NZ says patrol vessel on goodwill visit to Tonga
New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully says a navy vessel that arrived in Tonga on Monday is there on a goodwill visit – not because of the tension between Tonga and Fiji.
A Fijian court has issued a warrant for the arrest of military officer Ratu Tevita Uluilakeba Mara, who is charged with sedition and has fled to Tonga.
In response on Monday, the Tongan Prime Minister has issued a statement saying his country has no interest in interfering in Fiji’s domestic affairs, indicating that the matter will be left to the courts.
Mr McCully says the New Zealand Government is watching the developments carefully and is heartened by the statement from Tonga.
The minister says some thought was given as to whether patrol vessel HMNZS Otago should deviate from a planned two-day stop in Tonga on a trip around the Pacific, but says there was no reason for the visit not to go ahead.
Copyright © 2011, Radio New Zealand
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The dictator and police com and land force com are cowards, look at their faces in the media release photo, they can apply to tonga courts but the appeal process which mara will use can take years and international law comes in to protect him, mara spills the beans and his and driti boys are ready means the end of the corrupt junta is near
From reliable sources it has been revealed that Mara has been interviewd by radio nz, ABC and tv nz and other international media on its way and mara has documents to prove corruption of the dictator and junta and he is is in direct contact with 3 FIR giving orders
Police com now says no threat to national secuirty what bullshit he and dictator and land force com turn up to media release and look farting and now want to play damage control, the fact is revolt has started and coup will happpne
It is save to assume that the international community including New Zealand is standing by for major events. All embassies in Suva are on alert, regional organizations have rehearsed security and evacuation procedures. The French air force has dispatched a surveillance plane from Noumea towards Fiji and travel warnings will be notched up tomorrow.
Where is Commander kean and the max?
Vakateratera tiko mai Suva with their guns and unarmed civilians.
They should sail to Tonga and get Roko Lui.
Da ga na tarausese ni sa na samuraki mai vei HMNZS Otago.
Go NZ and Tonga…..make the lamusonas pee in their pants.
Ni yali na dakai, se sota dakai keina daka – tu na sona!
There are a number of groups on goodwill visits in the area at the moment. They want to express their love to khaiyum’s little hand puppet and give Naivalurua and Tikoitoga a nice hug and a change of underwear. They also have a shiny new sari for khaiyum so he will look nice for the boys in Nabua….
Forget a claim for protection under the Refugees Convention. It would be much better to see Frank tried for extradition.
Frank’s problem is that he’s not getting legal advice from a real lawyer. Frank’s adviser, Aiyaz, has no expertise outside laws he makes up himself and then sends to judges he’s personally picked and subjected to on-going obedience tests. The laws and legal system where Aiyaz’s expertise lies has no jurisdiction in Tonga.
One of the basic principles of extradition is that the alleged offence must be a crime in both jurisdictions.
The ‘crime’ that Mara was charged with was an Aiyaz special. It’s the offence of ‘uttering seditious words’. He wasn’t charged with sedition (despite Michael Field’s report that he was).
It would be quite a treat to see the regime’s lawyers arguing the legalities of the Aiyaz law in an independent court. Perhaps Aiyaz would have to send himself to Tonga to argue the case.
The Tongan Court would also have to consider the state of the judiciary in Fiji. The wholesale sacking of judges and abrogation of the constitution would have to be considered and the regime would have to defend its actions.
Frank is unlikely to want to go down the extradition path if he gets real legal advice.
Kinge Goerge of Tonga has invited and picked up mara right from his house in lau after ceremony of acceptance and protection and brought him to his palace, so what order, what court, what leagl process is the fiji junta and dictator harping about, mara lives in the kings palace and not on tongan street, the king didnt pick him up from lau to send him back to fiji for the kaisi bokola to butcher him, this will not happen, and the sovernaity of fiji which the dictator refers to has been breached the tongan kings response with his action is basicaly for frank to wipe his arse with his bullshit decrees as tonga recoginses none of this crap.