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Category: Tertiary

  • Amid Dutton’s ‘hate media’ and Trump’s despotism, press freedom is more vital than ever

    COMMENTARY: By Alexandra Wake

    Despite all the political machinations and hate towards the media coming from the president of the United States, I always thought the majority of Australian politicians supported the role of the press in safeguarding democracy.

    And I certainly did not expect Peter Dutton — amid an election campaign, one with citizens heading to the polls on World Press Freedom Day — to come out swinging at the ABC and Guardian Australia, telling his followers to ignore “the hate media”.

    I’m not saying Labor is likely to be the great saviour of the free press either.

    The ALP has been slow to act on a range of important press freedom issues, including continuing to charge journalism students upwards of $50,000 for the privilege of learning at university how to be a decent watchdog for society.

    Labor has increased, slightly, funding for the ABC, and has tried to continue with the Coalition’s plans to force the big tech platforms to pay for news. But that is not enough.

    The World Press Freedom Index has been telling us for some time that Australia’s press is in a perilous state. Last year, Australia dropped to 39th out of 190 countries because of what Reporters Without Borders said was a “hyperconcentration of the media combined with growing pressure from the authorities”.

    We should know on election day if we’ve fallen even further.

    What is happening in America is having a profound impact on journalism (and by extension journalism education) in Australia.

    ‘Friendly’ influencers
    We’ve seen both parties subtly start to sideline the mainstream media by going to “friendly” influencers and podcasters, and avoid the harder questions that come from journalists whose job it is to read and understand the policies being presented.

    What Australia really needs — on top of stable and guaranteed funding for independent and reliable public interest journalism, including the ABC and SBS — is a Media Freedom Act.

    My colleague Professor Peter Greste has spent years working on the details of such an act, one that would give media in Australia the protection lacking from not having a Bill of Rights safeguarding media and free speech. So far, neither side of government has signed up to publicly support it.

    Australia also needs an accompanying Journalism Australia organisation, where ethical and trained journalists committed to the job of watchdog journalism can distinguish themselves from individuals on YouTube and TikTok who may be pushing their own agendas and who aren’t held to the same journalistic code of ethics and standards.

    I’m not going to argue that all parts of the Australian news media are working impartially in the best interests of ordinary people. But the good journalists who are need help.

    The continuing underfunding of our national broadcasters needs to be resolved. University fees for journalism degrees need to be cut, in recognition of the value of the profession to the fabric of Australian society. We need regulations to force news organisations to disclose when they are using AI to do the job of journalists and broadcasters without human oversight.

    And we need more funding for critical news literacy education, not just for school kids but also for adults.

    Critical need for public interest journalism
    There has never been a more critical need to support public interest journalism. We have all watched in horror as Donald Trump has denied wire services access for minor issues, such as failing to comply with an ungazetted decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.

    And mere days ago, 60 Minutes chief Bill Owens resigned citing encroachments on his journalistic independence due to pressure from the president.

    The Committee to Protect Journalists is so concerned about what’s occurring in America that it has issued a travel advisory for journalists travelling to the US, citing risks under Trump administration policies.

    Those of us who cover politically sensitive issues that the US administration may view as critical or hostile may be stopped and questioned by border agents. That can extend to cardigan-wearing academics attending conferences.

    While we don’t have the latest Australian figures from the annual Reuters survey, a new Pew Research Centre study shows a growing gap between how much Americans say they value press freedom and how free they think the press actually is. Two-thirds of Americans believe press freedom is critical. But only a third believe the media is truly free to do its job.

    If the press isn’t free in the US (where it is guaranteed in their constitution), how are we in Australia expected to be able to keep the powerful honest?

    Every single day, journalists put their lives on the line for journalism. It’s not always as dramatic as those who are covering the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, but those in the media in Australia still front up and do the job across a range of news organisations in some fairly poor conditions.

    If you care about democracy at all this election, then please consider wisely who you vote for, and perhaps ask their views on supporting press freedom — which is your right to know.

    Alexandra Wake is an associate professor in journalism at RMIT University. She came to the academy after a long career as a journalist and broadcaster. She has worked in Australia, Ireland, the Middle East and across the Asia Pacific. Her research, teaching and practice sits at the nexus of journalism practice, journalism education, equality, diversity and mental health.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Obama praises Harvard for ‘setting example’ to universities resisting Trump

    Asia Pacific Report

    Former US President Barack Obama has taken to social media to praise Harvard’s decision to stand up for academic freedom by rebuffing the Trump administration’s demands.

    “Harvard has set an example for other higher-ed institutions — rejecting an unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom, while taking concrete steps to make sure all students at Harvard can benefit from an environment of intellectual inquiry, rigorous debate and mutual respect,” Obama wrote in a post on X.

    He called on other universities to follow the lead.

    Harvard will not comply with the Trump administration’s demands to dismantle its diversity programming, limit student protests over Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, and submit to far-reaching federal audits in exchange for its federal funding, university president Alan M. Garber ’76 announced yesterday afternoon.

    “No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” he wrote, reports the university’s Harvard Crimson news team.

    The announcement comes two weeks after three federal agencies announced a review into roughly $9 billion in Harvard’s federal funding and days after the Trump administration sent its initial demands, which included dismantling diversity programming, banning masks, and committing to “full cooperation” with the Department of Homeland Security.

    Within hours of the announcement to reject the White House demands, the Trump administration paused $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60 million in multi-year contracts to Harvard in a dramatic escalation in its crusade against the university.

    More focused demands
    On Friday, the Trump administration had delivered a longer and more focused set of demands than the ones they had shared two weeks earlier.

    It asked Harvard to “derecognise” pro-Palestine student groups, audit its academic programmes for viewpoint diversity, and expel students involved in an altercation at a 2023 pro-Palestine protest on the Harvard Business School campus.

    It also asked Harvard to reform its admissions process for international students to screen for students “supportive of terrorism and anti-Semitism” — and immediately report international students to federal authorities if they break university conduct policies.

    It called for “reducing the power held by faculty (whether tenured or untenured) and administrators more committed to activism than scholarship” and installing leaders committed to carrying out the administration’s demands.

    And it asked the university to submit quarterly updates, beginning in June 2025, certifying its compliance.

    Garber condemned the demands, calling them a “political ploy” disguised as an effort to address antisemitism on campus.

    “It makes clear that the intention is not to work with us to address antisemitism in a cooperative and constructive manner,” he wrote.

    “Although some of the demands outlined by the government are aimed at combating antisemitism, the majority represent direct governmental regulation of the ‘intellectual conditions’ at Harvard.”

    The Harvard Crimson daily news, founded in 1873
    The Harvard Crimson daily news, founded in 1873 . . . how it reported the universoity’s defiance of the Trump administration today. Image: HC screenshot APR

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • How New Zealand is venturing down the road of political upheaval

    ANALYSIS: By Peter Davis

    With the sudden departure of New Zealand’s Reserve Bank Governor, one has to ask whether there is a pattern here — of a succession of public sector leaders leaving their posts in uncertain circumstances and a series of decisions being made without much regard for due process.

    It brings to mind the current spectacle of federal government politics playing out in the United States. Four years ago, we observed a concerted attempt by a raucous and determined crowd to storm the Capitol.

    Now a smaller, more disciplined and just as determined band is entering federal offices in Washington almost unhindered, to close agencies and programmes and to evict and terminate the employment of thousands of staff.

    This could never happen here. Or could it? Or has it and is it happening here? After all, we had an occupation of parliament, we had a rapid unravelling of a previous government’s legislative programme, and we have experienced the removal of CEOs and downgrading of key public agencies such as Kāinga Ora on slender pretexts, and the rapid and marked downsizing of the core public service establishment.

    Similarly, while the incoming Trump administration is targeting any federal diversity agenda, in New Zealand the incoming government has sought to curb the advancement of Māori interests, even to the extent of questioning elements of our basic constitutional framework.

    In other words, there are parallels, but also differences. This has mostly been conducted in a typical New Zealand low-key fashion, with more regard for legal niceties and less of the histrionics we see in Washington — yet it still bears comparison and probably reflects similar political dynamics.

    Nevertheless, the departure in quick succession of three health sector leaders and the targeting of Pharmac’s CEO suggest the agenda may be getting out of hand. In my experience of close contact with the DHB system the management and leadership teams at the top echelon were nothing short of outstanding.

    The Auckland District Health Board, as it then was, is the largest single organisation in Auckland — and the top management had to be up to the task. And they were.

    Value for money
    As for Pharmac, it is a standout agency for achieving value for money in the public sector. So why target it? The organisation has made cumulative savings of at least a billion dollars, equivalent to 5 percent of the annual health budget. Those monies have been reinvested elsewhere in the health sector. Furthermore, by distancing politicians from sometimes controversial funding decisions on a limited budget it shields them from public blowback.

    Unfortunately, Pharmac is the victim of its own success: the reinvestment of funds in the wider health sector has gone unheralded, and the shielding of politicians is rarely acknowledged.

    The job as CEO at Pharmac has got much harder with a limited budget, more expensive drugs targeting smaller groups, more vociferous patient groups — sometimes funded in part by drug companies — easy media stories (individuals being denied “lifesaving” treatments), and, more recently, less sympathetic political masters.

    Perhaps it was time for a changing of the guard, but the ungracious manner of it follows a similar pattern of other departures.

    The arrival of Sir Brian Roche as the new Public Service Commissioner may herald a more considered approach to public sector reform, rather than the slightly “wild west” New Zealand style with the unexplained abolition of the Productivity Commission, the premature ending of an expensive pumped hydro study, disbandment of sector industry groups, and the alleged cancellation of a large ferry contract by text, among other examples of a rather casual approach to due process.

    The danger we run is that the current cleaning out of public sector leaders is more than an expected turnover with a change of government, and rather a curbing of independent advice and thought. Will our public media agencies — TVNZ and RNZ — be next in line for the current thrust of popular and political attention?

    Major redundancies
    Taken together with the abolition of the Productivity Commission, major redundancies in the public sector, the removal of research funding for the humanities and the social sciences, a campaign by the Free Speech Union against university autonomy, the growing reliance on business lobbyists and lobby groups to determine decision-making, and the recent re-orientation of The New Zealand Herald towards a more populist stance, we could well be witnessing a concerted rebalancing of the ecosystem of advice and thought.

    In half a century of observing policy and politics from the relative safety of the university, I have never witnessed such a concerted campaign as we are experiencing. Not even in the turmoil of the 1990s.

    We need to change the national conversation before it is too late and we lose more of the key elements of the independence of advice and thought that we have established in the state and allied and quasi-autonomous agencies, as well as in the universities and the creative industries, and that lie at the heart of liberal democracy.

    Dr Peter Davis is emeritus professor of population health and social science at Auckland University, and a former elected member of the Auckland District Health Board. This article was first published by The Post and is republished with the author’s permission

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘Attack on freedom of speech’: USP staff call out Ahluwalia for sacking union president

    RNZ Pacific

    The University of the South Pacific staff associations are up in arms about the sacking of a union leader and academic by the university’s chief executive.

    In a joint press release, the Association of the University of the South Pacific (AUSPS) and the USP Staff Union (USPSU), this week claimed that USP vice-chancellor and president Pal Ahluwalia had “launched a vicious attack on the staff unions and freedom of speech” after he terminated the employment contract AUSPS president Dr Tamara Osborne-Naikatini on July 9.

    They said Ahluwalia sacked Dr Osborne-Naikatini because she spoke to the media about the “flawed process” through which he was offered a renewal to his contract to lead the institution.

    “The university’s claim of ‘gross misconduct’ stems from information Dr Osborne-Naikatini allegedly shared, as AUSP President, in an Islands Business interview reported in the March 2024 edition that revealed a flawed process in the review of the performance of Ahluwalia that subsequently led to a two-year renewal of contract,” they said in the release.

