Times of Tonga

The Times of Tonga (Taimi o Tonga) was a biweekly newspaper in Tonga. First published in April 1989, it was published for 30 years by editor and publisher Kalafi Moala and was a frequent target of the Tongan government. Moala sold the business in 2019,[1][2] and it is now an online publication.

The Taimi 'o Tonga was a frequent target of the Tongan government. In 1996, Moala and editor Filokalafi Akau’ola were imprisoned for 30 days for contempt of parliament after reporting on a motion in the Legislative Assembly which criticised a government minister. Their imprisonment was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, and they were later awarded US$26,000 in compensation.[3] In 2002, Moala published a history of the newspaper, Island Kingdom strikes Back: The Story of an Independent Island Newspaper.[4][5]

In 2002, editor Mateni Tapueluelu was charged with sedition and forgery over the publication of a letter claiming king Taufa'ahau Tupou IV had a secret fortune.[6]

In 2003, the newspaper was banned by the Tongan government for campaigning to overthrow the constitution.[7] The ban was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court,[8] but the government repeatedly ignored the ruling and reinstated the ban.[9][10] The ban was eventually lifted in June 2003.[11] The failure of the ban caused the government to amend the constitution to limit judicial review of royal decisions.[12]

In 2004, the newspaper was banned under a new Media Operators Act, which prohibited foreign owned publications.[13][14] The law was later overturned by the Supreme Court, and the Times was issued with a media licence.[15]

In 2005, Tonga's Crown Prince Tupoutoʻa ʻUlukalala claimed that the newspaper's legal problems were due to a personal vendetta by then Police Minister Clive Edwards.[16]

In March 2009, the Times purchased the government-owned Tonga Chronicle.[17] In November 2009, the publication celebrated its 20th birthday.[18]