Archive _{- April 2002}

SUVA, Fiji Islands (April 26, 2002 – Radio Australia)---The French government says there should be more academic exchanges between the Suva-based regional University of the South Pacific and universities in the French Pacific territories.

French Ambassador Jean-Pierre Vidon made the comment while presenting US$ 190,435 in financial support to USP in Suva.

The funds will be used to pursue a number of collaborative research projects as well as improve the university’s physical facilities.

The French financial support for USP for 2002 includes postgraduate scholarships, training and visits to French research centers and universities.

For additional reports from Radio Australia, go to PACIFIC ISLANDS REPORT News/Information Links: Radio/TV News/Radio Australia.

By Shivanjani Naidu and Shoma Prasad

SUVA, Fiji Islands (April 27, 2002 - Wansolwara Online – USP Journalism/Pasifik Nius)---Education strategies highlighted at a three-day regional meeting at the University of the South Pacific were Friday described as "old wine in a new bottle" by Professor Konai Thaman.

Delivering the closing address at the Institute of Education (IOE) advisory seminar and donors' meeting at the Laucala campus, Prof. Thaman said the steps being taken for basic education now were the same as two decades ago.

"I thought of old wine in a new bottle as the main issue that concerns education," she said.

Some of the key conclusions were:

CONCERNS about the management of education raised at this meeting were the same as in the 1970-80 period, highlighting the need to learn from past mistakes;

ACQUIRING and using own experts when dealing with Pacific education, creating flexible projects based on needs of individual countries;...

By Tataua Pese

SUVA, Fiji Islands (April 27, 2002 - Wansolwara Online-USP Journalism/Pasifik Nius)---Tuvalu's Department of Education has called for a national education forum before the end of the year following concerns over poor secondary school examination results.

This was disclosed at the Institute of Education advisory seminar and donors meeting at the University of the South Pacific, which ended Friday.

Representing Tuvalu was the head teacher in Funafuti Primary School, Mrs. Temukisa Hauma.

She said that in spite of donor assistance and the "valiant" support by the Tuvalu government for the Education for Life (EFL) initiative, there was general public dissatisfaction with the quality of education.

Poor secondary school results in external examinations at the end of 2001 only heightened concerns.

It had become a priority issue because, given Tuvalu's lack of a viable economic base, the proper development of its human resources was...

JAKARTA, Indonesia (April 29, 2002 – The Australian)---Indonesia's military police have begun questioning three officers of an elite army unit charged with last year's murder of Papuan independence leader Theys Hiyo Eluay, a lawyer said.

"The questioning has already begun at the headquarters of the military police and Ruhut Sitompul and friends are accompanying the three in their questioning," lawyer Hotma Sitompul said.

Both Hotma and Ruhut Sitompul are members of the team of defense lawyers for the three soldiers from the Kopassus command.

Hotma, speaking by telephone from Bangkok, would not name the three suspects, saying only that they were all officers.

Later today an independent national commission probing Eluay's death is scheduled to hand over its report to President Megawati Sukarnopturi, an agenda from her secretariat showed.

Military police, who have said the three would be accused of insubordination because there had never been any...