Tongan PM holds talks with Australian counterpart
Tongan Prime Minister, Lord Tuivakano
The Tongan Prime Minister met with his Australian counterpart Julia Gillard in the Australian capital of Canberra this morning.
His communications adviser, Ahongalu Fusimalohi, who's travelling with the Prime Minister, says the two leaders also discussed the Pacific Island seasonal worker scheme.
He says Tonga will be training all future seasonal workers about what they can expect from life in Australia.
Presenter: Joanna McCarthy, Canberra Correspondent
Speaker: Ahongalu Fusimalohi, Tongan Prime Minister's communications adviser
FUSIMALOHI: Well this is the first official visit of the Tongan prime minister to Australia, initially first came to New Zealand last week and then here to Australia, being two major development partners and it's only a proper procedure of protocol after being elected into the new government or once the new government is formed that an official visit be made to both New Zealand and Australia and that basically is the purpose of the visit here to Australia and I'm glad to say that Prime Minister Gillard and the Tongan Prime Minister Tu'ivakano were able to meet this morning to discuss a series of issues, but most importantly to strengthen the cordial and friendship relationships between the two countries.
McCARTHY: And what were some of the issues that they discussed?
FUSIMALOHI: One issue which was of concern was the seasonal fruit pickers from Tonga, who come to Australia on a seasonal basis to pick fruits and under this scheme, Tonga has a quota of about 800 over the next three or four years and I think we've reached 400 fruit pickers, but we need a little bit more improvements on it and with the New Zealand prime minister and the Australian prime minister's forward looking approach on how to improve on this system. We hope to be able to train most of our fruit pickers from Tonga before actually coming over to Australia in order for them to understand and appreciate more of how things happen here in Australia. But the same issue we'll also discuss with New Zealand with the New Zealand prime minister this thing that greatly generates a lot more improvements in peoples earnings back in Tonga, but most important is the fact that they are able to actually go out and have the opportunity to be exposed to foreign and metropolitan countries.
McCARTHY: There have been some criticism as you would know of the Australian seasonal workers scheme and questions about why the scheme seems to have worked quite well in New Zealand, but hasn't worked as well in Australia. Do you have any thoughts about why the New Zealand scheme has been more effective?
FUSIMALOHI: I would think it has worked better in New Zealand as compared to Australia. I think both have their own problems, but it all comes down to training of workers or seasonal workers from Tonga and New Zealand's biggest problem right now is we have 23 people, fruit pickers who apparently have disappeared, that would probably be more than those who have disappeared here in Australia. But I think may be the only reason why New Zealand might stand up a little bit to be able to cope with the problems is because there is the places where the fruit pickers are being employed are close to where Tongans and Pacific Islanders do live and I guess they have some kind of support from those vicinities in New Zealand. I would imagine that here in Australia most probably the areas where they are being employed there is little communication with the people nearby who are actually from the Pacific Island countries. But otherwise, I think both countries would be experiencing probably the same problem in being able to educate their fruit pickers and I think that is one of the biggest issues which we intend to work on when we go back to Tonga is to actually undergo each and every person that signed up for the fruit picking program, a training schedule of at least three or four weeks, at least a month, where we actually train and make them appreciate and understand what to expect when they do come over here. It's not a holiday, but it's really a working schedule where they can actually improve their own lifestyles when they go back home.
McCARTHY: Now Tonga has been experiencing some economic challenges. Did the prime minister make any requests to Australia for more development assistance?
FUSIMALOHI: Yes indeed. The Australian government has in fact was very much instrumental in the financial assistance towards implementing the reforms in our political system, which we now enjoy, that was very much an Ausaid initiative and in order for this system to continue to work, we also have approached the Australian government, Ausaid has very much been at the forefront of assisting us with the political changes and that took considerable time. But in order for it to work, we are hoping for additional financial assistance in areas where we have what we would call the government restructuring and reformation and it would seem from Prime Minister Gillard's support that the meeting with the Tongan prime minister that Australia would be in a position to assist us further and more importantly, the infrastructure developments which we are currently also trying to rebuild upon, Australia has also managed to provide us with technical experts and expertise in this area of assistance.
McCARTHY: Have you put a dollar figure on how much more assistance you would like from Australia?
FUSIMALOHI: Well to be honest, if it was to be in a dollar figure, it would be rather unlimiting, but so far Australia has supported us with at least an additional ten million on top of what's already confirmed annual assistance through education and infrastructure development, but in terms of budget support, Australia has also put in together with New Zealand an additional ten million Tongan I think it's New Zealand, it's New Zealand dollars of assistance as well, but that's for the current year. You have to understand that or appreciate that this government it's actual financial year only started on the 1st July this year, so we're only a month old, but the first six months of our operation was simply halfway through the last financial year on the previous government and apparently we had inherited a great deal of debt and in order to be able to recover from that, we've gone to our development partners, especially a meeting with the president of the World Bank in Sydney on Monday which has been very fruitful and most importantly, the assistance which the World Bank will be giving us. And now today, with the meeting with Prime Minister Gillard, that to has the results have been forward looking and further assistance will be forthcoming.
McCARTHY: And what commitments did you receive from Robert Zoellick, from the World Bank?
FUSIMALOHI: Eh, that would be quite a lot of commitment in terms of our budget support and also through renewable energy and energy efficiency, which the World Bank is hoping to be a front runner and a partner with Tonga to ensure that our target for a decrease of at least 50 per cent of our electricity tariff is completed by the year 2013.
McCARTHY: Returning to the meeting with Australian Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, this morning. What about the efforts of Pacific Islands to return Fiji to democracy, did the two leaders discuss what Australia and Tonga can do together on that issue?
FUSIMALOHI: Not, it wasn't being touched as an agenda item, but both prime ministers did make general comments. From Tonga's point of view, the relationship between Tonga and Fiji will continue to be normal. Whether the recent problems with Ratu Tevita Mara, that is a totally different issue with regards to Tonga and Fiji's history and that has been dealt with in the proper manner because of the rule of law. In as far as the current military regime is in operation in Fiji, the Tongan prime minister made it clear that they do not recognise the regime and which seems to support the Australian position as well.
SOURCE: RADIO AUSTRALIA PACIFIC BEAT/PACNEWS
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