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By Haidee V. Eugenio

SAIPAN, Northern Mariana Islands (July 31, 2002 - Marianas Variety/PINA Nius Online)---Saipan business leaders have been asked to join the fight to protect coral reefs in the Northern Marianas, and reminded that this is good for the tourism business.

Division of Fish and Wildlife natural resource planner Thorne Abbott told the Rotary Club of Saipan that coral reefs not only sustain fisheries, but also help boost tourism.

He said coral reefs also offer other business potential, including pharmacy products and living museums.

He told the assembled business leaders: "In Jamaica, for example, the medicine derived from reefs is worth some $54 million. They were able to obtain from the reefs new drugs for treating cancer, arthritis, bacterial infections and other diseases."

Without protecting and preserving the coral reefs, Abbott said the Northern Marianas would lose revenue from tourism and from fishing, as well as environmental...

HONIARA, Solomon Islands (July 31, 2002 - SIBC/PINA Nius Online)---The Solomon Islands Government recorded a deficit of Sol$ 43.8 million (US$ 6,162,660) for the first six months of this year, according to documents seen by SIBC News.

The documents reveal that the government failed to get its payroll under control and overspent Sol$28 million (US$ 3,939,600) on salaries and wages alone.

They also revealed that the financing of the deficit for the current year has come mainly from grant aid from Taiwan. But the accumulation of debt continues, as the government has failed to meet its bills as they are due.

The government documents, however, state that the deficit for the second half of the year may not be as large. This is because revenue in the second half is normally higher than the first half, they say.

In other developments amid the deepening Solomons economic crisis following more than two years of ethnic conflict and continuing law and order problems...

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (July 31, 2002 – Post-Courier)---Six Engan candidates want the Electoral Commission to endorse their declarations and return them as MPs.

But the commission has not made any decision on the fate of the elections in Enga and Southern Highlands.

Election boss Reuben Kaiulo said he and his lawyers were still studying the ruling of the National Court and he would not listen to anyone regarding making a decision in the meantime.

Yesterday the six candidates — including Peoples Democratic Movement recruit and former Governor Peter Ipatas, another PDM, Sam Abal, independents Dickson Maki (Kompiam-Ambun) and Kappa Yarka (Lagaip-Porgera), and Peoples Labour Party man Miki Kaeok (Wapenamanda) — went to the commission office in a hope to get the commission to endorse them.

They claimed to have been declared on July 28 and had tried their best to return the Writs to the commission but the commission could not be reached.

Mr....

By Mathew Lemisio

APIA, Samoa (July 30, 2002 - Samoa Observer/PINA Nius Online)---Ten Samoan sailors have found themselves in "rough waters" after their contracts with the Germany shipping company Ahrenkiel were "prematurely terminated."

Not only have these sailors lost their jobs, they’ve also lost what they claim to be $500 in unpaid wages.

They claim Samoa Shipping Services (SSS), the agency through which they were employed to work for the German shipping company, has refused to pay them.

"All we can say at this stage is that these sailors misbehaved while on the job," a senior officer at Samoa Shipping Services, who asked not to be named, told the Samoa Observer.

"That’s why they were sent home before their contracts were over."

Asked what he meant by "misbehaved," the senior officer said: "That was all it said in the report forwarded to us by Ahrenkiel. They did not elaborate."

But according to one of the sailors, Visesio...