    Dr Osborne-Naikatini was the staff representative on the the chief academic authority — the USP Senate — to the review committee, they added.

    “Dr Osborne-Naikatini stood for the staff of USP and fought for good governance which ultimately led to her termination,” they said.

    The staff unions say that by sacking the biology lecturer, Ahluwalia has “launched a vicious attack on the staff unions and freedom of speech” and are demanding her reinstatement.

    RNZ Pacific had put these claims to the university.

    Staff contracts ‘confidential’
    “Please note that all staff contracts, including terminations, are confidential. The university is not at liberty to discuss staff information with third parties,” the USP said in an email statement.

    The USP, the premier institution of higher learning for the region, has had to deal with a series of crisis in relation to the good governance practices and staff-management issues since the vice-chancellor first took the job in 2018.

    Professor Pal Ahluwalia
    Professor Pal Ahluwalia . . . deported from Fiji in 2019, but based in Nauru then Samoa. Image: RNZ Pacific

    In 2019, Ahluwalia was deported from Fiji in a midnight raid carried out Fijian police and immigration officials, after he fell out of favour with the previous Bainimarama administration, for exposing allegations of corruption and financial mismanagement at the university under the leadership of his predecessor.

    He led USP from exile, for some time from Nauru, before relocating to Samoa in 2021. In May this year, the USP Council voted for him to relocate back to Suva.

    The staff unions reminded Ahluwalia of the 2019 saga in their joint statement, saying they “stood steadfast with him when he was victimised as the whistleblower. He seemed to have a short-lived memory”.

    Earlier this year, the unions were at loggerheads with the management over salary disputes.

    They had threatened to take strike action if the executive team failed to meet their demands, which they claimed has been neglected by Ahluwalia.

    However, both sides reached an agreement last month, and the unions withdrew their strike action.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Elevation, colour – and the American flag. Here’s what makes Evan Vucci’s Trump photograph so powerful

    ANALYSIS: By Sara Oscar, University of Technology Sydney

    The attempted assassination of Donald Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania was captured by several photographers who were standing at the stage before the shooting commenced.

    The most widely circulated photograph of this event was taken by Evan Vucci, a Pulitzer Prize winning war photographer known for his coverage of protests following George Floyd’s murder.

    A number of World Press Photograph awards have been given to photographers who have covered an assassination.

    In this vein, Vucci’s image can also be regarded as already iconic, a photograph that perhaps too will win awards for its content, use of colour and framing — and will become an important piece of how we remember this moment in history.

    Social media analysis of the image
    Viewers of Vucci’s photograph have taken to social media to break down the composition of the image, including how iconic motifs such as the American flag and Trump’s raised fist are brought together in the frame according to laws of photographic composition, such as the rule of thirds.

    Such elements are believed to contribute to the photograph’s potency.

    To understand exactly what it is that makes this such a powerful image, there are several elements we can parse.

    Compositional acuity
    In this photograph, Vucci is looking up with his camera. He makes Trump appear elevated as the central figure surrounded by suited Secret Service agents who shield his body. The agents form a triangular composition that places Trump at the vertex, slightly to the left of a raised American flag in the sky.

    On the immediate right of Trump, an agent looks directly at Vucci’s lens with eyes concealed by dark glasses. The agent draws us into the image, he looks back at us, he sees the photographer and therefore, he seems to see us: he mirrors our gaze at the photograph.

    This figure is central, he leads our gaze to Trump’s raised fist.

    Another point of note is that there are strong colour elements in this image that deceptively serve to pull it together as a photograph.

    Set against a blue sky, everything else in the image is red, white and navy blue. The trickles of blood falling down Trump’s face are echoed in the red stripes of the American flag which aligns with the republican red of the podium in the lower left quadrant of the image.

    We might not see these elements initially, but they demonstrate how certain photographic conventions contribute to Vucci’s own ways of seeing and composing that align with photojournalism as a discipline.

    A photographic way of seeing
    In interviews, Vucci has referred to the importance of retaining a sense of photographic composure in being able to attain “the shot”, of being sure to cover the situation from numerous angles, including capturing the scene with the right composition and light.

    For Vucci, all of this was about “doing the job” of the photographer.

    Vucci’s statements are consistent with what most photographers would regard as a photographic way of seeing. This means being attuned to the way composition, light, timing and subject matter come together in the frame in perfect unity when photographing: it means getting the “right” shot.

    For Susan Sontag, this photographic way of seeing also corresponded to the relationship between shooting and photographing, a relationship she saw as analogous.

    Photography and guns are arguably weapons, with photography and photographic ways of seeing and representing the world able to be weaponised to change public perception.

    Writing history with photographs
    As a photographic way of seeing, there are familiar resonances in Vucci’s photograph to other iconic images of American history.

    Take for instance, the photograph taken by Joe Rosenthal, The Raising of the Flag on Iwo Jima (1945) during the Pacific War. In the photograph, four marines are clustered together to raise and plant the American flag, their bodies form a pyramid structure in the lower central half of the frame.

    This photograph is also represented as a war monument in Virginia for marines who have served America.

    The visual echoes between the Rosenthal and Vucci images are strong. They also demonstrate how photographic ways of seeing stretch beyond the compositional. It leads to another photographic way of seeing, which means viewing the world and the events that take place in it as photographs, or constructing history as though it were a photograph.

    Fictions and post-truth
    The inherent paradox within “photographic seeing” is that no single person can be in all places at once, nor predict what is going to happen before reality can be transcribed as a photograph.

    In Vucci’s photograph, we are given the illusion that this photograph captures “the moment” or “a shot”. Yet it doesn’t capture the moment of the shooting, but its immediate aftermath. The photograph captures Trump’s media acuity and swift, responsive performance to the attempted assassination, standing to rise with his fist in the air.

    In a post-truth world, there has been a pervasive concern about knowing the truth. While that extends beyond photographic representation, photography and visual representation play a considerable part.

    Whether this image will further contribute to the mythology of Donald Trump, and his potential reelection, is yet to be seen.
    The Conversation

    Sara Oscar, senior lecturer in visual communication, School of Design, University of Technology Sydney.  This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Pacific Media Watch.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • Groundbreaking book Waves of Change launched at Pacific Media Conference in Fiji

    By Jai Bharadwaj of The Australia Today

    A pivotal book, Waves of Change: Media, Peace, and Development in the Pacific, has been released at the 2024 Pacific International Media Conference hosted by the University of the South Pacific earlier this month in Suva, Fiji.

    This conference, the first of its kind in 20 years, served as a crucial platform to address the pressing challenges and core issues faced by Pacific media.

    Associate Professor Shailendra Singh, the convenor of the conference and co-editor of the new book, emphasised the conference’s primary goals — to stimulate research, discussion, and debate on Pacific media, and to foster a deeper understanding of its challenges.

    “Our region hasn’t escaped the calamitous impacts of the two biggest events that have shaken the media sector — digital disruption and the covid-19 pandemic,” he said.

    “Both events have posed significant challenges for news media organisations and journalists, to the point of being an existential threat to the industry as we know it. This isn’t very well known or understood outside the news media industry.”

    Waves of Change: Media, Peace, and Development in the Pacific, authored by Dr Singh, Fiji Deputy Prime Minister Professor Biman Prasad, and Dr Amit Sarwal, offers a comprehensive collection of interdisciplinary research, insights, and analyses at the intersection of media, conflict, peacebuilding, and development in the Pacific – a region experiencing rapid and profound change.

    The book builds on Dr Singh’s earlier work with Professor Prasad, Media and Development: Issues and Challenges in the Pacific Islands, published 16 years ago.

    Dr Singh noted that media issues had grown increasingly complex due to heightened poverty, underdevelopment, corruption, and political instability.

    “Media and communication play vital roles in the framing of conflict, security, and development in public and political discourses, ultimately influencing progression or regression in peace and stability. This is particularly true in the era of digital media,” Dr Singh said.

    Launching the Waves of Change book
    Launching the Waves of Change book . . . contributor Dr David Robie (from left), co-editor Fiji Deputy Prime Minister Professor Biman Prasad, PNG Minister of Information and Communication Technology Timothy Masiu, co-editor Associate Professor Shailendra Singh, and co-editor Dr Amit Sarwal. Image: The Australia Today

    Dr Amit Sarwal said that the primary aim of the new book was to address and revisit critical questions linking media, peacebuilding, and development in the Pacific. He expressed a desire to bridge gaps in training, publishing, and enhance practical applications in these vital areas particularly amongst young journalists in the Pacific.

    Winds of Change . . . shedding light on the intricate relationship between media, peace, and development in the Pacific. Image: APMN

    Professor Biman Prasad is hopeful that this collection will shed light on the intricate relationship between media, peace, and development in the Pacific. He stressed the importance of prioritising planning, strategising, and funding in this sector.

    “By harnessing the potential of media for peacebuilding, stakeholders in the Pacific can work towards a more peaceful and prosperous future for all,” Professor Prasad added.

    Waves of Change: Media, Peace, and Development in the Pacific has been published under a joint collaboration of Australia’s Kula Press and India’s Shhalaj Publishing House.

    The book features nine chapters authored by passionate researchers and academics, including David Robie, John Rabuogi Ahere, Sanjay Ramesh, Kalinga Seneviratne, Kylie Navuku, Narayan Gopalkrishnan, Hurriyet Babacan, Usha Sundar Harris, and Asha Chand.

    Dr Robie is founding editor of Pacific Journalism Review, which also celebrated 30 years of publishing at the book launch.

    The 2024 Pacific International Media Conference was organised in partnership with the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) and the Asia Pacific Media Network (APMN).

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Pacific Media Conference to celebrate 30th birthday of Pacific Journalism Review

    By Mark Pearson

    Journalists, publishers, academics, diplomats and NGO representatives from throughout the Asia-Pacific region will gather for the 2024 Pacific International Media Conference hosted by The University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji, next month.

    A notable part of the conference on July 4-6 will be the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the journal Pacific Journalism Review — founded by the energetic pioneer of journalism studies in the Pacific, Professor David Robie, who was recently honoured in the NZ King’s Birthday Honours list as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit.

    I have been on the editorial board of PJR for two of its three decades.

    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024
    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024

    As well as delivering a keynote address titled “Frontline Media Faultlines: How Critical Journalism can Survive Against the Odds”, Dr Robie will join me and the current editor of PJR, Dr Philip Cass, on a panel examining the challenges faced by journalism journals in the Global South/Asia Pacific.

    We will be moderated by Professor Vijay Naidu, former professor and director of development studies and now an adjunct in the School of Law and Social Sciences at the university. He is also speaking at the PJR birthday event.

    In addition, I will be delivering a conference paper titled “Intersections between media law and ethics — a new pedagogy and curriculum”.

    Media law and ethics have often been taught as separate courses in the journalism and communication curriculum or have been structured as two distinct halves of a hybrid course.

    Integrated ethics and law approach
    My paper explains an integrated approach expounded in my new textbook, The Communicator’s Guide to Media Law and Ethics, where each key media law topic is introduced via a thorough exploration of its moral, ethical, religious, philosophical and human rights underpinnings.

    The argument is exemplified via an approach to the ethical and legal topic of confidentiality, central to the relationship between journalists and their sources.

    Mark Pearson's new book
    Mark Pearson’s The Communicator’s Guide to Media Law and Ethics cover. Image: Routledge

    After defining the term and distinguishing it from the related topic of privacy, the paper explains the approach in the textbook and curriculum which traces the religious and philosophical origins of confidentiality sourced to Hippocrates (460-370BC), via confidentiality in the priesthood (from Saint Aphrahat to the modern Catholic Code of Canon Law), and through the writings of Kant, Bentham, Stuart Mill, Sidgwick and Rawls until we reach the modern philosopher Sissela Bok’s examination of investigative journalism and claims of a public’s “right to know”.

