MIL-OSI Export

Armed police guarding the scene in Lower Hutt. RNZ

Police have named a deceased man at the centre of a homicide investigation in the Wellington region.

Nathaniel Sturmey, 29, was found dead at a property on Malone Road in Lower Hutt on 9 April.

Detective Inspector Jamie Woods said police have finished the scene examination, but the investigation into Sturmey’s death continued.

“We acknowledge this is an incredibly difficult time for Mr Sturmey’s family and support is being provided,” he said.

Woods said police were appealing to the public for information as they worked to understand where Sturmey was in the hours before his death.

He said police were particularly interested in any suspicious activity in the Waterloo, Lower Hutt area between 10pm on 8 April and 3am on 9 April.

He said support was being provided to Sturmey’s family.

Anyone with information can get in touch with police online or call 105, quoting reference number 260409/9927.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/14/police-name-victim-at-centre-of-wellington-homicide-probe/

April 14, 2026

‘I never really know how to answer that’: why do women still have to justify being single?

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Maddison Sideris, Associate Teaching Fellow, Sociology, Deakin University

Being a single woman isn’t the social taboo it once was. Singlehood seems to be on the rise, with more single person households, and more women choosing to marry later in life, or not at all.

It could even be viewed as trendy, among growing online movements to boycott dating apps and go “boy sober”. So is the stigma attached to being a single woman well and truly gone? My latest research suggests not.

I studied two women’s experience of singlehood over the course of 17 years, from their late teens to their mid-30s. Both Gabriella and Suzy (pseudonyms) spent long periods of their adult lives unpartnered, and their experiences show how the identity of a “single woman” still carries a negative stigma that’s hard to shake.

‘I feel that others see me as a spinster’

The stigma of being a single woman dates back to the 17th century. It was around this time the term “spinster” – originally used to describe women who worked in textile spinning – was widely adapted to describe unmarried women.

Spinsters were seen as a problem in the patriarchal society of the time. Known as “feme sole” in English common law, they had many of the same legal rights as men, including the ability to own property, whereas married women did not. They also defied the idea that a woman’s worth lay only in her value as a wife.

Nonetheless, spinsters who weren’t from wealthy families were at an economic disadvantage and often restricted to lower income occupations. Even those who were financially secure were granted lower social value than their married counterparts.

Although the term feels outdated, my participant Suzy described feeling this way in her early 20s:

I am worried about being alone, not having anyone to live [with] because I cannot live with my parents forever. Even though I know I am still young at 22, and I am not ready to settle down, I feel that others see me as a spinster and that I am already off the shelf. I thought things had changed nowadays.

Both Suzy and Gabriella worried about societal expectations of them, which they felt were characterised by a linear transition from school to work, to buying a house, to getting married and settling down.

Their own lives transgressed these expectations. For instance, when the women were in their early 30s, Suzy went back to studying while Gabriella moved back in with her parents.

Research shows traditional markers of adulthood are increasingly being postponed due to economic pressures, changing social attitudes, and people choosing to stay in education for longer.

Society rewards couples

The stigma of singlehood has mostly been researched among older women, with recent work demonstrating singlehood is more acceptable up until the age of 30.

This feeling was echoed by my participants. Gabriella described being able to resist the stigma in her 20s, before more of the people around her started to couple up:

I’m in this phase of my life in my mid-30s now, where I think it’s accumulated and now I feel really lonely […] I used to be ably to defy it, never really let it get to me, and I was always very positive and stuff, but now I’m just a bit more sensitive, a bit more conscious of it.

Historically, society has been ruled by the tenacity of the “couple norm”, which is the belief that living in a couple is a superior, more natural way to live.

Women have more options than ever before, and many choose to stay single. Yet the negative spinster stereotype prevails. Getty Images

This norm stems from the construction of a hetero-patriarchal society that has long been upheld by social and legal institutions that reward couples. The legacy of this norm is upheld daily through culture, including in the plethora of books, TV series and films centred on finding “the one”.

This culture helps to perpetuate economic inequalities for single people. For instance, Gabriella, who moved back in with her parents during COVID after a break-up, worried she wouldn’t be able to attain her dream home on a single income.

Everyone that I know is in a couple, and I think their success in building their house and their nest and all that stuff, has happened because they’ve been able to leverage each other.

Similarly, Suzy described getting financial help from her parents to freeze her eggs at age 34.

Both participants explained how singlehood also sustained an emotional burden, such as through them having to continually defend and justify their single status. As Suzy said:

[People ask], ‘Oh, why are you still single?’, I guess just implying, ‘what’s wrong with you?’. And I never really know how to answer that in a way that isn’t going to cause drama by me saying something really sassy back, or in a way that doesn’t make me feel or look real sad.

Although a growing number of women today are choosing to be defiantly single, the couple norm remains pervasive. And many single women – even if they are content in their singlehood – face a unique set of social pressures that are hard to shake off.

– ref. ‘I never really know how to answer that’: why do women still have to justify being single? – https://theconversation.com/i-never-really-know-how-to-answer-that-why-do-women-still-have-to-justify-being-single-279967

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/14/i-never-really-know-how-to-answer-that-why-do-women-still-have-to-justify-being-single-279967/

April 14, 2026

Drugs, cash, weapons located in routine traffic stop, Lower Hutt

Source: New Zealand Police

A man has been arrested after a routine traffic stop yielded drugs, cash, and weapons yesterday in Lower Hutt.

