Former Hekari United FC and Team PNG Kapuls Goalkeeper, Ishmael Pole has taken the initiative to conduct a goalkeeping clinic targeting all students in primary and international schools between the ages of 10 and 18. Mr. Pole said that after speaking with the coordinators of school soccer in Papua New Guinea, he is hoping to run the goalkeeping clinic during the term 3 holidays right after Independence Day. Mr. Pole will be going through the basics of goalkeeping with the participating schools. “In goalkeeping, there are diving drills, mostly catching. During the course of this goalkeeping clinic, I will not be coaching on all other positions in soccer but will be concentrating specifically on goalkeeping,” Ishmael said. The Kapuls goalkeeper said that in Papua New Guinea, there are a lot of on-field players but very few goalkeepers. [caption id="attachment_13465" align="aligncenter" width="944"] Pole at a school visit last year with his former team Hekari United FC[/caption] “In the National team, there were only two experience goalkeepers which was myself and my fellow goalkeeping counterpart Ronald Warisan,” he said. Pole added that a lot of players tried out for the position of goalkeeping but needed more experience to make it into the National team. He further added that the Papua New Guinea Football Association only focuses on running other clinics apart from goalkeeping. “With this idea to run goalkeeping clinics without any support from anyone, I want to be able to give back to young interested soccer players.” “I want to help build a lot of goalkeepers so there will be fair competition later on,” said the soccer star. He also confirmed that apart from the goalkeeping clinic he will be running for students aged between 10 and 18, he will also be running a similar clinic for students above 18 years. This clinic for students over 18 years is set for the 16th August 2021 and will be at the Bisini Soccer field which is open for interested individuals. He said it is also open to players who are attached to the Port Moresby Soccer Association or any other soccer clubs eager to learn the basics of goalkeeping in soccer. For both the Goalkeeping Clinic, there will be a fee charged for those schools or interested individuals who want to take part. Fees for the respective clinics will be posted on his official Facebook @ Ishmael Pole.

Leaders of Pacific regional countries and territories have agreed that the region's maritime boundaries need to be recognised globally in perpetuity. They met in a Pacific Islands Forum virtual summit on Friday marking the regional body's 50th anniversary. New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern emerged from the summit saying they had "endorsed a declaration on maritime zones" to protect the ocean jurisdiction of Pacific countries against sea-level rise. Maritime boundaries are taken from points on land, and Pacific countries are seeking to assure their ocean dominion if shorelines diminish. Ardern said the declaration will be presented to the United Nations, adding it will be part included at the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26). "Some of our Pacific Island neighbours, if sea level rises continue, will lose their territory. This is a way of, as Pacific Island leaders, demonstrating our interpretation of the United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea." Vaccine logistics Ardern confirmed Covid-19 was also on the agenda. "As you can absolutely understand, given the impact that Covid is having on the region as we speak whether it's the economic impacts through the loss of tourism or those who are facing directly the devastating health impacts." Ardern said it was clear across the region that forum members were at varying stages of immunisation, with the Pacific having gone from a period of the beginning of the year when there was an issue of supply of vaccines to a situation now where it was a matter of co-ordinating vaccine distribution. She praised the bi-lateral work between Pacific Island neighbours to ensure everyone had the supply they need. The summit found leaders pledging to support one another as vaccination programmes continue. Micronesia notably absent from Pacific Forum summit Leaders of Micronesian countries were notably absent from the Pacific Islands Forum virtual leaders summit. The only Micronesian leader attending was Nauru's president Lional Aingimea. Earlier this year the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, Palau, Federated States of Micronesia, and Nauru gave notice of their intention to withdraw from the forum. This was due to discord over the selection of former Cook Islands Prime Minister Henry Puna as secretary-general over Micronesia's candidate, which broke a gentleman's agreement on revolving the role. Hosting the virtual meeting, forum chair, Fiji's prime minister Frank Bainimarama, apologised to Micronesian leaders for grievances caused by the selection process, and appealed to regional unity. But uneasy energy lingers at the forum, as evidenced by Aingimea opting to drop out of the meeting while Puna was speaking, While the forum meeting was underway Palau's President, Surangel Whipps Jr, was meeting with top US officials in Washington. [caption id="attachment_13445" align="aligncenter" width="951"] Australia's Prime Minister Scott Morrison wolfs down some food during a Pacific Islands Forum leaders virtual summit, 6 August 2021/ Photo: Supplied[/caption] Meanwhile, Australia Prime Minister Scott Morrison was observed to be eating during the segment of the Pacific Forum summit which media were able to watch. Pacific journalists who shared screenshots which included Morrison and his breakfast criticised the Australian leader for doing something that is considered "extremely rude in many Pacific cultures" during an important meeting. SOURCE: RNZ NEWS

