UN body asks Pacific nations to oppose law changes in Tonga

3.00pm

The New Zealand National Commission for UNESCO, the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation, is urging governments in the Pacific to speak out strongly against the Tongan government's plans to change the country's constitution.

"We understand that the law change would in effect legalise an ongoing ban on the distribution of the newspaper Taimi 'o Tonga, and we feel this constitutes a breach of press freedom and freedom of expression", said Laurence Zwimpfer, a member of the NZ National Commission for UNESCO and a member of the group's 26-country Intergovernmental Council for the Information for All Programme.

"The principles of freedom of expression and press freedom go to the very heart of what UNESCO is all about," said Mr Zwimpfer.

"New Zealand and other Pacific nations work hard in Paris, where UNESCO is headquartered, to promote the needs of Pacific Island states and secure resources for the region, and to have something like this come along really undermines our efforts," said Mr Zwimpfer.

"How can we make a case to the international community to recognise the special needs of Pacific Island states while Tonga appears to be heading in a direction that is in total conflict with such a basic human rights issue?"

He said the Government of Tonga need to consider the implications of such a law change, and reflect on how damaging it could be for Tonga as a member of the United Nations, the Commonwealth and the Pacific Forum.

The New Zealand National Commission was consulting with UNESCO in Apia and Paris to determine ways of influencing the Government of Tonga to reconsider the law change and immediately remove the ban on the Auckland-based Taimi 'o Tonga.

Mr Zwimpfer said the New Zealand UNESCO group had asked for the matter to be discussed at UNESCO's Pacific Islands consultation, to be held in Fiji in July.