David Robie On NZ Media Reportage
"At long last, I thought, a factual article with opinions from people of differing views, leaving readers to form their own conclusions. My faith in the NZ media went up a notch, but it was not to last"
Fiji passport holders scrutinized at Nuku’alofa airport
By Online Editor
5:54 pm GMT+12, 17/05/2011, Tonga
As tension between Fiji and Tonga begins to emerge after a senior Fijian military officer fled to Tonga, Fiji passport holders arriving into the island kingdom now undergo thorough check at Fu’amotu International Airport.
PACNEWS Journalist Pita Ligaiula
"Yes I can confirm that our passport was checked by government officials in one room"[...]"Only Fiji passport holders were singled out and it’s an unusual situation never seen before"
Tongan authorities have beefed up security checks after Fiji’s Prime Minister and Military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama announced that former Third Infantry Regiment (3FIR) Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba Mara has been declared fugitive and is hiding in Tonga.
On Monday, all Fiji nationals arriving on the Pacific Sun flight FJ271 were scrutinised for their purpose of travel and were asked to supporting documents for their stay in Tonga.
“Yes I can confirm that our passport was checked by government officials in one room, after it was stamped by immigration officials upon arrival,” said PACNEWS Journalist Pita Ligaiula speaking from Nuku’alofa. “Our travel information card was photocopied and officials questioned us on the nature of our visits to the island kingdom. Only Fiji passport holders were singled out and it’s an unusual situation never seen before", he said.
No comments could be obtained from the Tongan government on the latest security measures on Fiji passport holders. The situation in the capital Nukualofa is normal as Commodore Bainimarama appeals to the Tongan Royal family to return the former military man to Fiji to answer charges of sedition.
SOURCE: PACNEWS
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Sevuloni Busa- Fiji Fisherman
"Fisherman Sevuloni Busa told FBC News he was out at sea with nine other villagers when they saw the Tongan navy patrol boat at Cape Washington in Kadavu. The fishermen say the captain of the Tongan ship spoke to them by radio claiming they were from the Vanuatu navy and were on their way to Vanuatu when they received a distress signal.
The local fishermen say they could see the ship number 203 on the side of the ship and Busa says he could make out the name."
Ratu Tevita remains "a man rescued at sea".
16 May 2011, 22:12
Nuku'alofa Tonga:
The Lauan chief, Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba Mara, is believed to be staying at Consular House on Vuna Road on the Nuku'alofa waterfront, as a guest of his kinsman, King George Tupou V while exchanges fly between the Fiji and Tonga governments.
Cmdr Bainimarama has declared Ratu Tevita a fugitive who jumped bail without surrendering his passport as ordered by a Fijian court on May 3, and who was also expected to appear in court in Suva on May 30 to face charges of sedition.
Ratu Tevita Mara's entrance into Tonga with the Tongan navy, raised the question if he had used his Fijian passport to enter the country. Today no one in the Immigration Division of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs knew anything about the legality of how he had entered the country, but a senior officer in immigration said he would check and come back with an answer. But when government closed for the day it was not clear whether or not Ratu Tevita Mara had been subjected to the usual Tongan immigration procedure.
The Chief Secretary and the Secretary to Cabinet Busby Kautoke said that Ratu Tevita Mara's status in Tonga remains to be "a man rescued at sea."
As of this afternoon, Busby said they had not received any request from Cmdr Bainimarama for the rescued man to be extradited back to Fiji.
Under Tonga's Extradition Act 1988 Fiji is one of the designated countries that an individual could be extradited back to, and the Act clearly sets out the procedure of how an individual could be extradited to a designated country.
An extradition process can be authorised only by the Tongan Prime Miniser, Lord Tu'ivakano, on a request made by the Prime Minister of Fiji or an official on the behalf of the government of Fiji.
Consular House
Meanwhile Ratu Tevita Mara is staying at the Consular House on Vuna Road on the Nuku'alofa waterfront, the residence of the British High Commissioner in Tonga and now a property of the king. It is frequently used as a guest house for visiting dignitaries and friends of the royal family.
Ratu Tevita, so far, is inaccessible, despite the fact that he stressed in his YouTube video that he wanted to come to Nuku'alofa so that he can speak freely and tell the truth about what is going on in Fiji.
The Fijian strongman, Prime Minister Commodore Bainimarama, has accused Tonga for an infringement of Fiji's Sovereignty when the Tongan Navy last week responded to a distress call and rescued Lieutenant Colonel Ratu Tevita Mara from sea and brought him to Nuku'alofa.
