Solomon Islands – Page 4 – Papua Merdeka News

By PM Press – July 15, 2016

The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) Special Leaders’ Summit in Honiara concluded yesterday with the reaching of a number of key decisions on issues of interest to the Melanesian sub-regional bloc.

The meeting was chaired by the Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Hon Manasseh Sogavare and leaders in attendance included Prime Minister, Hon Frank Bainimarama of Fiji, Prime Minister, Hon Charlot Salwai of the Republic of Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea Foreign Affairs and Immigration Minister, Hon Rimbink Pato and Spokesman of New Caledonia’s Front de Liberation Nationale Kanak et Socialiste (FLNKS), Mr Victor Tutugoro.

The key decisions reached were based on issues of discussion were submitted by the MSG pre-summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting (FMM) also held in Honiara one day ahead of the Leaders’ Summit and they are as follows:

Approval of the appointment of the former Fiji diplomat, Ambassador Amena Yauvoli as Director General of the MSG Secretariat;
Approval in principle the establishment of the Police Ministers’ Meeting, noting the need for further consultation by some members;
Directing of the MSG Secretariat to expand the consultation process on the MSG Humanitarian and Emergency Response Coordinating Centre (HERCC) and identify cost implications of consultations on the HERCC and also the Sub-Committee on Security to meet and formulate the HERCC Regional Response Strategy and Action Plan;
Deferral of the consideration of application for full MSG membership by the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) until membership criteria and guidelines are further developed by the Sub-Committee on Legal and Institutional issues, considering fundamental principles, political aspirations and principles of international law and to be completed before end of September 2016;
Approval of the dissolution of the Melanesian Solutions Limited (MSL), the business arm of MSG;
Tasking of the Interim MSL Board to reimburse the shareholders’ contribution in consultation with the MSG Secretariat;
Tasking of the MSG Secretariat to report back to the members on the actions undertaken;
Noting of an update by the FLNKS on behalf of the FLNKS and the New Caledonian Government regarding the Melanesian Games and regretfully informed members of their inability to host the Games in October 2016;
Thanking of the MSG FMM Chair, Hon Milner Tozaka, Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade of Solomon Islands of the Report of the FMM that was held on 13^th July 2016 at the Heritage Park Hotel in Honiara, Solomon Islands. The Leaders did not reach consensus and directed the Sub-Committee on Legal and Institutional Issues to undertake further review on the Revised Application Procedures, Criteria and Participatory Rights and Obligations of an Observer and an Associate Member to the MSG appended as Annex I and the New Membership Guidelines for Full Membership to the MSG appended Annex II;
Agreeing on the Trade Ministers’ Meeting Report of May 2016 as tabled by the TMM Chair, Hon Milner Tozaka, Minister of Foreign Affairs and External Trade of Solomon Islands. They congratulated Hon Tozaka and the MSG Trade Ministers for their meeting outcome in concluding negotiations on the new MSG Trade Agreement;
Agreeing to fulfill respective national processes in member countries before signing the MSG Free Trade Agreement; and
Agreeing that they meet in Port Vila, Vanuatu before end of September 2016.

The two-day Leaders’ summit programme was compounded into a one-day event, as Prime Minister Bainimarama had to return to Fiji early to attend a national event requiring his presence.

By PM Press –July 14, 2016

The PIDF Chair, Prime Minister Hon Manasseh Sogavare of Solomon Islands.

The Honiara-hosted 4^th Pacific Islands Forum Development Forum Leaders’ Summit concluded yesterday and the new Chair of the organisation, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Hon Manasseh Sogavare described the two-day dialogue as ‘very successful.’

Addressing the Press at the conclusion of the summit late yesterday, Prime Minister Sogavare who has assumed the PIDF Chairmanship for a two-year period said, “ It was a very successful summit. Everything went very well as planned with a number of very important resolutions reached.”

