The service was led by the Fellowship of Christian Churches under Chairman Reverend Oka Fauolo, with the leaders of the Catholics, Methodists and Congregationalists seeking comfort for the thousands who have lost loved ones in a disaster the Samoans called ‘mala faa-le-natura’ – a curse of nature.

The disaster has brought the island nation to its knees as its leaders and people ponder if it was a curse as it pushes forward in a highly competitive globalized economy where its dependency on tourism looks forever fragile with the unparalleled disastrous power of nature.

The college students carried and laid a wreath for each of the victims, most of whom have already been buried over the past week as the badly decomposed bodies could no longer be held in the morgues.

But the sight of eleven coffins – seven adults and four small ones, brought tears to many eyes as the open-sided trucks covered in Samoan fine mats, passed slowly by and the police carried each casket with ceremonial precision to the dais as a last honour.

The Police Brass Band held the tunes with human voices breaking with emotion in every hymn sung here.
Many of the overseas relatives have been here only a couple of days, many carrying wreaths, flowers and huge banners in memory of their lost loved ones. One pays tribute to the patriarch of the Taufua family of Lalomanu that lost 14 family members in the disaster. Under a life sized photo the message reads: “13 Loved Ones, 4 Generations. Thanks to our families here and abroad for your prayers and support.” The Small Business Centre (SBEC) pays tribute to eight people from two families who were their clients who lost their lives and much more.

A familiar face, a farmer of Saleapaga, Lafitaga Suafai Sasulu whose face is on a Mobile phone card is held up high by his relatives here.

Almost two hours later, the bodies are transported to the new cemetery at Tafa’igata across from the prison and rubbish dump. This is a first mass grave and a mass burial in modern times as one time in history, a mass grave held more bodies than today, when the Spanish influenza killed 22 percent of the Samoan population in 1918.

Along the route, people on the roadsides throw flowers in the motorcades way as a mark of respect and sympathy. It is getting dark. Television New Zealand (TVOne) has set up their satellite dish behind the mass grave to file a live report of this ceremony that is seen as a cap to the disaster.

Each of the eleven caskets were painstakingly carried by the Police one by one and placed inside each of the graves. One, which should have made it twelve, opted out at the last minute, to be buried near the family home at Aleipata. Lined up in neat fashion and covered in white ceramic tiles, the graves have space and walkway around them making it easy for families and friends to pay their last respects and lay wreaths and flowers on the coffins.

Each of the victims had a name placard and date of birth. The oldest – a 76 years old grandfather and the youngest – a four year old girl.

As with religious (Congregational) tradition, the mourners got up almost in unison and edged for space to throw a piece of the earth into the grave, as Reverend Oka proclaimed ‘from dust to dust’. It is already dark and a cool breeze blows across this fertile farmland.

Tomorrow, the close relatives will wake up to the pain of their loss but will find some strength and comfort from this burial ceremony to try and move forward. As said in this ceremony today, ‘the sun will rise again’.

The Government will erect a memorial here that will bear the names of all the tsunami victims including those from overseas.  It will be a reminder for all to be prepared at all times against natural disasters.

Written by Lance Polu, on 09-10-2009 10:39

Source: Talamua

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Further to this, the female had suffered an injury to her ankle, and they were being attacked by birds nesting in the area. As the local warden was unable to locate the casualties, he contacted the local Coastguard volunteer for help, who informed Shetland Coastguard.

Shetland Coastguard made contact with the couple, however communications were extremely difficult due to poor mobile phone coverage in the area, and signal was repeatedly lost. Coastguard Rescue Helicopter 102 was scrambled to the scene and used the ‘clock face method’ to locate them. This involved the crew positioning the helicopter in the area and asking the couple to describe the direction the aircraft was facing in until they were found.

Once the couple were located they were taken into the helicopter where they were transported to Kirkwall to meet with Police to discuss what happened.

Shetland Coastguard Watch Manager Kathy Grant said:

“The couple were obviously quite distressed when they were located as, not only were they cold and scared, the female was unable to walk due to an ankle injury. Further to this, they were suffering attacks from Great Skuas, which are aggressive birds which will dive bomb you if you approach their nests. Not only can this be extremely unnerving if you are not used to these animals, they can also cause some fairly serious injuries.

The couple were only wearing t-shirts when they were located and were wholly unprepared for the events that occurred. They were not prepared for the changeable weather in the area, they were outside of their comfort zone and were not equipped with anything to assist them when they found themselves in difficulty. We always advise walkers to remain on marked paths where possible and to arm yourself with equipment such as appropriate communications devices, a torch, map or even walking flares in the event that you become lost. Always wear appropriate clothing and prepare well for cold and rain.”
Source: Maritime And Coastguard Agency

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The last De Fakto issue, published on June 12, featured a story accusing Taalaibek Dalbayev of the Bishkek Tax Committee of corruption. When it was learned that the author of the article may not exist, an investigation into knowingly spreading false information was begun. On June 14, police raided the newspaper’s offices and removed computers and sealed the editorial office.

Earlier this month, De Fakto was fined 1 million soms (approximately $27,600) following legal actions initiated by Asylbek Saliyev, nephew of the president and son of the State Protection Service director.

De Fakto was founded over one year ago. Kubatbek Baibolov, opposition leader and former lawmaker, assisted the newspaper before quitting politics.

Source: Ferghana.ru

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How People Arrived Here:

de fakto kyrgyzstan

Remarks were made by Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Sting and Neal Shapiro, President and CEO of the Educational Broadcasting Corporation, the licensee of Thirteen/WNET and WLIW New York. Tickets will be available nationally online via Thirteen/WNET and WLIW. More details about the benefit show, including venue and ticket information, will be released at a later date.

Photo by Stewart Isbell/Thirteen/WNET New York

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A gun licensed in the name of Soha Ali Khan was found amongst the firearms seized from Nawab Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi’s Delhi residence in 2005.

A case has been booked against Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, for allegedly poaching wild animals. Soha has been dragged into the controversy since the gun was issued to her in 1996 when she was just 18! She has been given two weeks time to explain to the authorities.

Source OurBollywood.com

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