Marie Stopes Papua New Guinea, the country’s largest provider of family planning and sexual and reproductive health services, is calling for more to be done to eliminate unsafe abortion in PNG. “Last week, we read with sadness the news about a young lady, only sixteen years old, who lost her life because of an unplanned pregnancy. We send our deepest sympathies to the family, friends and community affected by this terrible tragedy,” said MSPNG Country Director, Dr David Ayres. “Unfortunately, this is not the first time a young woman has died because of an unplanned pregnancy in PNG, and it won’t be the last.” Globally, approximately 121 million unplanned pregnancies occur each year, 73 million of them end in abortion, and 22,000 of those will result in death, due to unsafe practices. At least 10 million of the unplanned pregnancies are among adolescents aged 15-19. “In some countries, abortion is legal. In others it is legally restricted. Some societies have quite liberal views of abortion, while others frown upon it,” Dr Ayres said. “What we know, however, from the available data, is that women around the world will seek out abortion services regardless of the legal situation, regardless of what society thinks about it, and regardless of prevailing cultural and religious beliefs.” “And what we also know, from the data, is that when abortion takes place in a restricted environment, it is often unsafe. This is what is happening in PNG.” “What we saw last week is the result of an unplanned pregnancy which led to an unsafe abortion. As Dr Yockopua suggested last week, the black market for misoprostol is one part of the problem. People resorting to traditional herbal or other dangerous solutions is another part of the problem.” “Because of lack of understanding, and because of stigma, many women who experience complications from unsafe abortion do not seek medical attention until it is too late.” Marie Stopes PNG is particularly concerned about the increasing number of women who are coming to MSPNG clinics after attempting to end an unplanned pregnancy with self-administered misoprostol. “The medication is being sold without prescription “on the street” or “under the counter” to young women who are provided with little or no support about how to administer it or what to look out for,” Dr Ayres said. “They listen to their friends or do a Google search. When things don’t go to plan, the consequences can be dire. Best case scenario is they come to our clinic so we can provide them with post abortion care. The worst-case scenario is the outcome we saw last week.” “Misoprostol has many life-saving uses, including in the treatment of miscarriages, for post-partum haemorrhage, and in those situations where medical abortions are necessary.” Even though Misoprostol is much safer than traditional abortion practices, MSPNG is encouraging the appropriate authorities to investigate and address the Misoprostol black market. “We believe, from the anecdotal evidence at our clinics, that the illegal sale of Miso is a growing problem,” Dr Ayres said. Unsafe abortion practices in PNG will likely continue to result in the deaths of young women throughout the country, unless further work is done to prevent unplanned pregnancies. Dr Ayres encouraged people to access family planning.  “Last week, Professor Mola said his best advice was to plan every pregnancy carefully and use family planning.” “We fully support that. At MSPNG we are working tirelessly to provide family planning to everyone who wants it, irrespective of their age, marital status, or any other factor. We know that by increasing the uptake of family planning, we are reducing unplanned pregnancies, and ultimately contributing to saving lives.”

