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CSSI launches new training curriculum

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Press Release
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Australian High Commissioner His Excellency, Dr. Lachlan Strahan handed over the CSSI Capability Training Frame work Document to Hon. Minister of MPNSCS Anthony Veke

THE Correctional Service Solomon Islands (CSSI) yesterday launched a new training curriculum that will assist its Corrective Services Training Centre (CSTC) to effectively deliver foundation training for CSSI staff.

The document was jointly launched by the CSSI Commissioner Gabriel Manelusi, Minister for Police, National Security and Correctional Services Anthony Veke and the Australian High Commissioner, Dr Lachlan Strahan, at the CSSI headquarters in Honiara.

The new training curriculum will enhance learning and development opportunities in modern corrective practices for CSSI staff and new recruits.

It contains a variety of training programs, and focuses on various topics including security, case management, mental health, juveniles, and anti-racism.

The training manual was made possible through a collaboration between the Australian and Solomon Islands Governments and the CSSI.

 Speaking at the launch, Commissioner Gabriel Manelusi thanked the Ministry of Police, National Security and Correctional Services and the Australian High Commission for their continued support to CSSI and described the launch as a historical beginning for CSSI.

Hon. Minister of Police National Security and Correctional Service Anthony Veke handing over the CSSI Capability Training Frame work Document to CSSI Commissioner Gabriel Manelusi

“This is a historical beginning for CSSI in terms of capacity and capability development of CSSI staff,” Manelusi said.

“This is also in line with the DCGA Policy statement, which is to improve the standard of training delivered within CSSI.”

Delivering the keynote address, the. Minister of Police National Security & Correctional Services (MPNSCS) Anthony Veke said his ministry is mandated to improve resources and capacity within CSSI.

“The envisage out of this policy is to upgrade the curriculums of all agencies to enable them to be accredited to national education authorities and renown regional institutions as well as international institutions,” he added.

Australian High Commissioner Dr Lachlan Strahan reiterated the important role of the wider justice system.

“The wider justice system plays such an important role, not just in maintaining law and order, but in fact in underpinning society and the economy,” Strahan said.

“Without a strong justice system, an economy cannot function, and a society cannot live in harmony.

“We are very proud that Australia has played a role over a long period of time in supporting training and reinforcing the different arms of the justice sector, including ongoing support to CSSI, through technical, infrastructures and learning and development programs in partnership with the Queensland Corrective Services (QCS).

“Learning never stands still. We can always learn from the past and come up with better ways of doing things. I’m glad an Australian adviser, Angelique Deep, was able to play such an important role in developing the new curriculum even though she was working remotely.

“She proved that it’s still possible to get good work done in these challenging COVID-19 times.”

Refurbished Kukum clinic re-opens

Written by
Mavis Podokolo
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Center Deputy City Mayor Robert Oge and Dr Becha cuts the ribbon to mark the official reopening of Kukum Health centre while two of the invited guests looks on

BY MAVIS N PODOKOLO

HEALTH authorities yesterday re-opened the strategically-located Kukum clinic in east Honiara.

The clinic has been undergoing major refurbishment work since last year.

“The reopening of the clinic will ease the burden of over-crowdedness currently experienced at the National Referral Hospital (NRH),” deputy city mayor Robert Oge said.

Robert Oge Deputy Mayor to Honiara City Council delivering the key note address to mark the official opening of Kukum Clinic refurbishment

“Now that the clinic has reopened, we expect it to ease the burden experienced at the Outpatient of the NRH,” he added.

“Now our people will once more able to access the facility when they need it.”

Oge called on Honiara residents to go back to Kukum clinic and see the nurses and doctors there before they could be referred to the NRH.

“Our doctors and nurses will make the decision on whether you need to be referred to NRH for further treatment,” he said.

Antenatal room inside the newly refurbished Kukum health centre

Oge said the refurbishment work has gone behind schedule, but thanked the public for their patience.

“I empathize with the experiences you went through during the closure of Kukum clinic.

“May I kindly call for your cooperation in looking after this facility. Building new facility or renovation is no small task.

“It requires resources such as money to complete the job.”

Olivia Bale Nurse in charge for Kukum Health Center escorting guests to visit the newly reopened clinic

Oge also reminded nurses and doctors working at the clinic to faithfully serve the sick and use the facility for its intended purpose.

“Whilst we appreciate the re-opening of Kukum clinic, let me quickly remind us that health is everybody’s business.

“Please look after yourself. Avoid unhealthy behavior which makes you sick.”

Meanwhile, opening hours for the clinic is from 8am – 10pm on Mondays to Fridays and 8am – 4pm on weekends. This was the usual opening hours agreed upon previously.

