COM-FSM Registration For Summer 2014 TORAAQ, Yap (Media Division) — The College of Micronesia-FSM, Yap Campus is informing students that registration for summer 2014 will be on the 11th and 12th of June, 2014 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM. First day of instruction will be on June 16th, and last day for late registration is June 18th, 2014. Additional $5.00 fee is charged for late registration. For additional information, contact the Yap Campus at Tel: (691)350-2296/5149 Sea Transportation Office Delays Trip COLONIA, Yap (Media Division) — The Division of Sea Transportation has issued a statement late Tuesday, May 27, 2014 regarding a slight change on the departure of the MV Hapilmohol for a long field trip to all the Neighboring Islands of Yap State. This long field trip was scheduled to depart from port on Wednesday, May 28, 2014 at 6:00 PM; however, due to the incomplete installation and other necessary work on a generator, the SeaTrans had decided to postpone the trip until such a time the new parts of the generator have been installed and test run by the ship crew. The generator parts have just arrived inYap from Wuhan, China over the weekend. The next departure date for the MV Hapilmohol will be made available soon once confirmation is received from the ship crew that the generator is running smoothly. Passengers who have booked for the trip are advised to look out for any new development on the schedule. For more information, contact SeaTrans at Tel: (691)350-2403/3668. FSM Presidents State Of The Union Address To Be Broadcasted COLONIA, Yap (Media Division) — The four States in the Federation have been notified by the FSM Public Information Office about the State of the Nation address in which President Manny Mori will deliver before the FSM Congress in their Chamber on Thursday, May 29, 2014 at 10:00 AM Pohnpei time and 9:00 AM Yap time. Each State radio stations will provide live coverage of that event for the benefit of their people who will be tuning in to the President as he discusses the status of the country. FSMTC, Yap Branch and V6AI Radio will work together to make sure that this very important message gets to the people in the State of Yap. For listeners in Yap State who wish to catch the live broadcast at 9:00 AM Yap time, please be advised to tune in on frequency 1494 AM Radio. FSM Dept. Of Education Puts On CTE Training Of Trainers Workshop PALIKIR, FSM (FSM NDOE/FSMIS, May 27, 2014) — In response to the directives of the Chief Executive Counsel Communiqué of 2008 and FACSSO Resolution No. 13-1 of 2013 which aim at meeting Strategic Goal No. 3 of the Nation’s Strategic Development Plan (SDP), the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Education has been developing Career Guidance and Counseling materials for the high schools in the FSM. In addition to a series of activities regarding development of career and technical education in the nation and development of guidance and counseling materials, a Career and Technical Education (CTE) Training of Trainers Workshop was conducted at the National Special Education Office in Kolonia on May 19-23, 2014. The 41 participants included high school principals, counselors, CTE/VocEd and regular education teachers, SpEd teachers, VocEd and academic education counselors, and State CTE Coordinators. Other participants included representatives of the State DOE, COM-FSM CTE, WSD&T and the Bridging Gap Specialists for Chuuk and Kosrae. The focus of the workshop was to provide the participants the knowledge and skills to implement the High School Guidance and Counseling Guides for each state which included the following job-site guides; Job Shadow Guide for sophomores, Mentoring Guide for juniors and Practicum Guide for seniors. The participants were given the tools to conduct program and result evaluations. The Program Evaluation will measure how well each of the guides is implemented. The Result Evaluation will measure the impact of the guides on students’ achievement, attendance and behavior. Such results will be reported to the NDOE, the national leadership, the SDOE, the state leadership and other stakeholders in the FSM. And lastly, the participants practiced developing CTE lessons that are aligned with the FSM CTE Standards that are found in the FSM Career Education Standards and the FSM Career and Technical Education Standards for Secondary Schools. For inquiry, call the Department at 320-2609 or email [email protected]. FSM Congress Sets FY14 Estimated Domestic Revenue At Nearly $70 Million PALIKIR, FSM (FSMIS, May 27, 2014) — As mandated by specific parts of Title 55 of the Code of the Federated States of Micronesia, the FSM Congress adopted a resolution on May 20th that sets the ceiling for total funds estimated to be available in domestic revenue this fiscal year 2014. Congressional Resolution 18-163 states that an amount of $69,098,221 is estimated to be available from domestic revenue during this fiscal year ending September 30, 2014, in addition to an amount of $3,512,158 under funds from the Amended Compact of Free Association with the United States. This estimated amount exceeds the FY14 domestic revenue projection submitted by the President to Congress on April 2, 2013 by approximately $14.8 million. Historically, the actual revenue collection has exceeded projections and by a wide margin in recent years... Overall, the $54 million domestic revenue projection is not only realistic and achievable but is more on the conservative side, President Mori expressed in his FY14 budget transmittal letter. The recent increase in domestic revenue has been mostly attributed to funds increase realized from