Just after releasing their Rumination EP (Extended Play) in July last month, Stagajah Band’s new single ‘Go Back’ has earned the top spot in the Apple Music’s ‘Top 100 Papua New Guinea’ most played songs. Songwriter and rapper Gaix said the band members are happy to see a song from Papua New Guinea make it to the number 1 position rather than an international artist taking out the spot on the Top 100 most played songs. “We are asking fellow Papua New Guinean artists to get their songs (quality songs) on this platform so Papua New Guinea music can be recognized globally,”said Gaix. Gaix said the aim is to get Papua New Guinea talent out there to be heard all over the world. “It all comes down to working in unity and putting aside differences, by trying new things and welcoming new friends also,” said the songwriter. “The song ‘Go Back’ is about losing a loved one. The lyrics are about trying to make up for your lose and trying to go back to fix things but then you realize it is too late,” Gaix added. The recent lockdown period inspired them to write their new EP which includes the song ‘Go Back’. “During the lockdown period, a lot of people went into isolation and quarantine and it gave them time to think critically about the challenges and hardships going on in the daily lives. This was the inspiration behind our new EP.” ‘Go Back’ is not their only song on the countdown as ‘Tehine’ also sits on the 15th position, ‘Yu Nau’ on the 53rd position, ‘Tsomi Haluma’ on the 65th spot, ‘Awi’ on the 82nd spot and ‘Asa Sumba’ on the 90th spot.

Alotau resident Rebecca Kwayaila came up with the idea to start an Appeal for Cameron Secondary School after she learnt that the school had to send its’ boarding students home because they could not cater for them anymore. “I live opposite the school and I was concerned about boarding students being told to become day students so I wanted to do something to help them out.” “I created a Whatsapp group and facebook group for people to assist and donate in cash and kind for us to present to the school,” said Rebecca. Rebecca has advised that she received overwhelming support from the community in Alotau. Her family had started off the appeal by putting the first K1000 and together with contributions coming in from the other locals in the community, they have been able to raise over K3000 in cash. Rebecca also reached out to Trukai Industries who responded to her and donated 50 bags of rice towards the appeal. A few kind individuals within the Alotau community also contributed foodstuffs including yams and other garden produce. Rebecca and her team of volunteers visited the school yesterday and presented the donations to the school. The Deputy Principal – Academic, Ms Miriam Nawi thanked Rebecca and her team for the timely donations and said that the food items will greatly assist the school in feeding the students who are boarding at the school. “I am blessed to have also received donations from families who don't have children attending the school but have given because they care.” “It is a blessing to know that such families do exist.” Mrs Nawi also expressed her thanks to Rebecca and her family for coming up with the initiative for the appeal. "We should have more people like her and family,” Ms Nawi said.

A book detailing the lives of 12 Cook Islands women in Tokoroa has just been launched to coincide with Cook Islands Language Week. Te Kinakina: E Ngara I te Ngari, Remember who you are and where you come from is the result of a series of creative writing workshops led by poet Vaughan Rapatahana and facilitated by South Waikato Pacific Island Community Services (SWPICS) with support from the Ministry of Education and Read NZ Te Pou Muramura. The book opens with introductions by Papa Timote Turu and editor Vaughan Rapatahana, and the stories are illustrated with colour photographs. These elements combine to create an illuminating account of Pasifika life in Aotearoa, and confirm the authors' communal commitment to kōpu tangata, family, home, church and each other. Tokoroa is known as the the 'sixteenth star' because there is 15 islands in the Cook Islands, and the 15 stars on their flag represents the 15 islands and Tokoroa is the 'sixteenth star' because its the biggest Cook Islands community outside of the Cook Islands," Rapatahana said. "They came here [Tokoroa] to work at initially the New Zealand Forest Products mill in Kinleith, in the forest industry, although some went to Mangakino to work on the dam project, this is way back in the 1940s and throughout the 1950s. [caption id="attachment_13421" align="aligncenter" width="978"] Te Kinakina: E Ngara I te Ngari book launch. Photo: Melissa Wastney[/caption] And because of the huge importance placed on whanaungatanga and whanau, many of the Cook Islands families who came here brought over their relatives and other families who actually stayed with them for a long period of time until the new arrivals got established, who were basically at Kinleith as well," he said. He said it's an important book for two reasons. "For the first time it sets out in detail the experiences of Cook Islands women living in Tokoroa, and their combined stories express many emotions, portray many events, and display several consistent themes. "I feel privileged to have edited this collection," said Rapatahana. [caption id="attachment_13422" align="aligncenter" width="950"] Te Kinakina: E Ngara I te Ngari book launch Photo: Melissa Wastney[/caption] SWPICS CEO Akarere Henry, who is also one of the contributing authors, said the writing project and resulting anthology is very special to the community. "We see it as a realisation of some of the aspirations and dreams of our community. We're so grateful and proud to be able to share our stories in this way," she said. Te Kinakina: E Ngara I te Ngari, Remember who you are and where you come from will be available, in limited edition, from all good bookshops and libraries. Cook Islands language week ends this today. [caption id="attachment_13420" align="aligncenter" width="941"] Te Kinakina: E Ngara I te Ngari, a book celebrating the lives Cook Islands women in Tokoroa. Photo: South Waikato Pacific Island Community Services[/caption] SOURCE: RNZ NEWS

