By Catherine Wilson

AUKI, Malaita Province, Solomon Islands, Apr 30 2013 (IPS) - The deceptively calm waters of Langa Langa Lagoon on the west coast of Malaita Island in the Solomon Islands is home to thousands of people who have lived on artificial islands for centuries. For generations the islanders in this south-west Pacific nation have employed tenacity and ingenuity to maintain their existence on these tiny low-lying man-made atolls, devoid of freshwater and arable land. But climate change is now the greatest threat to their survival.

“The seas are rough and the tides are getting higher. Sometimes the waves come right across the island during the wet season,” Alphonsus Waleronoa said on Raolo Island, which has a total area of about 100 square metres.

Waleronoa is sitting on a bench under the eaves of his traditional dwelling perched on the island’s perimeter, with two of its timber foundation poles planted in the lagoon’s waters and the other two on the island.

There are about half a dozen homes here for the five families, about 26 people, who live on Raolo which was built on a foundation of coral, stones and sand by Waleronoa’s father after a cyclone destroyed their previous home, another artificial island called Rarata, in 1945. Further cyclones in the late 1960s prompted the small community to move temporarily to Malaita Island, but they returned over ten years ago to flee fighting during the civil war, known as the ‘Tensions’ (1998-2003).

The Solomon Islands is an archipelago of more than 900 islands east of Papua New Guinea with the majority of the population residing close to the nation’s 4,023 km of coastline. Natural disasters are a high risk especially during the wet season from November to April when tropical cyclones, tsunamis and gale force winds can generate floods and destruction.

Today climate change, the most formidable challenge to sustainable development in this Small Island Developing State (SIDS) and Least Developed Countries (LDCs), is increasing weather-inflicted hardship and jeopardising vulnerable coastal communities.

The sea level near the Solomon Islands has risen by 8 mm per year since 1993, compared to the global average of 2.8-3.6mm, according to the Pacific Climate Change Science Programme. The prediction is that by 2030 the sea could rise by a maximum of 15 cm, the average wind speed of cyclones could increase by up to 11 percent and associated rainfall intensity by 20 percent.

Caspar Supa, coordinator of the Pacific Adaptation to Climate Change Programme (PACC) in the country told IPS that places on the frontline were the artificial islands, low-lying atolls and the low-lying areas of larger islands where “there is low food security, lack of development, small resources and limited education about climate change.”

On Malaita Island, approximately 12,000 people live on artificial islands in Langa Langa Lagoon on the west coast and Lau Lagoon on the northeast coast. Thirteen islands can be found in Langa Langa Lagoon, which is 21 km long and a kilometre wide.

In spite of the tradition of oral history many, including Waleronoa, do not know the exact reason their ancestors created these unique environments, where communities are renowned for fishing, shipbuilding and traditional ‘shell money’ manufacture, but some believe it could have been the consequence of disagreements or estrangement from mainland villages.

Thomas Dakero’s ancestors migrated from the West Kwaio region of Malaita Island to the half-natural, half-artificial Busu Island 500 years ago. Busu, which is about a kilometre long, is home to a growing population of 300 people.

Dakero now witnesses high tides occurring almost every month when waves can flood most of the island. There is a mangrove forest on one side, which offers some protection against the sea, but this is also under threat.

“I have been telling the people not to chop down the mangroves, but we need the firewood for cooking,” Dakero said. “In the past we used the dead and dried mangrove wood, but because of population growth we now need to cut the trees.”

Daily life has many other challenges. There isn’t any natural fresh water supply on Raolo and Busu Islands and the ground is unsuitable for agriculture. Busu Islanders collect rainwater in tanks, but during the dry season they make the boat journey to the mainland several times per week to collect supplies in plastic containers.

“We want to stay on our island,” Waleronoa told IPS. “We have been fishermen for generations. We sell fish at the markets and this is the only income we have, so we would find it hard to move.”

Fishing is an important source of subsistence and cash income for many Solomon Islanders, but last year’s State of the Coral Triangle Report identified destructive fishing as an issue in Langa Langa Lagoon.

Dakero says the fisheries have been impacted by a number of local fishermen using dynamite. To try and boost their recovery, he has planted live coral in the waters surrounding Busu Island to create a fish breeding ground.

But the future for artificial islanders is uncertain. “We are trying to build the island higher and grow mangroves on one side,” Waleronoa said on Raolo Island.

Dakero is also considering increasing the height of Busu Island, but emphasised it was very expensive to buy large quantities of stone from landowners on the mainland and transport to the island.

The Malaita Provincial Government is already planning for the potential relocation of communities from two Polynesian atolls, Ontong Java and Sikaina Island, where food and water security is deteriorating.

“The first stage is that we are consulting with the affected communities about future relocation,” Augustine Faliomea, deputy provincial secretary of the Malaita Provincial Government told IPS.

“They will be able to choose where they relocate on Malaita Island. Then we will negotiate with the current landowners in those places to purchase land for resettlement.”

More than 80 percent of land in the Solomon Islands is under customary landownership, which is predicted to be a significant challenge to some climate change adaptation projects. Land has immense significance to Melanesian culture, identity and the security of livelihoods for successive generations of extended families. Therefore acquisition by non-traditional owners can be a difficult and prolonged process.

Faliomea added that the implementation of migration programmes, which still require funding, will trigger huge changes to the lives of islanders, who will have to adapt to new cultures, environments, foods and diets.

AusAID Director General Peter Baxter visited Solomon Islands’ National Referral Hospital this week to meet the Australian medical team assisting local health authorities to combat a major outbreak of dengue fever.

Health officials estimate there have been more than 3,700 cases of suspected dengue since late January, putting significant strain on the country’s health resources.

‘This outbreak is putting huge pressure on local health authorities. The caseload of the National Referral Hospital’s emergency department has doubled from around 700 to 1,400 new patients each week,’ Mr Baxter said.

After a request from the Solomon Islands Government, Australia sent an initial assessment team to the country in early April. This was followed by a seven-person medical team which has been working with local medical authorities at the National Referral Hospital. The team included two doctors, two nurses, a team leader, lab technician and logistician.

New Zealand also sent a medical team of one doctor and one nurse to support the dengue response.
Mr Baxter said the teams have worked well together to treat patients, manage workloads and provide relief for exhausted local staff.

‘This support has helped the hospital to set up a triage system for dengue patients to relieve overcrowding. It also helped to introduce better patient management systems. As a result, waiting times for nurse assessments and doctor reviews have dropped significantly.

‘Clinical services such as elective surgery, ophthalmology and obstetrics and gynaecology outpatient clinics have also been reopened and local staff have been provided some respite.’

Undersecretary of Ministry of Health and Medical Services, Dr Tenneth Dalipanda, thanked Australia for the assistance to date.

‘The Australian and New Zealand medical teams have provided essential support to the National Referral Hospital, which has benefitted our staff and patients. We are taking on board the recommendations from the team to improve our emergency department operations.’

