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28th March
‘She’s most vulnerable’
Women in rural and informal communities are often the most vulnerable when it comes to access to safe and adequate water supply. There are a host of factors that women, especially, find difficult to contend...
US House speaker says lawmakers to move forward with TikTok bill
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy said on Sunday lawmakers will move forward with legislation to address national security worries about TikTok, alleging China’s government had access to the short video app’s user data. In the United States, there are growing calls to ban TikTok, owned by China-based company ByteDance, or...
Water crucial to menstrual hygiene, NGO highlights
Water is a basic human need. For women, it is crucial in maintaining menstrual hygiene and empowering them to continue with their daily lives as normal, even as they undergo their periods. For Ana Fofole, the national WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) co-ordinator for Medical Services Pacific (MSP), this aspect is an important part of...
Brown poses difficult but real climate-related questions; solutions required
Pacific islanders’ stewardship, vision, development aspirations and climate change-related sea level rise threatens the future of people and the statehood of many Pacific nations. Pacific Islands Forum chairperson and Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown made these comments in his opening address at the regional conference on Preserving Statehood and Protecting Persons: Legal Options and...
46pc in labour force – Tabuya: Women face many complex barriers
The upcoming Fiji Country Gender Assessment (FCGA) highlights that 46 per cent of Fijian women are in the labour force. For men, it’s, 83 per cent. This was highlighted by Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation Lynda Tabuya while delivering her opening address at the two-day Women Invigorating the Nation (WIN) Convention 2023 in...
Scotland’s next leader to be announced with independence movement in crisis
LONDON (Reuters) – The next leader of Scotland will be announced on Monday with the victor facing the challenge of uniting a country divided over its future and revitalising an independence movement that dreams of ending its three-centuries-long union with England. The Scottish National Party (SNP), which runs Scotland’s semi-autonomous government, has been plunged into...
Motor vehicle accident claims carpenter’s life; police investigation continue
A 24-year-old carpenter from Nadonumai in Lami is believed to be Fiji’s latest road fatality. Police allege the young man was hit by a taxi after 4am on Saturday along Princes Road in Suva. “The victim who resided at Nadonumai in Lami was allegedly heavily intoxicated and was sitting in the middle of the road...
Australia’s Latitude says 7.9 million driver licence numbers stolen in data theft
(Reuters) -Digital payments and lending firm Latitude Holdings said on Monday it has determined that 7.9 million Australian and New Zealand driver licence numbers were stolen in a large-scale information theft on March 16. Apart from the 7.9 million driver licence numbers stolen, the Australian fintech firm also identified about 53,000 passport numbers were stolen...
‘Be bold, take risks’ – Tuinamuana: Women must free themselves from doubt
Be bold and put your hands up for leadership roles. This was the message to young women and girls from Meliki Tuinamuana, a partner at KPMG, while speaking at the Women Invigorating the Nation (WIN) Convention at the Grand Pacific Hotel on Saturday. “One thing that we see is not enough women on boards,” she...
Influenza B/Victoria strain in predominant circulation in Fiji – Health Ministry
The Fiji Centre of Disease Control (CDC) has confirmed that the influenza-like illness in predominant circulation in the country is that of the Influenza B/Victoria strain. The Ministry of Health and Medical Services say this may be the likely cause of the second surge of influenza-like illnesses being reported and observed locally. According to the...
Making most of an opportunity
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit the country in early 2020, many Fijians were uncertain what the future would hold. Some lost their jobs as their tourism or travel-related businesses were severely impacted. Others were placed on reduced hours and as the days dragged into months and then years. Sadly, they were told to stay at...
Court hearing for Prince Harry and Elton John’s privacy case against UK publisher
LONDON (Reuters) – The first hearing in a lawsuit brought by Prince Harry, singer Elton John and other high profile figures against the publisher of the Daily Mail newspaper over alleged phone-tapping and other breaches of privacy, is due to begin on Monday. The seven claimants, which include actresses Elizabeth Hurley and Sadie Frost, and...
What’s happening today!
Bula vinaka everyone. Here is another edition of some basic information you may need to know for today. First, here is your weather forecast for today: Weather: Some showers over the Northern Division, Lau and Lomaiviti group Showers becoming frequent tonight Cloudy periods with brief showers over greater Suva/Nausori-Tailevu, interior Serua-Namosi, Naitasiri, interior Serua-Namosi, interior...
Berliners vote down referendum on tighter climate goals
BERLIN (Reuters) -A referendum in Berlin on Sunday that would have bound the city to strive to be climate neutral by 2030 has failed, the city’s mayor Franziska Giffey said in a statement. The measure would have forced the new conservative local government to invest heavily in renewable energy, building efficiency and public transport. Had...
Lebanon wakes up in two time zones as clock change row deepens divisions
BEIRUT (Reuters) -Lebanon woke up in two time zones on Sunday amid an escalating dispute between political and religious authorities over a decision to delay the clock change by a month. Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati decided on Thursday not to start daylight savings time over the last weekend of March – as usually happens...
