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Entered country on pretence of students come to study

SUVA, Fiji (Fiji Times, March 1, 2009) – Twelve Pakistani nationals were deported on Friday, Divisional Police Commander Western Senior Superintendent Fesaitu Kava said yesterday.

He said the group entered the country on the pretence that they were students to study English at a school in Namaka, Nadi.

He said they were arrested on Thursday in Lautoka by the police Ready Action Unit, Immigration officials and the Criminal Investigations Department.

"They came to study English but they were tracked down because of reports that they were not attending classes," SSP Kava said.

"I have been informed that they were put on board the Korean flight on Friday because that is the route they took when they travelled to Fiji."

Fiji Times Online: http://www.fijitimes.com.

Epidemic caused by commercial livestock farming

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (PNG Post-Courier, February 27, 2009) – The tree of life — the coconut — is slowly being destroyed in Papua New Guinea’s Central Province.

A foreign beetle is destroying the coconut leaves, which will affect the capacity of the coconut palms to bear.

The insect identified as the rhino beetle was believed to have originated from East Asia and was discovered in the 1930s and has become epidemic in Central Province.

The rhino beetle’s presence on coconut trees can be identified by the signs of razor cut marks on the tip of the coconuts.

The Cocoa and Coconut Institute (CCI) revealed that there were several ways to control the spread of the rhino beetle.

CCI said the beetle could be controlled by biological methods, using a mixture of neem tree and sand to repel the beetles from eating the coconut leaves.

They said this could be done by mixing neem tree leaves...

Thousands of cards issued in Saipan sold to illegal immigrants

By Haidee V. Eugenio

SAIPAN, CNMI (Saipan Tribune, Mar. 2, 2009) – Thousands of social security account cards issued on Saipan to Chinese nationals were sold to illegal immigrants in the United States within a five-year period, according to a 156-page criminal complaint filed on Feb. 24 in the U.S. District Court of Illinois against 19 persons engaged in the fraudulent scheme in Chicago.

Between Jan. 1, 2003, and Dec. 10, 2008, approximately 16,666 Illinois driver's licenses and identification cards were issued to individuals using social security numbers with a "586" prefix.

Social security cards with a "586" prefix are assigned in Saipan, Guam, American Samoa, and the Philippines.

But a "large portion" of these social security cards were legally obtained through legal means by Chinese nationals temporarily working on Saipan, according to the criminal complaint filed by David A. Patch...

Oldest diversified company in Papua New Guinea

PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (PNG Post-Courier, February 27, 2009) – Steamships Trading Company Limited yesterday reported a net profit of PGK90,226,000 [US$34.2 million] for 2008 — PGK16 million [US$6 million] more than the previous year.

Papua New Guinea’s oldest diversified trading company made a profit of K74,157,000 [US$28 million] in 2007

Sales of K465.8 million increased by 14.5 per cent against 2007 sales of K406.8 million, the Steamships board of directors said in its final report to the Port Moresby Stock Exchange.

Depreciation in 2008 was K39,316,000 against K35,608,000 in 2007 and interest on borrowings was K4,654,000 against K1,761,000 in 2007.

Capital expenditure for the 12 months was K133,657,000 against K77, 732,000 in 2007.

The board said the result reflected the continuing improvement in trading performance from most businesses within the Steamships Group. It said the...