Mr Baxter also announced that Australia will provide an additional four-person medical team to support early recovery efforts, at the request of the Solomon Islands Government.

‘Over the next four weeks, the team will focus on integrating the dengue triage area back into the emergency department, and bringing the hospital back to normal operations,’ he said.

‘The four-person team will also help finalise a provincial disease outbreak emergency response plan and disaster management plan for the National Referral Hospital to build resilience for future humanitarian disasters and disease outbreaks.’

Mr Baxter congratulated the Ministry of Health and Medical Services for their effective implementation of their Dengue Response Plans.

‘The Ministry of Health and Medical Services has done a commendable job leading Solomon Islands’ response to the outbreak. This included coordinating other donors which are also responding to the outbreak, running a national clean-up campaign, establishing a surveillance unit, and deploying recently registered volunteer nurses to the National Referral Hospital.’

1. Marshall Islands - The Government has welcomed international assistance in response to a drought situation which is affecting up to 3,700 people living in the islands north of Majuro. An UNDAC team is being deployed, as have international assessment teams and OCHA staff.
   Source: OCHA

2. China - Heavy flooding in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region have killed 6, displaced 17,000 and affected more than 420,000.
   Source: GLIDE, Media

3. Myanmar - On 30 Apr, inter-communal violence broke out in Oak-kan town, approximately 100km north of Yangon. No one was killed or displaced, but at least 10 people were injured, and numerous buildings were set on fire. Riot police were called in and a curfew was put in place.
   Source: OCHA

4. Bangladesh - A protest by up to one million Islamists turned violent and was broken up by police. At least 10 people have died and more than 60 were injured.
   Source: Media

5. Bangladesh - The death toll from the Rana Plaza factory collapse passed 600 as of 5 May. It is the largest industrial accident in Bangladesh's history.
   Source: Sphere India, OCHA

6. Solomon Islands - Since January, a Dengue outbreak in the Solomon Islands has resulted in over 3,700 cases and shows no signs of slowing.
   Source: AusAID, RW

7. India - An earthquake measuring 5.8 in northern India triggered an orange alert from GDACS. The quake resulted in one death and over 70 injuries.
   Source: Sphere India, OCHA Precipitation Forecast - The latest forecasts predict above average levels of precipitation in the southern Philippines, as well as Borneo, Sulawesi, and Papua islands of Indonesia. Less than average rainfall is forecast throughout most of the South Pacific.
   Source: IRI

By Catherine Wilson

HONIARA, Solomon Islands, May 7 2013 (IPS) - Life is difficult enough for communities on the remote southern Weather Coast of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. Sustaining a livelihood from the land is a daily struggle on the steep coastal mountain slopes that plunge to the sea, made worse by the absence of adequate roads, transport and government services. And now, climate change is taking its toll on the already precarious food situation here.

“From mid-March to June it is always raining and whatever crops we grow will not go to harvest,” Alice, a member of a farming family on the Weather Coast, told IPS, referring to the period locals here call “time hungry”.

During these months, most meals consist of rice and one or two other items procured from the shops in the city of Honiara, the capital of this nation comprising more than 900 islands located northeast of Australia and east of Papua New Guinea.

Stretching for 160 kilometres, this island, the largest in the Solomon Islands archipelago, has a widely dispersed population. Located on the northern coast and home to 64,600 people, Honiara is separated by high mountains from isolated villages on the southern coast, where the total population is more than 19,000.

The climate here is hot and humid all year round and people are vulnerable to cyclones, gale force winds and flooding during the wet season, as well as earthquakes and landslides due to the country’s proximity to the highly seismic Pacific Rim of Fire.

Scientists are now predicting the weather extremes that batter this rugged coast will only get worse as the nation faces the full force of climate change.

The sea level near the Solomon Islands has been rising by eight millimetres per year compared to the global average of 2.8 to 3.6 mm, according to the Pacific Climate Change Science Programme. During the first half of this century, average annual and extreme rainfall is predicted to increase, along with the intensity of cyclones.

Climate change is the greatest challenge to sustainable development in this South Pacific nation, imperilling the food security of 85 percent of the population who depend on subsistence agriculture. In terms of development, the Solomon Islands is ranked 142 out of 187 countries by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and has the second lowest average per capita income in the Pacific region, while 23 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.

Residents of Weather Coast villages like Duidui, Reavu and Avuavu use the steep slopes above the coastline to cultivate crops, growing everything from taro, yams and sweet potatoes to cassava and bananas. This region receives heavy rainfall of 5,000 to 8,000 mm a year during two wet seasons, the first from January to April, the second from May to September.

Boku Joke, a climate change advisor working with the non-profit Kastom Gaden Association (KGA), told IPS that resulting floods and intense saturation of the soil has made life difficult for farmers and threatened food production.

Heavy rain also erodes soil nutrients and provides fertile ground for plant pests and diseases like chuaka, which affects taro, to thrive.

“Rain and floods and lack of crop bulking (mass cultivation and storage of different crop varieties) by local farmers have also resulted in a loss of crop diversity,” Joke said, explaining that since farmers plant just one crop, they are often left with nothing if extreme weather ruins the harvest.

Varieties of taro and yam were also lost when food gardens were abandoned and pests and diseases proliferated during the “Tensions” (1998 to 2003), a civil conflict in the Solomon Islands that left hundreds dead and 35,000 displaced when grievances among the indigenous Gwales of the main island, Guadalcanal, led them to fight the influx of numbers of migrants from Malaita, a heavily populated island to the east.

The presence of armed members of the Guadalcanal Liberation Front (GLF) on the Weather Coast forced villagers to flee into the bush for up to two years.

The government now recognises the need to focus investment on developing and supporting agricultural livelihoods to ensure a secure future for people in the region.

“Food and agricultural production has been and will continue to be the most important source of economic development and income generation as well as food security for these communities, given their geographical remoteness,” Hezekiah Valimana, chief field officer at the ministry of agriculture’s Guadalcanal office, told IPS. Agriculture accounts for 38 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP) and 75 percent of the labour force.

Agriculture will also be critical to enduring peace and stability in this part of the country as a history of poor access to development, basic services and income opportunities in rural and remote areas contributed to the grievances that triggered the conflict more than a decade ago.

“An increase in food and cash crop production will help to improve the livelihoods of families and provide cash incomes,” Valimana said. Most residents here are subsistence farmers and the average cash income of households in the region can be as little as 13 dollars per month.

Valimana advocates bringing different communities together to “achieve shared goals,” stressing that collaboration on agricultural projects is “key to maintaining peace.”

In recognition of the environmental challenges ahead, the government launched its first National Climate Change Policy last year to improve the coordination of adaptation efforts by various government ministries and national institutions.

The KGA, which works alongside the ministry of agriculture, as well as the ministry of health and the ministry of environment and conservation, has made rural communities a priority, and is working to deliver new technologies to improve farm management and productivity, as well as planting materials to 25 percent of rural households in the Solomon Islands.