    This leads naturally into an examination of the handling of confidentiality in both public relations and journalism ethical codes internationally and their distinctive approaches, opening the way to the examination of law, cases and examples internationally in confidentiality and disclosure and, ultimately, to a closer examination in the author’s own jurisdiction of Australia.

    Specific laws covered include breach of confidence, disobedience contempt, shield laws, whistleblower laws and freedom of information laws — with the latter having a strong foundation in international human rights instruments.

    The approach gives ethical studies a practical legal dimension, while enriching students’ legal knowledge with a backbone of its philosophical, religious and human rights origins.

    Details about the conference can be found on its USP website.

    Professor Mark Pearson (Griffith University) is a journalist, author, academic researcher and teacher with more than 45 years’ experience in journalism and journalism education. He is a former editor of Australian Journalism Review, a columnist for 15 years on research journal findings for the Pacific Area Newspaper Publishers’ Association Bulletin, and author of 13 books, including The Communicator’s Guide to Media Law and Ethics — A Handbook for Australian Professionals (Routledge, 2024). He blogs at JournLaw.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • 50 years of challenge and change: David Robie reflects on a career in Pacific journalism

    By Moera Tuilaepa-Taylor, manager of RNZ Pacific

    This King’s Birthday, the New Zealand Order of Merit recognises Professor David Robie’s 50 years of service to Pacific journalism.

    He says he is astonished and quite delighted, and feels quite humbled by it all.

    “However, I feel that it’s not just me, I owe an enormous amount to my wife, Del, who is a teacher and designer by profession, but she has given journalism and me enormous support over many years and kept me going through difficult times,” he said.

    “There’s a whole range of people who have contributed over the years so it’s sort of like a recognition of all of us. So, yes, it is a delight and I feel quite privileged,” he said.

    Starting his career at The Dominion in 1965, Dr Robie has been “on the ground” at pivotal events in regional history, including the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior in 1985 (he was on board the Greenpeace ship on the voyage to the Marshall Islands and wrote the book Eyes of Fire about it), the 1997 Sandline mercenary scandal in Papua New Guinea, and the George Speight coup in Fiji in 2000.

    In both PNG and Fiji, Dr Robie and his journalism students covered unfolding events when their safety was far from assured.

    David Robie standing with Kanak pro-independence activists and two Australian journalists at Touho, northern New Caledonia, while on assignment during the FLNKS boycott of the 1984 New Caledonian elections. (David is standing with cameras strung around his back).
    David Robie standing with Kanak pro-independence activists and two Australian journalists at Touho, north-eastern New Caledonia, while on assignment during the FLNKS boycott of the 1984 New Caledonian elections. (Robie is standing with cameras strung around his back). Image: Wiken Books/RNZ

    As an educator, Dr Robie was head of journalism at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) 1993-1997 and then at the University of the South Pacific (USP) in Suva from 1998 to 2002.

    Started Pacific Media Centre
    In 2007 he started the Pacific Media Centre, while working as professor of Pacific journalism and communications at Auckland University of Technology (AUT). He has organised scholarships for Pacific media students, including scholarships to China, Indonesia and the Philippines, with the Asia New Zealand Foundation.

    Running education programmes for journalists was not always easy. While he had a solid programme to follow at UPNG, his start at USP was not as easy.

    He described arriving at USP, opening the filing cabinet to discover “…there was nothing there.” It was a “baptism of fire” and he had to rebuild the programme, although he notes that currently UPNG is struggling whereas USP is “bounding ahead.”

    He wrote about his experiences in the 2004 book Mekim Nius: South Pacific media, politics and education.

    Dr Robie recalled the enthusiasm of his Pacific journalism students in the face of significant challenges. Pacific journalists are regularly confronted by threats and pressures from governments, which do not recognise the importance of a free media to a functioning democracy.

    He stated that while resources were being employed to train quality regional journalists, it was really politicians who needed educating about the role of the media, particularly public broadcasters — not just to be a “parrot” for government policy.

    Another challenge Robie noted was the attrition of quality journalists, who only stay in the mainstream media for a year or two before finding better-paying communication roles in NGOs.

    Independence an issue
    He said that while resourcing was an issue the other most significant challenge facing media outlets in the Pacific today was independence — freedom from the influence and control of the power players in the region.

    While he mentioned China, he also suggested that the West also attempted to expand its own influence, and that Pacific media should be able set its own path.

    “The other big challenge facing the Pacific is the climate crisis and consequently that’s the biggest issue for journalists in the region and they deal with this every day, unlike Australia and New Zealand,” he said.

    Dr Robie stated his belief that it was love of the industry that had kept him and other journalists going, that being a journalist was an important role and a service to society, more than just a job.

    He expressed deep gratitude for having been given the opportunity to serve the Pacific in this capacity for so long.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    The King’s Birthday Honours list:

    To be Officers of the New Zealand Order of Merit:

    • The Very Reverend Taimoanaifakaofo Kaio for services to the Pacific community
    • Anapela Polataivao for services to Pacific performing arts

    To be a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit:

    • Bridget Kauraka for services to the Cook Islands community
    • Frances Oakes for services to mental health and the Pacific community
    • Leitualaalemalietoa Lynn Lolokini Pavihi for services to Pacific education
    • Dr David Robie for services to journalism and Asia-Pacific media education

    The King’s Service Medal (KSM):

    • Mailigi Hetutū for services to the Niuean community
    • Tupuna Kaiaruna for services to the Cook Islands community and performing arts
    • Maituteau Karora for services to the Cook Islands community

     

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Open letter by Gaza academics: ‘Help us resist Israel’s scholasticide’

    OPEN LETTER: Gaza academics and administrators

    We have come together as Palestinian academics and staff of Gaza universities to affirm our existence, the existence of our colleagues and our students, and the insistence on our future, in the face of all current attempts to erase us.

    The Israeli occupation forces have demolished our buildings but our universities live on. We reaffirm our collective determination to remain on our land and to resume teaching, study, and research in Gaza, at our own Palestinian universities, at the earliest opportunity.

    We call upon our friends and colleagues around the world to resist the ongoing campaign of scholasticide in occupied Palestine, to work alongside us in rebuilding our demolished universities, and to refuse all plans seeking to bypass, erase, or weaken the integrity of our academic institutions.

    The future of our young people in Gaza depends upon us, and our ability to remain on our land in order to continue to serve the coming generations of our people.

    We issue this call from beneath the bombs of the occupation forces across occupied Gaza, in the refugee camps of Rafah, and from the sites of temporary new exile in Egypt and other host countries.

    We are disseminating it as the Israeli occupation continues to wage its genocidal campaign against our people daily, in its attempt to eliminate every aspect of our collective and individual life.

    Our families, colleagues, and students are being assassinated, while we have once again been rendered homeless, reliving the experiences of our parents and grandparents during the massacres and mass expulsions by Zionist armed forces in 1947 and 1948.

    Our infrastructure is in ruins
    Our civic infrastructure — universities, schools, hospitals, libraries, museums and cultural centres — built by generations of our people, lies in ruins from this deliberate continuous Nakba. The deliberate targeting of our educational infrastructure is a blatant attempt to render Gaza uninhabitable and erode the intellectual and cultural fabric of our society.

    However, we refuse to allow such acts to extinguish the flame of knowledge and resilience that burns within us.

    Allies of the Israeli occupation in the United States and United Kingdom are opening yet another scholasticide front through promoting alleged reconstruction schemes that seek to eliminate the possibility of independent Palestinian educational life in Gaza. We reject all such schemes and urge our colleagues to refuse any complicity in them.

    We also urge all universities and colleagues worldwide to coordinate any academic aid efforts directly with our universities.

    We extend our heartfelt appreciation to the national and international institutions that have stood in solidarity with us, providing support and assistance during these challenging times. However, we stress the importance of coordinating these efforts to effectively reopen Palestinian universities in Gaza.

    We emphasise the urgent need to reoperate Gaza’s education institutions, not merely to support current students, but to ensure the long-term resilience and sustainability of our higher education system.

    Education is not just a means of imparting knowledge; it is a vital pillar of our existence and a beacon of hope for the Palestinian people.

    Long-term strategy essential
    Accordingly, it is essential to formulate a long-term strategy for rehabilitating the infrastructure and rebuilding the entire facilities of the universities. However, such endeavours require considerable time and substantial funding, posing a risk to the ability of academic institutions to sustain operations, potentially leading to the loss of staff, students, and the capacity to reoperate.

    Given the current circumstances, it is imperative to swiftly transition to online teaching to mitigate the disruption caused by the destruction of physical infrastructure. This transition necessitates comprehensive support to cover operational costs, including the salaries of academic staff.

    Student fees, the main source of income for universities, have collapsed since the start of the genocide. The lack of income has left staff without salaries, pushing many of them to search for external opportunities.

    Beyond striking at the livelihoods of university faculty and staff, this financial strain caused by the deliberate campaign of scholasticide poses an existential threat to the future of the universities themselves.

    Thus, urgent measures must be taken to address the financial crisis now faced by academic institutions, to ensure their very survival. We call upon all concerned parties to immediately coordinate their efforts in support of this critical objective.

    The rebuilding of Gaza’s academic institutions is not just a matter of education; it is a testament to our resilience, determination, and unwavering commitment to securing a future for generations to come.

    The fate of higher education in Gaza belongs to the universities in Gaza, their faculty, staff, and students and to the Palestinian people as a whole. We appreciate the efforts of peoples and citizens around the world to bring an end to this ongoing genocide.

    We call upon our colleagues in the homeland and internationally to support our steadfast attempts to defend and preserve our universities for the sake of the future of our people, and our ability to remain on our Palestinian land in Gaza.

    We built these universities from tents. And from tents, with the support of our friends, we will rebuild them once again.

    This open letter by the university academics and administrators of Gaza to the world was first published by Al Jazeera. The full list of signatories is here.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • NZ students stage Gaza protests in global ‘take a stand’ rallies

    Asia Pacific Report

    Thousands of students across Aotearoa New Zealand protested in a nationwide rally at seven universities across the country in a global day of solidarity with Palestine, calling on their universities to divest all partnerships with Israel.

    A combined group of students and academic staff from the country’s two largest universities chanted “AUT take a stand” at their rally in the Hikuwai Plaza in the heart of Auckland University of Technology (AUT).

    Students from the neighbouring University of Auckland (UOA) also took part.

    The students carried placards such as “Educators against genocide”, “Stand for students. Stand for justice. Stand with Palestine”, “Maite Te Awa Ki Te Moana” – te reo for “From the river to the sea – Free Palestine”.

    Another sign said, “No universities left in Gaza”, referring to Israeli military forces having destroyed all 12 universities in the besieged enclave during the war now in its eighth month.

    “We urge all students, alumni, and staff from universities across Aotearoa to sign the University Students’ Open Letter,” said organisers.

    “Let’s hold our institutions accountable, demanding they meet our calls for action and adhere to the guidelines of the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement.

    ‘Gross injustices’
    “Together, we can push for change and recognise Israel’s violations for what they are — gross injustices against humanity.

    “Stand with us in this global movement of solidarity with Palestine.”

    "No universities left in Gaza"
    “No universities left in Gaza” . . . because Israel bombed or destroyed all 12. Image: David Robie/APR

    The rally was in support of thousands of students around the world demonstrating against the Israeli genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Their aim with their universities:

    * Declare and recognise Palestine as an independent and sovereign state;
    * Disclose and divest all partnerships with Israel; and
    * Denounce antisemitism, Islamophobia and all forms of discrimination.


    Ali, the “voice of Free Palestine”.      Video: Café Pacific

    A declaration said that the nationwide protest expressed “our unapologetic solidarity with Palestinians and our commitment to the Palestinian struggle for liberation “.

    “We refuse to be silent or complicit in genocide, and we reject all forms of cooperation between our institutions and the Israeli state.

