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Family violence continues to be an issue in SI

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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BY JENNIFER KUSAPA

DEPUTY Police Commissioner Juanita Matanga says that family violence is continuing to be an issue in Solomon Islands.

She made the comment following an incident occurred on November 11 at the Coral Sea Casino where a 32-year-old man took the law into his own hands and drove a backhoe Heavy Plant Machine and went inside the Coral Sea.

She said there are avenues where the man can discuss his grievances to them rather committing such incident that at the end tarnish himself from his job which creates another problem himself.

“Should he consult counselors, churches and other organisations dealing with family violence issues there will be no problem for the man.”

Police urge men and women encountering such problem to always seek help, Ms Matanga said.

Matanga said investigation into the incident is ongoing and the accused have already appeared in court and remanded in custody for the offence he committed.

His case will appear again in court on November 27.

MEHRD expects exam papers from Malaita tomorrow

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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BY SAMIE WAIKORI

AUKI

MINISTRY of Education and Human Resource Development expects to receive the 2018 schools exam papers from Malaita province by tomorrow.

Malaita Chief Education Officer, Mr Andy Siarani said the papers will be shipped to Honiara today after final collection of papers as form six finish exams today.

He said at the moment exam papers from schools within central, northern and eastern regions of the province are now in Auki.

Siarani said except only for exam papers from southern region of the province where arrangement had been made to send them directly to Honiara.

He said the exam papers were for grade six, forms three, five and six.

Siarani said today will be the final collection of papers especially on schools with form six as they will sit their final papers today.

“That means after the final collection, all exam papers to assemble at Auki ready to be ship to Honiara evening today.

“This is the schedule and if delay of papers from other schools in the province my office will ensure all papers to receive by MEHRD before Tuesday next week,” he said.

On the same note, Siarani acknowledged education staffs for the hard work ensuring papers were distributed to schools in the province and collection of the papers.

He also thanked teaching staffs of all schools both primary and secondary in the province for their assistance and especially preparing their students for exam this year.

He sent wishes on behalf of his education staffs to students from all schools in the province who sit their exam this year a merry Christmas as they look forward for 2019.

PAC concludes hearing into Supplementary Appropriation Bill

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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By Gary Hatigeva

THE Parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has concluded all its hearings into the 2018 Supplementary Appropriation Bill 2017 and the 2016 Supplementary Appropriation Bill after two days of intense scrutiny.

The Supplementary Bill was seeking parliament’s approval for a total of $119,416,051 from the consolidated funds, to meet additional service costs of the government for the year ending December 31, 2018.

A total of nine government ministries made submissions under the Supplementary Appropriation Bill, most of which were for outstanding matters including government bills, arrears, land settlement payments, and purchase of machines and equipment.

Other matters include additional support to cater for entitlements through terminal grants for Members of Parliament, and medical expenses, so as other government administrative costs.

As scheduled, the following Government Ministries appeared before the Committee on Wednesday, November 13, includes the Ministry of Finance and Treasury, Office of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development, the National Parliament Office, the Ministry of Rural Development, and the of Infrastructure Development.

Yesterday, the following Ministries also made their appearances before the PAC, and they included the Lands, Housing and Survey, the Ministry of Health and Medical Services, the Ministry of Communication and Aviation, the Ministry of Environment, and the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs/ National Judiciary.

The Parliamentary PAC will now work on compiling its report on the SAB 2018 (2), but with expected high notation of recommendations to be made, and this is according to the Chairman of the Committee, who continuously highlighted this during the course of the hearing.

The Accounts Committee will also be setting focus on the main budget bill, the 2019 Appropriation Bill 2018.

Meanwhile, Parliament stands adjourned and is expected to resume on Tuesday, November 28, 2018, where the house is also expected to debate both financial bills.

Mataniko eastbound bridge officially opens

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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Vehicles and pedestrians using the new bridge.

BY LORETTA BRIGIDIA MANELE

Vehicles and pedestrians using the new bridge.

MATANIKO Eastbound Bridge has finally reached completion and officially opened yesterday.

Central Project Implementation Unit (CPIU) from the Ministry of Infrastructure Development (MID) with contractor, Kitano and World Kaihatsu Kogyo Co Ltd Joint Venture made the announcement in a public notice issued on November 12.