Kukum Health Center health workers

Health Director for Honiara City Council Dr Chris Becha said this reopening of Kukum will pave the way to relook at the arrangement for the posting of medical officers.

“Kukum clinic is strategically located,” Becha said.

“It serves the population of Honiara well since its establishment,” he added.

“I therefore will discuss with all colleague doctors on how best to serve our people of Honiara.”

SDA SUPPORTS VACCINE

Written by
Mavis Podokolo
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BY MAVIS N PODOKOLO

The Seventh Day Adventist Church has thrown its full support behind the covid-19 vaccine.

In doing so, it has downplayed rumours that the Church does not allow covid-19 vaccination for its members.

This is according to the SDA Solomon Islands president Pastor Silent Tovosia.

Mr Tovosia confirmed this to Island Sun yesterday following claims circulating in Honiara, saying SDA members are not allowed to be jabbed.

“Absolutely not,” Tovosia said.

“We encourage all our members above 18 years to go for their vaccinations in full support of the Government’s programme,” he added.

“I deny these claims. They are completely false.”

Tovosia said they strongly advise all members (above 18) to cooperate with the church and Government and have their vaccinations done as soon as possible.

“It is the only way to help protect yourself, your family and your country,” he said.

Tovosia further stated the SDA church relies on the scientific evidence endorsed by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to encourage all members of the church and communities to have their vaccinations with the vaccines promoted by the Ministry of Health and Medical Services.

He said an official statement encouraging members to get vaccinated had been circulated to all SDA churches and pastors.

“As we cooperate with the Government, Ministry of Health, and the PM’s task force, let’s also pray that God will help to keep our country free from the COVID 19 as we continue with the Vaccination program.

“For your encouragement read Psalms 46:1-11.”

Tovosia’s proclamation isolates incidents in which some SDA pastors have reportedly advised their flocks to avoid getting the jab, claiming that the covid-19 vaccine is the ‘Mark of the Beast’ [a prophecy in the Biblical Book of Revelations which identifies followers of an evil authority which will rise in the end of times, leading to the persecution of faithful Christians. It is one of the most heavily preached beliefs of the SDA Church].

Vaccine critical to recovery: Seselja

Written by
Brian Lezutuni
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Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Senator Zed Seselja.

By Brian Lezutuni

Vaccine rollout in Solomon Islands and across the Pacific is critical to economic recovery.

And Australia is leading efforts to vaccinate countries in the region with its vaccine dose supply expected to reach one million by the end of next week.

Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Zed Seselja told Pacific Journalists this week that his government is committed to supply up to 15 million doses to the Pacific and Timor-Leste by mid-2022.

He emphasised that getting vaccines into people’s arms is vital to re-starting Pacific economies.

“Getting vaccines, getting populations vaccinated, of course, in the short term will be one of the best ways to …start economies up.”

Seslja acknowledged the debt crisis many Pacific nations are facing.

“The best way to see budgets coming back will be when we see activity coming back, that will happen when there are more vaccinations.

“That would mean that people are able to run their businesses and trade is able to be more easily facilitated and in time, travel in the region will come back. 

“And, of course, that is so important to so many economies in the Pacific.”

Continued economic reforms would also be important to making sure that economies recover strongly from the pandemic the Minister said.

So far, around 750,000 Australian doses of AstraZeneca vaccines have been delivered to the Pacific and Timor-Leste.

Seselja said that amount is expected reach the million mark by the end of next week.

“The health security of our neighbours is critical to Australia’s health security and vaccines are critical to the region’s recovery,” he adds.

The Solomon Islands government has recently announced that the option of opening up national borders will be discussed if up to 80 percent of the population is vaccinated.

To date, just under 30,000 people have been vaccinated in the country.

Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare on Monday said the target population for the nationwide vaccination strategy is 414,500, and these are citizens above the age of 18.

“If the whole 414,500 adults in our country are vaccinated, this constitutes about 64 percent of our population which would offer some level of protection to the other 36 percent of our population that cannot be vaccinated,” he said.

Prime Minister Sogavare said citizens that cannot be vaccinated rely on those that can be vaccinated for their protection and for their lives.

More apply for passports

Written by
Eddie Osifelo
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By EDDIE OSIFELO

DESPITE current travel restrictions due to COVID-19, the Immigration Division says it received an influx of applications for passports this year.

Normally, the peak months for the Immigration office were January and February when students apply for passports to travel overseas for study.

A senior officer in the department who asked not to be named said the high demand for passports came about because people want to travel to work in Australia under the Pacific Labour Scheme.

“In the first quarter (January to March), there were 1000 applications,” the officer said.

“In a day, we would receive up to 40 applications, which can increase to 60 on certain days,” he added.

