Most have since been released.

In the wake of the arrests, New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully, not for the first time, was pressed about the rights situation in West Papua.

"The government is concerned about these matters," he told parliament, "and the government wants to see an improvement in the situation in that part of the world."

"The government does not believe that megaphone diplomacy will serve that objective."

Politicians in Australia have frequently claimed that the economic and social plight of the indigenous people of Indonesia's West Papua region was improving.

But a new report called 'We will Lose Everything', based on a fact finding mission the Catholic Justice and Peace Commission in Brisbane, concludes otherwise.

It's traditional for West Papuans to demonstrate around May the 1st.

This date is the anniversary of transfer of administration in the former Dutch New Guinea to Indonesia in 1963, a process in which Papuans were not consulted.

But this year they were also demonstrating their support for the United Liberation Movement for West Papua's bid to be a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group, as well as the International Parliamentarians for West Papua.

The IPWP, a network of politicians from around the world who support self-determination for West Papua and are concerned about ongoing human rights abuses against Papuans, held a summit in London last week.

Attended by MPs from the wider Pacific, Europe and Britain, as well as Liberation Movement leaders such as Benny Wenda, the summit resulted in a declaration calling for an internationally-supervised vote on independence in West Papua.

Source

• radionz.co.nz
• Image: radionz.co.nz

New Zealand had been giving Nauru $1.2 million a year, paid out quarterly.

Mr McCully said several incidents had caused him concern, including the removal of senior members of the judiciary. Continue reading

New Zealand provides 600-thousand US dollars a year to fund Nauru's justice system.

New Zealand's Foreign Minister, Murray McCully, says he's deeply concerned about recent developments but doesn't want to put Nauru's judicial system under any further pressure by pulling aid.

"If we were simply to depart the scene, then that leaves the Australians carrying effectively all of the burden and also means we put under further pressure the judicial systems we're already concerned about."

"So our starting point is always to find a way of dealing with the issues and finding a way forward rather than pulling the plug on what is not a big development initiative," said McCully.

But former Chief Justice Geoffrey Eames, who resigned after not being allowed to return to Nauru from his Australian base, says that's a weak response.

"It should not be supporting it, it should be saying 'this is an absolutely appalling abuse of power.' I think the minister has got to make himself so plain to the present government that they accept that a change must occur and unless something is done, well, New Zealand is propping up a system that is simply unjust."

Three opposition MPs have been arrested and charged, while other MPs have had their passports suspended following protests at parliament last week, which the government has dubbed a riot.

The government has also controversially banned Facebook and passed laws to curb protests and public assembly.

Source

• radionz.co.nz
• radionz.co.nz

• FijiVillage.com
• Stuff.co.nz
• ABC News
• Image: BobCarr.blogs

There have been numerous reports from West Papua about the voilent behaviour of the Indonesian military and police.

At the time of Wenda's visit McCully also advised two National MPs against hosting the independence leader after they had proposed co-sponsoring the West Papuan in a public forum at Parliament Buildings.

He said New Zealand had a constructive relationship with Indonesia, and Government MPs hosting a member of the independence movement was not a "good fit" with this relationship.

Mr Wenda met Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFAT) officials instead.

A recent media release from the Leadership Working Forum of Papuan Churches about the state of violence in West Papua lists 8 violent incidents that have occurred in the last 5 year.

Father Saul Wanimbo, the Director of the Commission for Justice and Peace (SKP) in Timika diocese, said that during police sweeps, local people are being forced to hand over their mobile phones. They analyse the memory cards on the mobile phones to find songs in Papuan language, and if the memory card is found to contain either one or many Papuan folk songs, police will smash the memory card with stones, according to Fr Wanimbo.

Wanimbo told Jubi, citing his own experiences and stories directly from Enaro residents from 1-20 Febrruary 2013. Wanimbo said that Paniai people have been so demoralised that they just accept the oppressive actions of the occupation forces.

Source

• West Papua Media Alerts
• New Zealand Herald
• Image: New Zealand Herald

This announcement was made following a meeting in Sydney on Tuesday attended by New Zealand Foreign Minister Mr McCully, Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr and Fijian Foreign Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola.

The decision has met with a mixed reaction. "Oceania's greatest power - Australia - has finally bowed to the inevitable. That five and-a-half-years of trying to destroy the Bainimarama Government in Fiji has failed. That one of its island satellites has thumbed its nose at its big neighbour and determined its own course in the world," says blogger and freelance journalest Graham Davis, a longtime commentator on Fiji Affairs .

"For all its economic and political power, Australia could not bring Fiji to heel. It ended in Sydney on Monday not with a bang but a whimper, with Australia being dragged reluctantly to the table by little New Zealand under the distant but relieved gaze of their giant ally, the United States. How humiliating. How unnecessary."

But a Fiji union leader, Felix Anthony, says there's much disappointment in Fiji over New Zealand, Australia and Fiji's decision to restore full diplomatic links.

Anthony, who is National Secretary of the Fiji Trades Union Congress, says Canberra and Wellington are jumping the gun as the Fiji regime has yet to prove the constitution review preceding elections is truly democratic.

"The decision was a bit hasty, premature, simply because we haven't seen anything concrete on the ground as yet in terms of improvement to human rights, trade union rights in this country and also there have been some serious concerns that have been raised by almost every organisation in this country which are concerned to see a return to democracy."