On the Weather Coast, KGA is collaborating with local farmer support groups to increase crop diversity, introduce climate resistant crops and promote contour farming, which involves tilling land along lines of consistent elevation on hill slopes to reduce the speed of rainwater run-off and prevent soil erosion.

“We need new or more climate resistant crops,” Alice confirmed. “But we also need more education and training about how to cultivate bush foods such as breadfruit and nuts and preserve them for eating and selling. At the moment, most people don’t see these as useful or commercial foods.”

Following is a transcript of UN Deputy Secretary-General Jan Eliasson’s press conference held in New York, 9 May:

Spokesperson: Welcome to the Deputy Secretary-General, who is here to brief you on the Somalia Conference that took place in London earlier this week, and also on your recent visits to Thailand and Singapore. I believe we have about half an hour. So, first of all, the Deputy Secretary-General has some remarks and then he will take questions. So, please; welcome back.

Deputy Secretary-General: Thank you very much, Martin. Thank you for staying after the briefing. There is an expression in Europe, Swedish, that “whoever makes the trip has something to tell”. I will just say a few things about my travels to Asia and to London for the Somalia conference this week.

Last week, I was in Bangkok for the ESCAP meeting — the Economic and Social Commission for [ Asia] and the Pacific — a meeting that was very much organized by Noeleen Heyzer, our Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of ESCAP. It was a discussion about cooperation with this very important region, but also, very interestingly, the potential of cooperation within and also between regions.

There were Executive Secretaries of the Economic Commissions from the other four parts of the world assembled, and this turned into a very important discussion about South-South cooperation, a new dynamic factor in the world economy. I took a great interest in this, and was reminded of, as always, the UN Charter, where Chapter VIII plays a very important role — regional arrangements — I think we should take that very seriously.

So, apart from the dynamics of the regional cooperation, perhaps the most important meetings I had was a very substantial and very good meeting with the President of Myanmar, Thein Sein. And a meeting, I would also add, with Prime Minister [Xanana] Gusmão of Timor-Leste. And also a very interesting meeting with the President of the Solomon Islands. I mention these three because they are of particular interest for the agenda of the United Nations in different respects.

Myanmar is going through a period of reform. I think we all need to, and should, commend the efforts of the President of Myanmar in reforming his nation, and also giving a place for Myanmar in the regional context and in the international context. He spoke openly about the need to bring Myanmar out of isolation. The disturbing elements in the developments inside the country are obvious. You know the Rohingya problems, of course, who, many of them, are now abroad and not voluntarily wanting to return. I, myself, by the way, negotiated the return of 50,000 Rohingyas when I was Emergency Relief Coordinator in 1992, so it was, for me, a reminder that this problem has been there for a long time and is still there.

And the other issue, of course, which was of concern for the President, and which we hope that he will handle in a positive way, and that is the communal violence that has been breaking out recently between the Muslim and Buddhist communities in another part of Myanmar.

But, all in all, it was very good cooperation. He spoke very positively about his contacts with the Secretary-General and with our representative, Vijay Nambiar, and was hoping very much for continued cooperation from the side of the United Nations, and I assured him, of course, of our interest in encouraging the reform process in Myanmar.

On East Timor, there is now a sense that they are through the political difficulties. They would rather have an accent on development than on peace and security, and they would very much like to strengthen the relationship with the United Nations on the economic side and the development side, and they are interested in having a special adviser working with the Government on behalf of the United Nations in the development area.

The Solomon Islands I mention because we sometimes tend to forget a great number of countries — small-size countries — some call themselves a “silent majority” — very much often exposed, on the margin of their existence when it comes to climate change issues, and very much the victims of the ever more serious natural disasters: floods, hurricanes, well, you know it all.

I found it very interesting to be in contact with the Solomon Islands, representing, not only itself, but also the small island developing States. I hope they wouldn’t mind that I was thinking of their situation, with salt water entering their fresh water resources in the outer islands; the level of the sea rising; and that they are actually threatened in their very existence. I could understand, I could feel, really, the passion with which they spoke about climate change and also the need for disaster risk reduction, being so exposed.

As I said, I would hope they wouldn’t mind that I was thinking of the metaphor of the canary in the coal mine. These countries, so exposed, are their own canaries in the coal mine, giving us very, very serious signals about threats to the environment and with the problems of climate change. So, that is why I wanted to mention this meeting with the Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands.

I will turn quickly to the Somalia Conference in London. It was a show of solidarity and support of the new leadership in Somalia. The President was met with great respect and appreciation of his efforts from the international community that was assembled in London. It wasn’t an event to raise funds for Somalia, but there were $300 million pledged for the security sector, which is, of course, very crucial at this moment, when the Al-Shabaab problem is less dramatic but still there, if I may put it that way.

It was also a show of support in the efforts of the President and his Government to create a well-functioning federal State. The disturbing element was, of course, that representatives of Somaliland and Puntland decided not to attend his delegation. We hope very much that all parts of Somalia and all factions, all clans of Somalia, would see it in their interest to support the reform efforts of the President, who has been selected by all clans and all parts of the country at an earlier stage. So, his challenge is, of course, to establish the authority in all of Somalia. I think it is important for the international community to support this desire to create a well-functioning federal State.

The second challenge for Somalia is to develop neighbourhood relations that [are] positive. If I can go back to my own country — Sweden — if I were to explain our progress, apart from creating good institutions and good infrastructure and making big investments in education, I would say to be in a neighbourhood which is very peaceful, where the dynamics of positive regional and neighbourly context are part of the social, political and economic fabric, I think would be a main reason why we are where we are in the Nordic countries.

If I then move to the Horn of Africa, I would say that the crucial relationships between Somalia and Kenya and Somalia and Ethiopia came out very strongly. And I was very glad to have very good meetings, apart from the President of Somalia, with the President of Kenya — President [Uhuru] Kenyatta — and with the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. And I was encouraged by the growing dialogue [among] these three countries, and I would hope that we would see a development with a strengthened direction of a federal, well-functioning Somalia, supported by the new structure of the UN, after the Security Council decision [on 2 May] and also a relationship with neighbours that will also help Somalia continue on the reform path.

It is good for once to say that we have good news from Somalia, and I would hope that the support for the new Government in Somalia would be widespread, so that we could help this new Government to succeed in their efforts.

Question: Thank you, Deputy Secretary-General. It is clear that, in Somalia, security is linked to food insecurity, and I am wondering if there is any discussion about real-time food initiatives that are being implemented, because what we hear about so often from that country is malnutrition and so many deaths from a lack of proper food.

Deputy Secretary-General: Well, thank you. I was there in 1992. This was the closest to hell that I have ever been, personally. Hundreds of thousands of people died. They died even inside the camps that I visited at that time. At that time the crisis was both a political crisis — civil war-like conditions — and an enormously serious food and water security crisis. We have had another outbreak of a similar situation three or four years ago, when 280,000 people died and half of them children under the age of five, where there was mainly a food security crisis, as you pointed to. Still, the problem of Al-Shabaab was there. It was not as deep as the crisis of 1992, but of a similar nature. In my speech, on behalf of the Secretary-General, in London, I recalled what had happened in 1992, I recalled what had happened three or four years ago, and I said that this must never happen again.

