the trade mark or any confusingly similar trade mark in relation to any of these goods, similar goods, or similar services, would be seen as infringement of their rights and that they will take such action deemed necessary to protect those rights. Southern Comfort Properties, Inc. can be contacted care of their address for service: AJ Park, Level 22, State Insurance Tower, 1 Willis Street, Wellington 6011, New Zealand. 77561

TRADE MARK CAUTIONARY NOTICE IN COOK ISLANDS Finlandia Vodka Worldwide Ltd., a Finland corporation, of Porkkalankatu 24, 00180 Helsinki, Finland, does hereby provide notice that it claims proprietorship of the trade mark FINLANDIA in relation to: Alcoholic beverages; including distilled spirits Finlandia Vodka Worldwide Ltd. cautions that any use of the trade mark or any confusingly similar trade mark in relation to any of these goods, similar goods, or similar services, would be seen as infringement of their rights and that they will take such action deemed necessary to protect those rights. Finlandia Vodka Worldwide Ltd. can be contacted care of their address for service: AJ Park, Level 22, State Insurance Tower, 1 Willis Street, Wellington 6011, New Zealand. 77558

Te akakite nei teia araara Anau ia e te Pirirau matangi, kua aaki te Torea i tana putaranga E vaine no Enua manu e toke enua no Arai te Tonga. E metua vaine no matou tei takoto kite kopu o te enua. i teia ra te akamaara nei matou i tona akaruke anga mai ia matou.

mama ina AriokaTautu

Tei moe i te mataiti 2012 i te ra 13 no te marama ko mati. na tana anau, te are mokopuna e nga ina. E te tumu e.. neke mai, e te tumu e… neke mai Kare au e neke atu e tumu oki au no te enua. ie koko!

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

Sevens squad prepares for Hong Kong, Glasgow TH e COOK Islan ds men’s rugby sevens team will take on Kenya in their first game at the Commonwealth Games to be held at the Ibrox stadium in scotland – home of the Rangers. The sixteen teams that will strive for the coveted gold medal are australia, Canada, Cook Islands, england, Kenya, Malaysia, new Zealand, nigeria, Papua new Guinea, samoa, scotland, south africa, sri lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda and Wales. Reigning champions new Zealand, who have won all four Commonwealth Gold medals to date, have been drawn in Pool a alongside Canada, nigeria and scotland. The Cook Islands have been drawn in Pool B along with south africa, Kenya as well as Trinidad and Tobago. a total of 45 games will be contested across two days of fierce competition at Ibrox stadium in a fast and furious contest which requires teamwork, skill and stamina as two teams with seven athletes on the pitch go toe to toe for glory in games which last just 14 minutes. “Glasgow will welcome most of the world’s best Rugby sevens nations to compete at the Games. The standard of competition will be world-class, the action is fast-paced and with all of the teams playing in each session of competition, it guarantees a feast of rugby action and a brilliant atmosphere all round,” said

Greg Warnecke, Head of sport at Glasgow 2014. after Kenya, the Cook’s will face Trinidad and Tobago before meeting south africa on day one of the tournament. Fellow Paciic Islands sevens team samoa is in pool C along with Wales, Papua new Guinea and Malaysia while pool d is made up of england, australia, sri lanka and Uganda. Before the Commonwealth Games campaign – the Cook Islands rugby sevens team are preparing for the upcoming Hong Kong sevens series at the end of March. a Cook Islands rugby sevens training squad has been selected from the wider 2014 Cook Islands national sevens squad of 29 players. The 16-man Cook Islands rugby sevens training squad includes – Teina savage (Rarotonga), Greg Mullany (Brisbane/ Mitiaro), simon Marcel (Pukekohe/Rarotonga), louis Makuare (Brisbane), Francis smith (Tasman/Rarotonga), Teu Paerau (aitutaki), Josh Petero (sydney/ aitutaki), Harry Berryman (sydney), Chay Raui (auckland/ Mitiaro), Reece Joyce (Bombay/ Rarotonga), sean Fletcher (Brisbane/Rarotonga), James Raea (auckland/Rarotonga), Junior Taia (Rotorua), Junior Kira (auckland/aitutaki), Harvard Ioane (auckland), Iro Teariki (auckland). Players not available include

Koiatu Koiatu, ashley drake, Junior napara and Reece Teinakore. The 16-man squad will as-

semble in auckland on March 20 for inal itness testing before the inal squad of 12 players are selected to travel to the Hong

Kong sevens. The Cook Islands sevens team will depart auckland on March 23 bound for Hong Kong.

