Journal 4/11/1986
P1 US changing tuna tune The United States has decided to recognize the sovereignty of Pacific Island nations in regard to tuna fishing in their waters. A treaty between the US government and the Forum Fisheries Agency is being drafted to allow US tuna boats to fish Western Pacific waters.
P15 Greenpeace couple heading to Mejjato Two representatives of Greenpeace International are returning to the evacuated people of Rongelap this week for a period of up to three months in what they say is intended to be a follow up project designed to be of assistance to the new Mejjato community. The two, Bunny McDiarmid of New Zealand and Henk Haazen of Holland, worked as deckhand and third engineer, respectively, on the ill-fated Rainbow Warrior at the time of the original evaluation of Rongelap in 1985.
Journal 4/10/1998
P1 ‘Runit is safe’ For nearly 20 years, Runit Island in Enewetak Atoll has been off limits, quarantined because of high radiation levels left from nuclear weapons tests. But Department of Energy scientist Dr. Bill Robison said in Mauro recently that there is no reason for the “keep off” signs to be posted, and Enewetak islanders can visit the island that is home to the famous dome encasing waste from the nuclear testing. “It’s difficult for people in the Marshall Islands to believe that all of a sudden it’s not dangerous anymore,” said Enewetak attorney Davor Pevec.
P10 Looking for cheapest way to maintain relations “Washington is looking for the cheapest possible way to maintain relations” with the countries of the Pacific Islands region, says retired US Ambassador James Wilkinson. The retired diplomat told journalists meeting in Honolulu last week that “we don’t have the vision we used to have toward our current and former insular possessions” with much of Washington now seeing the Pacific nations as simply a “money sink, taking on weight like a rock.”
P13 ‘Lost memory’ produces headaches The internet connection was down for a few days last week and “the phones were ringing off the hook,” according to NTA vice president and deputy general manager Tommy deBrum. “We were surprised the internet meant so much to island folks,” said deBrum. Sometime in the middle of last week, a black box called a “bridge router” lost all its memory, said deBrum. NTA’s internet connection is through a server located in Guam, which promised a new router would be arriving Friday evening. In the meantime, some internet subscribers in RMI were experiencing serious withdrawal symptoms. DeBrum offered subscribers a temporary solution. If they wanted to send or receive email, they could dial Guam directly. NTA would, in turn, give the customer a reduction in the phone bill from $2 per minute to only $1 per minute.
P20 Ebeye challenge Hustle over to the ECC in Delap and catch the Ebeye/Kwajalein Julul Juon basketball team in action. Thursday, the team challenges a group of Majuro all-star players coached by Emory Mesubed and Tony Muller. The main event is Saturday as Julul Juon takes on the RMI national team in a much anticipated showdown. Julul Juon is coached by Wesley Lemari and Aruo Aluka.
Journal 4/10/2009
P3 Student success is highlighted by Hess The College of the Marshall Islands celebrated its 16th annual Foundation Day last Friday with the blessing of its new “world class” energy center facility and plenty of optimism for the future. CMI President Wilson Hess said “there are more students attending CMI than ever before because more students are succeeding than ever before.”
P13 Women worried by rising oceans Traditional Marshallese practices and culture as we know it will cease to exist because of climate change. This was the message hammered home by environmental experts from the RMI EPA and Office of Environmental Planning and Policy Coordination who spoke to the nearly 100 women participating in the second quarterly Women’s Forum on climate change at the ICC in Majuro.
P19 Mr 503 “Practice as much as you can…three times as much,” is the word from “503” star and cool dude musician Clanny Glanry, who just retuned to his birthplace of Majuro from Portland, Oregon. “I started playing music when I was really young, maybe nine or 10,” Clanny said. “First I taught myself to play keyboard and as the years went by I started writing songs and making CDs.”