NATIONAL Court judge David Cannings opted for “a safety first approach” yesterday when he refused to grant an application by Ramu NiCo to lift the interim court injunction he had granted in March to stop offshore construction of the deep sea tailings placement (DSTP) system, The Nationalreports,
Instead, he extended the injunction until Dec 21, the trial date for the substantive case by five Basamuk plaintiffs – Eddie Tarsie, Farina Siga, Peter Sel, Sama Melambo and Pommern Inc Land Group.
Cannings ruled that there was no material change in circumstances, as was sought by Ramu NiCo which had also failed to provide sufficiently evidence to prove that the trial was delayed due to failure on the plaintiffs’ part.
The March injunction meant that all preparatory or construction work on DSTP system had stopped, including all and any damage or disturbance either directly or indirectly to the offshore environment such as coral blasting, popping of dead or live coral and laying of pipes pending the substantive hearing.
Cannings said he was not convinced that waste would not be discharged into the seas if construction of the DSTP was allowed to proceed pending the substantive hearing.
Happy
birthday to my beloved wife and our Mum, Hula Debe Nalu, who would have
turned 34 today, but left us so alone and tragically on Easter Sunday,
March 23, 2008.
Memories of the time we have spent together will be cherished forever.
With never-ending love from Malum and our four young children Malum Jr (9), Gedi (8), Moasing (6) and Keith (3).
Do not stand at my grave and weep,I am not there, I do not sleep.
I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glint on snow.
I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the gentle autumn rain.
When you wake in the morning hush,I am the swift, uplifting rush Of quiet birds in circling flight.
Women
in Kutubu, Southern Highlands, have all the
reason to smile as they now own two rice milling machines to boost local
production.
History
was made last Friday when the first gains of white rice poured out of one of
the brand new machines during the launch at Pimaga government station under the
watchful eyes of over 2,000 farmers, mostly women from Foe, Faso and Moran
areas.
Oil Search Ltd
community affairs officer Paul Sapake (right) and Kutubu Foe Women's
Association president Naomi Samuel cutting the ribbon to officially launch two
rice milling machines at Pimaga in Kutubu.-Pictures
by SENIORL ANZU
Oil
Search Ltd, a resource developer in the oil and gas rich Southern
Highlands province, handed over the two machines to the local
women.
Interest
for local rice production had gained momentum after the Kutubu Foe Women’s
Association (KFWA) started planting rice from upland rice seeds which they
received from NARI Lae in 2008 during the launch of the PNG Women in
Agriculture Development Foundation (PNGDiADF).
In the last few years, more farmers joined to
farm rice, including members of the Namoi Namo Women’s Association (Faso) and
Moran Women’s Association.
However,
a major hurdle was the lack of milling facilities which prompted KFWA, a member
of the PNGWiADF, to seek support from possible avenues.
Through
the PNGWiADF, the Department of Agriculture and Livestock provided a huge Satake
rice milling machine, valued between K30-40, 000, to KFWA.
OSLdonated
another machine, a micro-mill, worth more than K7, 000.
First
dish of milled rice pouring out of a brand new micro-mill at Pimaga in Kutubu
last Friday from upland farming by women farmers from Foe, Faso and Moran areas
OSL
facilitated the transportation of both machines to Kutubu.
The
oil and gas developer, in partnership with Moro-based NGO, Community
Development Initiative Foundation, also sourced resource people from NARI and
PNGWiADF from Lae and ChristianLeadersTrainingCollege in Banz to train
interested rice farmers on field production and milling.
This
training was conducted last week for more than 100 interested rice farmers.
During
the launch, Kosi Sosoro, chairman of Kawaso Ltd, who witnessed the event,
presented K2, 000 each to the three women’s
associations from Kutubu.
OSL
community affairs officers, Paul Sapake and Marc Mulungu, commended the Foe
women for taking the initiative to venture into rice production.
Accolades
also came from CDI-Moro manager Peter John, PNGWiADF president Maria Linibi and
Dr Peter Gendua of NARI.
KFWA
president Naomi Samuel said sago, which took 15-20 years to grow, had been
their staple food all their lives.
She
said the process of extracting sago was laborious and performed mostly by
women, hence, her group had opted for rice to shorten food maturity period and
also supplement household food intake.
Samuel
said the group was aiming to produce large volumes of rice to supply to
catering companies in the project areas.
She
called on mothers from Faso and Moran to cultivate rice and mill them using the
two machines.
The
historical occasion was witnessed by representatives from Esso Highlands,
landowner companies, government representatives, community leaders, NGOs,
school children and farmers.
The
realignment of agricultural extension systems such as the Smallholder Support
Services Expansion Project (SSSEP) with the National Agriculture Development
Plan (NADP), DSP 2030 and Vision 2050 will further strengthen and boost
agriculture productivity and development.
Department
of Agriculture and Livestock deputy secretary for technical services, Francis
Daink, said this in Lae when opening the SSSEP Inception Workshop today.
Delegates from Eastern Highlands provincial administration and SSCF Unit
discuss their strategy before the workshop.-Pictures by JOY WOKTAMUL, SSCF
Unit, Lae
Daink
called on all the stakeholders involved with the SSSEP and in the realignment
process to work closely to achieve these objectives.
