June 2006 in Oceania

1 June, 2006 (Thursday)

• The Queensland branches of the Liberal and National Parties back away from a merger proposal.

2 June, 2006 (Friday)

• The federal government and the state governments of New South Wales and Victoria back out of a plan to privatise Snowy Hydro Limited.

3 June, 2006 (Saturday)

• Russel Norman is elected as the new male co-leader of the New Zealand Green Party.

4 June, 2006 (Sunday)

• The Tokelau assembly votes to hold another referendum on independence. The referendum is likely to be held in late 2007 or early 2008.(Radio NZ)

6 June, 2006 (Tuesday)

• The trial of Tim Selwyn for sedition begins in Auckland, New Zealand. (Newswire)

7 June, 2006 (Wednesday)

• The Privy Council agrees to hear David Bain's appeal against his conviction for the [...] of his family.(Radio NZ)
• A oourt action is brought to stop the opening of the Tongan Legislative Assembly but the Speaker will go ahead. The action says the Assembly must be opened by the King or his representatives. (Matangi Tonga)

8 June, 2006 (Thursday)

• Tim Selwyn found guilty of sedition in Auckland. (TVNZ)
• New Zealand wins hosting rights for the 2010 World Rowing Championships to be held at Lake Karapiro. (NZ Herald)

10 June, 2006 (Saturday)

• A Yemeni linked to the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States is deported from New Zealand, only the second time that Section 72 of the Immigration Act is used to deport someone. Consent of the Governor-General was required and there is no right of appeal. (newswire)

12 June, 2006 (Monday)

• A blackout hits Auckland, New Zealand, lasting for several hours after a severe storm lashed the country. It brought back memories of the 1998 Auckland power crisis. Some small communities lose power for much longer after the storm. (NZ Herald)

13 June, 2006 (Tuesday)

• Australia defeats Japan 3-1 in its first match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

14 June, 2006 (Wednesday)

• The USTKE union in New Caledonia calls a general strike in protest against the shipping company MSC. The strike is put on hold after union leaders are arrested for earlier protests. (Radio NZ)

15 June, 2006 (Thursday)

• New Zealand junior doctors begin a five-day strike over working hours and conditions. Hospitals defer non-urgent surgery and outpatient treatments. (stuff) (NZ Herald)
• A free-to-air digital television service called Freeview will be launched in New Zealand in 2007. All viewers will require a set-top box, and some will need a satellite dish. (WikiNews)
• The Australian Senate fails to overturn a government ban on civil unions in the Australian Capital Territory.

16 June, 2006 (Friday)

• The Varroa bee mite is found near Stoke, New Zealand. The mite arrived in New Zealand in 2000 and has been confined to the North Island until now. (stuff)
• Fishermen blockade the port and its access road at Tahiti to protest lack of financial aid for their industry. They also dropped truckloads of rotting fish outside the presidential palace and territorial assembly. (Radio NZ)
• A disease affecting sugarcane in north Queensland has been identified as Sugarcane smut.

18 June, 2006 (Sunday)

• Australia loses against Brazil 2-0 in its second match of the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

21 June, 2006 (Wednesday)

• Working dogs have been exempted from the dog microchipping legislation currently before the New Zealand Parliament. (Radio NZ)
• The Prime Minister of the Cook Islands Jim Marurai says he will call a snap election if the Government loses the Matavera by-election next month. A loss would leave a hung parliament. (Radio NZ)
• Former President of French Polynesia Gaston Flosse is convicted of corruption and given a three month suspended sentence. (Radio NZ)

22 June, 2006 (Thursday)

• East Timor President Xanana Gusmão threatens to resign over the social unrest in his country.1
• East Timor's former interior minister Rogerio Lobato has been accused of arming a civilian militia group to create unrest, and arrested. (ABC)
• Mahendra Chaudhry warns that the Fiji Labour Party will withdraw from the coalition government if government programs continue to be biased towards indigenous Fijians. (Radio NZ)

24 June, 2006 (Saturday)

• The 2006 Micronesian Games open in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands. (Pacific Daily News)

25 June, 2006 (Sunday)

• José Ramos Horta resigns as both Foreign and Interim Defence Minister of East Timor amidst ongoing political turmoil. (SMH)

26 June, 2006 (Monday)

• Marí Alkatiri resigns as Prime Minister of East Timor after weeks of political unrest. (Melbourne Herald-Sun)
• A summit between France and Pacific Island countries opens in Paris. Delegates from all 16 Pacific Islands Forum members attend. (Radio NZ)
• A deal is revealed where Australia agreed to pay US$29 million to clean up corruption in Nauru in exchange for Nauru accepting refugees who attempt to enter Australia. (SMH)

27 June, 2006 (Tuesday)

• Australia loses to Italy 1-0 after a controversial penalty in the dying minute, thus bowing out of the 2006 World Cup.
• Telecom New Zealand announces it will voluntarily separate its business into two operating entities - Wholesale and Retail. (NZ Herald)

28 June, 2006 (Wednesday)

• The 40th anniversary of the start of French nuclear testing in the South Pacific is marked with a conference in Papeete. (Radio NZ)
• An angry mob in Dili, East Timor attacks a refugee camp as the 2006 East Timor crisis continues. (Melbourne Age)

29 June, 2006 (Thursday)

• Development of the Kupe gas and oil field off the Taranaki coast of New Zealand will go ahead, with production beginning in 2009. (NZ Herald)