Fishery Agreements and tax fees from Major Corporations. In the FY15 budget request submitted to Congress last month, the President asked for a $15 million to be set aside as what has been termed 2023 Investment Fund, an amount he has urged Congress to make available for such fund each year leading to 2023. This amount matches the difference between the revenue projection of April 2013 and what Congress now sets as achievable domestic revenue this fiscal year. For inquiry, email [email protected]. President Mori Submits Proposed Amendment To Lower Requirement In Order To Ratify An Amendment To The FSM Constitution PALIKIR, FSM (FSMIS, May 28, 2014) — On May 22nd, Federated States of Micronesia President Manny Mori transmitted to Congress a proposed amendment to Section 1 of Article XIV of the FSM Constitution. The proposal is to lower the vote required to ratify an amendment to the FSM Constitution from a 75 percent of votes cast in 3/4 of the States to 60 percent of votes in 3/4 of the States. The President wrote, Although a bill was introduced in Congress (17th Congress) on September 11, 2013, I regret that there has been no action taken on the bill and no committee report filed. If it is approved by the 18th Congress, the constitutional amendment is required to be placed on the ballot, preferably in the March 2015 national election. At the recently concluded State and National Leadership Conference on May 22nd to 23rd, the very issue was part of the agenda. The FSM Department of Justice did a presentation on the proposal showing that this particular constitutional requirement needs revisiting as demographic situations have drastically changed since the supreme law went into effect in 1979. At the meeting, many of the Leaders expressed that the required percentage might have been set at a very difficult, allowing minority control over the preference of a significant majority for too long. Effective public education is required to prepare the Nation to make an intelligent decision on an issue of transcendental importance. In this regard, it becomes imperative for the national Government to set aside sufficient time a resources to organize and prepare the necessary logistics, President Mori further indicated. For more information, contact the Public Information Office at 320-2548 or email [email protected]. CNMI Governor Calls On U.S. Air Force To ‘Keep Past Promises’ SAIPAN, CNMI (Saipan Tribune/PIR, May 28 2014) — Gov. Eloy S. Inos has called on the U.S. Air Force anew to place its planned divert airfield on Tinian, saying the continued insistence on the use of Saipan creates an impression in CNMI people’s minds and hearts that this military branch has no real intention of keeping past promises by the United States government of being good neighbors or stewards of the land. Such negative impression, the governor said, will not bode well for the Marines, the Navy, or the Army, which all want to hold additional training in the CNMI related to the Asian pivot. As of this week, the Air Force has not decided yet where to put an alternative landing base if Andersen Air Force Base in Guam becomes unavailable because of weather or war. Gen. Herbert C. Carlisle, commander of the Pacific Air Forces or COMPACAF, told Inos that National Defense Authorization Act funding could be put at-risk if no progress is made on the location of the divert airfield. Inos, in response, said the CNMI does not want that to happen. However, if by this time in the process, the Air Force is not certain about the viability of the Tinian location, then we fully understand the Air Force’s desire to explore other options to establish locational capability outside of the CNMI, the governor said in his May 21 response letter to Carlise, a copy of which was obtained yesterday. Rep. Ray Tebuteb (Ind-Saipan), in an interview yesterday, said at the end of the day, the military will be the one to decide where it needs to place the divert airfield. Tebuteb authored a resolution supporting the placement of a proposed divert airfield on Saipan. His House Resolution 18-52, prefiled in January this year, remains with the Committee on Foreign and Federal Relations. The Air Force proposes to improve an existing airfield through the construction of facilities and infrastructure in the western Pacific to support one aircraft squadron and about 500 support personnel for periodic exercises, emergency, and humanitarian assistance. Tebuteb said if the divert facilities are on Saipan, the project will require the lease of public lands resulting in income to the CNMI. However, if it’s placed on Tinian, federal lease-back lands will be used, he said. Inos earlier said the Air Force’s request to lease 33 acres of land on Saipan for the next 50 years for a proposed divert airfield is quite an undesirable conclusion as it would impede future commercial development in the area. On Tinian, two-thirds of lands are already leased to the military. Carlisle provided Inos on May 7 with a copy of the Air Force’s report submitted to the U.S. House and Senate Armed Services Committee concerning the divert and exercise project. Two weeks later, the U.S. House passed the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2015 that includes Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan’s (Ind-MP) one-page amendment to expand the existing authorization for a proposed U.S. Air Force divert airfield construction project at any suitable location in the Northern Mariana Islands. Tebuteb said Sablan’s amendment gives the Air Force flexibility where to put the airfield, and not necessarily on Tinian. The governor, however, reiterates that placing the divert airfield on