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Articles by Anna Naupa
PACNEWS THREE, 13 MAY 2026
In this bulletin: 1. NAURU — Nauru Parliament backs move to rename nation as Naoero 2. PACIFIC — PNG aims to expand Marine Protected Areas: Kilepa 3. PACIFIC — Palau’s marine conservation success rooted in tradition 4. SOL — Media urged to lead climate loss and damage reporting 5. TONGA — Tonga media faces new type of challenge, following threat 6. FIJI — Fiji HIV crisis deepens as health workers fear disclosure 7. F/POLY — French Polynesia’s Sports Minister changed again before 2027 Pacific Games 8.
Between backyards and nakamals: Shifting Australia–Vanuatu relations
Research|Between backyards and nakamals: Shifting Australia–Vanuatu relations Between backyards and nakamals: Shifting Australia–Vanuatu relations Key findings Australia’s strategic anxiety and narrative emphasis on security “threats” in the Pacific Islands region have increasingly dominated bilateral affairs in the past decade.
Between backyards and nakamals: Shifting Australia–Vanuatu relations
Policy Brief How acknowledging shared history and deepening Pacific literacy can build a more resilient partnership. Nakamal interior, Erromango Island (Anna Naupa) Australia’s strategic anxiety and narrative emphasis on security “threats” in the Pacific Islands region have increasingly dominated bilateral affairs in the past decade.
One year on, towards public accountability: Vanuatu’s legislature
Surviving the first year with a coalition intact tends to look promising for government stability for the remaining parliamentary term. That was a recent assessment given to Vanuatu’s coalition government led by Jotham Napat.
Do We Need a Pacific Peace Index?
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The Melanesian Way in the 21st Century: Culture, Politics, and Festivals
ABSTRACT What happens to the Melanesian Way as a shared identity across scale, from people to nation and sub-region? I explore ideas of ‘Melanesian-ness’, drawing on the early ideas of Kanak independence leader Jean-Marie Tjibaou, Bernard Narokobi’s 1980 conceptualization of ‘the Melanesian Way’, and institutional interpretations by the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).
Exploring popular rhetoric about political candidacy in Vanuatu
Vanuatu’s new coalition government recently announced a proposed electoral reform to restrict political candidacy to indigenous and third-generation naturalised citizens. Prime Minister Jotham Napat’s government claims the reform will strengthen the governance of Vanuatu’s Citizenship by Investment (CBI) program, enhance public trust in citizenship processes, preserve national identity and strengthen cultural representation in governance.
‘Welkam fren’: New Vanuatu PM sets homegrown tone for US relations
Jotham Napat wants the US to step up, rather than step away, despite Trump’s rejection of the Paris Agreement and aid freeze By Anna Naupa (BenarNews)-- Vanuatu’s newly-elected Prime Minister Jotham Napat is known as a sharp and media-savvy political strategist and leads a coalition government whose combined foreign affairs know-how bodes well for a Pacific country that punches above its weight globally.
‘Welkam fren’: New Vanuatu PM sets homegrown tone for US relations
Vanuatu’s newly-elected Prime Minister Jotham Napat is known as a sharp and media-savvy political strategist and leads a coalition government whose combined foreign affairs know-how bodes well for a Pacific country that punches above its weight globally. Hailing from the culturally powerful island of Tanna, he’s expected to bring this local know-how to bear on Vanuatu’s international relations.
How can Vanuatu’s new parliament rebuild public trust?
By Anna Naupa As communities across Vanuatu welcomed a new year and contemplated multiple aspiring political candidates ahead of the 16 January snap election, a popular reggae song was making the rounds. Ol pipol oli taet (People are tired) Taet long instability (Tired of instability) Talem wanem taem (Tell us when) Bae i gat stability?
How can Vanuatu’s newparlt rebuild public trust?
As communities across Vanuatu welcomed a new year and contemplated multiple aspiring political candidates ahead of the 16 January snap election, a popular reggae song was making the rounds. Ol pipol oli taet (People are tired) Taet long instability (Tired of instability) Talem wanem taem (Tell us when) Bae i gat stability? (When will we get stability?) The 2025 song by Kymvn-J3H (Erique Kanas) laments a lack of political integrity and condemns the self-serving actions of past parliamentarians.
How can Vanuatu’s new parliament rebuild public trust?
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How can Vanuatu’s new parliament rebuild public trust?