He
said this was a government direction that needed to be carried out and urged
all partners to make positive contributions.
One
of the pillars in the Vision 2050 relates to wealth creation focusing on
amongst other renewable resources, the agriculture sector, whilst DSP 2030
considered agriculture as one of the important sectoral strategies through
economic corridors concept and NADP based its key programmes on enhanced
productivity, research and extension, food and nutrition security,
agro-forestry, human capacity and information improvement.
The
SSSEP concept now being introduced into two new provinces, Central and Chimbu,
looks at research and extension for development, innovations, human capacity
development and others.
Daink
told the workshop participants that their positive and valued contributions
would assist in ensuring that the realignment process would bring good results
for the SSSEP so that it was successfully implemented in the provinces.
Morobe province’s deputy administrator for
corporate affairs, Geoving Bilong, said the SSSEP concept, trialed in Morobe
and Eastern Highlands provinces could be
successfully introduced and implemented into the current delivery of extension
services.
He
said the concept had been successful in these provinces and believed that it
could also improve extension services in Central and Chimbu provinces.
He said in Morobe, many farmers who went through
the pilot phase of SSSEP said that it had had a positive impact in their
livelihoods.
Bilong
said due to its overwhelming success, the SSSEP should be extended to other
provinces. He thanked the New
Zealand government through NZAID for
contributing over K3 million for the expansion phase.
The
Lae workshop was attended by officers from Morobe, Eastern
Highlands, Chimbu, Central, Department of Agriculture and Livestock,
Department of National Planning and Monitoring and NZAID.
Smallholder
Support Contract Facility staff from Morobe, Eastern Highlands and project
coordination unit in Port Moresby
facilitated the two-day workshop.
The
issues discussed included the implementation approach, implementation schedule,
logical framework, monitoring, and status of inception report, management
information systems, service provider associations, and gender
mainstreaming.
A
10-year strategic plan is to be launched as part of the government’s efforts to
combat the spread of the cocoa pod borer (CPB) infestation in the country.
Relevant
government agencies will work closely with the private sector, provinces,
industry groups and farmers to implement the strategic plan as from this year.
A
concerted effort by all stakeholders including adequate funding is vital to
make the plan work, as the government is determined to boost cocoa production
to 100,000 tonnes by the year 2015.
Despite the spread of CPB, the industry has
achieved a new record in production of 59,350 tonnes for the 2008/9 cocoa year.
CPB
was first reported in East New Britain province
in 2006 and has since been detected and confirmed in seven cocoa-growing
provinces.
The latest confirmation is from BaluanIsland
in Manus province.
At
the same time cocoa is making inroads into the highlands region with new
plantings in Simbu and Western Highlands provinces.
The
plan was revealed at a recent meeting of the national CPB steering committee
held in Port Moresby.
Officials
from the Cocoa Board, PNG Cocoa Coconut Institute, Department of Agriculture
and Livestock, Autonomous Region of Bougainville, East New Britain, Madang, New Ireland, and two companies, Agmark Pacific Ltd and
Monpi Cocoa Exports attended the meeting.
Provincial
representatives in particular were happy with the news saying that more positive
action with funding and resources were needed to tackle the CPB problem.
Cocoa
Board acting chief executive Lauatu Tautea said the plan would involve the
active promotion, facilitation and the adoption of CPB management practices
including the integrated pest and disease management (IPDM) technology as a way
of reducing CPB infestation and sustaining cocoa production.
The
strategy will include training and awareness on the CPB management technology,
provision of essential tools and chemicals.
He
said the support of stakeholders including private companies and service
providers was essential in the overall success of the plan.
“Of
paramount importance is the sustainability of the project which is anticipated
to be achieved through training as well as from farmer support activities,”
Tautea said.
“Adoption
of good practices by cocoa farmers in growing, producing and processing of
cocoa at the end of the day is most important.”
Tautea
said that if CPB was not contained and managed effectively it would result in
huge economic losses which would give rise to other social problems.
Officials
from the provinces were happy with the news and requested that funding be made
available quickly for the programme to commence.
Private
sector representatives said it was a positive move by the government and
stressed that they were ready to work closely with key agencies to fight the
CPB problem.
They said the private sector was already
working with cocoa farmers in areas such as setting up of nurseries and
conducting farmer training.
It is great news to hear that the National AIDS Council Secretariat Director Wep Kanawi has announced a new approach to AIDS awareness in this country.
Counsellors are to go out to give awareness talks under trees and after church.
AIDS Holistics has been doing that for many years.
We have even adopted a church and helped them with their present slogan “strongim family”.
The tide is turning against foreign donor organisations that go out into the provinces to run four-day seminars to selected people and live in the hotel room
of the top hotel in the town.
People come for the lunch.
The pressure is now on the message given out.
No more can foreigners talk on rights and no responsibilities.
A church will make sure there is appropriate focus on family.
No more focus only on condoms.
It is good that Messrs Hopley and Collins of PACE are back to talk about paedophiles disguised as tourists coming to seek sex with children in the Pacific.
They will come disguised as AIDS advisors.
UNICEF says that children have the right of association.
That means their parents cannot stop sons and daughters from having sex with paedophiles.
Many foreign advisors will never go out to sit under trees and talk.