So, we hope that this meeting would be a call for action, to help in the political aspect that you raised, with, first of all, the physical security, and second of all, the humanitarian crisis.

There are still millions of people in need of humanitarian assistance, and as usual, as you probably have heard here many, many times, our appeals are not met to the degree that we would wish. The World Food Programme (WFP) is carrying on a programme which is not fully funded. OCHA [Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs] is also working very actively, and we need to also remember that we have a humanitarian imperative to follow and many of the statements in London were supportive of humanitarian programmes, and pointed also to the food security issue that you raised.

Question: A couple of questions on Somalia. Did you say that Somaliland and Puntland, they boycotted the London Conference, as well as boycotting the Government, or did they attend the Conference? And secondly, did you have any discussions on that horrific refugee centre on the Kenyan border, because the Somalis are drifting into something that is really dreadful for them.

Deputy Secretary-General: Yes, it is correct that Somaliland decided not to join the delegation. They were asked by the President to join, and given all the good reasons to join, but they have ambitions that go beyond autonomy, go beyond taking part in a federal structure. In the case of Puntland, there were high hopes that they would join, because Puntland actually, as I understood, has accepted to be part of a federal structure, with probably advanced autonomy, I suppose, but they also decided to stay away. This was openly stated by the Somalis, and regretted by most. But, I would hope that the Conference, in itself, was a message also to Puntland and Somaliland, that it would be much better for their own future and for Somalia, as a whole, to take part in these types of discussions and be part of the international solidarity that was so clearly expressed in their direction at the meeting.

The horrific refugee situation that you refer to in the border areas between Kenya and Somalia were discussed on my part, mainly with the President of Kenya, who was very dramatically describing the refugee pressures on Kenya, and the difficulties that his country was going through, not least because of the pressures on border areas and, of course, the need for funding for these camps, but also that he really felt also that there was a danger that it created reactions among local communities against the Somali refugees, and that this was a problem that was also felt politically in the capital. He also referred to the fact that there was common history of the clans across the border and that there was solidarity going in both directions, so he clearly indicated that this problem was a problem of a humanitarian nature, but also of a social and political nature. His explanation of the conditions probably has to be found in the fact that the country was under tremendous pressure. But, that is how the matter came up from my side.

Question: Could you elaborate somewhat, in your discussions with the President of Myanmar, regarding any specific steps that he might have mentioned in integrating the disaffected minority groups into his Government further, and also in beefing up security and law enforcement when riots break out and attacks on minorities take place?

Deputy Secretary-General: I would put it in the context of his efforts to bring about a reduction of violence in the country and achieving ceasefires from the different areas where fighting has been going on, to create secure conditions in the country through ceasefires and negotiations with the different groups was mentioned — Kachin, and Karens and others. He also mentioned that the country was a country with many, many minorities; I think over 130 minorities are registered as minorities, and given rights as people of Myanmar. However, the Rohingyas are not recognized as a minority. This goes back a long time, and it is a discussion that has been going on. But, that was the reason I was there 21 years ago, to negotiate, because there are doubts in the Government about Rohingyas coming in great numbers, not long ago, but more recently. I, at that time, found that the people that I was negotiating return for had been there for many years, and also had identity cards to prove it.

But, this is almost the same problem today: that they are not recognized as a minority, and that they more or less have to prove that they have been there for some time, and this suspicion among, unfortunately, part of the majority Buddhist population leaves the danger that you will have an ethnic and even religious dimension involved in this issue. I know the President is very concerned. He spoke out very strongly after the communal violence, and I commended him for that. He is, of course, a propos the last part of your question, very much, with his background, anxious to see that law and order prevails. So, I would hope that this desire to see security established and law and order established would lead to the reduction of such incidents that we saw so seriously some weeks ago.

Question: Mr. Deputy Secretary-General, I would like you to elaborate, if you can, just a bit on this issue of neighbour relations in your discussions with Mr. Kenyatta. Are there plans for any security cooperation, and are there, perhaps, any Kenyan aid projects to their neighbours to the north east? What do they have in the pipeline, what is being done? And I understand, it strikes me that the Kenyan situation is very much like the Jordan situation some hundreds of miles to the north, because they are overwhelmed by people from the country next door. What can you tell me about that, and the possibilities there?

Deputy Secretary-General: You are right, in a way, that these problems are pretty similar. There is a conflict like in Syria — the horrors in Syria — it has automatic repercussions on, in this case, Jordan and Lebanon, mainly, but also Iraq and Turkey. And also creates the risk of a regional crisis of larger proportions. In the same way, in Somalia, where there is a period with Al-Shabaab choosing a military road to go, and also planting bombs — the State Attorney was just killed in an explosion the other day, and eight to 10 ten Somalis died in another explosion. That type of life has led to great refugee flows, and you have it perhaps very visibly in Kenya.

But then there is also the historic relationship between that part of Somalia which is neighbouring to Kenya. You may recall that there was a strong Kenyan action around Kismayo some months ago, when the Al-Shabaab were dominating the city, and the Kenyan action led to Al-Shabaab leaving the city.

So they also play a role for the security of the country. But, there are also tendencies in that part of Somalia to expect more autonomy as other parts of the country request, and here is where Kenya can play a very important role in making sure that that problem does not become, not only a refugee problem, but also a problem for the federal State of Somalia. I would hope that we would have a situation where the federal Government would establish its authority fully in Kismayo and in that part of the country, and that there would be cooperation between Kenya and Somalia in this regard.

Let me also mention, by the way, something I should have mentioned in my introduction — there is still a very important role for AMISOM (African Union Mission in Somalia) — the force of African States that plays an absolutely crucial role; and here, I want to pay tribute to the countries and to their soldiers who paid such an enormously heavy price. You would be shocked to learn that maybe it is up to 3,000 AMISOM soldiers that have been killed during these years that AMISOM has been there. Uganda, Burundi, have paid a tremendous price. So, I really want to pay tribute to AMISOM and to their role also, and the Kenyan troops are, of course, also a large part of AMISOM.

Question: The 3,000 soldiers of AMISOM that were killed, that is out of a total complement of how many?

Deputy Secretary-General: I don’t know the exact number. I think it is about 17,000; I am not sure.

Question: Thank for doing this after your trip. It is useful. I wanted to know, if in your discussions with Uhuru Kenyatta, he made a request of the Security Council to have the International Criminal Court (ICC) proceedings deferred for a year, or suspended, and I wanted to know if this was raised in your meeting, or if you have any thoughts on, they were saying it would be a danger to regional security to continue it. And also, I know that you are the head of this review panel on the Charles Petrie report on Sri Lanka, and I wanted to know, I think that was announced back in December, what have you found? Where does it stand? What improvements or reforms have been made?