    "End the genocide"
    “End the genocide” . . . a watermelon protest. Image: David Robie/APR

    ‘Major win’ at Melbourne University
    Meanwhile, in Melbourne pro-Palestine protesters who occupied a university building last week called off their encampment.

    Protest leaders told a media conference at the University of Melbourne that had agreed to end the protest after the institution had agreed to disclose research partnerships with weapons manufacturers.

    “After months of campaigning, rallies, petitions, meetings and in recent weeks, the encampment, the University of Melbourne has finally agreed to meet an important demand of our campaign,” a spokesperson later told the ABC.

    “This is a major win.”

    Some of the protesting students at AUT university's Hikuwai Plaza
    Some of the protesting students at AUT University’s Hikuwai Plaza today. Image: David Robie/APR

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Kanaky New Caledonia unrest: NZ student in Nouméa taught to use fire extinguishers

    RNZ News

    A New Zealander studying at the University of New Caledonia says students have been taught to use fire extinguishers as firefighters are unlikely to come help if there is an emergency.

    It comes as days of unrest followed a controversial proposed constitutional amendment which would allow more French residents of New Caledonia to vote — a move that pro-independence protesters say would weaken the indigenous Kanak vote.

    Six people have been confirmed dead so far in the state of emergency and there are reports of hundreds of people injured, numerous fires and looting in New Caledonia’s capital Nouméa.

    Emma Royland is one of several international students at the university in Nouméa and said everyone was getting a bit “high-strung”.

    “There’s this high-strung suspicion from every noise, every bang that ‘is that somebody coming to the university?’”

    Royland said a roster had been set up so that someone was constantly up overnight, looking over the university campus.

    Nights had become more quiet, but there was still unrest, she said.

    Concern over technology
    The vice-president of the university had visited yesterday to bring students some cooking oil and expressed the concern the university had for its expensive technology, Royland said.

    “They are very worried that people come and they burn things just as a middle finger to the state.

    A New Zealand student studying at the University of New Caledonia says the unrest in Noumea is leaving her and other students high-strung and suspicious of every little bump or noise. They have been taught to use fire extinguishers in case rioters sets anything at the university of fire as firefighters are unlikely to come help.
    Smoke wafts over the harbour near Nouméa. Image: Emma Royland/RNZ

    “We’ve been told that ‘if you see a fire, it’s unlikely that the firefighters will come so we will try and manage it ourselves’.”

    Royland said water to the part of Nouméa she was in had not been affected but food was becoming an issue.

    The university was providing food when it could but even it was struggling to get access to it — snacks such as oreos had been provided.

    But the closest supermarket that was open had “queues down the block” that could last three or four hours, Royland said.

    Seeing ‘absolutely crazy things’
    She was seeing “absolutely crazy things that I’ve never seen in my life”.

    A New Zealand student studying at the University of New Caledonia says the unrest in Noumea is leaving her and other students high-strung and suspicious of every little bump or noise. They have been taught to use fire extinguishers in case rioters sets anything at the university of fire as firefighters are unlikely to come help.
    Food supplies are delivered to the University of Caledonia campus. Image: Emma Royland/RNZ

    That included people holding guns.

    “It is quite scary to know just 20 seconds down from the university there are guys with guns blocking the road.”

    Yesterday, the NZ Defence Force (NZDF) said it would fly into New Caledonia to bring home New Zealanders while commercial services were not operating.

    Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand was waiting for the go-ahead from French authorities, based on safety.

    “Ever since the security situation in New Caledonia deteriorated earlier this week, the safety of New Zealanders there has been an urgent priority for us,” Peters wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

    “NZ authorities have now completed preparations for flights using NZDF aircraft to bring home New Zealanders in New Caledonia while commercial services are not operating.

    ‘Ready to fly’
    “We are ready to fly, and await approval from French authorities as to when our flights are safe to proceed.”

    A New Zealand student studying at the University of New Caledonia says the unrest in Noumea is leaving her and other students high-strung and suspicious of every little bump or noise. They have been taught to use fire extinguishers in case rioters sets anything at the university of fire as firefighters are unlikely to come help.
    Businesses and facilities have been torched by rioters. Image: Emma Royland/RNZ

    Royland praised the response from New Zealand, saying other countries had not been so quick to help its citizens.

    She said she had received both a call and email from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade asking her if she was in immediate danger and if she needed assistance straight away.

    Everyone she had spoken to at the university seemed impressed with how New Zealand was responding, she said.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • PJR to celebrate 30 years of journalism publishing at Pacific Media 2024

    Pacific Media Watch

    Pacific Journalism Review, the Pacific and New Zealand’s only specialist media research journal, is celebrating 30 years of publishing this year — and it will mark the occasion at the Pacific Media International Conference in Fiji in July.

    Founded at the University of Papua New Guinea in 1994, PJR also published for five years at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji before moving on to AUT’s Pacific Media Centre (PMC).  It is currently being published by the Auckland-based Asia Pacific Media Network (APMN).

    Founding editor Dr David Robie, formerly director of the PMC before he retired from academic life three years ago, said: “This is a huge milestone — three decades of Pacific media research, more than 1000 peer-reviewed articles and an open access database thanks to Tuwhera.

    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024
    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024

    “These days the global research publishing model often denies people access to research if they don’t have access to libraries, so open access is critically important in a Pacific context.”

    Current editor Dr Philip Cass told Asia Pacific Report: “For us to return to USP will be like coming home.

    “For 30 years PJR has been the only journal focusing exclusively on media and journalism in the Pacific region.

    “Our next edition will feature articles on the Pacific, New Zealand, Australia and Southeast Asia.

    “We are maintaining our commitment to the Islands while expanding our coverage of the region.”

    Both Dr Cass and Dr Robie are former academic staff at USP; Dr Cass was one of the founding lecturers of the degree journalism programme and launched the student journalist newspaper Wansolwara and Dr Robie was head of journalism 1998-2002.

    The 20th anniversary of the journal was celebrated with a conference at AUT University. At the time, an Indonesian-New Zealand television student, Sasya Wreksono, made a short documentary about PJR and Dr Lee Duffield of Queensland University of Technology wrote an article about the journal’s history.


    The Life of Pacific Journalism Review.  Video: PMC/Sasya Wreksono

    Many journalism researchers from the Journalism Education and Research Association of Australia (JERAA) and other networks have been strong contributors to PJR, including professors Chris Nash and Wendy Bacon, who pioneered the Frontline section devoted to investigative journalism and innovative research.

    The launch of the 30th anniversary edition of PJR will be held at the conference on July 4-6 with Professor Vijay Naidu, who is adjunct professor in the disciplines of development studies and governance at USP’s School of Law and Social Sciences.

    Several of the PJR team will be present at USP, including longtime designer Del Abcede.

    A panel on research journalism publication will also be held at the conference with several editors and former editors taking part, including former editor Professor Mark Pearson of the Australian Journalism Review. This is being sponsored by the APMN, one of the conference partners.

    Conference chair Associate Professor Shailendra Singh, head of journalism at USP, is also on the editorial board of PJR and a key contributor.

    Three PJR covers and three countries
    Three PJR covers and three countries . . . volume 4 (1997, PNG), volume 8 (2002, Fiji), and volume 29 (2023, NZ). Montage: PJR

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • USP faces a ‘gathering storm’ over leadership and a looming strike

    Asia Pacific Report

    The University of the South Pacific — one of only two regional universities in the world — is facing a “gathering storm” over leadership, a management crisis and a looming strike, reports Islands Business.

    In the six-page cover story in the latest edition of the regional news magazine this week, IB reports that pay demands by the 12-nation institution “headline other contentions such as the number of unfilled vacancies and the strain that the unions say it’s causing staff”.

    The magazine also reported concerns about the “diminishing presence of Pacific Island academics” at what is a regional institution with 30,000 students representing Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

    The world’s other regional university is the Jamaica-based University of the West Indies with five campuses in 18 countries and 50,000 students.

    Another factor at USP is the “absence of female academics, and questions over the way some key contracts have been handled by management”.

    Staff say there are no longer any female professors at the Pacific university and the institution recently failed to renew the contract of Nobel Prize-winning academic Dr Elisabeth Holland, formerly professor of ocean and climate change and the longtime director of USP’s Pacific Centre for Environment and Sustainable Development (PaCE-SD), in controversial circumstances.

    She had been one of USP’s most distinguished staff members and a key Pacific climate crisis voice in global forums.

    Plunged into crisis
    “In February 2021, the University of the South Pacific (USP) was plunged into crisis when vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia was unceremoniously thrown out of Fiji following a middle-of-the-night raid on his campus residence, accused by the then [FijiFirst] government of Voreqe Bainimarama of breaching the country’s immigration laws,” wrote the magazine’s Fiji correspondent Joe Yaya, himself a former graduate of the university who was a member of the award-winning USP student journalism team covering the George Speight attempted coup in May 2000.

    “Within months of taking up the job in 2019, a bombshell report by Ahluwalia had alleged widespread financial mismanagement within the university under former administrations. It triggered an independent investigation by New Zealand-based accounting firm BDO and Ahluwalia’s eventual expulsion from Fiji.

    “Three years later, USP finds itself beset by a host of new problems, most prominent among them an overwhelming vote this month by staff across Fiji (97 percent of academic staff and 94 percent of administration and support personnel) to go on strike over pay issues.”

    USP's Professor Pal Ahluwalia
    USP’s Professor Pal Ahluwalia . . . facing mounting opposition from the university’s staff with unions planning strike action. Image: Fijivillage News

    Some of the concerns about pay and appointments are shared by key members of the USP Council and its senior management team.

    “Leadership emerged as a major point of discussion in interviews conducted by Islands Business,” wrote Yaya.

    Dr Ahluwalia reportedly retains firm support from some USP Council members, and also the student association.

    However, Islands Business reported that the university management had refused to respond to the magazine’s questions.

    Several interview efforts
    “Over a seven-week period beginning January 22, we made several efforts to reach vice-chancellor Ahluwalia. In mid-February, his office said he would not be able to provide an interview while at Laucala Campus ‘because of his busy schedule’ (they specified ‘engagements with stakeholders and other university-related activities’),” the magazine reported.

    “On March 6, Dr Ahluwalia responded in an email: ‘Many of the questions that you ask in relation to staff are being discussed with the respective unions and it is inappropriate for me to make comments through the media.

    “‘Most of your other questions relate directly to matters that are the business of our Council and its deliberations are confidential so it is inappropriate too for me to discuss these matters outside of Council.’”

    Islands Business also sought a response from Professor Pat Walsh, acting pro-chancellor of USP, and chair of the Council. Dr Walsh is the New Zealand government’s representative on the Council. He did not respond to Islands Business.

    Former USP pro-chancellor and chair, now Marshall Islands President Dr Hilda Heine, told Islands Business that during her term with USP, one of the “strong challenges we faced was the issue with the vice-chancellor”.

    Professor Ahluwalia’s extended work contract is expected to be finalised at next month’s Council meeting which has been moved from May to April 26-27.

    The vice-chancellor is due to meet the staff unions in mediation on Tuesday in a bid to avoid a staff strike.

    University of the South Pacific protesting in black
    University of the South Pacific staff protesting last November in black with placards calling for “fair pay” and for vice-chancellor Professor Ahluwalia to resign. Image: Association of USP Staff (AUSPS)

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Sexual harassment of Fiji’s women journalists ‘concerningly widespread’

    By Kelvin Anthony, RNZ Pacific lead digital and social media journalist

    Sexual harassment of women journalists continues to be a major problem in Fiji journalism and  “issues of power lie at the heart of this”, new research has revealed.

    The study, published in Journalism Practice by researchers from the University of Vienna and the University of the South Pacific, highlights there is a serious need to address the problem which is fundamental to press freedom and quality journalism.

