Oceania
Pacific mega-storms portend climate disaster
The Doha climate conference failed to do more than extend the Kyoto Protocol, even as the Philippines were devastated by a mega-storm that left 1,000 dead.
Tag: Oceania
Oceania
US, New Zealand restore military cooperation
Leon Panetta in Auckland announced that US naval cooperation with New Zealand will be resumedâcut off in 1985, when the Pacific nation declared itself a nuclear-free zone.
Oceania
Australia: Aboriginal protesters occupy Canberra
This Australia Dayâmarking the 1788 establishment of the New South Wales colony, derided by Aborigines as “Invasion Day”âsaw the establishment of a “Tent Embassy” encampment outside the Old Parliament House in Canberra.
Oceania
Ninth Circuit allows Papua New Guineans to sue mining company for genocide
A US appeals court approved a lawsuit by Papua New Guinea citizens against mining giant Rio Tinto on claims of genocide and war crimes. The suit charges the company directed a war of extermination against indigenous people on Bougainville Island.
Oceania
Oil from stricken ship fouls New Zealand beach
Oil from a tanker ship stuck on a reef has started to wash up at New Zealand’s popular Mount Maunganui beach. In a race to avert disaster, salvage teams are pumping oil from the leaking ship, ahead of forecast gale-force winds and swells.
Oceania
Easter Island: Chilean forces suppress indigenous protests
Chilean police evicted indigenous Rapa Nui protesters who had occupied the central plaza and a luxury hotel in Hanga Roa, capital of Easter Island, over the new year.
Oceania
Chilean troops flown in to suppress Easter Island protests
More Chilean troops are being flown to Rapanui (Easter Island) to augment the already in-place armed forces set to remove indigenous Rapanui people from their ancestral lands.
Oceania
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Taiwan's Council of Indigenous Peoples signed an agreement with the Pacific Island state of the Marshall Islands aimed at increasing bilateral exchanges to promote Austronesian culture. The agreement seeks to promote cooperation between Taiwan's indigenous communities and the linguistically related people of the Marshall Islands, particularly in the fields of language and preservation of traditional wisdom. The agreement, signed last month, coincides with the opening of the UN International Year of Indigenous Languages, which acknowledges to the critical state of many indigenous tongues, and seeks to promote their protection and use, both at national and international levels. (Photo of Bunum people via Mata Taiwan)
Oceania
Protests in Guam, Okinawa over US troop transfers
Guam residents protested against plans to relocate US Marines to the island from Okinawa, as Okinawans continue to press for removing the troops from their own island.
Oceania
Indian Ocean “boat people” crisis sheds light on “Australia’s Gitmo”
An Australian detainment camp for asylum seekers on remote Christmas Island is being protested as the “new GuantĂĄnamo Bay.” A group of Sri Lankan “boat people” are now en route to the camp.
Oceania
New Zealand compensates Maori tribes for land seizures
The government of New Zealand agreed to pay $140 million in compensation to eight Maori tribes for illegal land seizures and breaches of the 1840 Treaty of Waitangi.
Oceania
Convictions in Australia terror case; Iraq war seen as motive
Australia claimed a blow against a home-grown terrorist cell, with the sentencing of six Muslim men who reportedly were planning attacks in response to Australia’s military involvement in Iraq.