As communities across Vanuatu welcomed a new year and contemplated multiple aspiring political candidates ahead of the 16 January snap election, a popular reggae song was making the rounds. Ol pipol oli taet (People are tired) Taet long instability (Tired of instability) Talem wanem taem (Tell us when) Bae i gat stability? (When will we get stability?) The 2025 song by Kymvn-J3H (Erique Kanas) laments a lack of political integrity and condemns the self-serving actions of past parliamentarians.
Earthquake aftershocks expose high cost of Vanuatu’s democracy
ut of the rubble of the 7.3 magnitude earthquake that hit Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila on Dec. 17 and the snap election due on Jan. 16, a new leadership is required to reset the country’s developmental trajectory. Persistent political turmoil has hampered the Pacific nation’s ability to deal with a compounding set of social and economic shocks over recent years, caused by climate-related and other natural disasters.
Vanuatu election 2025: Earthquake aftershocks expose high cost of democracy
COMMENTARY: By Anna Naupa Out of the rubble of last year’s 7.3 magnitude earthquake that hit Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila on December 17 and the snap election due next week on January 16, a new leadership is required to reset the country’s developmental trajectory. Persistent political turmoil has hampered the Pacific nation’s ability to deal with a compounding set of social and economic shocks over recent years, caused by climate-related and other natural disasters.
Election 2025: Earthquake aftershocks expose high cost of Vanuatu’s democracy
Out of the rubble of the 7.3 magnitude earthquake that hit Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila on Dec. 17 and the snap election due on Jan. 16, a new leadership is required to reset the country’s developmental trajectory. Persistent political turmoil has hampered the Pacific nation’s ability to deal with a compounding set of social and economic shocks over recent years, caused by climate-related and other natural disasters.
The future of land management in Vanuatu
The future of land management in Vanuatu October 27, 2024 9:55 pm | Posted in Business News | Share now By Anna Naupa and Mike Waiwai. The book My Land, My Life: Dispossession at the Frontier of Desire by the Australian National University’s Associate Professor Siobhan McDonnell provides an important new addition to Vanuatu’s land history on the island of Efate, home to the capital Port Vila.
The future of land management in Vanuatu
The book My Land, My Life: Dispossession at the Frontier of Desire by the Australian National University’s Associate Professor Siobhan McDonnell provides an important new addition to Vanuatu’s land history on the island of Efate, home to the capital Port Vila.
The future of land management in Vanuatu
By Anna Naupa and Mike Waiwai The book My Land, My Life: Dispossession at the Frontier of Desire by the Australian National University's Associate Professor Siobhan McDonnell provides an important new addition to Vanuatu's land history on the island of Efate, home to the capital Port Vila.
The future of land management in Vanuatu
The book ‘My Land, My Life: Dispossession at the Frontier of Desire’ by the Australian National University’s Associate Professor Siobhan McDonnell provides an important new addition to Vanuatu’s land history on the island of Efate, home to the capital Port Vila.
Wokbaot Wetem Kalja: Culture and disaster management in Vanuatu
“Climate displacement of populations is the main feature of our future. We have to be ready for it and plan for it now.” So said Vanuatu’s Minister for Climate Change, Ralph Regenvanu, when he took office in 2022. The reality of any relocation in Vanuatu is that it is mostly carried out in the context of kastom (community-based culture), as 97% of land in Vanuatu is under customary tenure.
Wokbaot wetem kalja: culture and disaster management in Vanuatu - Vanuatu
by Anna Naupa, Vanessa Organo and Elise Huffer “Climate displacement of populations is the main feature of our future. We have to be ready for it and plan for it now.” So said Vanuatu’s Minister for Climate Change, Ralph Regenvanu, when he took office in 2022. The reality of any relocation in Vanuatu is that it is mostly carried out in the context of kastom (community-based culture), as 97% of land in Vanuatu is under customary tenure.
Wokbaot wetem kalja: culture and disaster management in Vanuatu
“Climate displacement of populations is the main feature of our future. We have to be ready for it and plan for it now.” So said Vanuatu’s Minister for Climate Change, Ralph Regenvanu, when he took office in 2022. The reality of any relocation in Vanuatu is that it is mostly carried out in the context of kastom (community-based culture), as 97% of land in Vanuatu is under customary tenure.
Basic but essential: Vanuatu’s proposed political integrity legislation
Vanuatu's government building. Photo courtesy of PINA By Anna Naupa, Jennifer Kalpokas Doan and Gregoire Nimbtik Port Vila-- Vanuatu has had three different prime ministers since Sept. 4 and weathered several court challenges as politicians and parties battled for parliamentary supremacy.