He said the summit started off with pre-summit discussions on various topics of interest to PIDF Member States and concluded with the handing over of the chairmanship from Prime Minister Hon Bainimarama of Fiji to him as well as discussions on the report of the PIDF Secretary-General Mr Martel Francois.

The pre-summit discussions covered the Paris Agreement, which emanated from the United Nations Summit on Climate Change in Paris (COP21), roadmap to COP22 in Marrakesh, Morocco, Harnessing and Guaranteeing Ocean Wealth, Enhancing Collaboration in Achieving the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals and Opportunities for Accessing Climate Change Adaptation Financing.

The PIDF chairmanship handover to the Solomon Islands Prime Minister from his Fiji counterpart- the first time for another PIDF Member State apart from Fiji to take on this role- will see the incumbent serve for a two-year term.

The report by the PIDF Secretary-General covered PIDF’s Budget and Work Programme for 2017, Regional Development Trust Fund, Roadmap for Climate Change, Proposal for a Pacific Climate Treaty, Resolution for the Observance of the Pacific Year of Ocean 2017, PIDF Blue Economy Conference in 2017, PIDF role in UN Conference on Oceans and Seas, PIDF Contribution to the Climate Induced Migration Summit and the IMO- European Union Project on Capacity Building for Climate Change Mitigation in the Maritime Shipping Sector.

“As you know the Pacific Islands Development forum is made up of small developing island states and is a very inclusive organisation and therefore the summit was very much focused on getting our collective voice on global issues affecting us.

“ We acknowledge that because of our smallness, we can only make an influence on decisions on global issues that affect us if we have a collective stand and I think we have improved on that. The outcome of the Paris Agreement for example- the number of positions that were put forward by our small island developing states leading on from the climate change heavily focused Suva Declaration (this declaration emanated from the third PIDF Leaders’ Summit held in Suva, Fiji in 2015).

“A number of issues that were raised by leaders at that forum are reflected in the Paris Agreement. What is left now is the implementation of that agreement which we leaders see as a huge challenge but once again there is that collective approach because of our smallness.

“The achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for example, while we appreciate that the prime responsibility to ensure these goals are achieved rests with member countries to streamline our various targets and goals to develop economical strategies, the need for a collective voice on decisions on very important issues affecting us underpins the importance of the PIDF.”

The resolutions reached at the 4^th summit will be developed into a declaration called the Honiara Declaration, which will be released in due course.

The Secretary-General Mr Francois in turn thanked the Solomon Islands Government for hosting the summit, adding that it was quite special as it was the first to be held outside of Fiji since the inception of PIDF in 2013 and enforcement of the PIDF Charter during the third Leaders’ Summit in Suva, Fiji, 10-months ago.

He said the decision to start hosting the annual summit outside of Fiji shows the spirit of inclusivity the PIDF wants to instil in its members.

“We owe the gratitude for Solomon Islands to take on that challenging role. Prime Minister Sogavare has taken upon himself quite a challenge because we are talking about two years of chairmanship, which means two Leaders’ Summits, four Members of the Representative Council Meetings and hopefully the 2017 Blue Economy Summit,”

Mr Francois added.

The PIDF Secretary-General said the PIDF Leaders at this year’s summit focused not only on the PIDF organisational structure but also discussions reflecting on the oceans and the key issues that will happen in 2016 and 2017.

He said the summit also focused on the Paris Agreement on Climate Change and the roadmap of the PIDF to the upcoming UN Climate Change Summit (COP22) in Marrakesh, Morocco.

“You know we were all excited that the Paris Agreement was signed though it has not been fully ratified yet. But there is a lot of excitement about what could be done but there are also a lot of difficulties in ensuring that we are not trying to rewrite the Paris Agreement.

“COP22 is not about refining the Paris Agreement. It’s rather about putting in place modalities for its implementation and the Pacific still has a very key role to play in ensuring that we continue the leadership role that we took in Paris, France and that is evident by the work that leaders did in the shaping of the Suva Declaration.”