Afghan girls struggle with poor internet as they turn to online classes
KABUL (Reuters) – Sofia logs in to class on a laptop in Kabul for an online English course run by one of a growing number of educational institutes trying to reach Afghanistan’s girls and women digitally in their homes. But when the teacher calls on Sofia to read a passage her computer screen freezes. “Can...
Young Portuguese defer dreams as housing crisis bites
LISBON (Reuters) – When Maria Lopes moved to Lisbon from the northern Portuguese city of Tondela, her goals were straightforward: study, find a job, get a place of her own. But a decade on, she still lives in a tiny, rented room – one of tens of thousands of young Portuguese hit by a housing...
Spain tells ‘fire tourists’ to stay away from forest blaze
BARRACAS, Spain (Reuters) – Officials told ‘fire tourists’ to keep away from blazes raging in eastern Spain on Sunday, saying onlookers were putting themselves at risk and disrupting efforts to quell the flames. More than 500 firefighters backed by 20 planes and helicopters were battling the fire four days after it broke out near the...
27th March
Israel’s Netanyahu sacks defense minister who opposed judicial overhaul
JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday dismissed Defense Minister Yoav Gallant after he said the government should delay moving forward with a highly-contested plan to overhaul the country’s judicial system. “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to remove from his position Defense Minister Yoav Gallant,” the prime minister’s office said. Gallant, a...
Mexico government to challenge Supreme Court suspension of electoral reform
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The Mexican government said Sunday it would challenge the Supreme Court’s temporary suspension of parts of a controversial electoral reform pushed by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The Supreme Court on Friday halted parts of the reform, which was a scaled-down version of a failed constitutional reform originally sought. The court...
UK PM Sunak to unveil measures to crack down on anti-social behaviour
LONDON (Reuters) – British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will unveil new measures on Monday to crack down on antisocial behaviour by focusing on policing in several areas of England and Wales, as he works to win over voters in the run-up to an election expected next year. Sunak, who has seen a small tick up...
She’s her own boss
Former hotel waitress Amrita Nand enjoys being an entrepreneur and her own boss. The 35-year-old was working with the food and beverage department at the Capricorn International Hotel in Nadi. She was also an employee of New World and Maxval-U supermarkets before starting her own pot plant business in 2016. Ms Nand normally sold her...
Evacuated villagers tell how Spain’s forest fire forced them to leave animals
By Guillermo Martinez BARRACAS, Spain (Reuters) – Spain’s first major wildfire of the year scorched more than 4,000 hectares (9,900 acres) of forest and forced 1,700 villagers to leave their homes in the Valencia and Aragon regions. Residents recounted fleeing their houses and leaving animals behind. “Bad, how am I supposed to feel? Your town...
Archive of treasures
Just as the minutes and hours of time go by, the ink used to pen thoughts on paper will gradually fade and disappear into obscurity. And when that happens, it leaves gaps in history, if not for the sacred few whose task is to document events of importance for future generations. That is one reason...
Back in history: From a village to town
An article in The Fiji Times on July 2, 1977, brought back the good old memories of Labasa Town in the early 1920s when it was still at the development stages. The town was a village at that time, with earth road having deep side drains. During the spring tide, you could fish in the...
Argentina ex-President Macri says he will not be candidate in upcoming elections
BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) – Former Argentine President Mauricio Macri said on Sunday that he will not be a presidential candidate in the country’s October general elections, as the opposition coalition moves to confirm its candidates. The center-right Macri’s decision to opt out opens the door wider for other candidates of the opposition coalition “Together for...
Honey industry struggles
A boom in beekeeping in the Pacific has helped improve yield and quality for more than 30 per cent of the country’s pollination-dependent crops, but it comes at an inopportune time as Fiji grapples with a varroa mite invasion and adverse weather events. It has presented beekeepers in the Pacific nation with a dilemma. There...
Solar power for water
Solar Fiji has been growing steadily as a result of the reliability of its products for off-grid areas in the country. Company director Joe Baravi said they had recorded an increase in the demand for solar power. “Yes, there has been an increasing demand of solar power for off-grid and grid-tied commercial and residential clients....
Banksy’s migrant rescue ship seized by Italy’s coast guard in Lampedusa
MILAN (Reuters) – A rescue ship funded by British street artist Banksy was seized in Lampedusa on Sunday after Italy’s coast guard said the boat had disobeyed its instructions to head to Sicily after carrying out a migrant rescue operation. The coast guard said it had ordered the MV Louise Michel ship to dock in...
Locals learn from celebrity chef
Local chefs at the Sheraton Fiji Golf and Beach Resort and the Fiji Marriot Resort Momi Bay got a chance to learn from Australian celebrity chef Matt Moran who, over two days, showcased his wide-ranging talents in fine dining. The restaurateur was a guest at the two Sheraton Resorts property where local and international guests...