Vanuatu's proposed political integrity legislation
Vanuatu has had three different prime ministers since 4 September, and weathered several court challenges as politicians and parties battled for parliamentary supremacy. Vanuatu’s citizens have expressed their frustrations via social media, national Press Klab and on the streets, with more than 150 people marching to Parliament House to table a petition from over 1,800 people demanding passage of proposed political integrity bills to mitigate continued instability.
Basic but essential: Vanuatu’s proposed political integrity legislation
Vanuatu has had three different prime ministers since 4 September, and weathered several court challenges as politicians and parties battled for parliamentary supremacy. Vanuatu’s citizens have expressed their frustrations via social media, national Press Klab and on the streets, with more than 150 people marching to Parliament House to table a petition from over 1,800 people demanding passage of proposed political integrity bills to mitigate continued instability.
The crucial role for the Green Climate Fund – and why Australia should contribute
Countries will decide next month how much they will pledge to the Green Climate Fund (GCF). The summit in Bonn, Germany could determine billions of dollars of financial support from rich polluting countries to developing nations – those which have contributed little to the causes of climate change yet will suffer the most from its impacts. Australia, despite having backed out of the Fund in 2018, now has a chance to play a crucial part.
154 years and Fiji's draconian media laws
Every year on September 4, we reflect on our journey. This time there is an element of renewed enthusiasm following the repeal of the draconian media law that had ruled over our work since 2010. Today we look back on a period in history when our work as journalists was greatly impacted by laws. We look back at restrictions and the many challenges we were forced to work with. We reflect on the fear, uncertainty, and the amount of second guessing that became part and parcel of our work.
Cultural security in the Pacific: Why it matters for regional security
Of all the complex and evolving threats to the region’s cultural heritage, climate change remains the most calamitous By Anna Naupa Last week, Pacific leaders and officials discussed the region’s ocean governance in Nadi, law enforcement in Koror, a potential Australia–Pacific COP31 in Suva, and Melanesian security, the climate crisis and human rights in Port Vila, while civil society groups have protested Japan’s commenced discharge of treated nuclear wastewater from Fukushima into our...
Cultural security in the Pacific: Why it matters for regional security
Last week, Pacific leaders and officials discussed the region’s ocean governance in Nadi, law enforcement in Koror, a potential Australia–Pacific COP31 in Suva, and Melanesian security, the climate crisis and human rights in Port Vila, while civil society groups have protested Japan’s commenced discharge of treated nuclear wastewater from Fukushima into our Pacific Ocean.
Can Oceanic diplomacy solve the Pacific’s maritime disputes?
The Mota Lava Treaty between Solomon Islands and Vanuatu shows how traditional Oceanic diplomacy can be incorporated into current practice, Anna Naupa writes. On 7 October 2016, neighbouring countries Vanuatu and Solomon Islands signed a historic maritime boundary agreement after 33 years of negotiations. This significant occasion marked the end of more than a century of the local people living with the legacy of a randomly drawn line on colonial maps.
Safeguarding Pacific Island seas starts with indigenous knowledge
Some months ago, I was part of a special ocean and culture story-telling workshop on my home island of Erromango, in southern Vanuatu. There, I listened to traditional elders recount ancient sea wisdom and oral histories about ocean connections with other islands, passed down through generations over thousands of years.
A tale of two sectors: Women leaders bridging the formal and informal sectors during Vanuatu’s COVID crisis
A tale of two sectors: Women leaders bridging the formal and informal sectors during Vanuatu’s COVID crisis By Anna Naupa Vanuatu’s national sustainable development plan, Vanuatu 2030 The People’s Plan, commits to growing both the formal and informal sectors to ensure that no one is left behind. Already a complicated undertaking, with the global COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent closure of Vanuatu’s borders in March 2020, it has become part of a national crisis response.
Vanuatu election outcome: Can a new coalition government kick-start the economy?
The past year has tested Vanuatu’s economic and political resilience. Following the devastation wreaked by Category 5 Cyclone Pam in the island archipelago in March, economic recovery was elusive and made harder by months of political instability and constitutional uncertainty. October saw 14 members of parliament convicted for bribery, including the deputy prime minister, and an attempt by one of the convicted MPs to grant himself and his associates a presidential pardon.
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