The officer said it is a busy year for them as people continue to flood their office every day.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade aims to send more than 2,000 workers to work in Australia by end of this year.

Currently there are 533 workers in Australia and 291 in New Zealand.

Minister Jeremiah Manele told Parliament told Parliament early this year that beyond April to June, indicative numbers they have is around 632.

“This will bring the number to more than one thousand two hundred and forty-four workers (1244) by mid this year,” he said.

Manele said getting to 2000 workers by the end year is their goal and they see this as achievable given the growing number of workers entering the Australia market. 

He said the government is mindful of the decline in employment opportunities within the domestic market given the down turn of the economy.

“Seeking employment for our youths remains a priority of the government.”

However, Opposition Leader, Mathew Wale urges the Government to send more workers to Australia.

He said around 100,000 youths are unemployed in the country.

“Australia needs 26,000 farm workers, we have possibly 100,000 young people who are unemployed, and who could go right now to meet the needs in Australian farms.

“But the government is aiming to send only 2,000 by December 2021. What a ridiculous situation! It is clear that the government cannot manage the labour mobility scheme,” he said.

Wale said it must now urgently seek to outsource this important responsibility to a credible private sector operator.

“We must find where in Australia the farms are that need the 26,000 workers, and then do everything in our capacity to get them the workers urgently.”

According to DFAT, the Pacific Labour Scheme helps address workforce shortages in rural and regional Australia, while providing opportunities for Pacific and Timorese workers to gain experience, earn income and send remittances home to support their families and communities.

The Scheme commenced on 1 July 2018 following a successful pilot program in northern Australia and builds on the success of the Seasonal Worker Programme. Under the Scheme, Approved Employers are able to recruit workers from nine participating Pacific Island countries and Timor-Leste.

Australian businesses are currently employing workers from Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu in low and semi-skilled roles.

Australia’s labour mobility programs are among our most highly valued initiatives under Australia’s ‘step-up’ in the Pacific region, helping to support the economic prosperity of the ten participating countries. Labour mobility benefits Australia and sending countries, and will be even more important as Pacific economies recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Pacific Labour Scheme is demand driven and helps fill labour gaps in Australia’s towns and on our farms, by providing access to a reliable and productive workforce. This helps to boost economic activity and competitiveness in rural and regional Australia.

When labour market testing demonstrates that no suitable Australian workers are available, Approved Employers can access workers under the Scheme.

Australia Kava market could open this year

Written by
Brian Lezutuni
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By Brian Lezutuni

COMMERCIAL Kava exports into Australia could begin at the end of this year, according to Australia’s Minister for International Development and the Pacific, Senator Zed Seselja.

In 2019, the Prime Minister of Australia, Scott Morrison announced Australia would conduct a pilot programme for commercial importation of kava as part of its commitment to the Pacific under its Pacific Step-up.

Minister Seselja’s comments are the first official acknowledgement of a start date for the pilot since it failed to meet its promised 2020 deadline.

“It was delayed as a result of COVID, but we intend to progress it over the back-end of this year,” Minister Seselja told regional and local journalists this week.

Kava drinkers in Australia who are being forced to pay as much as SBD $2107 ($350 AUD) for a kilogram of impure kava from black market will be delighted.

With reduced international travel due to the COVID-19 pandemic, supplies usually provided by travelling friends and family have decreased dramatically creating a shortage which has pushed up prices.

The 2019 decision to double the amount of kava that could be imported for personal use from 2kg to 4kg has helped but there are still not enough travelling friends and family to resolve the kava drought.

Seselja said consultations about re-starting commercial imports via a pilot programme have been ongoing, the most recent being a Kava Forum in Canberra.

“We’re consulting with our Pacific Island communities… the Kava Forum that I went to in Canberra was part of that, to hear that, and I had my first opportunity to have kava and so that was, that was a wonderful thing to do.

“Apart from consultation with Pacific Island communities, the Australian Government is also talking with its indigenous community leaders and health authorities.

“To make sure that there aren’t any unintended consequences of reintroduction of commercial quantities of kava coming into the country.”

He said the kava ban imposed several years ago was put in place following concerns about it coming into remote indigenous communities.

“So, we’re working through that process, we are keen to see it progress, the Prime Minister is keen to see it progress,” he said.

Our voting attitude must change: Anisi

Written by
Brian Lezutuni
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Solomon Islands Election Commission (SIEC) Chief Executive Officer, Jasper Highwood Anisi.

 BY JARED KOLI

Solomon Islanders must change their voting attitudes and vote on party policy lines.

Political Party Commission Registrar Jasper Highwood Anisi said people should vote on party policy lines to see tangible development in the constituencies.

He said it has been a practice that Solomon Islanders vote for individual candidates based on how the candidate provides for them.