The three-day I R B Hong Kong sevens Tournament will be played from March 28 to 30. - Matariki Wilson

Members of the Cook Islands rugby sevens squad in 2013 celebrating their 34-10 win against Mexico at the Hong Kong Sevens which the team is preparing for once again. 14031212

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Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

FLIGhT FROM ARRIVES ThuRSDAy mArCH 13 Nz748/749 AKL 12.30AM Nz46/745 AKL 4.10PM VT35/36 PPT 2.50PM FRIDAy mArCH 14 VA163/162 AKL 11.55PM Nz46/61 AKL 1.55PM

DEPARTS

AKL AKL PPT

1.30AM 5.25PM 3.50PM

AKL SYD

1.05AM 3.05PM

Air Rarotonga

International Flights

Flight Times | Voyage details RARO TO ARR ThuRSDAy mArCH 13 0800 AITUTAKI 0850

DEP

ARR

0910

RARO

1000

1030

AITUTAKI

1120

1140

RARO

1230

1530 1800 1100

AITUTAKI AITUTAKI ATIU

1620 1850 1145

1640 1910 1205

RARO RARO RARO

1730 2000 1250

DEP

TIARE MOANA 22 - ETD AUCK 22/03, ETA RARO 30/03, ETA AITUTAKI 1/4

Shipping OLOMANA 25 - ETD AUCK 01/04, ETA RARO 13/04, ETA AITUTAKI 15/04

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Weather Forecast to Midnight

Tides

Issued at 2pm at Rarotonga Situation: A trough of low pressure with associated cloud and rain remains slow moving over Southern Cooks. A moist northerly wind low prevails over Northern Cooks. Forecast to midnight for the Southern Cooks: Occasional rain, heavy at times and squally thunderstorms. Moderate northwest winds, turning southeast from later tomorrow. Moderate seas.Moderate southerly swells. Further outlook: Occasional rain, heavy at times and squally thunderstorms. For Rarotonga: Occasional rain, heavy at times and squally thunderstorms. Further outlook: Occasional rain, heavy at times and squally thunderstorms. For the Northern Cooks: A STRONG WIND WARNING REMAINS IN FORCE FOR NORTHERN COOKS WATERS. Over Waters: Northerly winds 20 to 25 knots. Rough seas. Over Land: Moderate to fresh northerly winds. Fine apart from brief showers. Further outlook: Brief showers.

humidity

by lee falk & sy barry

[ FRI

by dik browne

THE PHAnTOm

OLOMANA 24 - ETD AUCK 09/03, ETA RARO 20/03, ETA AITUTAKI 21/03

or call us at Cook Islands news

Su-Do-Ku hARD

Thu

ARR

Morning

76%

Night

77%

Morning

74%

Night

78%

Forecast thanks to Cook Islands Meteorological Service.

Rarotonga Thursday, March 13, 2014

Forecast Map 2pm Thursday

Thu High 7.39AM 0.77M 8.03PM 0.82M

Low

FRI

High 8.30AM 0.81M 8.54PM 0.85M

Low

1.24AM 0.46M 1.45PM

2m Se

0.47M

1.6m NW

2.21AM 0.44M 2.43PM 0.44M

28°

Sun, Moon & Arapo

sE 20kts New Moon Mar 30 8.45aM

First Quarter apr 6 10.31PM

Full Moon Mar 16 7.09aM

sunshine hours

Third Quarter Mar 23 3.46aM

ArApo - AkAoti tAmAteA thu 13 Tanu i te painapa, maniota Tautai te opunga marama. e tae ua atu ki te 13 o te po. Fish when the moon is Time to plant pineapple setting. and maniota right through to the 13th night (from akaoti amiama).

Thu Sun rise 6.41AM Sun Set 6.56PM

FRI

Moon rise 4.29PM Moon Set 4.12AM Sun rise

2m Se

TaUTaI (Fishing)

TaNu (Planting)

6.41AM

Sun Set 6.55PM

Moon rise 5.07PM Moon Set 5.02AM

Front Key:

Cold

Warm

Occluded

1.7m S

Swell direction and size

Stationary

Outer Islands Weather Outlook Thursday, March 13, 2014 Aitutaki

27° W 18kts

Mangaia

28° sE 20kts

Mitiaro

28° W 18kts

Atiu

Penrhyn

28° W 18kts

30° NE 12kts

Mauke

28° W 18kts

Thursday, March 13, 2014 cook Islands News

rugby 7s —pAGe 14

rugby 15s

tarekareka

sPORT

—pAGe 12

First record in 2014 for Beddoes Beddoes sets new national 800m record ahead of USA invitation alex BeddOes set a new Cook Islands national record in the 800 metres in a time of 1:53:71 on the north shore in new Zealand on Tuesday night. breaking his previous record of 1:54:10. This is his irst record in the 800 metre track race for 2014 and is all part of his build up to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow later this year. The new record now has him ranked as the number one junior in new Zealand for the 2014 season so far. Racing in the men’s open with new Zealand representatives Hamish Carson and Michael Whitehead the race went through the first 400 metres in 53 seconds before Beddoes kicked into gear with 300 metres to go and inished strongly to set the new national record.

