New PM says RAMSI's operations will be reviewed
The Solomon Islands newly appointed Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogovare, says he is happy with the operations of the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands and wants it to continue. However, he has warned that Parliament will continue to review RAMSI's operations and urge it to address the causes of the government's collapse in 2000. That, according to Mr Sogovare, means getting more Solomon Islanders into key public service positions, which are now occupied by expatriate civil servants. Pacific Beat - Radio Australia, 5th May 2006

Solomon Islands unrest
When former Solomon Islands Deputy Prime Minister, Snyder Rini, was elected Prime Minister, mob violence erupted in the capital, Honiara. Rini soon resigned and Manasseh Sogavare was elected to the top job. To get a sense of some of these events view a photo gallery on the ABC's Asia Pacific website. You can also check out the ABC's country profile on the Solomons. ABC Asia Pacific, 4th May 2006

Toua to promote girls' education
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) is hoping the high profile and success of sporting star Dika Toua will attract more girls in PNG to go to school. Unicef officials on Monday announced a partnership with Commonwealth Games silver medallist to promote girls' education in PNG. The UN's PNG representative Dr Isiye Ndombi said that the high illiteracy rate of women in PNG was one of the major reasons why 800,000 children in the country are affected by HIV/AIDS because of poor education for women. The National, Papua New Guinea 3rd May 2006

PNG health minister terrified by lack of manpower in health sector
The Papua New Guinea health minister, Sir Peter Barter, says he is terrified the declining numbers of health workers could soon mean many people will not get even basic services. The Post Courier reports that Sir Peter wants a plan in place to ensure services are improved. He says from 2000 to 2003 the number of doctors declined by a third and nursing and other staff by 12 percent. Sir Peter says this decline could be expected to continue, and given that the population is growing rapidly, in ten years many will not have basic services. Radio New Zealand, 1st May 2006

Recalling Mangunwijaya's service to the nation
Three years ago, I made a field trip to Yogyakarta with about 150 second-grade elementary school students. To this day, one of the most striking memories of that trip was a visit to a school with simple, woven bamboo walls and shiny, well-scrubbed floors. I can still remember the happy sound of children singing that met our ears even before we entered the classrooms, as well as the wonderful paintings that covered classroom walls, the plasticine skeletons, and of course the children who created these works of art. The Jakarta Post, 6th May 2006

I will simply survive
"While the wealthy struggle to shovel out from under their possessions and prepossessions, the poor must struggle on a daily basis to acquire much of anything of value - including flesh on their bones. This is most evident, perhaps, in places like Kenya or India or Brazil, where cadres of children scramble over mountains of garbage to find bits and pieces from which they can cobble together the stuff of life." Elizabeth Chin Grist, 1st March 2006

"Simply Sharing Week" (May 14-21)
The decision to live simply and share what we have is recognition that we can make a difference to the massive problems of injustice and poverty in the world: by sacrificing some luxuries in our own lives, we can fill the future with hope. "Simply Sharing Week", a joint program of Caritas Australia and Christian World Service, is a development education program for schools and churches across Australia. This website offers individuals and groups information and activities to assist in the fight against poverty and injustice.

www.simplysharingweek.org.au/ssw/index.htm

My Flesh and Blood
My Flesh and Blood follows single mother Susan Tom of Fairfield, California and her 11 adopted special needs children. Susan is both a Mother Teresa and an ordinary woman. My Flesh and Blood is a candid look at a year in the life of a truly unique household and examines the way one unconventional family draws strength from their struggles and reveals how parents like Susan are filling the gaps in an increasingly overwhelmed and under-resourced foster care system.

"Live simply that others can simply live." Mohandas Gandhi

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