Word: nauru
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...grand view from the 51st floor of Nauru House in central Melbourne, but it?s unlikely the President of Nauru is enjoying it. Since he flew out of the 21-sq.-km island on April 23, Rene Harris has been closeted in his suite here trying to solve a financial mess. Phosphate exports once made Nauruans among the world?s richest people, but those days are long gone. It?s unknown how much remains in the phosphate royalties trust that once sustained many of Nauru?s 12,000 people, and last month, seeking to recover about $A240 million owed...
Days later, India?s Hiranandani Corp. Worldwide announced a refinancing deal and declared Nauru ?saved from bankruptcy.? But PPB?s Stephen Parbery says the deal, like others before it, is a mirage; the assets will eventually be sold. ?There?s no magic wand,? he says. ?Talk of refinancing flies in the face of economic reality.? A government spokeswoman says talks with HCW ?and several others? are continuing...
...Nauru, says 23-year-old Finea, ?all people talk about is what we?re going to eat and what the President is doing.? Soap is now a luxury and Finea, a cleaner, hasn?t been paid since February. And if money doesn?t arrive? ?I don?t know,? she says with a small laugh. ?Maybe we?ll all drop dead...
...Zealand's Pacific neighbors - especially Niue and the Cook Islands, whose people carry N.Z. passports - are also potential back doors for those seeking a Kiwi identity. In December the government ended visa-free entry for citizens of Nauru, Tuvalu and Kiribati. It's also working with Australia to help Pacific states tighten notoriously lax border controls. "We are constantly vigilant," says Goff. So are most other nations - and they'll now look a little more closely at those blue passports...
Genetics can make a difference as well. Those who are most susceptible to gaining weight on high-fat, carbohydrate-rich diets are those who are primed to produce high levels of circulating insulin in the first place. Among them are the inhabitants of the South Pacific island of Nauru, who--thanks to a surfeit of cheap, calorie-dense foods, along with a shift away from jobs requiring physical activity--have the unwelcome distinction of being some of the fattest, most diabetes-prone people on the planet...