The general public as mentioned is advised to look after the bridge, use it with care and put safety first.

Previously a one lane bridge, this new two lane bridge will ease traffic congestion and allow vehicles to travel in both east and westward directions instead of having to queue on either end as one vehicle passes through before the next as experienced in the past.

Apart from being a facelift to Honiara, this new development will also benefit businesses in Chinatown and customers alike.

This bridge is the least of components completed in the Japanese funded SBD$200million Kukum Highway Upgrading Road Project which formally kicked off in 2016.

Other components that have already been completed under this project include; upgrade of the Kukum Highway from Honiara City Roundabout to the Ministry of Fisheries, countermeasure against traffic congestion around the Central Market, improvement of the Honiara City Council Roundabout and widening of the Mataniko 2-Lane Bridge.

Solomon Islands in 2018 DIVE travel awards

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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Dive-Travel-Awards

BY GEORGINA KEKEA

SOLOMON Islands made it into the Top 10 scuba diving destinations in the world.

At the 2018 DIVE Travel Awards, Solomon Islands is placed as the 5th top scuba diving destinations as voted by readers of dive magazine.

Claiming first position is Indonesia, followed by the Philippines, Egypt, Maldives and Solomon Islands claiming the 5th position.

The hotspots for scuba diving as highlighted in the awards are Guadalcanal, Marovo lagoon and Gizo.

The Second World War wrecks are named as excellent dive spots including the scattering of tiny island, reefs and seamounts around Gizo.

208 nominations were received and over 30,000 individuals had cast their votes over three categories. Dive Magazine reports that many people took an active part in the 2018 DIVE Travel Awards.

The process took six months and DIVE Magazine say it is really interesting to see the ebb flow as the votes take shape.

“Some people decided to make an early start of it and get their votes in first, others chose to leave it until the last few weeks to mount their campaigns,” DIVE Magazine say.

DIVE Magazine reported that the vote has changed significantly from last year.

“Where the Azores, Mexico, Bahamas and Thailand which placed third, fourth, sixth and eight respectively in last year’s destinations category didn’t make it through this year’s Top 10.

“Instead Australia, Palau, Galapagos and the Solomon Islands have rounded out the list of winners,” DIVE Magazine reported.

Indonesia had been in the lead in 2017 and this year reclaimed the top position as a scuba diving destination.

Neighbouring Melanesian country, PNG is in sixth position, while Australia is placed eight, Palau in ninth position and Fiji claiming the 10th position as top diving destination in the world.

A total of 71 destinations, 461 dive centers or resorts were nominated by DIVE’s readers. Only top 25 in each category were sent through for the final vote.

DIVE Magazine for the 2018 Travel Awards also thanked operators who took the time to circulate their nominations across their websites and social media channels and to the divers who signed up took a few minutes to cast their votes.

DIVE magazine is said to be the world’s leading scuba diving magazine.

‘Be more proactive in your roles’

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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BY LORETTA BRIGIDIA MANELE

DEVELOPMENT Services Exchange (DSE) chairman, Inia Barry calls on DSE and its members to be more proactive in their roles to ensure that they represent the views of their members.

He also stressed the need for them to strengthen their partnerships with the government and private sector in order to work together as a nation to support key targets and goals within the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as they align with the National Development Strategy (2016-35).

Barry went on to say that DSE’s financial year has been rewarding and challenging.

He added that although DSE has gone through some rough patches in past years, the current board and management are pushing efforts to not only better serve DSE members but to meet their mandate by strengthening their governance and prioritising their core mission.

Barry said for DSE to move forward, they must work together and support each other through innovative approaches with the goal to serve the people.

“In order for us to take DSE forward as an organisation, we need to work together and support each other through innovative approaches for the common good for our people,” he said.

DSE is the national NGO umbrella body in Solomon Islands established in 1984 to facilitate and coordinate development services for NGOs and their partners.

There are currently 65 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) who are members of DSE.

Asserting traditional rights – community conservation in SI

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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mangrove

BY ELLISON VAHI

FOR many years the Solomon Islands have had indigenous systems for administering and allocating land and sea resources.

