MAJURO, 24 FEBRUARY 2020 (MARIANAS VARIETY) — A South Korean-flagged longline fishing vessel was charged Friday with five counts of fishing in Marshall Islands waters without a valid license. The vessel monitoring system or VMS, an onboard computer system that provides real-time positioning of a fishing vessel by satellite to island fisheries departments, provided the […]
Category: Pacific News
Posted inPacific News
Solomon Islands seeks $100 billion loan from Chinese interests-documents
HONIARA, 24 FEBRUARY 2020 (REUTERS) — The government of the Solomon Islands is seeking a US$100 billion loan from Chinese interests in negotiations that started shortly after the small South Pacific archipelago switched diplomatic ties from Taiwan to Beijing last year. Details of the proposal, reviewed by Reuters, have sparked concern over whether the small […]
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CNMI Judiciary to implement 20 percent pay cut; Legislative Bureau cuts work hours to 64
SAIPAN, 24 FEBRUARY 2020 (MARIANAS VARIETY) — As part of the CNMI government’s across-the-board budget cuts, the judiciary will reduce the work hours and compensation of its employees by 20 percent starting 15 March, 2020. The Legislative Bureau, for its part, has reduced its work hours to 64 from 80. In the 30-day notice to […]
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Cash-strapped Cook Islands Govt asks for more money
RAROTONGA, 24 FEBRUARY 2020 (COOK ISLANDS NEWS) — The Cook Islands Government plans to ask Parliament for more money to get through the rest of the year. Finance minister Mark Brown said his officials were working on a Supplementary Budget for next month’s sitting. The additional money was mainly for the multi-million dollar Rarotonga water […]
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Working night and day’, UN health agency seeks to prevent global coronavirus crisis
GENEVA, 19 FEBRUARY 2020 (UN NEWS CENTRE) — As COVID-19, also known as coronavirus, continues to spread, the head of the United Nations health agency said that there is still a chance to prevent a broader global crisis. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General of the UN World Health Organisation (WHO), updated journalists on Tuesday that […]
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USCIS opens application period for new status for long-term residents of CNMI
SAIPAN, 20 FEBRUARY 2020 (USCIS/MARIANAS VARIETY) — U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on Thursday announced that the application period for those seeking the new Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands long-term resident status will open on 19 February, 2020. Eligible aliens will have 180 days to apply for the new status, which was created by […]