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PAPEETE, Tahiti (Tahitipresse, Sept. 30) - A Hawaiian Airlines plane remained grounded in Tahiti on Monday (Sept.29) with an electrical problem after an initial mechanical problem had been repaired.

The majority of the 180 passengers originally scheduled to have left Tahiti for Honolulu early Sunday remained stranded on Monday.

"No new flight has been scheduled," Liz Schlecht, Hawaiian Airlines's regional representative in French Polynesia told Tahitipresse. "We’re now awaiting a diagnosis by an American engineer due to arrive at 6:45 pm Monday from Los Angeles on an Air Tahiti Nui flight.

"The initial mechanical problem has been repaired," the Hawaiian Airlines official said. "New parts to replace the faulty ones arrived at 11:15 pm Sunday on an Air Tahiti Nui flight from Los Angeles. After a test, an electrical problem was detected that this time was outside the knowledge of a mechanic."

With the exception of a few Japanese passengers who...

SYDNEY, Australia (ABC News Online, Oct. 1) - Planning has begun in Solomon Islands for the possible withdrawal of some of the military forces attached to the Australian-led intervention force.

Australia has 1,400 Navy, Army and Air Force personnel deployed in the Solomons to provide security and logistic support.

Regional contributions include more than 470 police and troops from New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Tonga and Fiji.

Special coordinator of the Regional Assistance Mission, Nick Warner, says a decision on when troops are pulled out is up to individual governments.

"The role of the military is to prove logistic support to the operation and to provide protection to the police if they're threatened or come under attack," he said.

"We are looking at and planning for the commercialization of important elements of logistic support and in time that will allow some military elements to leave."

October 2, 2003

ABC News Online:...

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (PNG Post-Courier, Oct. 1) - Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare yesterday vowed in Parliament to set up an inquiry to investigate RD Tuna cannery in Madang and the Besta Company in Lae.

Sir Michael said the inquiry would be spearheaded by the Environment and Conservation Ministry.

He said he would make sure Environment Minister Yuntuvi Bao, Agriculture Minister Moses Maladina and Labour Minister Peter Yama set up a committee of civil servants to investigate.

Bogia MP John Hickey raised concerns and questions in Parliament yesterday about a foul smell detected from the RD Tuna factory in Madang, which company authorities denied and refused to talk about.

Mr Hickey also asked if the Prime Minister was aware that many expatriates were occupying positions that local Papua New Guineans were eligible to handle and that many local employees were paid lower than plantation laborers.

He also asked if the Government was aware...

APIA, Samoa (Tala Nei News, Sept. 24) - New Zealand has banned cooked breadfruit from Samoa after the discovery of fruit fly in a batch earlier this month, state-run Televise Samoa said.

Assistant CEO of quarantine, Asuao Kirifi said he received a fax on Friday from New Zealand authorities, "advising us that the export or passengers coming from here to New Zealand are no longer allowed to bring the cooked breadfruit - the reason being that they have discovered a fruit fly in one of the passenger's umu," Kirifi said.

He said Samoa has not accepted the ban easily and have sent some questions to New Zealand about the ban.

The ban could embarrass quarantine officials here who are supposed to inspect breadfruit before allowing passengers to board planes with them.

Without certification by Samoan quarantine, Customs at New Zealand airports reject entry of breadfruit out of hand.

The procedure was introduced as a condition imposed by New Zealand...