Deputy Secretary-General: Thank you very much. The matter was not raised. We are taking the stand that we should be in contact with President Kenyatta. He is a very important actor, of course, in the African scene; he has just been elected President in Kenya. He is absolutely crucial for developments in Somalia, and it was an important meeting. The ICC aspect, we are, of course, completely aware of, but it seems to me that he cooperates fully with the Court, and as long as this cooperation is as good as it is, there are no problems for us to deal with the President of Kenya, and I had a very good meeting with him.

On Charles Petrie’s report on Sri Lanka, it was taken very seriously by the Secretary-General and made public also. I was asked by him, the Secretary-General, to head a group to look, go through the recommendations of the report, and above all, look forward to the future so that we avoid coming in such situations as we did in Sri Lanka, and as we have in several other tragic situations. This group was established in January, and they have worked very diligently. It is co-chaired by Andrew Gilmour of the Political Unit, and Paul Akiwumi, my Chief of Staff. And we have a very good secretariat headed by Michael Keating, who is a very respected colleague, who was the Deputy SRSG [Special Representative of the Secretary-General] in Afghanistan. What I found most important was to bring was to bring in all the agencies, departments, programmes, funds, who indirectly or directly are involved in the situation or the role of the United Nations in Sri Lanka.

So, we have had a working group with representatives of all groups working very intensely on taking these recommendations seriously. We also have invited experts from the outside for hearings. Today, I had a hearing with a group of very respectable colleagues of mine and many others — Jan Egeland, Staffan De Mistura, Michael Van Den Schulenberg — I can’t give you the whole list, but we had a video conference of one and a half hours today, where we got their reactions to the report. So, it is a big process right now. And I suppose I will, within a month or so, receive the report and then it is up to me to assess these recommendations and go to the Secretary-General and discuss what measures should be taken. I hope this whole process will be finished by the middle of June at the latest, I would hope. We take it very seriously.

We have, of course, situations today where all these questions come up. I mentioned Myanmar, but above all, I think about Syria. We need to really prepare ourselves as good as possible for this type of situation in the future.

Spokesperson: Maybe I could ask you to both ask your questions and then the Deputy Secretary-General will respond?

Question: Thank you for coming, Sir. You mentioned that you met the Ethiopian Prime Minister. Did he say when he would be withdrawing his troops from Somalia? And did you ask him to delay that at all? And also, you mentioned the crisis in Syria, briefly. Does the UN expect any kind of meeting following the Russia-US agreement? Does the UN expect any kind of meeting on Syria by the end of the month, as some people have mentioned?

Question: Also, regarding the meeting, I am wondering if the UN envisions that the Joint Special Representative Lakhdar Brahimi will play a role, a key role, in that? And I wanted to ask you, too, if you have been following reports that the Iranian Government has confirmed the detention of a senior Iranian diplomat who has spent many years working in multilateral organizations, Bagher Asadi? He was posted here for quite a while, and he is linked to the reformists, and he has been held for almost two months and no one knows why. Since he spent so much time at the UN, or accredited to the UN system, I was just wondering if you had looked into it or were aware of it?

Deputy Secretary-General: Okay. I talked to the Prime Minister of Ethiopia about the Ethiopian troops. There had been a very sad incident some time ago, recently, in fact, where the Ethiopians had left a town and only hours afterwards the Al-Shabaab troops, militants, came in and four people were beheaded within a couple of days, who evidently were not agreeing with the philosophy of the Al-Shabaab. And I think that says it all.

The Prime Minister did not accept that the word “withdrawal” would be used. He felt that they would take their responsibility and that they would stay as long as needed. And I think this is a sign of the growing cooperation between the Government of Ethiopia and the Government of Somalia, that if they can play a role in reducing the threat from the Al-Shabaab, which is their main objective, then they will stay. They hope that that threat will be reduced by both factors that are related to security and, of course, better conditions in the country, so that Al-Shabaab would not have sort of a good soil, in which they have been thriving. But, I think the Ethiopians take a very responsible position, and they will, of course, stay only if the Somalia Government would want them to stay.

On the second issue, I think Martin probably answered that question earlier, but what has happened is very intensive contacts in the last 24 hours or so — conversations that you probably heard referred to, with the Secretary-General and Secretary [John] Kerry and Foreign Minister [Sergey] Lavrov, on the side of the Secretary-General; several conversations with our Joint Special Representative, Lakhdar Brahimi, both today and yesterday. And we are, of course, commending this initiative. We have been waiting for it for a long time, and have pushed very hard for a negotiated transition, a negotiated process, because we see very much the risk that there is a belief that there could be a military victory.

First of all, we doubt whether a military victory is possible, particularly within the near future. And second, that the risks of an explosion of revenge could lead to an even worse situation. So, this is welcome. This is good news, that the US and Russia have come forward with this initiative. We now have, of course, challenges ahead of us, lots of work that has to be done.

The Secretary-General takes it very seriously and he has asked the Joint Special Representative to stay on and he has accepted to stay on, and we also have, of course, a strong team in the United Nations that works very intensely on this matter. We also hope now very, very much that all partners will seize this opportunity and really contribute to a political settlement, and that is the challenge that we will now have to mobilize everybody to go for the political road rather than a military road. I hope that we will now have momentum going in that direction. The Secretary-General is prepared to play the role that he is asked to do, and he sees his own responsibility and accepts that responsibility.

[On the Iranian] I have no knowledge, but I would be interested myself in finding out more.

Thank you very much.

For information media • not an official record

There's hope in Solomon Islands that the worst of the country's dengue outbreak is now over. .

The National Referral Hospital in Honiara says they've recorded a 50 per cent drop in dengue admissions since the outbreak started.

Although there's still concern about whether the hospital's blood bank has enough supplies to cope with such an outbreak.

So far the number of dengue-related deaths stands at six.

Presenter: Richard Ewart

Speaker: Alfred Dofai, director, National Medical Laboratory, Solomon Islands

Listen to the Audio: Hopes solomons dengue epidemic has peaked (Credit: ABC)

1. Marshall Islands - The Government has issued an elevated state of disaster due to the severe drought in northern parts of the country, affecting between 3,200 and 5,000 people. Assessments are ongoing and an UNDAC team has arrived in country. WASH is the priority as there is a priority need for safe drinking water.
   Source: OCHA

2. Papua New Guinea - Heavy floods have affected Southern Highlands Province where 32,000 have been affected, of whom 24,00 are cut off from receiving assistance due to washed out roads and bridges. 6,000 people in Western Highlands Province are also affected.
   Source: OCHA

3. Bangladesh, Myanmar, and India - A severe storm alert remains in effect as Tropical Cyclone Mahasen moves up the Bay of Bengal.
   Source: PDC, OCHA

4. Bangladesh - The death toll from the Rana Plaza factory collapse passed 1,100 as of 13 May. It is the largest industrial accident in Bangladesh's history.
   Source: Media

5. Solomon Islands - As of 8 May, over 4,800 cases of dengue have been reported. Six cases have resulted in death. The outbreak is ongoing with 88% of all reported cases in Honiara.
   Source: OCHA

