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SYDNEY, Australia (ABC News Online, Dec. 24) - Mediation has failed to resolve the future of the last man being held in detention on Papua New Guinea's Manus Island.

The Immigration Department and Melbourne lawyers have failed to reach agreement on the future of the last asylum seeker being held at the Manus Island detention centre.

The parties held confidential talks in the Federal Court today after 24-year-old Aladdin Sisalem launched legal action to have Australia consider his asylum application.

Mr Sisalem's lawyer Eric Vadarlis says it has been a disappointing day.

"We were hoping that by the end of today Mr Sisalem would have been on his way to somewhere else, but unfortunately that's not the case," Mr Vadarlis said.

"We spoke to him today and he's not a very happy person as you would expect.

"He's very lonely and disappointed and scared and I suppose we should think...

Editorial

HAGATNA, Guam (Pacific Daily News, Dec. 25) - It's so easy to get caught up in the stress and commercialism of the holidays as we're out shopping until the last minute, trying to find that perfect gift. In fact, many of us forget what this holiday is really all about.

In this day and age, we're bombarded with messages from stores and product makers. The materialism of the season inundates us, and we are urged to take advantage of sales and great prices. It's deceptively easy to fall under the sway of the materialistic; after all, we all like to get things, even if we're giving at the same time.

But Christmas isn't about the material things that we give and get, and it isn't about Santa Claus and his reindeer. It's about the greatest gift the world has known, the birth of Jesus. It is the season of giving, and it all began with that greatest of all gifts, the gift of salvation by grace. It's the season of giving love, hope, peace and joy. Those aren't...

KOROR, Palau (Palau Horizon, Dec. 24) — A fisherman from Ngarchelong who had been reported missing since Saturday, Dec. 20, was found dead on Dec. 22.

The body of Jimmy Kloulubak, who was in his mid-40s, was found by a team of the victim’s relatives, friends and officers from the Bureau of Public Safety.

Justice Minister Michael Rosenthal said BPS mounted a search and rescue operation on Sunday, after the disappearance was reported to the police.

According to Division of Fish and Wildlife Protection chief Kammen Chin, who was part of the BPS team that assisted in the search, the victim was spear fishing in the Ngarchelong reefs sometime last Saturday, and never came back.

This was reported to BPS the next day, and Public Safety Director Hazime Telei dispatched a search team.

Several local law enforcement agencies coordinated their efforts in locating the victim during the search....

By Olivier Wortel

KOSRAE, Federated States of Micronesia (Marianas Variety, Dec. 24) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has committed more than $2.2 million to a Rural Home Loan Partnership Program in the Federated States of Micronesia, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and the Marshall Islands.

The aim of the program is to finance better homes at affordable interest rates, with flexibility for the USDA Rural Development field offices and local governments to issue loan packages to individuals with different needs.

It is unique in that the USDA is partnering with the local governments to provide the loans.

In Kosrae, for example, the state will carry 20 percent of a partnership loan, while the USDA covers the remaining 80 percent.

All citizens from the Freely Associated States — the FSM, Palau and the Marshalls — and the U.S. are eligible for the program.

According to...