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Pacific News In Brief For 24 June
Tonga - dengue
Six new cases of dengue fever have been reported in Tonga, bringing the total to 879 as of Monday.
More than half of the confirmed cases are on the main island, Tongatapu.
One person is in Niueiki Hospital in stable condition.
A dengue outbreak was declared in Tonga in February, with three dengue-related deaths recorded.
Tonga - travel proposals
Tonga's Prime Minister 'Aisake Eke says he is "seriously alarmed" that the nation is reportedly included in the United States' proposed expansion of travel restrictions.
Dr Eke told Matangi Tonga the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is working with the US Consulate in Nuku'alofa to formulate a response to the US government.
Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu are said to be included in an extended list of 36 extra countries that the Trump administration is considering banning on entering the US, according to an internal State Department cable seen by Reuters.
West Papua - lobster
Biologists have discovered seven news species of freshwater lobster in Indonesia's West Papua region.
Their findings are the result of biodiversity research by Gadjah Mada University in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in collaboration with independent researchers from Germany.
Dr Rury Eprilurahman, one of the university's research authors, said the new species were discovered in remote freshwater ecosystems with minimal human activity.
He said researchers looked at body shape and colour to confirm these were truly distinct species.
Fiji - orphanages
A Fijian cabinet minister says two-thirds of the children in Fiji's orphanages are from Indo-Fijian communities.
The Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection, Sashi Kiran told a radio show in Suva that this is a serious issue that continues to be ignored.
Kiran told Radio Sargam that homelessness, drug use, violence and HIV in the indo-Fijian community is under-reported, compared to iTaukei or indigenous children.
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