Islanders earn money through seaweed farming

Source: The National, Wednesday 19th September 2012 THEY may be losing their land but they still have the sea. That is what the Carterets Islanders in the Autonomous Region of Bougainville are making use of and are earning money through seaweed farming. The concept was introduced seven months ago from the Solomon Islands following a visit by a delegation from the Atolls. Solomon Islands national fisheries seaweed consultant Lamora Vara said the leaders took interest and decided to introduce it to the Atolls with Carterets as the first to pilot the project. Vara said so far, more than 500 people had taken part in the project, farming their own seaweed seedlings. He said it took six weeks for the seaweed to reach maturity and four days to dry in the sun before it was packed and sold. Vara, who has more than 10 years experience in processing seaweed, said the seedlings were brought in from the Solomon Islands. He said seaweed farming was introduced to the Solomon Islands in the 1980s but died out and was revived in 2000. He said the Carteret Islanders would sell their first harvest in two weeks to buyers from Asia and Europe. He said in the Solomon Islands a kilogramme of seaweed usually sold for Solomon $5 (K15). Cosmas Babes from Han, one of the six islands of Carterets, said the island was facing food shortages with salt water invading the land. He said that had affected the soil quality, making the land too salty for them to grow crops like the swamp taro, which was their staple. He said the relief supply was not enough to sustain them and he was pleased this would help them in income generation. Babes’ wife, Elizabeth Kiria, said the seaweed project would help her and other families make money to buy food.

PM pays tribute to founding leaders

Source: The National, Tuesday 18th September, 2012 By DULCIE OREKE PRIME Minister Peter O’Neill paid tribute to the “founding fathers and mothers of Papua New Guinea” at the 37th Independence Day anniversary celebrations in Port Moresby on Sunday. At the flag-raising ceremony on Independence Hill, O’Neill paid tribute to those who made the dream of building a nation for every citizen a reality. “Today, I also pay my special tribute and gratitude to our nation’s founding leaders for attaining Independence. “I say thank you on behalf of all citizens, young and old, to our nation’s founding prime minister, Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare, for his lengthy active and loyal political leadership service to our country,” O’Neill said. He also mentioned Sir Julius Chan of New Ireland, President John Momis of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, pioneer woman parliamentarian Dame Josephine Abaijah and statesman Sir John Kaputin who were among the leading figures of their time. “I pay tribute also to all our former prime ministers, governors-general, opposition leaders and many other leaders for their contributions in the evolution of our nation. “These great early leaders all did well for PNG, to unite our people and to lay the foundations of a vibrant democracy,” the prime minister said. “Papua New Guineans must reflect on where they came from 37 years ago to where they are today and where they are heading as a nation.” O’Neill said he was confident the nation would achieve greater prosperity for the people. Special congratulatory messages were also sent from the Prince of Wales, Prince Charles and US President Barack Obama.

Nape arrested

Source: The National, Tuesday 18th September, 2012 By ZACHERY PER THE Task Force Sweep has swiftly moved to arrest former speaker of parliament Jeffery Nape in Kundiawa, Chimbu, on the eve of the 37th Independence Day anniversary. Nape was alleged to have misused K5 million. A warrant of arrest issued by the Task Force Sweep was used to apprehend Nape as he was leaving the Kundiawa court house last Friday where he was attending a separate bribery charge of K30,000. Nape was alleged to have offered K30,000 to a fellow candidate in the Sinasina-Yongumugl seat during the elections to induce him to step aside. Reports said Kundiawa police acted on the advice of police investigators attached to the Task Force Sweep to arrest Nape. “The Sweep team executed the warrant through Goroka police who then briefed the job to Kundiawa police to effect arrest,” an officer said. He said the police have a duty to perform for the state. Therefore, they executed the warrant to make the arrest. Nape was taken from the Kundiawa court house to the police station where he was formally arrested before being escorted to Goroka to be flown to Port Moresby for questioning and detention. However, the afternoon Air Niugini flight to Goroka last Friday was cancelled. Nape and the police officers spent the night in Goroka and flew the next day to Port Moresby. Sinasina-Yongumugl district office further confirmed that the Sweep team was investigating the use of K5 million earmarked for the rehabilitation education sector infrastructure (Resi) programme for schools in Sinasina-Yongumugl. The investigation had led to the arrest of Nape.