Here's what is happening in news from around the Pacific today, Wednesday 23 December.
Vanuatu's former prime minister Charlot Salwai Photo: RNZ / Hilaire Bule
Former Vanuatu PM resigns
Vanuatu's former prime minister Charlot Salwai has resigned as deputy opposition leader.
His resignation letter to the speaker of parliament followed his conviction for perjury last week.
Salwai plans to appeal against that conviction.
In his letter, he said the decision was to uphold the integrity of parliament.
NGO is Fiji says people have been traumatised by Yasa
A civil society organisation in Fiji says people have been traumatised by Cyclone Yasa.
The category five cyclone tore through the northern island of Vanua Levu last week, destroying entire villages and leaving thousands homeless.
The region is also home to many informal settlements, small-scale farms, and struggling sugar cane plantations.
The director of the Fiji Council of Social Services, Vani Catanasiga, said these peoples' struggles have been compounded by the cyclone.
"Really just talking about a psycho-social trauma, and the impacts they have seen are not just on homes but also livelihoods," she said.
Australian jailed in Fiji for drug smuggling
An Australian horse trainer jailed in Fiji for drug smuggling has had his appeal adjourned until next month.
John Nikolic was last year sentenced to 23 years in prison for importing cocaine into Fiji on board his luxury yacht.
His yacht, Shenanigans, was found with more than 20 million dollars worth of drugs and two guns at Port Denarau.
The 45-year-old appeared at the appeals court in Suva on Wednesday, where his case was deferred until the 29th of January.
Nikolic's wife, Yvette, was acquitted at the same trial last year, which Fiji's Director of Public Prosecutions is appealing.