    “We find that sexual harassment is concerningly widespread in Fiji and has worrying consequences,” the study said.

    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024
    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024

    “More than 80 percent of our respondents said they were sexually harassed, which is an extremely worryingly high number.”

    The researchers conducted a standardised survey of more than 40 former and current women journalists in Fiji, as well as in-depth interviews with 23 of them.

    One responded saying: “I had accepted it as the norm . . . lighthearted moments to share laughter given the Fijian style of joking and spoiling each other.

    “At times it does get physical. They would not do it jokingly. I would get hugs from the back and when I resisted, he told me to ‘just relax, it’s just a hug’.”

    ‘Sexual relationship proposal’
    Another, speaking about a time she was sent to interview a senior government member, said: “I was taken into his office where the blinds were down and where I sat through an hour of questions about who I was sleeping with, whether I had a boyfriend . . . and it followed with a proposal of a long-term sexual relationship.”

    The researchers said that while more than half of the journalistic workforce was made up of women “violence against them is normalised by men”.

    They said the findings of the study showed sexual harassment had a range of negative impacts which affects the woman’s personal freedom to work but also the way in which news in produced.

    “Women journalist may decide to self-censor their reporting for fear of reprisals, not cover certain topics anymore, or even leave the profession altogether.

    “The negative impacts that our respondents experienced clearly have wider repercussions on the ways in which wider society is informed about news and current affairs.”

    The research was carried out by Professor Folker Hanusch and Birte Leonhardt of the University of Vienna, and Associate Professor Shailendra Singh and Geraldine Panapasa of the University of the South Pacific.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Australian student journos explore Fiji media landscape with USP team

    Wansolwara News

    The University of the South Pacific journalism programme is hosting a cohort student journalists from Australia’s Queensland University of Technology this week.

    Led by Professor Angela Romano, the 12 students are covering news assignments in Fiji as part of their working trip.

    The visitors were given a briefing by USP journalism teaching staff — Associate Professor in Pacific journalism and programme head Dr Shailendra Singh, and student training newspaper supervising editor-in-chief Monika Singh.

    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024
    PACIFIC MEDIA CONFERENCE 4-6 JULY 2024

    The students held lively discussions about the form and state of the media in Fiji and the Pacific, the historic influence of Australian and Western news media and its pros and cons, and the impact of the emergence of China on the Pacific media scene.

    Dr Singh said the small and micro-Pacific media systems were “still reeling” from revenue loss due to digital disruption and the covid-19 pandemic.

    As elsewhere in the world, the “rivers of gold” (classified advertising revenue) had virtually dried up and media in the Pacific were apparently struggling like never before.

    Dr Singh said that this was evident from the reduced size of some newspapers in the Pacific, in both classified and display advertising, which had migrated to social media platforms.

    Repeal of draconian law
    He praised Fiji’s coalition government for repealing the country’s draconian Media Industry Development Act last year, and reviving media self-regulation under the revamped Fiji Media Council.

    However, Dr Singh added that there was still some way to go to further improve the media landscape, including focus on training and development and working conditions.

    “There are major, longstanding challenges in small and micro-Pacific media systems due to small audiences, and marginal profits,” he said. “This makes capital investment and staff development difficult to achieve.”

    The QUT students are in Suva this month on a working trip in which students will engage in meetings, interviews and production of journalism. They will meet non-government organisations that have a strong focus on women/gender in development, democracy or peace work.

    The students will also visit different media organisations based in Suva and talk to their female journalists on their experiences and their stories.

    The USP journalism programme started in Suva in 1988 and it has produced more than 200 graduates serving the Pacific and beyond in various media and communication roles.

    The programme has forged partnerships with leading media players in the Pacific and our graduates are shining examples in the fields of journalism, public relations and government/NGO communication.

    Asia Pacific Report publishes in partnership with The University of the South Pacific’s newspaper and online Wansolwara News.


    This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by Wansolwara.

    This post was originally published on Radio Free.

  • World’s ‘smallest university’, but Tuvalu campus has big local impact

    By Kalinga Seneviratne

    The University of the South Pacific’s (USP) Tuvalu Campus, located in the capital Funafuti, is perhaps the smallest university in the world, but it offers a distinctive service.

    The nation of Tuvalu comprises nine small atoll islands which have a combined population of just 11,400. The Tuvalu Campus itself is restricted to one small building with three classrooms, a conference room, a couple of office spaces and several mobile teaching and learning units.

    Regardless of the size of the campus, USP Tuvalu’s campus director Dr Olikoni Tanaki from Tonga is positive about the university’s role and contribution.

    In a message on its website, he argues it is the people that “make this campus distinctive and we continuously strive to explore better ways to provide the best services to our communities, and that sustains our distinctiveness”.

    In an interview in Funafuti, Isikeli Naqaya, a student-learning specialist at USP Tuvalu, said: “Every semester, the university caters to about 330 students who come from all nine islands.”

    He added that some students were based in outer islands and study online, while the majority were based in Funafuti.

    The campus was first established as an extension centre in the early 1980s. It is referred to as USP Tuvalu because of the multi-campus nature of USP.

    USP is a single university with 11 branch campuses across the Pacific.

    It is one of two regional universities in the world — the other is in the Caribbean — and is owned by 12 Pacific Island countries, with Tuvalu being one of them.

    USP’s main campus is located in Suva, Fiji, and is known in the region as Laucala Campus, which is also the university’s administrative centre.

    The author, Kalinga Seneviratne
    The author, Kalinga Seneviratne, at the Tuvalu campus of The University of the South Pacific. Image: KS/APR

    Catering to local needs
    Tuvalu Campus is basically a regional centre of USP which helps to deliver courses that are designed at the Laucala Campus.

    Local students can take certificate, diploma or degree courses of USP via the Tuvalu Campus but they need to register through the central administration at Laucala. USP Tuvalu also offers short courses and workshops catering to local needs.

    “The majority of our students do the online mode, particularly those who are involved in degree courses,” Naqaya said. “A majority of those doing face-to-face [courses] are those who do foundation programmes”.

    The foundation programmes include the compulsory module, English language skills for tertiary studies, that is taught in-person by Naqaya.

    He explains that there are three delivery methods on campus: if there is a tutor available on campus to deliver the programme, it’s face to face. If there is no tutor, it is usually a blended mode or purely online.

    Many of the in-person courses are short courses offered as adult education programmes to improve the skills levels needed for the local economy.

    “We have just completed one on business communication with our Department of Fisheries here in Tuvalu. It went on for two weeks. These programmes are very popular here.

    “Different government ministries and even non-governmental organisations come to us for this type of programme,” said Naqaya. “We have also delivered a course in the small seafood business.”

    Fisheries staff
    Most of the students for the small business course were staff of the Tuvalu Fisheries Department. USP Tuvalu advertised the course and staff interested in it sent in their applications which went to Laucala campus for selection.

    The certificates for the graduates of the short courses are issued by USP in Fiji.

    Because it is a branch campus, for USP Tuvalu to deliver a programme, it has to undergo a process. First, the Fiji campus consults with their Tuvalu counterparts to see whether they have a suitable person to deliver the course.

    If there is one, Tuvalu receives the course material from Suva and the course is delivered in Tuvalu.

    “If we don’t have the specialised staff, like [for a subject such as] cybercrime, for example, we would have someone to come over and deliver it. We first advertise it locally and if there is someone qualified here to do it, they will come and deliver it,” said Naqaya.

    “Many of the small courses I have been delivering.”

    School leadership programme
    On November 27, USP Tuvalu officially launched the Graduate Certificate of School Leadership (GCSL) programme in Tuvalu, marking a crucial step towards empowering the country’s school leaders.

    This is a collaborative effort between the USP’s Institute of Education (IoE), the Tuvalu Ministry of Education, Youth, and Sports, and the Tuvalu Learning Project. The GCSL programme was developed in response to a request from Tuvalu, and emphasises the collaborative effort required for success.

    IoE director Dr Seu’ula Johansson-Fua, delivering the opening remarks at the launch of the GCSL programme, described it as an uncommon instance of a member country seeking university-designed programmes, and highlighted the institution’s commitment to tailoring education to meet the specific needs of member countries.

    The guest of honour for the launch ceremony, Director of the Tuvalu Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports Neaki Letia, highlighted the necessity of the GCSL programme and acknowledged the challenges faced by school leaders in the absence of proper leadership and management training.

    “In your role as school leaders we demand reports, we demand . . . attainments. At one point in time, we sit around the table and ask each other, ‘Have we provided proper training for the tools that we ask them to provide?’ and the answer is ‘No, we have not’,” he said.

    “So, this is why we requested USP, especially the Institute of Education, for support — to help us contribute ideas and instil knowledge to be a leader,” he explained.

    Local research capacity
    Another role of USP Tuvalu is to develop local research capacity, especially in local knowledge to tackle climatic change.

    Vasa Saitala, a Tuvaluan, was the community research officer at USP Tuvalu until recently. She told University World News that a campus like Tuvalu is important to unite communities as some Tuvaluans have never been to school.

    “There are changes due to climate change and through consultations with communities they would . . .  learn of what’s happening around us,” she said. “We have to do the studies about traditional knowledge and peoples’ awareness of climatic change, etcetera.”

    Saitala has conducted a research project on gathering traditional knowledge about local indicators for different seasons and has developed a curriculum for community training on how to use this knowledge to protect against cyclones, droughts and so on. She has also been involved in a regional project of USP that gathers information about community understandings of climatic change issues.

    “USP Laucala outsources the research to us. We do the research here and send the reports to Laucala,” she said.

    “For short-term fisheries training and also gender issues, people from USP Fiji come here and work with us.”

    Kalinga Seneviratne is a journalist, radio broadcaster, television documentary maker, media and international communications analyst. During 2023, he was a journalism programme consultant with The University of the South Pacific. This article was first published by University World News and is republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘Up in arms’ USP staff challenge vice-chancellor’s stay in Samoa

    By Alexander Rheeney in Apia

    Disgruntled staff at the University of South Pacific (USP) are demanding the USP Council make a decision on the relocation of the vice-chancellor, Professor Pal Ahluwalia, to Fiji from Samoa.

    The demands from the USP staff coincide with the university’s two-day 96th council meeting at the Laucala campus’s Japan ICT Building earlier this week.

    In an email that was sent to regional media last Friday, including the Samoa Observer, the staff said they were “up in arms” over the decision by the university’s pro-chancellor to block a submission from the staff to the agenda of the council’s meeting.

    “The paper is in response to the decision of the May 2023 USP Council (C95) meeting where its attention was drawn to the many unresolved issues faced by the staff over the period 2021 to May 2023 and some earlier, despite meetings of the staff policy committee and SMT/union quarterly meetings which are chaired by VCP [vice-chancellor and president],” read the statement issued by the university staff.

    “University management only found it necessary to respond to issues when the Association of USP Staff (AUSPS) filed a log of claims in October 2023. The VCP then appointed the chief operating officer and the executive director people and workforce strategy to engage with the union.”

    According to the USP staff, two meetings were held to respond to the decision of the May Council for the university management and the unions to work together to address the issues and to report and update the November (C96) council.

    A paper was then submitted for the November 2023 council agenda containing updates on resolved and unresolved issues in response to the council’s decision and new issues that have come to light since C95.

    Paper ‘cannot be tabled’
    However, the staff said that on November 20 the secretary to the council informed the council staff representative that the pro-chancellor and chair of the council had directed him to inform her that after reviewing the paper, “it cannot be tabled at the 96th council meeting” because “the issues raised therein are not for council to deliberate on”.

    University of the South Pacific protesting in black
    University of the South Pacific staff protesting in black with placards calling for “fair pay” and for vice-chancellor Professor Ahluwalia to resign. Image: Association of USP Staff (AUSPS)

    They added that the pro-chancellor had directed that these be worked on with the USP management!