Land above water and land that is covered by fresh-water of seawater are one and undivided although with some form of seaward limit, often the outer edge of the outermost coral reef.

There is a close interdependence among an individual, his or her background group, and the land and sea with which that group traditionally is associated.

Hence, many of the world’s indigenous peoples are facing severe difficulties in the face of economic development. In most affected countries, these groups exist as marginalized minorities. In the Pacific islands, however, where the majority of island societies now are politically independent, government is by members of the indigenous societies themselves.

Beach

This might lead to a conclusion that indigenous land and sea rights are safe and secure, but this is not necessarily the case as some landscape of agricultural villages are made up of settlements along the coastlines surrounded by what resembles a mixture of human-modified forests and Reserves on the land.

The marine environment is comprised of shallow lagoons and barrier islands farther offshore compared to other countries, which are relatively less modifications by humans.

Also, agricultural fields are not kept tidied on a permanent basis. After forest is changed into a crop field, the field turns back into forest again in time. Therefore, each forest is unique and made up of many diverse species. As each forest has different flora and fauna, the residents use each for a different purpose.

In relation, during the recent years, with the influence of the market economy, commercial logging has been carried out widely, and industrial forestation is being performed where such logging has been implemented. Also, at the sea, there is an increase in scale of marine product gathering for cash, which is seriously affecting the marine ecosystem. Thus, the continuity of such a trend could destroy the resident’s livelihood, triggering a decrease in the number and variety of species.

mangrove

In accordance, the Pacific Islands governments are not very profound on projects aimed at conservation of nature, partly because the government revenues depend largely on the utilization of natural resources such as timber and fishing. What is more, even if a government tries to take action on conservation, it is difficult to achieve a successful outcome because most of the territories consist of customary lands in which protected areas cannot be set up without the president’s approval.

Also, the residents in the Solomon Islands, whose livelihoods have been heavily reliant on farming and fishing, have no choice but to continue making a living out of natural resources. Even for the sake of conserving natural resources in the Solomon Islands, it is really impossible to persuade people to leave unmodified forests untouched or to make all the coral reefs protected. Even if such ideas were accepted, it is unlikely that the agreements would become permanent.

As for the resident’s lives and traditional culture, along with the variety of local species, it is important to stop large-scale changes such as deforestation and industrial forestation, and also to provide support for the use of Reserves and modified forests.

WHO donates diabetes machines to MHMS

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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Kirsten Frandsen WHO representative handed over haemoglobin A1c machines to Neimia Bainivalu US of the MHMS

BY MAVIS NISHIMURA PODOKOLO

WORLD Health Organisation (WHO) office in Solomon Islands has donated four haemoglobin A1c machines to the Ministry of Health and Medical Services (MHMS).

This provided equipment is to show WHO’s appreciation for the great work of the MHMS and to symbolise the importance of their partnership.

Kirsten Frandsen, WHO representative, said the machine will provide life-saving information to health workers so they can better treat and manage people with diabetes.

She said without that information it can be hard to develop the right treatment.

Kirsten adds, the equipment is important because it provides important clues to doctors and the nurses what type of medication to give diabetic patients, how much medication to get, and how advanced and serious the diabetes is.

Kirsten Frandsen WHO representative handed over haemoglobin A1c machines to Neimia Bainivalu US of the MHMS

Loggers urged to use roadworthy vehicles

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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BY JENNIFER KUSAPA

FOLLOWING the many deaths reported in the logging industry, police has called on loggers to use roadworthy vehicles.

Deputy Police Commissioner Juanita Matanga said that it is a concern, logging vehicles not being road-worthy and still on the run at the logging camps.

She said that loggers should check that all their vehicles are road-worthy and in good condition before they continue to use those vehicles.

Ms Matanga made the comment following the death of a man at a Logging Camp in Makira Ulawa province where a fatal accident occurred at the Tobani log pond in West Makira on November 12.

The man was in his 30s and was a loader machine operator.

According to report reaching police, the man was allegedly loading round logs when the machine accidently fell off the wharf.

It is alleged that the deceased died instantly after breaking his head and neck.