Fijian fishermen saw Tonga naval ship in Kadavu
Wednesday, May 18, 2011Local fishermen have told FBC News they saw the Tongan naval ship ‘Savea’ in waters just off Kadavu on the day the Tongan navy says it rescued former 3FIR Commander Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba Mara in waters south off Ono-i-Lau.
Local villagers working in nearby Nagigia Island Resort in Kadavu also say Mara was at the resort on Sunday the 8th of May.New Zealand maritime authorities and the Fiji navy also confirm they did not receive any distress signal although the distress frequency is internationally monitored by regional countries 24 hours.Fisherman Sevuloni Busa told FBC News he was out at sea with nine other villagers when they saw the Tongan navy patrol boat at Cape Washington in Kadavu.
The fishermen say the captain of the Tongan ship spoke to them by radio claiming they were from the Vanuatu navy and were on their way to Vanuatu when they received a distress signal.The local fishermen say they could see the ship number 203 on the side of the ship and Busa says he could make out the name.“I can recall, Havea or Savea was written on the side.”The fishermen told the captain they had not sent a distress signal and the ship moved on.
Busa told FBC News that an hour earlier they had seen the launch supposedly carrying Mara speed past them – and the fishermen identified it as the boat that was at Nagigia Resort.This was later verified by staff at the resort.
Busa’s story contradicts accounts by the Tongan navy of how they rescued Mara off Ono-i-Lau.Local fishermen says it is virtually unheard of to go fishing in Ono-i-Lau from Kadavu given the distance.Questions are also being raised as to how only the Tongan navy ship heard the distress call, and no other maritime authority in the region.
Croz Walsh reviews the recent remarks made by the fugitive in Tonga, Tevita Uluilakeba Mara.
Croz Walsh's Blog -- Fiji: The Way it Was, Is and Can Be: Ratu Tevita Changes Colours: No Applause for Coura...: The claims and demands become even more incredible. A chameleon would blush..."
"There are forces at work inside Fiji that we need to understand...certainly it's a sign that the grip on power by the Commodore is weakened somewhat." [...]
"Its just another sign that there are real tensions in the region and there are real tensions at play inside Fiji"
"Today we frankly recognise that democracy can be no more than aspiration, and have rule not so much by the people as by the cleverest people; not an arsitocracy of birth, not a plutocracy of wealth, but a true meritocracy of talent." Micheal Young 1915-2002
Tonga harbours fleeing Fijian army officer
Military tension in the Pacific is raising fears of a conflict between Fiji and Tonga.
Tonga's navy spirited-away a high ranking Fijian army officer charged with trying to overthrow Fiji's military leader Frank Bainimarama.
Lieutenant Colonel Tevita Mara, who has strong Tongan connections, is now under the kingdom's protection. Tonga's small navy is no match for its bigger Fijian military counterpart, but the kingdom's force not only rescued Mara, they are giving him sanctuary.
"When I was rescued by the Tongan navy, I asked to be brought to Nukualofa, where the sure protection of King George's government I shall be able to tell the truth without fear of retribution about the tragic oppression that stifles my beloved land," Mara said.
Mara is the son of late president Ratu Mara. Along with Pita Driti, a high ranking commander, Mara was charged a week ago with mutiny and accused of trying to overthrow the Bainimarama regime.
But he is now in the Tongan capital, Nukualofa, after being picked up by the Tongan navy south of Fiji's Lau islands.
Mara is under the protection of the Tongan royal family, who he is related to. Bainimarama has said he will institute extradition proceedings tomorrow to have Mara returned to Fiji and he has asked the police to investigate who helped him to escape Fiji.
In a press conference early this evening, Bainimarama said he takes "strong exception to the breaches of Fiji's sovereignty" and he is appealing to the Tongan royal family to "stop being in conspiracy with a self interested individual".
Bainimarama described Mara as of a "despicable nature". Malakai Kolomatangi from Canterbury University said the move is quite surprising given the fact there will be diplomatic and military ramifications.
"I think this needs to be settled and resolved quickly. We are perhaps looking at two major powers in terms of influence in the Pacific, going head-to-head," Kolomatangi said.
"Many observers have said in the past if you have standing armies doing nothing then you have a problem."
The diplomatic situation between Tonga and Fiji has recently been tense, with both laying claim to the Minerva Reef which lies between the two countries. And Mara's message against Fiji's regime, believed to have been filmed in Tonga, has been posted on YouTube.
"When this hateful dictatorship has been eradicated, all of us who once served it shall answer to the Fijian people," he says on the video.
ONE News Pacific correspondent Barabara Dreaver said this is "very much a developing situation with potentially serious implications for the region".
She said New Zealand foreign affairs official are keeping tabs on what is happening.
But Dreaver said the two countries are linked by blood ties and there is a feeling the issue will be sorted out on diplomatic terms.