    “She failed to acknowledge that the paper contained responses to May council decision and that there are issues such as the salary adjustment that the management has refused to discuss or negotiate on.

    “PC [pro-chancellor] then proceeded to state that the council does not deal with matters of salary adjustment. Precedent has been set where the council has approved salary adjustments.”

    Fiji’s national broadcaster FBC on Tuesday reported that the president of AUSPS, Elizabeth Read Fong, had questioned why Professor Ahluwalia continued to live in Samoa despite the Fiji government lifting the ban that the former Fijian government had placed on him.

    Fong reportedly said that the logical choice would be for the university’s vice-chancellor and president to return to his office at the main headquarters of the USP in Laucala Bay, Suva, and appealed to the Samoa government to facilitate the release of the vice-chancellor.

    She said the regional university continued to spend a lot on Professor Ahluwalia’s travel and accommodation expenses every time he travelled to Suva from Samoa.

    The Samoa Observer has contacted the USP vice-chancellor for comment on the concerns that the USP staff members have raised.

    Many USP staff dressed in black protested for two days over their grievances with the vice-chancellor.

    Alexander Rheeney is editor of the Samoa Observer. Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘All talk and no action’ say USP protesters calling for fair pay

    RNZ Pacific

    University of the South Pacific (USP) staff gathered outside the Japan-Pacific ICT Centre today to protest over better pay and conditions as well as calling for the removal of the regional institution’s vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia.

    The university’s main decision making body, the USP Council, is meeting at the Laucala campus this week.

    Aggrieved employees of the university showed up in black, holding placards calling for “fair pay” and for Professor Ahluwalia to resign.

    The staff are unhappy after the USP pro-chancellor chair of council Dr Hilda Heine did not include a staff paper on the agenda of the meeting today, according to local media reports.

    “The Association of USP Staff (AUSPS) president Elizabeth Fong said the paper included a submission on staff salary adjustment and a recommendation to recruit a new Vice Chancellor who is originally from the region,” according to Fiji One News report.

    USP staff call for a new vice-chancellor
    USP staff are calling for a “fair pay” deal and for the university to recruit a new vice-chancellor who is originally from the Pacific region. Image: Association of USP Staff (AUSPS)

    FBC News reports that the staff are calling for the “non-renewal Ahluwalia’s contract, claiming that he is no longer fit for the role” and that the vice-chancellor’s position to be advertised.

    “Fong claims the VC is all talk and no action,” it reported.

    The state broadcaster is reporting that USP staff want a 11 percent increase in pay and not the four percent they have received recently.

    “We have staff shortages, vacancies which means people have doubled up and tripled up on their responsibilities. This is about keeping USP serving the region, serving its people,” Fong was quoted by FBC News as saying.

    ‘We remain hopeful’ — USP
    In a statement to RNZ Pacific, USP said its management “continues to work with the staff unions regarding their grievances” since they were raised earlier in the year.

    “Through its meeting with AUSPS, the USP management has resolved some of the matters raised in the log of claims while discussion continued on the remaining issues.”

    The university said that in October 2022, all USP staff received salary increments and the second increase kicked in in January 2023.

    “Staff also received a bonus in the middle of the year (2023). Negotiations are continuing, and provisions have been made for another salary increase next year, subject to the Council approving our 2024 budget.”

    The USP said the chair of the USP Council approved the council agenda, “and the USP management does not have a say in the matter”.

    “As stated several times previously, the vice-chancellor’s relocation is decided by the council.

    “The institution, as always, supports union rights and acknowledges that a peaceful protest is within its ambit.

    “However, we remain hopeful that through USP management, we can continue to have discussions with the AUSPS about their grievances and follow proper channels to meet their demands until an amicable solution is reached,” it said.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • USP staff unhappy with VC, but he thanks them for ‘engagement’

    By Felix Chaudhary in Suva

    University of the South Pacific staff who once stood by vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia are now up in arms about his role in a decision by pro-chancellor Dr Hilda Heine to disallow a staff paper to be placed on the agenda of the 96th USP Council meeting being held today.

    A joint press statement by the Association of the University of the South Pacific Staff (AUSPS) and the University of the South Pacific Staff Union (USPSU) said the blocked paper was in relation to “many unresolved issues faced by the staff over the period 2021 to May 2023”, which included pay and other matters.

    The unions said staff from across the region met on November 22 and “are aggrieved and angry at the refusal of the PC (pro-chancellor) and VCP to allow their voice to be heard at council”.

    “This is the same VCP that  the staff stood for in his hour of greatest need,” the unions said.

    “The same staff who took risks to ensure that he was given worker justice and the opportunity to prove his worthiness of the VCP position.

    “That he was a likely party to a decision to disallow the Staff paper is indicative of VCP’s leadership style which has become very clear to staff.”

    The unions said USP management refuse to discuss or negotiate a salary adjustment for 2019-2023 and the final course of action was to bring the matter to the council for resolution in preference to industrial action.

    What the VC had to say
    In response to queries from The Fiji Times, Professor Ahluwalia sent a message he had issued to USP staff.

    In it, he thanked them for joining him in a staff discussion which had a “record number of staff who attended with a high level of engagement.

    “Whilst we have made considerable progresses, some issues remain outstanding,” the VC said.

    He said USP now had a budget that would be presented to the council for approval today.

    “Despite the alarming situation concerning declining student numbers, we have managed to ensure no redundancies, albeit, we will only be able to fill 30 per cent of our vacancies next year.”

    Professor Ahluwalia said in terms of salary adjustments, the university had “made a great deal of progress, with two salary increases in October 2022 and January 2023 and an increment/bonus for all staff in the middle of the year (2023), and provisions have been made for another salary increase next year subject to council approving our 2024 budget.”

    Questions sent to pro-vice chancellor Dr Hilda Heine yesterday remained unanswered.

    Felix Chaudhary is a Fiji Times journalist. Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Demise of CSU news journalism course was ‘greatly exaggerated’

    By Bruce Andrews

    A Charles Sturt University journalism academic says the evolving communication course at his institution in Australia continues to feed the ranks of the irrepressible “Mitchell Mafia’”.

    Jock Cheetham, senior lecturer in news and media in the Charles Sturt School of Information and Communication Studies in Bathurst, said recent “news” of the demise of the journalism course was greatly exaggerated.

    Cheetham said he was surprised to wake up and read a media report in late July suggesting journalism was not being taught separately at Charles Sturt University.

    Charles Sturt University Journalism
    Quality journalism has never been more important, and Charles Sturt has an enviable reputation for producing some of the world’s best, most-renowned journalists.

    “That day I spent six hours teaching news and media, also known as ‘journalism’,” he said.

    “Actually, on that Tuesday we had ABC veteran Trevor Watson visit us on campus to give a guest talk on journalism, specifically news writing, which was also streamed to online students.

    “Before that talk, I spent two hours with a class analysing media coverage of The Voice to Parliament Referendum campaigns. After Trevor’s talk, I held a news writing tutorial doing practice exercises on the hard news style of reporting.”

    ‘Pretty journalistic day’
    He said it was a “pretty journalistic” day.

    “We’re still teaching journalism, with practical opportunities to work in newsrooms, such as National Radio News,” he said.

    Cheetham emphasised that quality journalism had never been more important, and Charles Sturt had an enviable reputation for producing some of the world’s best, most-renowned journalists.

    As the original ABC article noted, over the past five decades, the university has nurtured some of the nation’s most high-profile communicators, including Andrew Denton, Melissa Doyle, Samantha Armytage, Hamish Macdonald, Chris Bath, and current ABC News Europe correspondent Nick Dole.

    “Charles Sturt University will continue to educate and train journalists for the evolving media landscape,” Cheetham said.

    “At the University campus in Bathurst we continue to have cutting-edge facilities, such as a TV studio, a community broadcasting radio station, and editing suites, for our students to gain skills and insights into working in their chosen fields.

    “We’re also investing substantial funds in the communications hub that will provide new facilities for our future students.”

    For example, graduates from 2021 include 7News (Central West) journalist Reuben Spargo who won the 2021 JERAA Ossie Award for ‘national student journalist of the year’.

    “Charles Sturt threw practical skills at me and helped grow my confidence as a communicator,” Spargo said.

    “The connections I made and the experiences I shared allowed me to hit the ground running within the industry.”

    Keeping pace
    Cheetham said to keep pace with the ever-changing media industry and digital advancements, Charles Sturt had launched a new communication course with its first intake last year, 2022.

    “The new Bachelor of Communication offers specialisations in strategic communication, news and media — journalism, which I teach — and design and content creation,” he said.

    “Teaching the critical role of journalism is still very much a priority at Charles Sturt. The changes represent a transition from one version of the journalism degree, which we have offered for more than 50 years, into a new degree program.

    The philosophy behind the new course
    “The philosophy behind the new course remains the same — we’re aiming to produce people who are good storytellers.” Image: CSU

    “The philosophy behind the new course remains the same — we’re aiming to produce people who are good storytellers. We have retained a lot of the strongest elements of the old course bringing them into the new course.”

    Having industry and alumni co-design the course with academic staff offers students a unique combination of academic, discipline-specific specialisations with a sound understanding of the industry through the networking and industry connections embedded within the course.

    The format of the new degree combines first-hand industry knowledge and advice, and to have industry professionals sharing knowledge, expertise and daily experiences will be a real game changer for the students.

    Republished from CSU News with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Bid to protect Pacific indigenous knowledge in the global digital space

    By Ema Ganivatu and Brittany Nawaqatabu in Suva

    A recent webinar hosted by the Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG) brought together minds from across the region to delve into the intricate issues of the digital economy and data value.

    The webinar’s focus was clear — shed light on who was shaping the rules of the digital landscape and how these rules were taking form.

    At the forefront of the discussion was the delicate matter of valuing and protecting indigenous knowledge.

    PANG’s deputy coordinator, Adam Wolfenden, emphasised the need for open conversations spanning various sectors.

    “It is a call to understand and safeguard the wisdom embedded in Pacific worldviews and indigenous knowledge systems as we venture into the digital world,” he said.

    But amid the promise of the digital age, challenges persisted.

    Wolfenden said the Pacific’s scattered islands faced the formidable obstacle of connectivity.

    “Communities yearn to tap into online technologies, yet structural barriers stand tall. The connectivity challenges and structural barriers that are faced by the Pacific region are substantial and there is no easy, cheap fix,” he said.

    He underscored the necessity of regional partnerships, even beyond the Pacific.

    “As they sought to build advanced digital infrastructures, they realised that strength lay in unity. The journey towards progress means joining hands with fellow developing nations.

    “It is a testament to the shared dream of progress that transcends geographical boundaries.”

    The first step, Wolfenden believed, was awareness.

    He said the Pacific region needed to be fully informed about ongoing negotiations, what rules were being carved, and how these might affect the region’s autonomy and data sovereignty.

    “Often, these negotiations remain hidden from public view, shrouded in secrecy until agreements were reached. This has to change; transparency is vital,” Wolfenden said.

    Beyond this, there was a call for broader discussions during the webinar. The digital economy was not just about buyers and sellers in a virtual marketplace.

    It was about preserving culture, empowering communities, and ensuring that indigenous knowledge was never left vulnerable to the whims of the digital age.

    Ema Ganivatu and Brittany Nawaqatabu are final year journalism students at The University of the South Pacific. They are also senior editors for Wansolwara, USP Journalism’s student training newspaper and online publications. Republished in a collaborative partnership with Asia Pacific Report.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘I hear your cry’, UPNG chief tells protesting medical students

    PNG Post-Courier

    The University of Papua New Guinea’s vice-chancellor, Professor Frank Griffin, has assured protesting students of the School of Medicine and Health Sciences that their concerns raised during a sit-in last Friday will be addressed immediately.

    He told the students when receiving a seven-page petition containing protests over the student’s welfare which was presented to him by Student Representative Council (SRC) student representative Elizah Sap that he would act “today”.