The Cook Islands youngster is deinitely on track for the New Zealand nationals to be held in Wellington on March 29 and 30 as he looks for his irst New Zealand title. Beddoes admits the timing of the new Zealand nationals is not ideal as he targets his peak for June and July going into the Commonwealth Games, but explained it reinforces he is on track in his build up to the games. The youngster has also earned himself an invitation to join the new Zealand High Performance team to train in the Usa for three months with some of new Zealand’s top runners, including Olympic silver medallist nick Willis. “This is an opportunity of a lifetime, to have new Zealand’s

best runners to train with for three months and to race against the top 800 metre runners across the Usa will give me the best possible build up to the Commonwealth Games,” says Beddoes. Beddoes heads to California in april to race at stanford, Berkeley, Mount sac, and Oregon Universities, then heads into the Colorado Mountains at the Us Olympic Training Centre for altitude training for three weeks, before heading to Michigan University with nick Willis for three more weeks of racing. Cook Islands athletics has conirmed Beddoes will return to Rarotonga for the Oceania Champs on June 24, 25 and 26, to join fellow track and ield athletes Patricia Taea and Tereapii Tapoko to make up an impressive Cook Islands trio to take on new Zealand, australia and the rest of the Pacific for regional titles. - MW

The stats don’t lie! nO sURPRIse that in form cricket batter Jeff Viniconbe has a firm grip on the domestic league’s top run scorers list with a whopping 225 runs after two innings. second spot belongs to Pukapuka’s youngster ngametua Tariau with 77 runs at a strike at 286. Third and fourth spots are occupied by World xI players Glenn Miller (64) and Cameron Thorp (48) and aitutaki’s Morgan Upu locks in ifth spot with 48 runs. Punanga Kaveao beats out 32 male batters to take 12th spot and the highest of the females. aitutaki’s nga Taiti tops the tournament’s leading wicket takers list with nine scalps. Talented left armer denne Bourke (six wickets) is in second spot while another talented left armer Shane Munokoa (ive

wickets) is close behind in third. Kieran Thorp is in fourth spot while Pukapuka’s king of swing Wayken Punga makes an entry at number ive on the table (four wickets). Aitutaki dominates the ielding statistics with no less than three araura players featuring in the top ive. number one spot is jointly held by nga Taiti and shane Munokoa with three catches each. The tournament’s wicketkeepers occupy the remaining three spots with Glenn Miller in third, aitutaki’s Tairi Paulo fourth and World’s part time keeper Corey Fisher ifth. Women’s players daena Kataina and Benedicta Matapo hold down 12th and 13th spots respectively. d-league’s Most Valuable Player honour belongs to Jeff Viniconbe with 59.44 MVP

points, 18 clear of second placed nga Taiti. dene Bourke is in third (33.05) while Pukapukan youngsters ngametua Tariau (25.56) and Takatua Puiki (24.96) sit in fourth and fifth spot respectively. This saturday Pukapuka take on the Cook Islands women at 11am followed by Rarotonga against the World xI at 3pm, both matches are scheduled at the Turangi Cricket Oval. Points: 1st Place The World xI (8 Points, 2 wins from 2 matches, nRR +2.425), 2nd Place Rarotonga (4 Points, 1 win from 1, nRR +11.600), 3rd Place Pukapuka (4 Points, 1 win from 2, nRR +1.113), 4th Place aitutaki (4 Points, 1 win from 3, nRR +0.416) and 5th Place Cook Islands women (0 points, 0 wins from 2, nRR -13.140). - CIC/MW

Hori Miller and his World XI cricket team will take on rarotonga this Saturday at 3pm.

14030628

Local athlete alex Beddoes is on track with his preparations for the upcoming Commonwealth Games and just this week set a new national record in the 800m race. 14031201

Masters play the curtain raiser for Sharks and Eels THe TaKUVaIne Koura Vai played the araura masters in a rugby league game at arutanga Park last Friday. The visitors scored three tries before the hosts posted their irst try through a powerful attacking combination of brothers Paul and Junior Maoate and the gold-shorts player Kimiora

Mataiti. The spectators were on their feet cheering for Kimiora Mataiti when he busted the supposedly impregnable defensive “wall” of Bim Tou, sid Toa and Howie Tangimetua. In the end the slick operandi of Tony Macquarie, Tiri Toa and Bobby Hunter in the backline,

overwhelmed the home side. The “Man of the Match” award went to the crowd’s favourite local gold-shorts player Kimiora Mataiti. This Friday, the masters will play the curtain-raiser to the eels and sharks game at the swamp, kicking off at 4.20 pm. - Slow and Steady

League masters players are gearing up for the mini tournament to be hosted on rarotonga and aitutaki early next month. 12052132