Pacific Briefs

Sunken PNG cyanide ticking time bomb

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea—Marine experts say a cyanide shipment that sank off the Papua New Guinea coast 16 years ago is an environmental time bomb.

There is concern that the sunken cargo of about 2,600 drums of cyanide poses a threat to the Great Barrier Reef, as it went down just 42 miles north of the Reef’s northern most point, Bramble Cay in the Torres Strait.

A barge carrying the cyanide in 15 containers from Port Moresby to the Ok Tedi gold and copper mine in western Papua New Guinea sank off the mouth of the Fly River in June 1984.

News reports at the time said one of the containers broke open and more than 100 of the blue plastic drums were recovered intact after they drifted into the river estuary. But the rest of the drums have never been recovered.

Internet gains for Tuvalu

LONDON, England—Demand for the Internet domain name “.tv” is improving the lives of the inhabitants of the tiny Pacific nation of Tuvalu, the BBC reports.

In 1998, the country signed over the rights for “.tv” to a Canadian company, Idealab. The deal has seen millions of dollars flow into the central Pacific nation from television organizations interested in having have the two letters round off their web addresses.

The money is paying for a new school and other essential infrastructure projects for the nation of about 10,000 Polynesians.

Sir Mekere Morauta named Person Of The Year

SUVA, Fiji Islands—Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta has been named Pacific Person of the Year by the regional news magazine Islands Business.

In making the announcement, Islands Business said, “This calm, refreshing, frank, intelligent economist and administrator was elected prime minister by the stunning margin of 99-5 members of parliament. Then, and since, he has widely been described, within the country and without, as Papua New Guinea’s last and best hope.”

Morauta’s efforts “to reposition the Pacific’s biggest island nation as a soundly administered, truly developing country. . .are having “massive and positive” repercussions for the entire Pacific Islands region, the magazine wrote.

Papuans announce West Papua peace plan

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea—The Papua Council, which seeks independence for the troubled Indonesian province of Irian Jaya and its indigenous Melanesian people, has called on the United Nations to help end the ongoing secessionist conflict.

Council spokesman Franzalbert Joku said the UN, as the global peacekeeper, should immediately apply established conflict resolution procedures and appoint a neutral, third party mediator.

The council also has asked the Indonesia government to agree to the unconditional release of all West Papuan detainees before Christmas Day, December 25. (Pacific Islands Report)