Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — A 93-year-old Italian Navy ship nicknamed “The Most Beautiful Ship In the World” was spotted sailing in waters off Maui Monday afternoon.
The boat is called the “Amerigo Vespucci.”
The Amerigo Vespucci is set to arrive at Honolulu harbor on Thursday as part of a world tour that will stop in 36 ports in 32 different countries.
It was named after the explorer who in the 1500s realized Brazil was part of a separate continent, and then a map maker named the continent America in his honor.
The vessel is more than 300 feet long and has three masts all over 140 feet tall.
Residents have a chance to board and explore the ship for free from Thursday to Sunday before it leaves for Tokyo.
(Hawaii News Now)
GUNMAN CAPTURED BY POLICE
The man who allegedly shot and killed an on-duty officer and murdered another man in two separate incidents in Samoa this week has been captured by the police Tuesday afternoon.
The suspect has been identified as Pokati Tuu, 58-year-old man from Fasitoo-uta. He has previous convictions of possession of narcotics in the 1990s the most recent offence was of theft in 2023.
Police Commissioner Auapaau Logoitino Filipo confirmed police captured the suspect Tuesday afternoon (Samoa time) but did not provide further details on how the operation was carried out.
More than 20 police vehicles with about 50 officers were in Fasitoo-uta in a manhunt to capture the double murder suspect who has been at large since Sunday.
The deceased is Detective Sergeant Peniamina Perite and another man of Nofoalii.
Police Commissioner Auapaau expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased and paid tribute to the invaluable contribution of Detective Perite.
(Samoa Observer)
BUILDING PARTNERSHIPS IN SAMOA
The crew of HMAS Choules lent a helping hand to Samoans via community activities aimed at strengthening partnerships during the ship’s visit to the country.
At the Tuana’i Seventh Day Adventist Church, located half an hour’s drive west of Samoa’s capital Apia, crew members helped build greenhouses for the village to grow vegetables.
The greenhouses will protect crops from pests, including chickens and insects, enabling people in the village to enjoy more fresh produce.
Church member Jasmine Joerimann said the greenhouses will be a significant boost to the local community.
“The locals already know how to work the land; this will give them extra tools for what they’re already doing,” Ms Joerimann said.
“The greenhouses will give the families access to nutritious food, or they can sell the vegetables for extra income.”
Over at Vailele, a town to the east of Apia, another team from Choules rolled up their sleeves to repair the local community center.
They patched damaged ceiling, fixed broken flyscreens, cleaned the children’s playground area and built garden beds for local families.
Navy Chaplain Simote Finau said it was rewarding to help mend the hall, which serves as an important community location.
“It’s a place for people to come together to share a meal; for school, sports, choirs and other meetings,” Chaplain Finau said.
“The ship’s company experienced the generosity and hospitality of the Samoan community of Vailele who provided us with lunch.”
(Samoa Observer)
FAIRER AND MORE SUSTAINABLE FISHING
Pacific Island nations are taking steps to combat labor abuses while promoting sustainability in their efforts to ensure a safer and fairer fishing industry.
The Pacific Islands Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA) recently held a workshop in Fiji, gathering government officials and industry leaders to address critical labor issues in the fishing industry.
This initiative comes at a time when New Zealand has committed nearly $50 million to support sustainable Pacific fisheries development over the next four years, announced by Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Oceans and Fisheries Minister Shane Jones.
The Fiji forum highlighted the urgent need to address labor abuses in the fishing sector, such as long hours, low pay, and dangerous working conditions.
The FFA's governing body, the Forum Fisheries Committee (FFC), has prioritized raising work standards in Pacific fisheries.
FFA director-general Dr Manu Tupou-Roosen said emphasized the importance of "collective action".
"As custodians of the vast Pacific Ocean, we may differ in resources, but our collective action can and will make a significant difference in improving working conditions across the fisheries sector.
"This priority was underscored by the FFC during the officials meeting earlier this year, and will be part of the agenda at the FFC Ministerial Meeting later this month."
The FFA has been working with international organizations, such as the International Labor Organization (ILO), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), to combat labor rights violations.
(RNZ Pacific)
FOREIGN AFFAIRS STAND OFF
Earlier this year, Tonga's King Tupou VI let it be known he was unhappy with the government appointing the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
As a result, the then-minister, Fekita 'Utoikamanu, stepped away from the post in April, but a replacement is yet to be named.
Meanwhile, the ministry is also without a chief executive with the appointment of Paula Ma'u suspended while the outgoing CEO, Viliami Malolo, seeks a judicial ruling on his removal.
RNZ Pacific's Tonga correspondent, Kalafi Moala, said this leaves a political impasse, with the matter apparently not sorted at all.
"Firstly, there is a court case in which the royally appointed secretary to Foreign Affairs is suing the government and suing the Public Service Commission, as well as the secretary to government, for trying to get rid of him I don't know what."
Moala said nobody knows who is responsible for Foreign Affairs.
This is critical as the Pacific Island Forum Leaders Meeting in Tonga next month, and Foreign Affairs would normally have a key role.
"It is actually the Prime Minister's Office that is going to make some very key decisions on Foreign Affairs once the Pacific Island Forum is on," Moala said.
He said the King's belief is that "traditionally, and even constitutionally, [he is] been authorised to be the only one that can sign treaties.
"In other words, if Tonga has a treaty with any foreign nation, there has to be royal approval and the royal signature into it, not only stated in the constitution, but that's how things have been run in Tonga."
Moala said the advice he has received is that it would not be sorted out until the matter is brought to Parliament with a solution driven by members of the nobility.
"But it is very complex, and I cannot say it is going to be an easy road, but it needs to be sorted out sooner or later."
(RNZ Pacific)
MAN OVERBOARD FROM FERRY
A Cook Islands Police spokesperson says police are unable to release information on how a 22-year-old Fijian man went overboard on an inter -island ferry.
The man was a crew member of Lady Moana was traveling to Rarotonga from Mangaia.
The police patrol boat which was on the water for nine hours on Monday, returned to the area again today to resume searching.
Trevor Pitt said because the search is now into its second day there is little hope of finding him alive.
"Since we're into the second day of searching there's very little hope of finding him but we're probably looking at the recovery of the man."
He said police could not release any information regarding the actual incident itself.
"But the police investigators are continuing to look into the persons behavior on board his movements and the circumstances surrounding that incident."
(RNZ Pacific)
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