    “I hear your cry — the work does not start next this week but today,” Professor Griffin said.

    “I have walked through everyone’s dormitories in this campus, the laboratories and the state of the other buildings and the work starts today.

    “I have heard your pleas of the students on the whole concept of from the womb to the tomb, this school handles every part of that.

    “It may appear that you are being forgotten and neglected, that is not always the case but what we’ll do now is a priority with work and planning starting immediately,” he said.

    He told the students that he would return to the campus to discuss with the school’s executive dean and SRC executives to draw up a plan and get the assessment and work going as quickly as possible.

    Wifi, generators ‘a priority’
    “The issues of having the wifi and generators is a priority that we will look at immediately,” he said.

    He said when the school starts next year, it should be a different place.

    He said the medical campus was much older than the main campus in Waigani and for now the university would make sure to make the place “fit enough” to be called the School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

    SRC president Sap acknowledged Professor Griffin’s response.

    “As such, the SRC considers it vital that the student concerns raised in this petition be addressed adequately and promptly,” Sap sad.

    “Importantly as well, the SRC calls on the administration to look into all of these matters with due care and consideration in order to formulate strategies to remedy these concerns.

    “Only together can the administration and SRC help the University of Papua New Guinea improve services for its students.”

    Republished with permission from the PNG Post-Courier.

  • Nuclear-free campaigners warn against AUKUS raising Pacific tensions

    Asia Pacific Report

    Advocates and defenders of a nuclear-free Pacific have condemned the AUKUS military pact and warned New Zealand that the agreement would make the world “more dangerous” and should not join.

    Participants at a Nuclear-Free and Independent Pacific (NFIP) movement teachers’ wānanga launched a petition against the pact with one of the “elders” among the activists, Hilda Halkyard-Harawira (Te Moana Nui a Kiwa), symbolically adding the first signature.

    Speaking about the petition declaration in a ceremony on the steps of the Auckland Museum marking the 10 July 1985 bombing of the Greenpeace flagship Rainbow Warrior, Reverend Mua Strickson-Pua explained that the AUKUS agreement was a military pact between Australia-UK-US that was centred on Canberra’s acquisition of nuclear propelled submarines.

    “The pact also includes sharing weapons and other military technologies,” Reverend Strickson-Pua said, reading from the declaration.

    “The New Zealand government is considering joining part of this pact. This petition opposes AUKUS and calls for a foreign policy centred on an independent, demilitarised and nuclear-free Pacific.”

    Reverend Strickson-Pua asked why this was important.

    “AUKUS is an aggressive military pact. Security in New Zealand and the Pacific can only be ensured by centring sustainable development, Indigenous rights, and environmental protection.

    ‘Deepen geopolitical tensions’
    “AUKUS makes the world more dangerous. New Zealand participation in AUKUS would deepen geopolitical tensions in the Pacific, and threaten Pacific nations’ long held policy of ‘friends to all and enemies to none’.

    “AUKUS impedes climate action. Climate change remains the single greatest threat to the livelihoods, security and wellbeing of all peoples of the Pacific.

    “The threat of climate change requires international diplomacy and cooperation, not militarism.

    “AUKUS threatens our nuclear free legacy. Aotearoa New Zealand has a proud history of anti-nuclearism and solidarity with the Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific movement.”

    Reverend Strickson-Pua also stressed that AUKUS was not based on public consultation.

    “It accelerates climate injustice, violates our treaties and regional commitments, and erodes regional decolonisation efforts.”

    The petition urges the New Zealand government to reject any role in the AUKUS military pact and condemns the use of nuclear weapons and non-peaceful nuclear technologies in the Pacific.

    Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific Movement (NFIP) campaigners Hone Harawira, Hilda Halkyard-Harawira and Reverend Mua Strickson-Pua
    Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific Movement (NFIP) campaigners Hone Harawira, Hilda Halkyard-Harawira and Reverend Mua Strickson-Pua on the steps of Auckland Museum today. Image: David Robie/APR

    ‘French Letter’
    After the reading of the declaration, participants sang the popular Herbs anti-nuclear song “French Letter.”

    This petition is led by Te Kuaka.

    The petition launch and Rainbow Warrior reflection followed the teachers’ wānanga which featured many veteran activists of the NFIP and New Zealand nuclear-free movements such as Hilda Halkyard-Harawira, Hone Harawira, Reverend George Armstrong and others discussing past actions and strategies for the future.

    “Today we heard from movement elders and educators about the ongoing relevance of the history of the NFIP movement for Aotearoa,” said Marco de Jong, a Pacific historian working for WERO (Working to End Racial Oppression) who is the wānanga co-convener.

    “Our nuclear-free legacy is an important part of national identity, but it is important to make sure we approach it critically so we are not teaching mythology to our learners.

    “Today we heard about regional and Māori dimensions that might add diverse historical perspectives, tomorrow we will work on translating them into resources for a range of different learning environments.”

    "Independence in the Pacific" posters at the teachers' wānanga at the Auckland Museum
    “Independence in the Pacific” posters at the teachers’ wānanga at the Auckland Museum today. Image: David Robie/APR

  • Hipkins faces grilling from students over University of Otago staff cuts

    By Tess Brunton, RNZ News reporter

    New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins faced a grilling by University of Otago students during his trip to Ōtepoti yesterday.

    Students, staff and community members have been fighting against the university’s request for staff to consider redundancies in a bid to save $60 million.

    But the students did not keep their questions to cuts alone.

    Hipkins got a mixed welcome with protesters chanting and asking for selfies with the prime minister.

    Associate professor of politics Brian Roper said staff were already finding out that their courses were being cut and they were losing their jobs.

    “I bumped into one of them. She was in tears, she’s absolutely distraught. What this government is doing to our universities is scandalous,” he said.

    “Five out of eight of them are currently experiencing severe financial difficulties because of a chronic underfunding from this government.”

    Declining enrolments
    Hipkins said declining enrolments meant universities across the motu were finding ways to rebalance their books.

    “I know that’s a really uncertain and uncomfortable time for the staff. The universities make their own decisions about how they manage their finances so it’s not something we can intervene on as a government.”

    The prime minister attended a student association forum yesterday afternoon, making a speech before opening the floor to questions from students.

    “I was just in a lecture where we’re doing course evaluations and my lecturer was begging the class to give a positive evaluation to keep her job. We have a $60 million budget hole, why can’t you just fix it?”

    Someone taking a selfie with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins during his visit the University of Otago on 2 June 2023.
    Prime Minister Chris Hipkins got a mixed reception – with some protesting and others asking for selfies. Image: Tess Brunton/RNZ

    Hipkins said there was a lot of demand on the government’s coffers, and they could not cover all of the requests they got.

    He offered no policy promises, telling students they would hear them well before the election

    “Our rent has increased, the university’s spiralling down. I’m just thinking why on Earth should I be voting for you?” one student asked.

    ‘Most political answer’
    Hipkins said: “I’ll probably give you the most political answer I’ve given you so far. The biggest increase in tertiary funding that we’ve seen in 20 years in this year’s Budget versus a government that actually wants to do the opposite of that.”

    But his responses in regards to the National Party did not go over well with multiple students telling him to stop the blame game or saying what the opposing party would not give them, and instead tell them his policies and what he would deliver.

    Protesters at the University of Otago during Prime Minister Chris Hipkins' visit to the campus, including the yellow-suited monkey who has become a feature of recent university protests.
    Protesters, including the yellow-suited monkey, at Otago University yesterday. Image: Tess Brunton/RNZ

    A yellow-suited monkey has become a feature of recent university protests — they want the government to bail out the university to save jobs and courses.

    “I have a banana addiction as a monkey, but my Bachelor of Arts is being cut and I think that’s appalling. Millions and millions of dollars are sitting there which could bail out our university for underfunding, but he’s just not spending it, which he needs to,” the monkey said.

    Earlier in the day, Hipkins toured KiwiRail’s Hillside Workshops in South Dunedin as it works on a multi-million dollar redevelopment to build a new wagon assembly facility.

    Chris Hipkins (left) and ministers with Balancing Monkey Games co-founder Sam Barham (seated) at the firm's gaming development studio in Dunedin.
    Prime Minister Chris Hipkins (left) and ministers with Balancing Monkey Games co-founder Sam Barham (seated). Image: Tess Brunton/RNZ

    Then he swapped a hard hat for a console, visiting three gaming development studios, after announcing $160 million to set up a 20 percent rebate for game developers in the recent Budget.

    Hopeful over rebate
    Balancing Monkey Games co-founder Sam Barham is hopeful the rebate could help them hire more staff and continue to do what they love.

    Currently, he said developers made most of their money straight after releasing a game and then lived off that until they released another one.

    “It makes a huge difference in terms of our ability to survive. It’s not the least risky business out there so we’ve got to think about how do we keep going. Our main aim is to still be doing this. It’s a thing that we love doing.”

    The details of the rebate will be consulted on, but up to $3 million in rebate funding is likely to be up for grabs per year for individual studios.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Additional budget funds earmarked for USP arrears, says Prasad

    By Repeka Nasiko in Lautoka

    The University of the South Pacific will be receiving additional funding from the Fiji government in the 2023-2024 national budget, says Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance Professor Biman Prasad.

    Speaking at a public consultation in Lautoka this week, he said the additional funding was to pay off arrears owed by the Fijian government to the regional university.

    As of February this year, the Fiji government owed USP F$116 million (NZ$86 million) in unpaid grants.

    “We gave $10 million already,” the Deputy PM said.

    “I attended their council meeting and I made a commitment.

    “We are restoring the annual grant to the university which is about $34 million.

    “From this year the annual contribution that the Fiji government always used to contribute will be included in the budget and that will be paid.

    “We are going to include an additional amount to clear out the arrears from the past years and so the university will have a lot of money.”

    Professor Prasad was responding to queries raised by USP staff member Teresa Ali on the government’s commitment to the university’s annual grant.

    Deputy VC ‘dismissed’
    Meanwhile, Fijivillage News reports that the University of the South Pacific management has confirmed that deputy vice-chancellor and vice-president Professor Janusz Jankowski’s arrangement with the institution has ended.

    USP's Professor Januscz Jankowsk
    USP’s Professor Januscz Jankowski . . . appointed in November 2022, “sacked” on May 26 after his “whistleblower” allegations.

    In response to an email sent by FBC News, USP management said Professor Jankowski was recently engaged as a fixed-term and part-time consultant.

    It also said that, contrary to media reports, the vice-chancellor and president of USP did not have the delegated authority to terminate the employment of a deputy vice-chancellor.

    News media reports say that a week before the termination of Professor Jankowski’s contract, he had written a damning 13-page “whistleblower” report to two of the university’s pro vice-chancellors alleging “nepotism, lack of transparency and accountability” at the university.

    Repeka Nasiko is a Fiji Times reporter. Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Claims of ‘issues, concerns and breaches’ emerge at USP

    By Kelvin Anthony, RNZ Pacific lead digital and social media journalist

    A leaked document authored by a recently recruited senior University of the South Pacific academic has again put a spotlight on the affairs of the regional institution.

    The “strictly confidential” document, viewed by RNZ Pacific, is written by Professor Janusz Jankowski, the deputy vice-chancellor and vice-president (research and innovation) of USP.

    The 13-page report is addressed to the USP Council chair and pro-chancellor — and former Marshall Islands president — Dr Hilda Heine and deputy chair and deputy pro-chancellor, Professor Pat Walsh.

    USP's Professor Januscz Jankowsk
    USP’s deputy vice-chancellor (research and innovation) Professor Januscz Jankowski . . . appointed November 2022, “sacked” on May 26. Image: USP

    It alleges several “issues, concerns and breaches with both USP policies and procedures” under USP’s vice-chancellor and president Pal Ahluwalia’s leadership.

