GIFF JOHNSON
Media freedom in the Pacific Islands was celebrated in Majuro May 9 with the showcasing of over a dozen short films entered in the “My Pacific Story” competition and the awarding of prize money to the winners.
Sponsored by the Marshall Islands-based non-profit, Pacific Media Institute, films entered in the contest were a feature of the World Press Freedom Day celebration at the Marshall Islands Resort on Saturday.
“The press corps is the only firewall between rumor and reality,” said Finance Minister David Paul, speaking during the event. “When you are free—when you can investigate, publish, and hold the line—you give democracy a weapon that no dictator or disinformation campaign can defeat.”
He acknowledged the challenges of being a journalist in a small island country like the Marshall Islands and noted that self-censorship by reporters is a concern. “Democracy dies not by decree,” he said. “It dies by politeness” — a reference to island custom and the tight-knit social structure. But, he added, “when the press hesitates, who suffers? The public.”
Paul called for easy access to government information by media, saying “the Marshall Islands needs a Freedom of Information Act.” He said government should respect the independent media and not see it as an enemy. “You’re not the enemy. You’re the mirror,” he said.
Taiwan Ambassador Herbert Hsu, whose government supported the short film contest for the second year in a row, said it was “remarkable” to see so many Pacific Islanders making short films around their experiences, “to tell their own stories.”
Hsu commented that “media freedom is a pillar of the Taiwan democracy,” and said it was “hard-earned by the Taiwanese people” after decades of martial law.
Hsu added that Taiwan was delighted to participate in the Pacific-wide film contest and the World Press Freedom event in Majuro as a sign of its “determination to work together to support freedom of expression in the region.”
Fifteen of the 18 films submitted to the “My Pacific Story” film contest were premiered Saturday night at the Marshall Islands Resort, with five being awarded a combined total of $4,500 in prizes. The contest recognized with cash prizes the top three films, the best student-made film, and the media freedom award.
“Life by the Shore,” a film by Jevis Ronnie of the Solomon Islands, took first place and a $1,500 prize that was announced Saturday in Majuro.
A group of five judges with extensive film-making experience — two in Guam, one in Hawaii, one in Majuro and one in California — reviewed the 18 short films and cast their votes to determine the five winners.
The media freedom award was won by “Free Media Matters,” a short film by Majuro Cooperative School middle school teacher Kiram Navales. The best student-made film award went to College of the Marshall Islands Marine Science students for their film, “Lesson from the Ocean.”
Michael Diaz, from Kwajalein Atoll, won third place in best of festival awards for his film about Marshallese children at Gugeegue Island, “Wide as the Horizon.” Second place went to Majuro resident Mika Sato’s Pacific Memory, which traced points in RMI history through a story about the long-established Japanese business in Majuro, MJCC.
The topics covered by the 18 films was wide-ranging. One focused on efforts to establish formal linkages between traditional weather knowledge practitioners and modern-day national weather programs; another touched on disaster preparedness for small islands; one looked at sustainable tuna fishing and processing involving tuna caught in Parties to the Nauru Agreement waters; an animated film highlighted phosphate mining in Nauru and potential deep sea mining plans; and one film featured three young women who had all lived in Majuro for extended periods of time — from Japan, Fiji and Argentina — and who are now living in different locations but all consider the Marshall Islands their home.
Short films were entered from island filmmakers in the Solomon Islands, Fiji, Hawaii, Tonga, Japan, the United States, and the Marshall Islands. The number entered doubled compared to the My Pacific Story short film contest in 2025, increasing from nine to 18 entries. In addition to the Taiwan government’s sponsorship of the film contest, the competition was supported by independent media companies Six9Too Productions, the Marshall Islands Journal, Microwave Films, and Corrieography, as well as the Marshall Islands campus of the University of the South Pacific.
During Saturday night’s program, reporter and DJ at the popular Power 103.5FM radio station Leilani Macquinn said being a journalist was a dream job. “The greatest blessing of a journalist is meeting and interviewing amazing people in the Marshall Islands and elsewhere,” she said during the media freedom event.
The Pacific Media Institute with the partnership of the Embassy of ROC/Taiwan sponsored its second annual My Pacific Story short film competition.
More information about the film competition and the films can be found at Pacific Media Institute’s Facebook page.