Tinian is in the long-term best interest of both the Air Force and the CNMI. He said the Tinian alternative can fully satisfy all the mission requirements set out in the assessment work completed to date. If, as suggested, the actual use of the divert airfield will be slight, then the Air Force can surely co-exist with the Marines on Tinian, Inos said, and use the West Field as its operations location. Inos cited other indirect benefits if Tinian is chosen as location of the divert airfield. For example, with respect to the overall militarization ongoing in the CNMI, the fact that the citizens and residents of Tinian support and are prepared to welcome the Air Force to that island should be re-assessed and evaluated, he told Carlisle. The governor said one could argue that the Air Force has improperly discounted or failed to calculate the true worth that should be given to that fundamental fact. Moreover, he said, if the Air Force is to become the first active military force doing work in the CNMI, he would hope that the Air Force would do so in such a way as to create goodwill and a spirit of cooperation between the CNMI and the U.S. Department of Defense. The Air Force is uniquely positioned to select a location from which long-lasting military activities in our islands will occur. The Tinian location presents a situation where military activities are welcome, Inos said. The governor said the people of Tinian have labored under economic duress for U.S. military development of the property already under lease for the 40 years. For the Air Force to now argue that the initial costs are just too high to develop the property, which was expressly acquired for military purposes so many decades ago, is not well-taken. Worse, I fear the Air Force’s insistence upon Saipan as the only location for this initiative is creating an impression in the minds and hearts of the people of the Northern Mariana Islands that the Air Force has no real intention of keeping past promises made by the United States government of being good neighbors or stewards of the land, he said. Combining the Air Force and Marines initiatives on Tinian, he said, makes better economic and common sense in the long run while at the same time resulting in the greatest benefit to the people of the CNMI. Doing this also honors the commitment in Section 806 of the Covenant between the CNMI and the U.S., where the latter agrees to recognize and respect the scarcity and special importance of land in the CNMI, Inos said. As governor, I am under an affirmative duty to properly manage and protect the limited public land we have available for future generations and growth. Under the circumstances, it must be recognized that the initial startup cost should not necessarily be the controlling determinative factor when major decisions involving the public interest must be made, he added. The governor hopes that the CNMI and the Air Force can continue the discussion. He reiterated that should the Air Force decide that Tinian is the more appropriate location, then his administration is prepared to give its full support and undertake actions needed to push the project. Meanwhile, Sablan’s amendment to the 2015 NDAA would permit expenditure of funds on Tinian in the event that the Air Force and the CNMI agree that Tinian is the appropriate location for a divert airfield. The authorized $29.3 million would construct an aircraft parking apron, a maintenance facility, and a hazardous cargo pad. Guam Kicks Off Fundraising For Festival Of The Pacific Arts Committee Hopes To Raise $2 Million Of $13 Million Budget HAGÅTÑA, Guam (MV Guam Edition/PIR, May 28, 2014) — Organizers of the Festival of the Pacific Arts have estimated a working budget of $13 million to host 26 island nations for the festival in 2016 on Guam. Theresa Arriola, event chairwoman, said $11 million of the $13 million will come from the local government or company sponsorships, which leaves about $2 million for the committee to come up with through various fundraising events and sponsorships. Arriola said she is optimistic about the amount the committee could raise and said $2 million in two years is a manageable goal. We have established a working budget of $13 million; $5 million of that will come from the government appropriations; $6 million we’re looking at in-kind contributions from the government as well as the private sector, Arriola said. So far, two companies have already pledged support. United Airlines has been named the official airline service of the festival and Bank of Guam has been recognized the official bank sponsor of the festival. Arriola said both companies have pledged $100,000 each. The committee also launched its first community fundraiser last night, entitled Dinanña Kotturan Guahan. Though it started late, the fundraiser served as a preview of what can be expected during FestPac 2016. Arriola said the event featured cultural performances, local art and local foods. It’s not even close to what the plans are in 2016, Arriola said. It’s a glimpse of what Guam will do. Arriola said the FestPac organizing committee hoped to collect about $20,000 from the event and nearly made it. The event chairwoman also said most of the tickets for last night’s event were sold prior to the doors opening at 6 p.m. Despite a stacked social calendar, Arriola said the committee was able to sell enough tickets and collect an amount very, very close to $20,000. The details of the next fundraiser have not been finalized. Arriola said the plan is for another group of island cultures to preview their FestPac performances and artwork in the same way as last night’s Dinanña Kotturan Guahan event. The next