Last Friday Akuila Yabaki and his Citizens Constitutional Forum, appeared in the High Court in Suva charged with contempt of court. The charge relates to an article in Tutaka, CCF's quarterly newsletter which argued there was no rule of law in Fiji. They were remanded till October 5

On Tuesday the Suva High Court found the deposed prime minister, Laisenia Qarase, guilty of six charges of abuse of office, and three charges relating to discharge of duty as a public servant, for property in which he had a private interest. He is to be sentenced on Friday.

Source

• Stuff.co.nz
• Grubsheet
• Radio New Zealand International
• The Conversation
• Radio New Zealand International
• Image: Dawn.com/AFP

Mr McCully today thanked the Fiji administration for its agreement to the MCG visit.

"This visit will enable the MCG to resume direct dialogue with Fiji after a significant interval," Mr McCully said.

"New Zealand as Forum Chair has placed high importance on the maintenance of dialogue and engagement with Fiji.

Continue read

Commodore Bainimarama, who seized power in a 2006 coup, said the new constitution would enshrine principles of one-person-one-vote, an independent judiciary and transparent governance.

According to a media report, Mr McCully said Wellington saw the consultation as a step in the right direction for Fiji, and it was keeping an open mind about post-coup sanctions.

"We've never ruled out looking at the sanctions," he said.

New Zealand Foreign Minister, Murray McCully, has already broken ranks and begun to engage with Fiji. While New Zealand has maintained its travel sanctions on members of Frank Bainimarama's regime, McCully has, in a personal capacity, resumed direct contact with Fiji's foreign minister, Ratu Inoke Kubuabola.

Some thought that there may now be some softening on Australia's part as well. It was suggested that such a change in policy towards Fiji may have been announced after the newly appointed Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr and McCully met in Auckland last week. However after the meeting Carr said it was premature to flag any change in policy towards Fiji and he was seeking more information about the situation there.

"All I can say at this stage is that I am talking to colleagues about Fiji but at this stage, the statement from the Fiji government is something we will look at, it's interesting, but we wouldn't go beyond that at this time."

In his blog GrubSheet, Fiji Watcher Graham Davis, who was predicting a change in policy, say he thought that Carr has had to deal with a backlash to any suggestion of a change in policy towards Fiji on the part of the regime's critics in Australia, especially the trade unions.

"It's now clear that the ACTU has both the will and the power to maintain Australia's hard line stance on Fiji. Never mind the decision by the United States to re-engage with Fiji."

Source

• Croz Walsh's Blog
• GrubSheet
• Radio New Zealand International
• Image: Sky Australia

The Foreign Minsister, Murray McCully, has been criticised by aid agencies and opposition parties with claims of "unacceptable delays" in providing the money. McCully issued a statement on Friday afternoon saying that money has been allocated to four non-government organisations following a due diligence process.

Mr McCully promised $2 million six weeks ago for Somalia and neighbouring countries in the Horn of Africa. There is no word on the other $1 million.

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand has pledged NZ$50,000 towards the food and refugee crisis unfolding in the Horn of Africa, and is accepting donations from the public.

'We are working through partners on the ground in Kenya and Tanzania, and through other agencies from the international Caritas network,' says Director Michael Smith.

'This crisis represents a huge challenge for aid agencies and the international community,' he said. 'More than 10 million people in the Horn of Africa require emergency assistance due to prolonged drought conditions.'

Donations to Caritas can be made by phoning 0800 22 10 22 or donating online at www.caritas.org.nz.

Source

• Radio New Zealand
• Image: Vimeo.com

• Vidya Lakhan president of the Fiji Association of Sports and National Olympic Committee (FASNOC), said the ban amounted to political interference in team selection and should be unacceptable to the International Rugby Board (IRB). "If Fiji cannot send its best team to take part in the World Cup then we should consider boycotting the World Cup," Lakhan said in a Press Conference on Tuesday.
• Fiji Rugby Union CEO Keni Dakuidreketi has dismissed talk of a boycott saying the Olympic committee had not consulted with them. "We were annoyed with that sort of unsolicited statement coming from an organisation that has nothing to do with our World Cup preparation," he told Radio New Zealand International.
• Former FRU chairman Bill Gavoka says a boycott could backfire with Fiji sidelined like South Africa was in the apartheid era. "The idea of boycotting the world cup is quite silly," he told the Fiji Times, adding it would "only invite derision and get us nowhere".
• IRB chief executive Mike Miller holds out hope that some diplomacy will see the issue resolved before September. ‘If people can talk quietly behind the scenes then often things which some people think can't be resolved, can be resolved.' Miller said. ‘But talking about it in public really doesn't help. ‘I am confident that Fiji will come to Rugby World Cup, I am confident that all the matches will take place in New Zealand, and I am confident that Fiji will acquit themselves very well. They've been playing very well and they will have a very good team in New Zealand.'

Source

The Catholic aid and development agency, Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand released its Annual Report this week. Director Mike Smith said it was extremely gratifying to have strong donor support during a recession, and in a year where government funding changes meant Caritas' income from government sources fell from $2.6 million (in 2009) to $350,000. This was partly because of an economic development focus in the new government funding framework, and partly because of delays in implementation.

'Public support was especially evident in the response to appeals for the Haiti earthquake and Pakistan floods,' said Mr Smith. 'However, unspecified donations and bequests - available for use across all Caritas' activity - were also up by 24 percent from the previous year.

'In 2010, Caritas was able to support 34 development programmes across the Pacific, Asia, Africa, and Latin America, and responded to 17 emergencies across the globe. Locally, we helped establish and support the Alternative Welfare Working Group; while our education programme produced the excellent video Without Rain - looking at climate change through the eyes of our Nepal partners, and promoting action on the issue.

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