But people must understand that parliament members are elected into parliament to make laws to set a greater good for the country and its peoples.

“Once we change the voting attitude and vote for what we want to see, for example, tangible development in our constituency, then we will see the difference.

“But once we vote independent candidates who go in and later jump into any party, that is an issue,” Mr Anisi said.

However, he said a lot of people in country don’t vote on party lines because parties don’t go out to them and preach their visions and what they want to do once they form a government.

He said parties too need to work hard in order to build their membership platform so that people vote their policies.

“Once we start vote on policy lines, then you will start see a change in our voting attitude.”

He said the commission will amend their Subvention grant to only be paid to people who contest under apolitical parties.

“We will put in place an amendment that if you contest under a party, you will entitle for subvention grant,” he said.

Subvention grant is a grant under PPIA that Political Party Commission will pay to a political party once it has candidates contesting under its banner.  

Malaita Government to look into petition

Written by
Samie Waikori
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The protest last week in Auki

BY SAMIE WAIKORI

AUKI

Malaita provincial government will this week discuss the petition against its hardline stand against China, which the petitioners believe is denying the province of ‘much-needed development’.

Deputy premier [currently supervising premier] Randol Sifoni told this paper yesterday that the petition is one of their top agendas in the ongoing Executive meeting being held in Auki.

This petition was presented to the Malaita government early last week by protesters staging a peaceful demonstration.

The protestors who were from wards two, three and four of the West Kwara’ae constituency believed that the Malaita government’s hardline anti-China stand was seeing the province miss out on development opportunities, such as the recent failed Fiu Bridge Upgrade project proposal.

Sifoni said the current Malaita Alliance for Rural Advancement government is for the people of Malaita, and any matters of concern for the people will not go unheard.

The petition has nine points representing the protestors’ grievances.

Mother gets 7 months for unlawful wounding

Written by
Jennifer Kusapa
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BY JENNIFER KUSAPA

A mother of five has received a seven-month jail sentence for unlawful wounding.

She had had an initial 18-month sentence reduced for reconciliation with the victim and an early guilty plea.

Hana Mangale entered a guilty plea when the case was mentioned during the Yandina court circuit; but, since there was a weapon used during the commission of the offence, the case was transferred to Honiara for sentencing.

This incident occurred on January 15, 2021 at Hae village Russell Islands; the accused was not happy with the victim, who is her cousin sister, after her husband confessed to her that he had had an affair with the victim.

The accused approached the victim and hit her with a mangrove stick.

The court said the victim sustained injuries to her head and was brought to Yandina clinic and received three stitches.

Chite told the accused, “whilst the court understand the hurt and pain inside your heart after your husband admitted to you, that he had a relationship with your cousin sister, your actions by using a mangrove stick and hit the victim is illegal as there are ways to solve issues.

He said the court also does not condone or tolerate extra marital affair as it causes break-up in families.

Therefore, taking into account the circumstance or mitigation submitted to the court, the court imposed a total of 18 months, however considering the reconciliation and also her early guilty plea that saved court’s time and resource, the court deducted 11 months off the total sentence and the accused will now be serving seven months in jail.

Man gets five years for assault

Written by
Jennifer Kusapa
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BY JENNIFER KUSAPA

A man has received a jail sentence of five months after court found him guilty of one count of assault causing actual bodily harm.

Rockson Filiga was charged in relation to an incident at a village in Russell in which he punched another man over a Bluetooth speaker on May 10, 2021.

The court heard that the victim returned from his garden and found his Bluetooth speaker missing; he then told his nephew to look for it.

The nephew went to the seaside and saw the accused drunk with the speaker; the victim told his nephew to go and bring back the speaker.

After the nephew had brought the speaker back, the accused came to the victim’s kitchen, and saw the victim. He then punched him.

The victim sustained injuries to his left eye and his lower lips.

Principal Magistrate Leonard Chite said such offences are not accepted by the law of this country, and the maximum penalty is five years imprisonment.

Chite also said since such offences are not tolerated in the communities, law makers make laws to protect the citizens of this country and put tough penalties, but each case depends on its nature of offending.

He told Filiga yesterday that people in the communities do not deserve to be treated unfairly or being assaulted by somebody.

“Everyone should be treated with respect and not to allow anyone to just come and assault them, unless you are inside a boxing ring or wrestling before you punch anybody out of your own will,” Chite said.

Chite told Filiga to refrain from his ‘bully type’ attitude after he served his sentence and be a good citizen of the country.

 “You are a young man and have lot to learn and explore in life, and you must aware that fighting, taking alcohol and bullying does not do you any good,” Chite reminded Filiga.

Police Prosecution Service appears for prosecution

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