Pacific rugby and Aids overshadowed by 'The Rock'

8.30pm


The Pacific Islands Forum has made incremental steps on a range of issues from HIV/Aids to Pacific rugby but was largely overshadowed by the arrival in Apia of wrestler Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

Johnson arrived in Apia today to great fanfare as Pacific leaders quietly went about their business on a range of issues from regional transport and security, governance, an HIV/Aids strategy and implementing a "Pacific plan" or blueprint for the region aimed at leading to greater co-operation between the 16 member nations of the forum.

News from the forum was off the front page of today's Samoa Observer which ran a large photograph of the former WWF/WWE wrestler again for the third day running.

Australia's presence was felt strongly at this year's forum, with Australian Prime Minister John Howard handing out A$4 million to help Niue recover from Cyclone Heta (New Zealand had already given $5m to Niue after the cyclone hit in January), A$6m for good governance and A$2m to progress points raised in a transport study that Australia had also funded.

It will also fund a study to make sure mobile phones in the Pacific actually work.

Plus, it is also taking the lead in helping Nauru, although the forum has also decided to lend a helping hand after Nauru requested assistance. A forum representative will be posted to Nauru for discussions with its government and donor countries on how to mobilise resources to help it.

Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi likened the economic crisis in Nauru to the ethnic conflict in the Solomon Islands. In that crisis, an Australian-led military force restored the peace.

Asked at a press conference whether Australia was being heavy-handed, after Mr Howard had commented that the Pacific was in his "patch", Papua New Guinea's Sir Michael Somare said smaller countries had been "supportive" of the assistance of the larger Australia and New Zealand.

Prime Minister Helen Clark said New Zealand had made the Pacific its top priority for some time and welcomed the renewed interest Australia was showing. She said the forum had been a good one.

"There was a time in the past when it wasn't possible to discuss people's internal affairs. That's no longer the case."

In terms of the Pacific plan, leaders have decided to appoint a taskforce to develop it. Forum secretary general Greg Urwin said membership of the taskforce should be chosen by the end of the month.

That taskforce will carry out consultation, which reporters were told was so that Australia and New Zealand could not be accused of pushing something on the Pacific that it did not want.

Helen Clark said she was pleased with progress that had been made on developing the plan since a special meeting in April in Auckland.

"There's a very clear timetable which leads us through to around June/July next year having a detailed report which we can then discuss next time."

It would look at all the areas of possible regional collaboration and give a steer to donors over where the priorities for development lay, she said.

On HIV/Aids the forum accepted a strategy urging leaders to tackle the problem in the region. United Nations representative for small Pacific countries, Anwarul Chowdhary, told reporters that HIV/Aids was an "emerging" problem in the Pacific that could still be contained.

He urged leaders to take advantage of United Nations global funds for HIV/Aids. Unless the infrastructure was there for testing, the problem could not be properly tackled.

Helen Clark said the key was sex education, use of condoms and partner responsibility and noted that the role of churches was mentioned in the strategy to control HIV/Aids in what are mostly highly religious Pacific countries.

Also raised was the economic cost in having the military, teachers and other professionals ill or dying from HIV/Aids.

Rugby was again on the agenda at this year's forum as moves are made to have an extended Super 12 with a Pacific Island team taking part, and over eligibility of Pacific Islanders to play for New Zealand and Australia and then be available for representative games for their home teams.

The final communique from the forum refers to sport, not just rugby, as being of significant to national development.

The Samoan prime minister said leaders wanted a Pacific representative on the International Rugby Board to progress Pacific rugby.

Next year's forum will be held in Papua New Guinea.

- NZPA