02/26/2024 Newsletter

Happenings in Congress

• On February 6th , the House Foreign Affairs Committee passed out of committee H.R. 7159, the Pacific Partnership Act. The bill will codify and require updates to the Strategy for Pacific Partnership and strengthen U.S. engagement with the Pacific Island region broadly.
• Congressmen Steve Womack and Ed Case led a letter to Speaker Mike Johnson urging the inclusion the renewal of the Compacts of Free Association (COFA) in the next available legislative vehicle. Forty-six additional Members of Congress signed onto the letter.
• Congressman Mike Gallagher, Chair of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition with the People’s Republic of China, penned an op-ed urging the passage of the Compacts of Free Association.
• Northern Marianas Delegate, Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan, announced he will not be running for reelection for the upcoming term. He is the first and only delegate from the Northern Mariana Islands to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In the News

• U.S. Congress’ COFA Delay Jeopardizes a Key Element of the “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” - The U.S. government concluded COFA renewal talks with Palau, Micronesia, and the Marshall Islands in 2023. Months later, Congress has yet to enact the agreements into law.
• Deadly Land Disputes in Papua New Guinea (PNG) Highlands Leave Population in “Constant Fear” - A recent massacre that left dozens dead was the latest chapter in a years-long conflict that has worsened with arrival of high-powered weapons.
• Opposition Needles Government after Revelations PNG and China are discussing Police Cooperation - Australia is opposing PNG’s efforts to switch its security partners to China.
• Samoa's Top Cop Says Drugs Are Not on the Rise - Recent statistics presented to Samoa’s parliament show that drug manufacturing is lessening, but there is still cause for concern.
• Tahiti to Host Five Trans-Pacific Undersea Cables - Tahiti is planning on hosting five undersea google cables to connect Pacific Island nations to the United States and Australia.
• WHO Role is “for Tonga and the Pacific,”Dr. Saia Piukala Says - Recently appointed regional doctor for the western pacific Saia Piukala became the first pacific islander to hold the role.
• Military to Re-Activate Pacific Airstrip That Launched Atomic Bombing of Japan - The U.S. military is re-activating an airstrip in Tinian in the Northern Marianas that was used as a major Air Force bomber base during World War II. With its reopening, locals confront concerns about a potential new military conflict in the region.

Pacific Voices

• On our playlist this week: Seu Lo'u Pologa: Wayno
• On our watch list this week: Whale Rider (Information Page)
• On our reading list this week: Where We Once Belonged (The First Novel Written by a Samoan Woman Published in the United States)