National MP Dr Shane Reti is hopeful tech giant Elon Musk will provide desperately-needed internet access to the people of Tonga.
SpaceX chief executive Elon Musk Photo: Patrick Pleul / dpa Picture-Alliance via AFP
National MP for Whangārei Shane Reti said he wrote to the SpaceX chief executive asking him to use the company's Starlink satellites to help reconnect the Tongan people with the rest of the world after the volcanic eruption severed communications.
He posted the letter on Twitter a few days later and it was widely shared.
The outage has severely hampered communication with the stricken country, complicating international efforts to assist and efforts by family members overseas to make contact with people in Tonga.
I guess Elon Musk can only say no and if you don't ask you don't know. After the Minister told me in a phone call on Monday that the telecommunications cable to Tonga was down I immediately sent a letter to Elon to see if he would contribute Starlink to the emergency pic.twitter.com/Upg9WijWrq
— Dr Shane Reti (@DrShaneRetiMP) January 21, 2022
While some international calling capability was restored to the country on Tuesday, the provider warned full services won't be available until the undersea cable is repaired.
Assessment of the damage to the cable is expected to take about a month.
Musk replied on Twitter, seeking confirmation from people in Tonga that they need the help.
Elon Musk has kindly replied "Could people from Tonga let us know if it is important for Spacex to send over Starlink terminals" It sounds like he can figure out how to make this happen. This would be a good thing for Tonga. Can the community reply then please to @elonmusk pic.twitter.com/fR0kXLHBcJ
— Dr Shane Reti (@DrShaneRetiMP) January 21, 2022
Reti said he had been speaking to diplomats and the Tongan community, who told him it would make a big difference. And he urged the Tongan community to share their pleas with Musk on Twitter.
Among those who replied to Musk's tweet is Tongan noble Lord Fusitu'a, who said the Starlink communication was badly needed, and would allow communications to help import essential supplies into the country.
"I have a plane airdropping ham radio in for basic comms, but Starlink [is] essential," he said.
Yes @elonmusk we need them to get liquidity in to purchase much needed goods. Voice & data Completely down with undersea cable severed. I have a plane airdropping hamradio in for basic comms, but @starlink essential. Pls contact me to coordinate and help.
— Lord Fusitu'a (@LordFusitua) January 21, 2022
In 2017 Musk made international headlines when his firm Tesla donated solar panels and batteries to Puerto Rico following Hurricane Maria.
The flamboyant tech billionaire is known for his moonshot projects, including solar panels, electric vehicles and space exploration, which he pitches as helping solve some of the world's greatest challenges such as pollution.
However, he has also attracted widespread criticism for his treatment of his staff and attitudes on Covid-19 vaccinations. And earlier this week he was called out by international charity Oxfam for accruing massive amounts of wealth during the pandemic.
The Starlink 3 satellites. Photo: Unsplash / Forest Katsch
Reti said the satellite link could help provide essential services for people in Tonga.
"If Starlink was made operational in Tonga they would have internet and voice over internet, and telecommunications ability.
"It would almost be as if their cable was not broken, so they would be connected again with the world, they could express their needs."
Starlink began launching chains of satellites in 2019, to provide wider high-speed internet to remote locations globally.
Musk also tweeted to add that the logistics of shifting services to Tonga would not be straight forward.
"This is a hard thing for us to do right now, as we don't have enough satellites with laser links and there are already geo sats that serve the Tonga region," he said.
Today the Asian Development Bank announced it has approved a $US10m grant to the government of Tonga for early recovery efforts, and to help restore essential services.
