Talalelei Pauga and supporters outside court in Apia Photo: RNZ/Autagavaia Tipi Autagavaia
Solomons - replica guns
Solomon Islands police have responded to media reports about supposedly replica guns provided to the country by China actually being real.
Police Commissioner Mostyn Mangau said these 95 replica rifles and 92 replica pistols are not capable of firing any live munitions.
He said they are for training purposes and weigh about the same as real firearms.
The commissioner said these replicas were not smuggled or concealed and were cleared as per process.
Samoa - trial
A man extradited from Australia to Samoa has been formally charged with conspiracy to murder the former prime minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi.
The Samoa Observer reports Talalelei Pauga (above) appeared in the Supreme Court in Apia on Monday.
His lawyer told the court his client would be asking for bail because of a medical condition, and noted the defendant has been in custody since August 2020 in Australia
The matter was adjourned to September 11.
Three other co-defendants are currently serving different sentences for their role.
PNG - tragedy
A woman and her 10-year-old son have drowned in Papua New Guinea, after their boat capsized near Nakukur Point in Kokopo.
Provincial police commander Januarius Vosivai told The National newspaper the incident occurred at around 7am on Saturday.
Vosivai said there were 16 passengers on the boat, including the boy's father who was still missing as of Wednesday morning.
Thirteen passengers were rescued by Nakukur villagers.
The operator and owner of the boat will be questioned by police.
Samoa - language
Samoa's Minister of Education wants Gagana Samoa to be used more in schools, organisations and Government ministries in an effort to preserve it.
Seuula Ioane Tua'au said the Samoan language needs to be used in written and oral exams in all schools.
Seuula is asking schools to move away from speaking English as much as possible.
At the opening of Samoan language celebrations, the minister recommended the establishment of a Samoan language commission to strengthen the national language policy.
The Samoa Observer reports Minister Tua'au saying this would place an emphasis on the use of Gagana Samoa in official documentation in the Government.
Marianas - ports
The Commonwealth Ports Authority in the Northern Marianas is set to hike airport rental rates.
Authority chair Kimberlyn King-Hinds said airport rentals apply to physical space like a store, but also refer to the assigned gate for each airline - called a terminal rental.
She said the airport is in "a world of hurt" because of the lack of flights from China.
Prior to the covid-19 pandemic, China was the second source market for the Marianas, behind South Korea.
The US and the Marianas have been reinstated on China's Approved Destination Status list.
Guam - naval discovery
Divers investigating mysterious sheets of steel on the seafloor off Guam have discovered what amounts to a sunken trail.
Five of the three metre long mats were discovered by sonar.
The steel has been identified as "Marston mats," which were used by Navy Seabees during World War II to build stable roads on sand.
They were discovered during an expedition investigating seafloor objects hidden on Guam's underwater battlefield.
