Transcript
Mackenzie Smith: The dispute was launched in late 2017 but it really all started in 2016 when two public servants, Heto Puka and Jovilisi Suveinakama, used $US2.3 million in government funds to buy a couple of helicopters. They had been discussed by Tokelau's leaders at meetings as part of a strategy to set up an airstrip in Tokelau and there was approval among some, but when New Zealand found out about it they were outraged at the spending. That got Tokelau's government upset and they suspended these two guys, investigated them, fired them and then later sold off the helicopters. Because Tokelau is only reachable by boat there have been these airport aspirations for decades but because of the sensitivity and alleged lack of process, these plans all went up in flames.
DW: And what does Friday's ruling mean?
MS: Justice Churchman's ruling sided with the government on a number of claims brought by the two plaintiffs. It found that their dismissals were lawful and investigations into them didn't breach any rules as they had claimed. But crucially, it found their suspensions without pay for the three months before they were dismissed were unlawful. The government had already backpaid Mr Puka and Mr Suveinakama for that period but had withheld interest, which Justice Churchman says was unlawful. And he's found the plaintiffs are entitled to 5 percent interest, although the two parties still have to agree on a sum within the next few weeks.
DW: What's the significance of this case to Tokelau?
MS: On one level, it's a small employment dispute that's been settled. But it's also much more than that. The March hearing in Wellington, where Tokelau's High Court sits, was the first substantive hearing of the court, and Friday's decision is the first-ever decision that's come out of it. So there's a number of legal firsts. But the affair has become very political in Tokelau. For example, the village council in Fakaofo atoll committed to funding some of the plaintiffs' legal costs against the government and allies of the plaintiffs have said they've been scapegoated.
DW: What about New Zealand's role?
MS: It's also highlighted tensions with New Zealand, which still governs Tokelau. Amid investigations into these two officials, it was revealed a New Zealand Foreign Ministry official ordered Tokelau to suspend them. Wellington also drafted documents to remove Tokelau's fiscal independence because it was so concerned about the helicopter purchases. And later, after a New Zealand administrator ended up at odds with the island government over a commission of inquiry into the incident, Tokelau forced him out.