6. India - Seasonal storms have caused landslides and wind-related damage in NE India. In Tripura 10 were killed and 40 injured by landslides. In Mizoram, a massive landslide killed 8, left 11 missing, and damaged homes, while heavy winds destroyed nearly 300 houses. Source: Sphere India, OCHA

7. Bangladesh - A severe local storm has killed 4 and affected 1,200 households in Bagerhat district.
   Source: OCHA

Precipitation Forecast - The latest forecasts predict above average levels of precipitation in the southern Philippines, as well as Borneo, Sulawesi, and Papua islands of Indonesia. Less than average rainfall is forecast throughout most of the South Pacific.
Source: IRI

Ongoing Emergencies:

China: Lushan Earthquake
Philippines: Typhoon Bopha
Myanmar: Rakhine State
Myanmar: Kachin State

Australia’s aid program will increase by $518 million in the 2013-14 budget to a record $5.7 billion – the equivalent of 0.37 per cent of gross national income (GNI) – the highest ODA/GNI level since 1985.

Foreign Minister Bob Carr said the Australian Government remained committed to increasing its aid budget to 0.5 per cent of GNI but this would be delayed to 2017-18 due to a write-dow in Government revenues.

The Asia-Pacific region remains the aid program’s highest priority, and will receive about 86 per cent of country specific aid in 2013-14.

New initiatives announced in the budget include $390.9 million over four years to help the Asia-Pacific region meet the Millennium Development Goals, which will provide:

– Over 1 million people with access to nutrient supplements and supplementary feeding programs; – 100,000 vision screenings and 10,000 sight-restoring surgeries to help lift some of the region’s most disadvantaged people out of poverty; – An additional 1.2 million children with improved access to a quality education; and – 900,000 women each year access to improved maternal and child health services.

The budget gives increased funding to key countries in the Asia-Pacific region including:

– Indonesia –from $541.6 million to $646.8 million; – Myanmar – from $64.2 million to $82.8 million; and – Fiji – from $49.2 million to $58.2 million.

Other funding initiatives include:

– $480.7 million over four years to continue Australia’s support to Solomon Islands during the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI) transition phase and to support key development programs in the law and justice, and governance sectors; – $2.1 million over two years to extend Australia’s commitment to the United Nations Mission in South Sudan; – $65.8 million over four years to implement key recommendations of the Expert Panel; and – $375 million for helping asylum seekers onshore in 2013-14.

This figure is capped to ensure predictability and effectiveness of the aid program.

HONIARA, Solomon Islands, May 15 2013 (IPS) - City and health authorities in the Solomon Islands, located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, are calling for effective and consistent urban waste management as they battle to control a serious outbreak of dengue fever, the world’s fastest spreading vector-borne viral disease, which was identified in the country in February.

This archipelago nation of more than 900 forest-covered islands, lying just east of Papua New Guinea, has since recorded over 4,200 suspected and over 1,000 confirmed cases, with six fatalities. The outbreak has impacted eight of nine provinces in the country of 552,000, with 88 percent of cases located in the capital, Honiara.

According to Dr. Tenneth Dalipanda, under-secretary for health improvement and chairman of the national dengue fever task force, the crisis has not yet peaked and the country is still in “active outbreak mode.”

Dengue fever is an infectious tropical virus transmitted to humans by the bite of female mosquitoes, which breed in clean, warm water. In urban and semi-urban areas, gutters, old tyres, plastic containers and refuse – in short, any items that have become water receptacles in close proximity to households – make excellent hatcheries for dengue-carrying mosquito larvae.

In the Solomon Islands dengue is associated predominantly with the Aedes albopictus and Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which bite during the day. The incubation period of the virus is typically four to 10 days, with symptoms including fever, headaches, nausea, a body rash and joint and muscle pain.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the global incidence of dengue has grown 30-fold during the past 50 years, reaching an estimated 50 million infections every year. Transmission of the disease is particularly rapid in high-density urban areas in tropical and sub-tropical climates, where mosquitoes proliferate during monsoonal seasons or following periods of heavy rainfall.

But according to Dalipanda, a dengue outbreak of this magnitude has never been seen in the Solomon Islands before.

A small outbreak of “type 2” dengue in 2002 resulted only in a very small number of cases, he told IPS.

“The current outbreak is the first in the country that we have a record of and the strain that we now have is a type 3 dengue virus, which is one of the more virulent,” he explained, adding there are some 500 cases per 10,000 residents in Honiara.

The capacity of the nation’s health services has been under strain and the main National Referral Hospital located in Honiara was closed to routine services until last week, as resources were diverted to cope with the disease emergency.

The government has established a national task force to coordinate a response to the outbreak, with Australia and New Zealand providing teams of specialised medical and public health staff to assist local authorities.

There is no known cure or vaccine for dengue, making prevention critical. So in March the government spearheaded a citywide cleanup campaign in Honiara to try and contain breeding sites.

Through a public awareness programme, households, businesses and residents across the city were advised on how to clear accumulated solid waste such as tin cans, coconut shells, plastic bags and containers, used tyres, buckets and tin drums, and instructed to remove or cover water containers. Honiara City Council Chief Health Inspector George Titiulu told IPS he had “longstanding” concerns about waste management and public health in the capital, since there is a strong link between the disease and urban refuse.

“The key mosquito breeding sites are (those areas) where the city’s waste collection services do not currently reach,” Titiulu said, referring to residential areas on the city’s periphery.

Population expansion coupled with rapid urbanisation in small Pacific Island nations has created major waste disposal challenges for the region.

Hand in hand with Honiara’s expansion has come an increasing volume of solid waste from shops, offices, markets and residential areas, while informal settlements mushrooming on the city’s boundary have now exceeded the capacity of service providers.

Thirty-five percent of the city’s population of 64,600, which is growing at an average annual rate of 2.7 percent, live in unplanned communities that have inadequate power, sanitation and garbage collection services, as well as a poor water supply.

The waste burden is even greater in the absence of recycling facilities in Honiara, although some agents collect aluminium cans for foreign recycling companies. The majority of organic, recyclable household waste, together with a great deal of plastic, is either burnt, discarded in coastal and land areas, or collected for landfill sites.

Acknowledging that the cleanup campaign likely prevented a steep increase in dengue cases, Dalipanda still feels its impact has not been adequate. “We would like to see the (incidence of cases) coming down.”

He confirmed that it was vital to continue vector-control measures such as managing and eliminating waste, covering water storage containers and applying insecticides, but warned that these should not be “one-off activities”.

“Different communities, institutions and ministries should become involved, because it is the only way we can break the cycle of the disease,” he emphasised.

The challenge has been taken up by the Honiara City Council, which recently submitted a 960,000-dollar proposal to the government to implement a comprehensive, yearlong garbage collection programme.

“This will be an integrated approach to waste management to include the cleaning of drains where rubbish collects, mass spraying and the social mobilisation of communities,” Titiulu elaborated.