fundraiser is expected to occur in the latter part of this year. It’s a daunting task and the festival is not a GVB event; it’s not a government event; it’s not a private sector event. It really is all of us pulling together, Arriola said. The wonderful thing about the festival is that it’s the island’s event – Guam is hosting. She added that the last time an event this large was held on Guam was the South Pacific Games hosted in 1999. Arriola said it won’t be for another few decades that Guam will host an event of this stature and said it is an exciting time in the island’s history. This is the first time Guam is hosting a cultural, international festival, she said. The 12th annual Festival of Pacific Arts will run from May 22 through June 4, 2016. About 2,500 performers, artists and cultural practitioners are expected to showcase the unique cultures of the 26 other island nations within the Pacific. Thousands of festival attendees are also expected, a statement from FestPac said. The festival is held every four years. The 11th Annual FestPac was held in the Solomon Islands in 2012. Participants are expected from American Samoa, Australia, Cook Islands, Easter Island, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji Islands, French Polynesia, Hawaii, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna. Fisheries Plundered Off The Pacific Islands PACIFIC OCEAN, Oceania (Radio Australia, May 27, 2014) — Two-thirds of the Pacific Islands communities could run out of fish to feed their populations within 15 years. The concern is over both inshore and deep ocean fisheries that are not sustainable. The warning comes as the Pacific Islands prepare to talk tuna fisheries management in Samoa in early July. Dr. Quentin Hanich, fisheries governance program leader at the Australian National Centre for Ocean Resources and Security, says 60 per cent of the worlds tuna comes from the Pacific, and there are big boats with large capacity to remove stocks. The tuna species are albacore, skipjack, big eye and yellow fin. Some of the worlds biggest fishing boats from Spain, 500 feet long, for example, will fish for those tuna. When you manage that fishery you need to make it sustainable, but then youve also got to start prioritizing where you want to feed. If you need to worry about food security for a small island country that doesnt have many other opportunities, you need to priorities what youre going to feed them, whereas perhaps its not quite so important to get fish onto the market of a Los Angeles restaurant if they can also eat cattle or sheep. Dr. Hanich says Australians should look for sustainably caught tuna to help the Islanders. Skipjack tuna that comes to you in a can, thats fine. You should eat that, its healthy and some money goes back to the Pacific Islander community. But he warns people should check the tuna fishing technique doesnt catch too many sharks, or too many juvenile fish. Gleaning for fish An age-old practice in the Pacific Islands is gleaning, but its become unsustainable because of population growth. Youll be sitting on a beach somewhere and all the kids and women come out and glean; which is basically sitting on the sand with a teaspoon and maybe some Tupperware and collecting shells out of the sand, making a soup out of that, Dr. Hanich said. Netting is popular and also traps. In Kiribati, youll see complex coral rock traps that will herd the fish in at high tide and then at low tide, theyll go in and get them. He says small boats now have outboard motors that can enable local fishermen to exploit stocks further out. Hes also concerned about shore fisheries like snapper. Traditionally that was sustainable, but now that commercial Asian markets have been developed, this long-lived species is not coping. Lack of management combined with overpopulation is creating some serious challenges. In some countries, we can see opportunities where we can see them move into oceanic tuna fisheries. But Dr .Hanich says that has to be well managed. Kiribati, Solomons and Vanuatu project Fisheries research Dr. Quentin Hanich works on an Australian aid program through ACIAR of $3.7 million to help Pacific Islanders manage their fish stocks better as they face challenges like population pressure, climate change and foreign fishing boats. The Secretariat of the Pacific Community has estimated that 75 per cent of the Pacific Island coastal fisheries will not meet food security needs by 2030 because of population growth, overfishing and inadequate national distribution networks. Over the time that hes been working in Kiribati, Dr. Danich has noticed big projects dont work as well as small community-based projects. In North Tarawa, in Kiribati, the bone fish is being overfished. Too many people catching them at the wrong time, when theyre aggregating for breeding. If you ask the locals theyll tell you the best time to fish, so they can help you develop the conservation management methods. Climate change is the ever-present threat, but Dr. Hanich says resilience is the key. The only way to survive the next 100 years of climate change is to strengthen the resilience of these communities to maintain their food security and minimize the impacts of climate change on these communities. For example, coral bleaching may reduce the productivity of a coastal fishery, so locals should be allowed to develop an oceanic tuna fishery just offshore. If Australia doesnt help improve management, Dr. Hanich says, theres a real risk some Pacific Islands states will become failed states and the only way out will be emigration.
Posted on: Thu, 29 May 2014 08:56:28 +0000
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