    Dr Jankowski — who was appointed to his role in November last year and has been working remotely from the UK — is calling for formal investigations of the vice-chancellor of the regional university.

    USP vice-chancellor and president Professor Pal Ahluwalia . . . facing new allegations. Image: USP

    RNZ understands that following Dr Jankowski’s report to the USP Council, he has been dismissed from his position.

    It is also understood that USP staff unions are unhappy with a range of issues highlighted in the report and the sacking of Dr Jankowski.

    RNZ Pacific has contacted Professor Ahluwalia and USP for comment.

    In an email response, a USP spokesperson said on Wednesday that Dr Jankowski was no longer working at the university but that was not related to his complaint.

    “Contrary to media reports, the vice-chancellor and president of USP does not have the delegated authority to terminate the employment of a deputy vice-chancellor,” the statement said.

    “This authority rests with the University Council. In the matter pertaining to Professor Janusz Jankowski’s status with the university, he was until recently engaged as a fixed-term and part-time consultant, and this arrangement has now ended.”

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Academic ‘tsunami’ at USP shakes regional Pacific institution to core

    COMMENT: By Michael Field of The Pacific Newsroom

    An alleged bizarre swinging punch towards an academic from a senior management figure at the top of the University of the South Pacific (USP) is underscoring a deepening crisis in the regional organisation.

    While it was not vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia who threw the punch, its plain the one time Fiji deportee is spectacularly failing USP. With falling student roles, and running out of already badly spent money, the once model of regional cooperation and dreams is heading toward a Fiji road smash.

    Much of it will have been Professor Ahluwalia’s fault, but inaction on the part of the current pro-chancellor Dr Hilda Heine carries a burden of liability too.

    USP's vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia
    USP’s vice-chancellor Professor Pal Ahluwalia . . . under fire again. Image: Twitter/APR

    Professor Ahluwalia has gone into a kind of cone of silence, neither calling the “senior management team” (SMT) for several months, nor dealing with urgent issues.

    To those inside the Suva campus, the place seems on remote control. Money is allegedly disappearing, and the institution is struggling again to pay its bills. Nothing decisive is happening to rescue the organisation founded in 1968.

    While tensions between senior academic staff in any university is not unknown, inside USP it has become deeply hostile. Various allegations are made about staff, and the place has descended into a kind of madhouse.

    Professor Ahluwalia occasionally issues emails to criticise those who he thinks is bringing him down. He now directs who gets what jobs and where.

    Management ‘explosion’
    This seems to have been behind an explosion at one of the last SMTs where a top figure is said to have screamed “bastard” and swung a punch at another academic head. Another senior figure had to break it up.

    Professor Ahluwalia took no action and the man who swung the punch has been told his place is safe. Consequently Professor Ahluwalia has a new loyalist in SMT.

    The latest events at USP have deep political implications in host nation Fiji, where a new government says it is going to pay its USP dues of F$86 million. The previous FijiFirst government led by Voreqe Bainimarama refused to pay, claiming Professor Ahluwalia and other senior figures in USP were corrupt.

    Professor Ahluwalia was kicked out of Fiji and took refuge in USP regional offices in Nauru and Samoa.

    With Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka in power in Suva, Professor Ahluwalia has been allowed back.

    It may only be a coincidence, or not, that Bainimarama has subsequently been arrested and faces a charge of abuse of office. The charge specially cites his role over USP.

    ‘Colonial’ research deal
    Now it is emerging that some in USP are party to a research deal with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi (signed in Papua New Guinea) that has a decently colonial feel to it, an endorsement of transferring Pacific resources to India.

    It is not what universities are supposed to be doing, especially those set up to advance Pacific people.

    While Professor Ahluwalia and Dr Heine — former President of the Marshall Islands who in 2016 made history as the first woman leader of a Pacific Islands independent nation — might hope to cope with the new tsunami hitting them, the reality is that the big donors, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the European Union and the United Nations, are going to get pretty weary of this endless, destructive childishness at USP.

    Michael Field is an independent journalist and author, and co-editor of The Pacific Newsroom. This article from “On The Wire” is republished with his permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • USP still the ‘bedrock’ for Pacific regionalism, says university chief

    The Fiji Times

    “The University of the South Pacific (USP) has been and continues to be a bedrock for regionalism. A resource owned by the region; for the region and a precious institution that needs to be protected in line with the vision of our forebearers.”

    This was the message by USP vice-chancellor and president Professor Pal Ahluwalia during his ministerial banquet speech at the Pacific Education Ministers Conference (CPEM) at Auckland University this week.

    The conference theme was “Empowering Education for Pacific People”.

    “I am acutely aware that we stand on the shoulders of giants; Pacific leaders who had the prescience of their ancient navigating forbearers, to set up an institution of higher learning and to set it on a course over the horizons in pursuit of two things excellence and equity,” he said.

    Professor Ahluwalia said USP graduates had filled critical roles and many had gone on to be leaders across all sectors in their countries.

    “This visionary foundation laid down by our Pacific forebearers has made USP the greatest success story of regional cooperation, where the richness of diversity of experiences has formed the foundation of hope and choice; and has established a network for learning to know; learning to do; learning to be; and learning to share,” Professor Ahluwalia said.

    The main focus in the early years of USP had been on teacher education to support member governments with their education workforce as they gained their independence, over the years.

    Shifts in regional priorities
    However, USP had expanded its offerings in response to shifts in regional priorities and needs.

    Professor Ahluwalia added that as these regional needs had become more divergent, the prospects of adequately meeting them — “while remaining true to our ongoing commitment to excellence and equity” — had become increasingly become a difficult challenge with diminishing resources.

    “I am immensely proud of USP’s achievements and profoundly passionate about the exciting possibilities before us and over our horizons,” he said.

    “However, I am under no illusions that we face sizeable challenges and to realise our full potential as a regional university, we need to be at our best to efficiently and effectively teach, learn and research in the service of our regional family.”

    Professor Ahluwalia stressed the need to listen to the people as well as stakeholders, valuing relationships and partnerships in new and innovative ways — “and caring for regional communities and natural resources that we haven’t collectively cared enough for”.

    “It is our responsibility now to ensure a cohesive articulation of tertiary qualifications across this network that address specific national needs of members of our family, while also pooling resources so that we can do things together where it makes sense to do so.”

    Professor Ahluwalia said USP had had to be responsive and resilient and had much more to gain than to lose from genuine innovation.

    “We are best positioned to claim leadership in areas no other organisation has the regional mandate, capability, need or courage to pursue,” he added.

    Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • ‘I’m just a catalyst for the bigger change’, says exiled USP vice-chancellor back in Fiji

    By Geraldine Panapasa of Wansolwara in Suva

    The University of the South Pacific’s vice-chancellor and president, Professor Pal Ahluwalia, was given a rousing welcome at Nadi International Airport today returning to Fiji from exile.

    He returned two years after he and wife Sandra Price were detained and deported by the former FijiFirst government for allegedly breaching provisions of the Immigration Act.

    “We have arrived in Nadi. What a fabulous reception. USP staff, students and so many well wishers to meet us fills out hearts with joy. Beautiful singing and prayer. Thank you Fiji,” he wrote on Twitter, as the couple were received by USP deputy vice-chancellors and vice-presidents, Professor Jito Vanualailai and Dr Giulio Paunga.

    USP Council Secretariat representative Totivi Bokini-Ratu, Lautoka campus director Pramila Devi, and representatives from the USP Students Association, USP Staff Association and Association of the USP Staff were also at the airport to greet Professor Ahluwalia.

    “I’m so humbled to see everyone. It is an absolute joy to be back and an opportunity for us to continue serving USP,” he said in a statement.

    “The support from staff, students and regional governments has just been incredible.

    “It was so beautiful to see how much our staff fought. The fight wasn’t just for me; it was for a bigger cause and I’m just a catalyst for the bigger change they wanted to see.”

    Next step for students
    Professor Ahluwalia said the next step was to work with his senior management team to ensure they got the best out of their students and the region.

    He is expected to visit the USP Pacific TAFE Centre in Namaka and Lautoka campus today with other events and meetings scheduled for the coming week, including a launch of the Alumni Relationship Management Service, and the welcoming of international students.

    Professor Ahluwalia and wife Sandra Price at Nadi
    Professor Ahluwalia and wife Sandra Price at the Nadi International Airport today. Image: USP/Wansolwara

    Professor Ahluwalia and his wife’s controversial exile from Fiji followed months of increased tensions between USP and the previous government over allegations of financial mismanagement and corruption.

    With the new People’s Alliance-led coalition government in power after ousting the FijiFirst administration in the 2022 general election, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has vowed to right the wrongs of the past administration.

    Last December, he declared that Professor Ahluwalia and Dr Padma Lal, widow of another exiled academic, the late Professor Brij Lal, were free to enter the country.

    “I am ready to meet Dr Lal and Professor Ahluwalia personally. I will apologise on behalf of the people of Fiji for the way they were treated,” Rabuka had said.

    Working from Samoa
    He said prohibition orders against Professor Ahluwalia, Dr Lal and the late Professor Lal, were “unreasonable and inhumane”, and “should never have been made”.

    Professor Ahluwalia has been working out of USP’s Samoa campus since 2021, and said he looked forward to working with the coalition government to strengthen the relationship between USP and Fiji.

    “As a regional institution, USP will continue to serve its island countries — particularly Fiji — and work hard to shape Pacific futures,” Professor Ahluwalia said.

    Meanwhile, USP and the Fijian government are expected to conduct a joint traditional welcome ceremony for Professor Ahluwalia, followed by a thanksgiving service at the Japan-Pacific ICT Multipurpose Theatre, Laucala campus next Tuesday.

    Geraldine Panapasa is editor-in-chief of the University of the South Pacific’s journalism newspaper and website Wansolwara News. Republished in collaboration with the USP journalism programme.

  • PNG’s Education Minister slams UPNG ‘discrimination’ against Filipino student

    By Phoebe Gwangilo in Port Moresby

    Higher Education Minister Don Polye has condemned a decision by the administration of the University of Papua New Guinea to treat a PNG-born and bred grade 12 school leaver as an “international” student.

    Roselyn Alog, 19, whose parents are Filipinos, was born and raised in PNG.

    On Monday, she was turned away from registering at the university by the School of Natural and Physical Sciences on the grounds that she is a Filipino by nationality.

    She was asked to pay K19,638 (almost NZ$9000) and not K3115 (NZ$1400) as per the acceptance letter from UPNG.

    Alog completed her grade 12 last year at the Paradise Private School and was selected through the National Online System to study under the SNPS programme.

    “I have considered that those students who have come through PNG’s education system, regardless of nationality over the years, have a right to be given the same treatment as everyone else for enrolment,” Polye said.

    “PNG is a member of the global community and our universities are institutions of learning for all international students who live within or live outside our shores.

    Diverse students
    “We are happy to see students of diverse nationalities and cultures live and study together as it’s part of learning.

    The Post-Courier's front page story about UPNG discrimination
    The Post-Courier’s front page story on 2 February 2023 about the university discrimination against PNG-born student Filipino student Roselyn Alog. Image: Screenshot APR

    “If a student had been paying school fees through the echelon of our formal education structure at the established school fees structure, then the same student is entitled to pay the same fee asked of through the formal process.

    “A student should not be discriminated against. No foreign student will be made to pay more if such a student had been coming up [through] the formal PNG education system.

    “Any errors made must be corrected immediately.”

    Francis Hualupmomi, Secretary for the Department of Higher Education Research Science and Technology (HERST) which manages the TESAS (scholarship scheme), said no university had the right to take away the TESAS privilege awarded to a student.

    A call from the scholarship division of the Department of HERST to the Post-Courier asked Roselyn Alog to visit their office to establish her citizenship status.

    Phoebe Gwangilo is a PNG Post-Courier journalist. Republished with permission.