PACIFIC BRIEFS

Bougainville talks end in deadlock

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea—Bougainville leaders have called for international intervention after the latest round of negotiations with the Papua New Guinea government to expand political autonomy and hold a referendum on independence ended in a deadlock.

Representatives of the two parties were unable to resolve key differences and negotiations have been adjourned until next year.

Bougainville Peoples’ Congress President Joseph Kabui said, “We are bitterly disappointed that these negotiations have gone astray. They have been completely mishandled,” he said.

Bougainville rebels fought a decade-long secessionist war against government troops that ended in a cease-fire two years ago.

Vanimo on alert amid West Papua troubles

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea—The West Sepik province capital of Vanimo, on the West Papua border, is on full alert.

Residents said they fear the crackdown on the West Papua independence movement by Indonesian authorities could result in a major escalation of the conflict, with thousands of refugees crossing into Papua New Guinea.

Official reports from Vanimo also state that local youths are going across the border to help their Melanesian neighbors against the Indonesian army.

“They (West Papuans) have pulled down the Indonesian flag at the border post and have flown the Morning Star (the West Papuan independence flag),” local sources said.

“We are waiting for the Indonesian soldiers to come and tear it down. Things are very tense here in the province as a result of these activities,” a resident said.

Samoan taxi drivers criticize sex trade allegation

APIA, Samoa—The Samoa Taxi Association has called allegations that some taxi drivers have had sexual intercourse with underage schoolgirls unfair.

The allegations were made by the End Child Prostitution, Pornography And Trafficking Organization, which called for a closer working relationship with taxi drivers to combat the illegal sex trade in Samoa.

A taxi spokesman said that although his association supported ECPAT’s mission, the organization’s allegations have shed a misleading light on taxi drivers.

Solomons eyeing defense force

HONIARA, Solomon Islands—The government is considering establishing a military defense force.

Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare told Parliament that the country must seriously review its capability to control domestic uprisings, adding that there is a need to examine the structure of the current disciplined forces to make them more effective.

Before the government coup in Honiara five months ago, the Royal Solomon Islands Police included a paramilitary force, which originally was deployed on the Solomon Islands-Papua New Guinea border during the secessionist war on Bougainville. That force was disbanded following the coup.

State funeral for Tuvalu’s PM Ionatana

FUNAFUTI, Tuvalu—A state funeral for Prime Minister Ionatana, who collapsed and died during a hotel reception Friday evening, will take place in the capital Tuesday.

The funeral follows a four-day national mourning period declared by the deputy prime minister and acting head of the country, Lagitupu Tuilimu.

The late prime minister, a policemen and government civil servant before entering politics, is credited with having put his nation on a firmer financial footing. A major success was his selling the nation’s Internet suffix, dot-tv, earning Tuvalu millions of dollars a year.

Tuvalu, north of Fiji, has a population of fewer than 10,000 persons.