Fauono Ken Laban’s Historic Win Ushers In New Zealand’s Potentially Most Diverse Council

Article – Mary Afemata – Local Democracy Reporter The long-time broadcaster and community advocate says his victory in Lower Hutt reflects the generations of Pacific migrants who worked hard, served others, and built the foundation for todays...

Pacific health leaders criticise rollback of bowel screening age

Pacific and Māori health advocates are raising concerns over changes to bowel cancer screening after the Government lowered the free screening age from 60 to 58 in parts of the country. The move follows the scrapping of a pilot programme that...

Bilingual books in Samoan and Tongan language launched as part of World Meningitis Day

Photo: Supplied As part of World Meningitis Day (Oct 5), the Meningitis Foundation Aotearoa has released bilingual Samoan and Tongan editions of The Meningitis Colouring Book, making the resource more accessible to Pacific families. Originally...

Tonga marks Constitutional milestone, pushes Climate Justice and UN reform at…

Tonga’s Prime Minister Dr ‘Aisake Eke, used his address at the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly last week to highlight Tonga’s constitutional legacy, call for urgent global climate action, and press for reforms to strengthen...

Analysis: Te Pāti Māori turmoil exposes a deeper hurt for Māori

Analysis: It is hard to overstate how damaging the past few weeks have been, not just for Te Pāti Māori but for Māori. The movement, supposed to represent a political resistance, has found itself imploding under the weight of internal accusations,...

Global Economists Demand Urgent African Debt Relief

More than 20 leading economists call for comprehensive reform as crushing debt costs prevent millions from accessing clean water and basic healthcare Over 20 prominent global economists, including Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz, have issued an...

Six great reads: a medical mystery, when Tonga went offline and Muhammad Ali’s biggest Thrilla

1. As my daughter got sicker and sicker, our quest for answers dragged on. How did we all miss the bacteria taking over her body? ‘It’s difficult to think of the future right now’: Milly with family dog Betty. Composite: The Guardian / Guardian...

Rugby stars give back to Tonga

Youth In Union Founders Lachlan and Eddie. Photo: Supplied. Australian Rugby stars, Taniela Tupou (Wallabies) and Lachlan McCaffrey (Waratahs coach), will conduct a ‘Youth in Union’ tour in Tonga nest week, from 7-14 October. The tour aims to...

Punchy ultrasound training boosts emergency care

Tonga health professionals have completed a key POCUS training at Vaiola Hospital. The Ministry of Health delivered the PEARLS (POCUS for Emergency and Acute Care in Resource-Limited Settings) workshop at Vaiola Hospital last week. The course...

GP of the Year’s tireless fight for health equity crossing the ocean

Medtech General Practitioner of the Year and Tongan Health Society medical director and chief executive Glenn Doherty has plans for a satellite clinic in Tonga [Image: Jinki Cambronero and David St George] From growing up in Ōtara to returning to...

New technical block opens at Tonga College ‘Atele

Tonga College ‘Atele has officially opened its renovated Technical Building in a ceremony last month. The upgraded facility was completed under the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Partnership mission, highlighting enduring Tonga–US ties. The ribbon-cutting...

New in-country testing advances breast cancer care in Samoa and Tonga

The Pacific Community (SPC) is enhancing breast cancer diagnosis and management in the Pacific Islands, where it stands as the most common cancer affecting women. Through a vital new laboratory strengthening initiative, Samoa and Tonga are now...

World leaders back UN plan to combat non-communicable diseases and mental health

A delegate from Kiribati in a meeting during the third day of the general debate of the General Assembly's eightieth session. September 2025 Photo: UN Photo/Laura Jarriel World leaders have thrown their weight behind a United Nations (UN)...

Silk Road Ark to arrive in Nuku’alofa with free medical services

The Chinese hospital ship Silk Road Ark will visit Tonga from October 13–20, offering complimentary health care. At a media briefing yesterday, Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Mr Ruan Dewen confirmed Silk Road Ark is on its first overseas deployment...

OPINION | A health and development challenge for the Pacific

Diabetes The first article in this series reported on the latest trends in development assistance for health and the second focused on the rise of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) globally and especially in low- and middle-income countries. This...

LIVE LIGHT launch targets Tonga’s obesity crisis

Health Minister Dr ‘Ana ‘Akauola has launched the LIVE LIGHT Campaign, aimed at curbing Tonga’s chronic disease burden by tackling obesity. Phase One — “60 minutes a day – stronger every way” — will mobilise youth aged 11–19 to become more active....

Veteran journalist Pesi Fonua passes away at 78

Pesi Siale Fonua, founder-publisher of Matangi Tonga Online, has died aged 78. He passed away yesterday 12 October at Vaiola Hospital, his family confirmed in a statement published by Matangi Tonga. “It is with profound sadness that we announce...

Government reforms student loan policy as 400 Tongans in Fiji study without scholarships: Deputy PM

Nuku’alofa, Tonga — Deputy Prime Minister Taniela Fusimalohi has announced a major reform to Tonga Development Bank (TDB) loan policy aimed at supporting families of students studying in Fiji, where only more than 100 out of more than 500 Tongans...

Sailors Celebrate the Navy’s 250th Birthday

OCTOBER 13, 2025 – Multinational service members deployed in support of Pacific Partnership 2025 celebrated the Navy’s 250th Birthday embarked on the Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary sea base USS John L. Canley (ESB-6) underway in the Western...

Historic royal visit marks 200 years of Tonga–Australia friendship

Canberra, Australia — Marking a powerful milestone in two centuries of friendship, His Majesty King Tupou VI and Queen Nanasipau’u of Tonga have arrived in Australia for a historic state visit from 18 to 24 September, celebrating 200 years of...