“We want to work with those communities where services don’t reach and engage especially with youth to implement a (full-scale) cleanup of the city.”

But he stressed that the council, which currently only has three vehicles, will need funds, equipment and logistical support in order to carry out the plan. If successful, it could disrupt the breeding momentum of the mosquitoes and reduce the likelihood of outbreaks in the near future.

This report covers the period 1 January – 31 December 2012.

Overview

Pacific Red Cross national societies are community-based organizations. Support to improving the functioning of local Red Cross institutions, programmes and the resulting services, which then have an impact on vulnerable people, is at the heart of the Pacific regional office’s mandate. The Pacific regional office: - provides membership services to 13 recognized Red Cross national societies, including French Red Cross, and two societies currently still in formation in the Pacific region - develops capacities in preparedness and response, including responding to health needs during emergencies - promotes legal preparedness for disasters - provides tailored, integrated and consistent accompaniment to national society self-development - supports programming that is responsive to community-identified priorities and is delivered through a strong branch and volunteer network that is in touch with the needs of vulnerable people - encourages young people to become more active in leading and working in their national societies - develops a distinctive, authoritative and consistent IFRC regional voice that speaks out on behalf of vulnerable people, which influences and improves policy affecting vulnerability - improves institutional memory within the membership by sharing good practice and lessons learnt - supports Pacific national societies to contribute to global and regional policy and strategy - coordinates the work of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Movement in the region within the IFRC’s mandate - liaises and coordinates with non-Red Cross Red Crescent actors in disasters

1. Bangladesh - Tropical Storm Mahasen struck southern districts on 16 May. The Joint Needs Assessment (JNA) is ongoing and preliminary findings are due to be presented tomorrow (21 May). 17 people have reportedly lost their lives, JNA results will provide a better understand of the impact of the cyclone on shelter and livelihoods.
   Source: PDC, OCHA Flash Update No. 7

2. Myanmar - 120,000 people, mainly IDPs, were relocated in expectation of Tropical Storm Mahasen. Assessments have been conducted in affected areas and the humanitarian community is responding to the identified needs.
   Source: OCHA Flash Update No. 7

3. Sri Lanka - Heavy rain and flooding caused by Tropical Storm Mahasen has killed eight, most in Central Province, and affected nearly 12,000. 150 houses were destroyed. Central and Sabaragamuwa are the worst affected areas.
   Source: OCHA, GoSL

4. China - Flooding and landslides across 10 southern provinces have killed more than 50 people, with at least 16 still missing. Guangdong province has been hardest hit, with nearly 900,000 people affected after days of heavy rain. Media reports indicate that teams of relief workers have been sent to oversee the recovery efforts in the hardest hit areas.
   Source: Media

5. Marshall Islands - Approximately 6,600 people are living in drought affected atolls. Strategic response plans have been developed for the Food Secuiryt, Health, and WASH clusters. Weather forecasts predict that dry conditions will persist in drought affected areas.
   Source: OCHA Sitrep No. 2

6. Papua New Guinea - More than 20,000 people in Southern Highlands Province and an additional 6,000 in Western Highlands Province have been affected by heavy rains. One person has been killed.
   Source: OCHA

7. Solomon Islands - As of 15 May, nearly 5,300 cases of dengue have been reported. Six cases have resulted in death. The outbreak is ongoing, however the number of cases reported last week (442) is the lowest weekly total reported to date. 86% of all reported cases are in Honiara.
   Source: OCHA

8. Indonesia - Approximately 2,800 people were displaced following the eruption of Mt. Rokatenda on 14 May.
   Source: OCHA

Precipitation Forecast - The latest forecasts predict above average levels of precipitation across Indonesia. Less than average rainfall is forecasted throughout most of the South Pacific, particularly Nauru. There is also a chance of less than average rainfall in Myanmar, around Yangon.

Source: IRI

Ongoing Emergencies:
Philippines: Typhoon Bopha Myanmar: Rakhine State Myanmar: Kachin State

Posted at 03:29 on 21 May, 2013 UTC

Residents of Santa Cruz island in the Solomon Islands province hit by earthquakes and a tsunami in February have been forced to return to their flattened coastal settlement.

Read the full article on Radio New Zealand International

Human Rights Council
Twenty-third session
Agenda item 3
Promotion and protection of all human rights, civil,
political, economic, social and cultural rights,
including the right to development

Summary

In the present report, the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and consequences, examines the situation of violence against women in Solomon Islands. including violence perpetrated within the family and the community, violence perpetrated between 1998 and 2003 (during “the tensions”) and violence relating to the development of extractive industries. She also examines the State’s legislative and institutional responses to such violence, and makes recommendations thereon.

The Vanuatu Daily Post reports on valuable disaster preparedness work Caritas Australia is supporting in the Solomon Islands.

Twenty Teachers from kindergartens around Efate, Solomon Islands, spent a week learning what to do if there is a tsunami, earthquake, flood or cyclone.

The training, called ‘Disaster Risk Management for Early Childhood Education’, was funded and conducted by Caritas Solomon to teach these early childhood teachers the right response during disasters in the future.

The main theme of the training was “listen to the teacher" - teacher is responsible for students at school.

The training emphasises the importance of teachers putting the safety of their students first when disaster strikes.

In a natural disaster, teachers were trained to firstly check to see if all children are safe by calling names from their rollcall book before contacting parents for immediate evacuation.

The training also emphasised the role that parents and communities play in being well-prepared for disasters, particularly the importance of parent training and the use of cyclone-tracking maps in homes and communities.

At the end of the training, teachers were divided into four groups under names; cyclone, flood, earthquake and tsunami. They demonstrated to the audiences what each disaster meant and what a teacher should do through role-playing and song.

Caritas in the Solomon Islands works in partnership with Caritas Australia to provide relief and development assistance to communities affected by natural diasters, poverty, political instability and violence.

1. Bangladesh - Tropical Storm Mahasen struck southern districts on 16 May. The Joint Needs assessment (JNA) identified unment needs in shelter, WASH and livelihoods in Patuakali, Bhola and Barguna. The govt and humanitarian partners have started responding and further assessments are being conducted. Source: PDC, OCHA

2. Myanmar - Inter-agency teams concluded post- storm assessments of evacuation camps and found that no IDP locations suffered storm related damage. The majority of IDPs temporary relocated in preparation for Tropical Storm Mahasen, returned to their camps and host communities by 18 May with only a few communities in rural Sittwe and Pauktaw remaining in the temporary relocation sites. As of 22 May, community leaders from Nget Chaung Camp, currently located in Sin Tet Mau village, indicated that none of the approximately 7,200 individuals intended to volunteer to return to their pre-cyclone camp location until the rainy season had passed. the international community will continue to provide assistance to all IDPs in their current location and will monitor the situation. Source: OCHA

3. India - 3,000 people and 30,000 Livestock are affected by heavy snowfall in the eastern part of Leh district. The govt is responding. Source: Sphere India