Police also confirmed that the diseased is from Guadalcanal province employed by the Earthmovers Logging Company.

Matanga also called on the relatives to remain calm and allow police investigation to continue on the issue.

Towards a better understanding of man-woman partnership – a theological perspective

Written by
Milton Ragaruma
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0

DEAR EDITOR, partnership according to Thesaurus English is companionship, relationship and alliance. For the purpose of my presentation, I will pick on the first two words; companionship or relationship. Companionship or relationship is the company of friends and the relationship that exists between them and that has been the very purpose, why God created Eve. God had already foreseen that Adam being by himself would experience extreme loneliness. From a human understanding, a person devoid of companionship or relationship is a person devoid of life.

Thus, man-woman relationship encompasses the recognition that partnership is God ordained. Thus, man would indeed be a hopeless little creature devoid of happiness, fellowship and intimacy without a woman by his side. The Biblical record in the creation story is quite explicit on this truth: ‘For it is not good for man to be alone’; how true that is.

Creations’ partnership came with this startling statement: Gen. 1:26-27 “Then God said `Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness ; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth’. There are two important truths revealed by God through this utterance.

Firstly, at creation, God pronounced the making of male and female as an act of partnership; “Let us”. This partnership is reflected in his ordaining of Adam and Eve to exercise dominion over the whole of creation. As they exercise their partnership role in the worlds’ most beautiful garden, they would experience close fellowship with God daily, as they go about looking after the garden. This fellowship with God was the very best any man had/could experience at any point in human history. However, because of disobedience this privilege was lost, as God would not associate his divine nature with our sinful nature.

Secondly, man (both male and female) is made in the image of God. This is the beauty and privilege of mans’ position in regards to creation. Thus, we need to affirm in our attitudes and actions that we believe man and woman are created in the image of God. Thus the life they, share equally shines and value before God. Saint Paul puts it beautifully in his letter to the Church in Philippi: Husbands love your wives and wives respect your husbands. The value and dignity of this relationship is clearly articulated through the very acts of love and respect.

However, throughout human history, culture and other social factors have led even Christians and believers of other faith to think and act in ways inconsistent with this basic truth of both man and woman being created in the image of God. We have no reason to think and do otherwise; because God is the creator and we are the created.

Partnership resonate well with Gods’ creative purpose, in living in community as well as in engagement in God’s mission and decision making at all levels of our society. This partnership is leadership and it is a god given gift, strengthened and empowered by his Holy Spirit. This basic truth – partnership must not be compromised by our greed for power or self ego. It must be maintained, throughout our spiritual commitment/journey to both God and man.

It is sad to say, that our greatest misery comes when we compromise and watered down his ordained ministry and subsequently, lost fellowship with God. Psalm 127:1 (NIV) `unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labour in vain.’ Without God, all else man tries to achieve will be void, however, tempting, convincing and colorful they may appeal to our eyes.

As Christians, we need to exemplify partnership in our homes (a domestic church). A home that builds on partnership will experience love and growth in their relationship, fellowship, trust and mutual respect. This is because decisions made are inclusive and consensus rather than one ruled by a one-man show.

So too, we need to exercise partnership at all levels of our National life. God has given us the freedom to think and move about doing things that will benefit all Solomon Island citizens and our creation (environment): and the worse we can do is to abuse that freedom.

The call for an equal man-woman partnership is a godly call. If it happens at home, it should also happen at both the local and national level. Sadly enough, opponents of this line of thinking have taken their stance quoting from isolated verses in the bible without presenting the bigger side of Gods’ very nature – Love.

Our religious influence is significant in deepening spirituality which nurtures life and promotes justice and right relationships as essential in socialization, community building, culture, norms and values.

As a Christian nation, we are being challenged to look beyond our traditional barriers and participate constructively in the struggles for justice, peace and right relationships between and among our people.

To conclude, we need to take heed of two basic truths. Firstly, Partnership was instituted at creation and involves the first couples on earth, Adam and Eve. And secondly, Love, is the very nature of God that keeps their companionship afresh. If our conscience is to be guided by this truth, then, the call for an equal participation by both men and women at all levels of our governance is Godly. Think and pray about that.

By A.M Junia Port Adam

Small Malaita

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