Pacific Islands News Association (PINA)

(PINA/IFEX) – Fiji Islands newspapers have sharply criticised the holding behind closed doors of an inquiry into the behaviour of Fiji’s police commissioner before, during and after the 19 May 2000 coup. On 1 September, the country’s biggest daily newspaper, “The Fiji Times”, said the decision to exclude public and news media from the inquiry’s […]

**Updates IFEX alerts of 26 April, 26, 12 and 7 January 2000, 30 December, 25 and 24 November 1999** (PINA/IFEX) – On 24 August 2000, “The Fiji Sun” reported that Fiji’s new interim government has welcomed “The Fiji Times”‘ Editor-in-Chief Russell Hunter back into the country and back to work. “The Fiji Sun” reported that […]

(PINA/IFEX) – On 18 August 2000, the main news web site of Niue, one of the world’s smallest island states, reported that a teacher has been suspended for appearing on the island’s TV station. The “Niue Economic Review” web site said the teacher, Epsy Puheke, had gone on Niue Television as a spokesperson for teachers […]

(PINA/IFEX) – On 16 August 2000, Fiji Islands news media reported that the country’s new interim administration plans to go ahead with developing new media and broadcasting laws. “The Fiji Times” said a proposed media decree would cover issues such as setting up an independent media council, media code of practice, guidelines on cross-media ownership […]

(PINA/IFEX) – On 3 August 2000, the Pacnews agency reported that Samoan opposition leader Tuiatua Tupua Tamasese Efi has welcomed a Supreme Court ruling that opposition members be allowed free access to government media. The court found that the late Prime Minister Tofilau Eti Alesana’s administration infringed the rights of freedom of expression of opposition […]

(PINA/IFEX) – The following is a 27 July 2000 PINA press release on the 2000 International Green Pen Awards: Four International Green Pen Awards presented at Nadi congress Nadi, Fiji Islands (PINA Nius Online, 27 July 2000) – Two Pacific Islands editors and two people who helped develop environmental journalism in the Asia-Pacific region received […]

(PINA/IFEX) – On 17 July 2000, Fiji Television reported that prison officers manhandled two of its journalists, Imraz Iqbal and Ravinesh Prakash, and tried to force them to leave as they stood on a public road outside Colonial War Memorial Hospital, in Suva (the country’s capital). Fiji Television showed a small group of prison officers, […]

(PINA/IFEX) – On 5 July 2000, PINA expressed concern over the repeated intimidation and harassment of journalists inside Fiji’s rebel-held parliamentary complex in suburban Suva. On 4 July, a photojournalist from “The Fiji Sun” newspaper, Sitiveni Moce, was beaten up inside the complex, where he had gone to cover a media conference with rebel leader […]