Israel's Linoy Ashram caused a huge upset in the Olympic rhythmic gymnastics individual all-around final, becoming the first non-Russian champion since 1996. The 22-year-old toppled the long-standing reign by beating gold medal favourite Dina Averina of the Russian Olympic Committee into second place. Averina was left in tears as the scores were revealed, and said she felt her awarded marks were too low. "It's very hard to talk at the moment," Averina said afterwards. "I can't agree with how the scoring went today." She was consoled by her twin sister Arina, who finished fourth. "And this is maybe the first time I disagree with the judges and I feel that Arina and I did not get [a high] enough score." The twins were favourites for the top medals having qualified in first and second. Alina Harnasko earned bronze for Belarus. Prior to Ashram's victory, Israel's best result in this event was a seventh-place finish by Neta Rivkin at London 2012. "When I was young I dreamed to be in the Olympics and compete there and then I go and take a gold medal," said Ashram. "It's like a dream I think, like I'm not here."

Apple is facing criticism over a new system that finds child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on US users' devices. The technology will search for matches of known CSAM before the image is stored onto iCloud Photos. But there are concerns that the technology could be expanded and used by authoritarian governments to spy on its own citizens. WhatsApp head Will Cathcart called Apple's move "very concerning". Apple said that new versions of iOS and iPadOS - due to be released later this year - will have "new applications of cryptography to help limit the spread of CSAM online, while designing for user privacy". The system will report a match which is then manually reviewed by a human. It can then take steps to disable a user's account and report to law enforcement. The company says that the new technology offers "significant" privacy benefits over existing techniques - as Apple only learns about users' photos if they have a collection of known child sex abuse material in their iCloud account. But WhatsApp's Mr Cathcart says the system "could very easily be used to scan private content for anything they or a government decides it wants to control. Countries where iPhones are sold will have different definitions on what is acceptable". He argues that WhatsApp's system to tackle child sexual abuse material has reported more than 400,000 cases to the US National Center for Missing and Exploited Children without breaking encryption. Should encryption be curbed to combat child abuse? Facebook encryption ‘must not cause children harm’ The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a digital rights group, has also criticised the move, labelling it "a fully-built system just waiting for external pressure to make the slightest change". But some politicians have welcomed Apple's development. Sajid Javid, UK Health Secretary, said it was time for others, especially Facebook, to follow suit. US Senator Richard Blumenthal also praised Apple's move, calling it a "welcome, innovative and bold step". "This shows that we can protect children and our fundamental privacy rights," he added. SOURCE: BBC NEWS

Family members of the victims of the 11 September 2001 terror attacks have called on President Joe Biden to stay away from memorial events unless he declassifies files about the attacks. Nearly 1,800 people signed a letter calling on him to release documents that they believe implicate officials from Saudi Arabia in the plot. They say that if he refuses, he should not attend ceremonies next month to commemorate the 20th anniversary. Nearly 3,000 people died on 9/11. The attacks were committed by the Al Qaeda terror group, investigators say, and triggered the US invasion of Afghanistan. Fifteen of the 19 plane hijackers were Saudi nationals. "We cannot in good faith, and with veneration to those lost, sick, and injured, welcome the president to our hallowed grounds until he fulfils his commitment," says the letter from family members, first responders and survivors. They call on President Biden to stay away from the three sites where the attacks took place - in New York, Virginia and Pennsylvania. The families have long argued that Saudi officials had advance knowledge of the attack, and did nothing to stop it. They have sued the government of Saudi Arabia, which has denied being involved. Last month, the lawsuit saw several top former Saudi officials questioned under oath. The depositions remain sealed, further upsetting families. "Since the conclusion of the 9/11 Commission in 2004 much investigative evidence has been uncovered implicating Saudi government officials in supporting the attacks," the families' statement continues. "Through multiple administrations, the Department of Justice and the FBI have actively sought to keep this information secret and prevent the American people from learning the full truth about the 9/11 attacks." The administrations of George W Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump also declined to declassify the documents, citing national security concerns. "Twenty years later, there is simply no reason - unmerited claims of 'national security' or otherwise - to keep this information secret," the group writes. "But if President Biden reneges on his commitment and sides with the Saudi government, we would be compelled to publicly stand in objection to any participation by his administration in any memorial ceremony of 9/11." SOURCE: BBC NEWS