4. China - Some provinces in central and southern China have been affected by wind storm, hail and flooding, the worst hit provinces are Guandong and Hunan. As of 19 May, 1.48 million people have been affected in Guandong, 41 people died, 11 missing, 157,000 people were evacuated. 8600 houses collapsed. As of 20 May, 788,000 people have been affected in Hunan, 5 people died, 90,000 people were evacuated or in need of emergency support. 5,100 houses collapsed. Emergency disaster relief responses were initiated by China's National Committee for Disaster Reduction as heavy rain continued to batter most parts of the country. Source: Red cross, Media

5. Marshall Islands - 6,384 people are living in 13 drought affected atolls. Four clusters (Food, Security, Health, Logistics, and WASH) have been established to support coordination of the Emergency Operations Centre. Strategic response plans have been developed by the Foods Security, Health and WASH clusters. Drought conditions persist in the northern Marshall Islands. Very dry weather is expected during the next few weeks in the northern atolls. Source: OCHA Sitrep No. 3

6. Solomon Islands – As of 24 May, nearly 5,569 cases of dengue have been reported. ( 315 additional cases from last week). Six cases have resulted in death. The outbreak is caused by dengue virus serotype3. 86% of all reported cases are in Honiara. Outside of Honiara, Guadalcanal, Malaita and Western Province are still the most affected provinces however all report fewer cases this week. Helena Goldie hospital in Munda reports 21 cases this week. Preliminary results from Singapore identified dengue virus serotype 3 in 8 samples and dengue virus serotype 1 in a single sample. Source: OCHA

• As of 24 May, nearly 5,569 cases of dengue have been reported (315 additional cases from last week).

• Six cases have resulted in death. 86% of all cases reported were in Honiara.

1. Myanmar - Police reported that three women were shot dead and four other people were wounded in Parein village, Mrauk-U Township, in a confrontation with security officials. Source: OCHA

2. Marshall Islands - Drought conditions persist in the northern Marshall Islands. The Marshall Island gov finalized a US$ 4.7 million response plan. A significant funding gap remains for lifesaving needs identified in the plan. Source: OCHA Sitrep

3. Solomon Islands - The 6.1M tremor hit the Santa Cruz Islands, where a tsunami left at least 10 people dead in February. There was no immediate tsunami warning issued. Source: USGS, PDC

Precipitation Forecast - The latest forecasts predict above average levels of precipitation across Indonesia. Less than average rainfall is forecasted throughout most of the South Pacific, particularly Nauru. There is also a chance of less than average rainfall in Myanmar, around Yangon. Source: IRI

This issue brings news of new ventures in the Solomon Islands - water supply restoration, training for kindergarten teachers, and technical training. Two Mahitahi volunteers are also heading to the Solomons on computer/information technology and building projects.

The Winter issue also provides an update on Cyclone Evan in Samoa, housing concerns in New Zealand, and a big thanks to those who gave so generously to this year’s Lent Appeal. There's also news of a wooden ornament/fundraiser depicting Caritas values of 'working together'.

A large joint contingent of Australian and American personnel are onboard HMAS Tobruk to participate in Pacific Partnership, an annual US-sponsored humanitarian and civic assistance mission aimed at strengthening international relationships with partner and host nations in the Asia-Pacific.

One hundred military medical and engineering personnel are embarked in HMAS Tobruk as part of the seven-week deployment to Papua New Guinea.

The personnel will travel to the townships of Wewak and Vanimo to administer medical, dental, veterinary and engineering aid. Tobruk’s Army detachment also loaded with approximately 100 tonnes of medical and engineering cargo for the mission.

Commanding Officer, Commander Leif Maxfield, said the deployment was a superb opportunity to use Tobruk’s strengths as a heavy lift ship to deliver significant aid to our regional neighbour.

“This sort of mission delivers enormous benefit to some of our closest regional neighbours and completing this kind of deployment with Japan, New Zealand and the United States, adds confidence to our ability to respond to disasters in the Pacific region”, he said.

“Tobruk was built for this type of task and it is not her first deployment as a part of Pacific Partnership. I’m very glad to see her and her crew hard at work getting the job done with our embarked personnel.”

In addition to HMAS Tobruk’s deployment to Papua New Guinea, JDS Yamagiri of the Japanese Self Defence Force will provide personnel and a helicopter.

Additionally the USS Pearl Harbor of the United States Navy will deploy to Samoa, Tonga and the Marshall Islands and HMZNS Canterbury provides aid to Kiribati and Solomon Islands.

While in Wewak and Vanimo Australian Defence Force medical personnel will work with their counterparts from the United States Army and United States Navy to provide medical and dental aid, conduct clinics and health fairs for locals, and liaise with local medical practitioners.

An engineering group from the Australian Army’s 6th Engineering Support Regiment will work with members of the United States Navy’s Amphibious Construction Battalion from San Diego to conduct maintenance, repairs and refurbishment to schools, used by nearly 5000 children in Vanimo and Wewak.

Volunteers from Tobruk’s crew will also refurbish sports facilities and public buildings for the two remote townships which have a combined population of approximately 40,000 people.

For Leading Aircraftwoman Carlie Power from 3 Aero Medical Squadron at RAAF Base Amberley, the opportunity to deploy overseas in her role as a medic was what she had been looking forward to her whole career.

“I’ve always wanted to complete a humanitarian mission and do my job in the field.” “This is my first experience outside of my home unit and working within the Navy medical platform”, she said.

“It’s good to have some exposure to rotary wing aero medical capability.”

“Having exposure to the different capabilities and equipment that the Americans have brought with them is interesting as well their application of resources and making friends is just a great bonus.”

The mission marks the eighth year of Australian participation, being held annually by the US Pacific Fleet since the devastating Boxing Day tsunami in 2004.

Pacific Partnership builds upon the extensive support Defence already provides in the Pacific, including maritime surveillance, police and military training, explosive ordnance disposal and infrastructure development.

The Pacific Regional ERW Workshop is jointly hosted by ICBL-CMC member organisation Safe Ground (recently renamed from the Australian Network to Ban Landmines and Cluster Munitions), and the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat with support from AusAID.

Nine Pacific Island countries remain heavily contaminated with explosive remnants of war (ERW), including limited landmine and cluster munition contamination – a dangerous and long lasting legacy from WWII. The affected islands are Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, the Federated States of Micronesia, Tuvalu and Nauru.

Of the Pacific Island Forum countries, two countries – Micronesia & Tonga – have yet to join Mine Ban Treaty, and the Marshall Islands, a signatory to the Treaty, has yet to accede. With respect to the Convention on Cluster Munitions, six countries have yet to join the Convention, namely, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, and signatory Palau has yet to accede.

Building on the regional meeting on the ‘Implementation of the Pacific Islands Forum Unexploded Ordnance (UXO) Strategy’, which took place in Palau last October, the Brisbane workshop is expected to foster a regional approach to the problem of ERW and encourage states to come on board the Mine Ban Treaty and the Convention on Cluster Munitions.