October 17, 2007                                        News You Can Trust!!                                      Volume 7

Tongan newspaperman gets media freedom honour

Honiara (MASI) – Embattled Tongan pro-democracy newspaper editor Tavake Fusimalohi has been honoured with the 2007 Pacific Media Freedom Award.

The award to Fusimalohi was revealed in a ceremony at the Honiara Hotel during the Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) convention organised by Media Association of Solomon Islands (MASI).

MASI president John Lamani announced the award, the most prestigious media award in the Pacific Islands, and said: “Tavake stands for everything that this award symbolises – he is fighting to bring the people of Tonga freedom of information and expression and he is not giving into pressure.

“He is making sure the people know what is really happening despite all the efforts by the government to try to silence him. He faces going to jail
for this."

Fusimalohi, the editor of the newspaper Kele’a, has been charged with sedition and criminal defamation by the royal Tongan regime ruling
under emergency powers.

He is amongst three Tongan pro-democracy journalists and media executives facing sedition charges, and jail terms. It comes amidst a crackdown on the media since the deadly riot on 16 November last year after delays in reforms in the kingdom.

MASI planned to have Fusimalohi as one of the main speakers in the media freedom section of the PINA convention programme. But he is not allowed to leave Tonga.

Fusimalohi is one of the Pacific’s most experienced media executives. He is a founder and former executive director of PINA and was a longtime general manager of the Tonga Broadcasting Commission.

After retiring from the Government-owned broadcaster he went into independent newspapering, as editor of Kele’a.

Kele’a is regarded as the kingdom’s main pro-democracy publication. It has faced regular pressure from the authorities.

Fusimalohi recently told Radio New Zealand International: “We were being targetted because since the events of 16/11, we are still the
only outspoken paper against government. And we are quite critical of government and its policies. The other media organisations are not
doing the same thing that we are doing.”

Fusimalohi told another New Zealand Pacific radio station, Niu FM, that they are having to be quite cunning to stay in business as officials try to
shut them down.

He said the Tongan Government watches everything the newspaper does.

Another veteran Tongan journalist, Matangi Tonga editor Pesi Fonua, was jointly awarded the Pacific Media Freedom award in 2005 with Lamani, founder and publisher of the Solomon Star.