The Royal "Palace" in Nuku'alofa, home of King Taufa'ahau Tupou IV
Posted on 08/23/2005 3:51:24 AM PDT by Our_Man_In_Gough_Island
Tongan protesters have scuffled with New Zealand police outside a residence of the king of Tonga in the northern city of Auckland. Civil servants on the impoverished South Pacific archipelago have been on strike for several weeks.
A blaze engulfed one of the king's houses on Tonga on Monday, although it was not clear if this was related.
New Zealand has said it will send a negotiator to Tonga to mediate between the government and civil servants.
Some 3,000 government employees have been on strike since July, demanding pay increases.
The unrest is now spreading to Auckland's large Tongan community.
Economic impact
About 50 Tongans were involved in the clashes with police and royal staff outside the residence of 87-year-old King Taufa'ahau Tupou in the town on Monday.
They demanded to meet the king but were blocked by 30 police officers.
Reports said two men and two women were arrested after the scuffles.
New Zealand Foreign Minister, Phil Goff, said the strike was having a significant impact on Tonga's economy.
"It is important that a process is put in place to help resolve the issues and reduce tensions in Tongan society," he said according to the French news agency AFP.
Tonga's civil servants launched their protest after senior government officials were awarded pay rises of up to 80% in July.
They have rejected offers by Tonga's authorities to increase their wages by a third.
I have a new plan that will save the impoverished archipelago! Fire all 3,000 government employees, deregulate all industries, and tell them it's time for them to get a real job and stop living on thei backs of their impoverished neighbors.
Well, well, wages upped by 80 % for senior govt. officials, but not even a measly third for Tonga's civil servants. What's good for the goose is not okay for the gander.
I hope the "unrest" doesn't spread to the Tonganese community in beautiful downtown Euless, Texas.
For some reason, there's a bunch of Tongans there. I know if I was going to pick a place to emigrate to from my island paradise that was just like "home", it probably wouldn't be some place 500 miles inland from the water.
They look like they're getting plenty to eat. Big people.
A surprisingly staid, Victorian way of life.
Bongo
I ran into a guy in Wendover, Nevada who appeared to be Tongan...he was a bodybuilder, and he was monsterous big!
Ya mean they were also smokin' sumthun?
The good thing is that the machine keeps a steady beat, doesn't drink all the beer, and it won’t sleep with anyone’s girlfriend.
Tonga has literally one of the last remaining classical oligarchical systems of government in the world. The King holds real power and he and the nobles run the country not accountable to the courts or any elected representatives.
Sure, it isn't Saudi Arabia, but it is no liberty-loving country.
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