PICL standing committee meets
HONOLULU (PIDP/CPIS) — To prepare for the start of the Sixth Pacific Islands Conference of Leaders (PICL) summit Tuesday, former Fiji President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara convened a brief meeting Monday of the PICL Standing Committee at Honolulu’s Ala Moana Hotel.
The committee of presidents, prime minister and other island leaders quickly, and without dissent, approved the agenda for the two-day meeting January 30-31 that will address the topic, “In An Era of Globalization: How Do We Call For and Share With Others?”
Cook Islands Prime Minister Dr. Terepai Maoate said the theme is especially relevant to the region’s changing circumstances.
During the brief late afternoon session, East-West Center President Dr. Charles Morrison formally welcomed the leaders to Hawai’i, wishing them an “enormous aloha.”
The Center’s Pacific Islands Development Program, under Director Dr. Sitiveni Halapua, serves as PICL’s secretariat and research arm.
Morrison said PIDP is “one of our highest priorities” and is a “highly successful program.”
During a discussion of PIDP’s research priorities, Ratu Mara said, “I would like to sound the alarm about our marine resources,” and encouraged more research to assure their preservation.
The leaders and officials from 22 Pacific island countries and territories will meet tonight for a welcoming session hosted by former Hawai’i Governor George Ariyoshi, currently Chairman of the East-West Center. (Al Hulsen)
