Eight people kidnapped in remote Papua New Guinea
The Solomon Islands government has announced the establishment of a commission of inquiry to investigate millions of dollars in missing mine payments.
Oxford University has announced it will be honouring one of its alumni, the late Mākereti Papakura, with a posthumous degree.
Samoa NRL have invited an indigenous women's rugby league team from Australia to visit the Pacific nation to play rugby league and exchange cultural ties.
And, this week Rotumans in Rotuma and across the Pacific region mark the month the island was handed over to Fiji from Britain in 1881.
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ABC News
3 days ago
- ABC News
Wapu Sonk stands down from PNG NRL franchise board amid corruption allegations
A powerful businessman has stood down from the board of Papua New Guinea's new NRL franchise amid corruption concerns relating to business dealings with a Chinese state-owned company. The newly established board has been entrusted with overseeing more than $200 million in Australian government funding to set up PNG's new NRL team, which plans to join the rugby league competition in 2028. PNG businessman Wapu Sonk led a successful campaign as chair of the PNG NRL bid in 2024, and was appointed as a director of the franchise board last month. On Friday, PNG Prime Minister James Marape said Mr Sonk had agreed to step aside following corruption concerns reported in the Sydney Morning Herald. The concerns surround business dealings related to Mr Sonk's role as managing director of PNG state-owned oil company Kumul Petroleum Holdings Limited (KPHL), and not the NRL franchise. An official letter seen by the ABC shows KPHL insisted that Chinese state-owned company China Petroleum and Pipeline Engineering Corporation award a subcontract to an Australian company owned by Mr Sonk. China Petroleum and Pipeline Engineering Corporation was awarded a contract to upgrade fuel storage facilities at a major wharf outside PNG's capital. The letter suggests that failure to award the subcontracts could "compromise the project's overall success" and collaborative efforts between the Chinese Company and KPHL. Mr Sonk did not respond to requests for comment and has not yet publicly commented on the allegations. In a statement, Mr Marape said the allegations "raise concerns that cannot be ignored". He said the allegations against Mr Sonk, who is not in PNG presently, were not a presumption of guilt. "Mr Sonk is entitled to due process and the opportunity to clear his name," he said. "Stepping down allows him the space to do so without casting a shadow over the franchise process or compromising the confidence of our partners. "This moment demands clarity, accountability, and the upholding of public confidence. Our national sporting future — and our international reputation — depend on it." To help the PNG franchise join the NRL, the Australian government has committed $600 million over 10 years. The money will also fund community outreach programs supported by the new club.
ABC News
4 days ago
- ABC News
Private vehicles banned in violence-ridden Enga Province ahead of by-election
On the program today Police in Papua New Guinea take extraordinary measures ahead of a by-election in a violence-prone part of the country's highlands by banning the movement of all private vehicles. The month-long campaign period for Samoa's snap general election kicks off ahead of polling day on August 29. Optimism flows on the streets of New Caledonia as people digest the news of a historic agreement signed between France and local political parties on the territory's political future. The dismissal of a landmark climate case in the Torres Straight Islands draws attention to the limitations of the law of negligence. A competition breaks out between rugby league powerbrokers and Port Moresby officials over which stadium will serve as the PNG NRL team's home ground. And it's an all an all Melanesian affair at the 20-25 OFC Women's Nations Cup final.
ABC News
11-07-2025
- ABC News
Fiji enthralled by the return of the Mara chiefly dynasty
On the program this week: Excitement in Fiji as Ratu Tevita Mara, son of the country's founding prime minister, becomes the high chief of the Lau islands in a series of sacred rituals over several days. Pressure on the International Seabed Authority to finalise regulations to govern deep-sea mining in international waters as the United States looks to forge ahead on its own. Tonga's government strengthens its cyber security capabilities after data at the country's largest hospital was hacked and encrypted for ransom. Australian Federal Police to be embedded with Fiji's police force to combat multinational drug syndicates using Pacific islands as smuggling staging points. And a partnership between the Australian and Papua New Guinean Defence Forces is helping PNG military pilots get their commercial pilots licences.