Coinciding with the end of National Book Week, Buk bilong Pikinini (BBP) officially launched its’ very own 'When I Grow Up’ series of books in Port Moresby on Friday 7th of August. The series of books looks to encourage young readers to identify and work towards achieving their dream jobs from an early age. In launching the series on behalf of the Education Department, Deputy Secretary – TVET & UNESCO, Mrs Annemarie Kona said that the books are a bold step taken towards awakening the minds of children to start dreaming of what they aspire to be at a very early age. “The “When I Grow Up” series of books are the best motivations to give to young children as a head start to get them thinking about their future dreams.” Mrs Kona congratulated BBP for bringing the reader series to fruition and commended the efforts of the organisation through its’ Early Childhood Learning Centres which have proven to be effective in giving children a great head start before entering the formal education system. A total of 6 readers were launched on Friday under the Series with a further 7 planned to be launched in early 2022 adding on to the Buk bilong Pikinini’s library for mini professionals. The “When I Grow Up” series of readers will be available for purchase at local Buk bilong Pikinini centers located nationwide.

17-year-old Raymond Bayagau from a mixed parentage of East New Britain, Oro and Central Provinces has been diagnosed with non-Hodgkins Lymphoma and desperately needs blood. “It basically means that he’s got cancer in his white blood cells,” explained Raymond’s mum, Ms. Wilma Mosogo. His mother said that because of this, Raymond could not proceed with his high school studies. “I had to remove him from school after he was diagnosed. He would’ve been in grade 10 this year,” she said. Raymond has been hospitalised at the Port Moresby General Hospital for the last 2 months at Ward 3C. His blood type is A and he really needs blood donors from blood type A and O to help him while he awaits to undergo chemotherapy. His mum also said that so far 10 people have come forward to donate blood but he needs more to help him. “He (Raymond) gets very weak at times so he needs the blood transfusions to help him.” “I am not forcing anyone to come and donate blood for my son but if they can help him, we will really appreciate it,” said the concerned mother. Ms Mosogo has made an appeal to the general public for anyone who shares the same blood type as Raymond to come forward and donate blood if they are willing to help. Anyone who would like to make contact with her can reach her on mobile 70125875. Image supplied

Boarding students attending Cameron Secondary School have been asked to switch to being day students because the school cannot cater for their upkeep due to lack of funds. “The government school fee subsidy that we have received is not enough to cover operational costs.” “We received the 1st quarter payment of the school fee subsidy but we are yet to receive the 2nd quarter subsidy.” “As soon as there is money available and we are able to buy food supplies then we will take them back on campus,” said the acting principal of the school, Ms Shirley Apaio. Boarding students that have relatives in town have already transitioned to being day students while only a few students that have come in from the outer islands still remain within the school campus. She added that a good number of parents haven’t completed paying their parental components of the school fees which is also one of the factors that is affecting the school’s operations. “Parents have become too reliant on the government to pay the schools and haven’t been paying their portion of the fees.” “If parents were up to date with payments of their component, then that will keep us going until such time when the government component comes in,” Ms Apaio. She further added that due to lack of funds, stationery supplies have also depleted and this will be affecting students’ lessons as teachers don’t have the necessary supplies to prepare the students lessons and assessments. However, despite all these setbacks, normal classes are still ongoing for the students attending the school. Meanwhile, Ms Apaio said that she has received information that the 3rd quarter subsidy has been paid to Milne Bay Trust and should be released in the next few weeks to the school.