Wellington Police Dog Section Officer in Charge, Senior Sergeant Paul Fleck, says a Police dog handler unit and partner stopped a vehicle that was seen to be speeding, around 5pm on Waterloo Road.

“Officers quickly noticed a hammer that appeared out of place in the driver’s door that could be easily accessed and used as a weapon, which raised safety concerns,” he said.

Police conducted a search of the vehicle and located a second hammer under the passenger seat, a pair of knuckle dusters, and bags containing cocaine.

Both occupants of the vehicle were also searched, to which Police found a fanny-pack containing several thousand dollars in cash.

“The driver of the vehicle was observed by officers leaning over a nearby fence – Police checked the area and located two additional stacks of cash which had failed to be concealed in the shrubbery.”

Senior Sergeant Fleck says the find prompted some light-hearted references to a “money-tree”, but the offending itself was serious.

“Police arrested a man, and approximately 9g of cocaine and over $16,000 in cash was seized, along with the weapons and a mobile phone,” he says.

A 24-year-old man was arrested and appeared in Hutt Valley District Court today, he is due to reappear on 5 May, facing charges of possessing an offensive weapon and possession of cocaine for supply.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

MIL OSI

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/drugs-cash-weapons-located-in-routine-traffic-stop-lower-hutt/

April 14, 2026

New Zealand tourism continuing to rise

Source: New Zealand Government

The Government welcomes new data showing New Zealand’s international visitor numbers continue to rise, with particularly strong growth from people visiting from China over Chinese New Year.

Tourism and Hospitality Minister Louise Upston says Stats NZ’s latest monthly international travel data shows New Zealand tourism continues its strong positive recovery.

“Our tourism sector continues its strong growth, with over 408,000 overseas visitors choosing to visit New Zealand in February 2026, over 53,000 more than the same time a year ago.

“International tourism contributes to our Government’s plan to fix the basics and build the future and support economic growth, with businesses, jobs and communities across the country feeling the benefits of increasing visitor numbers,” Louise Upston says.

Annual figures show overseas visitor arrivals reached 3.58 million in the year to February 2026, an increase of 229,000 on the previous year. This continues to track towards pre‑COVID levels, now sitting at 92 per cent of December 2019 figures.

“It’s great to see continued growth from our largest visitor market, Australia, with 1.54 million arrivals in the year to February, up 123,000 from the year before.

“Changes that allow eligible visitors from China and the Pacific to travel to New Zealand from Australia with a New Zealand Electronic Travel Authority (NZeTA), rather than a visa, are also making a difference.

“Chinese visitor arrivals were up 41,700 (increase of 214 per cent) in February 2026 compared with the same month in 2025, as more Chinese visitors chose to take advantage of the NZeTA and experience New Zealand’s unique scenery and hospitality over Chinese New Year.”

Monthly data shows 53,700 more international visitors arrived in February 2026 compared with February 2025.

“This Government has backed our vital tourism and hospitality sector through initiatives including funding for promotion of New Zealand as a year-round destination and strengthening partnerships with key markets.

“As a country we are seeing the flow on growth and confidence in our tourism and hospitality sector as more visitors have chosen New Zealand as their next holiday destination.

“More international visitors mean more customers for our businesses and ultimately more jobs.

“The effects of the fuel crisis are yet to be seen but I will keep working with tourism operators on ensuring New Zealand continues to be seen as an attractive and safe destination to visit,” Louise Upston says.

MIL OSI

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/new-zealand-tourism-continuing-to-rise/

April 14, 2026

Auckland courier company to pay $50,000 for unjustified dismissal

Source: Radio New Zealand

123RF

A parcel courier company has been ordered to pay three former employees a total of $50,000 for unjustified dismissal, unjustified disadvantage and humiliation.

The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) delivered the ruling against Fast Horse Limited (trading as Fast Horse Express), based in the central Auckland suburb of Avondale, on Monday.

Ziyu Xiao worked full time for the business as a delivery driver for about six months from late 2023 before her employment ended following a verbal altercation with her manager, the ERA said in its ruling.

Drivers were expected to collect their parcels from the company’s warehouse on Rosebank Road, which is a busy road, according to the ruling.

Xiao was told to park her car on the other side of the road, but the driver’s manager took exception to her crossing a busy road while moving a cage of parcels to the vehicle, losing his temper and verbally abused her, it said.

Xiao was unhappy about her manager’s behaviour and filed a complaint with the company.

The very next day, Xiao found herself blocked from the company’s smartphone app that was used to assign work to drivers.

Xiao’s husband, Youtian Yang, who was also a delivery driver for the company, also found his access to the app blocked.

Yang was never given a reason by his employer about why he was denied access and believed this to be a retaliatory action by the company following Xiao’s complaint.

SUPPLIED

Another worker, Limei Liu, also worked as a delivery driver for the company from late 2023 to early 2024, working briefly as a warehouse role immediately afterwards.

Liu said her manager threatened to suspend her when she made suggestions to improve operational efficiency.

Liu also said she challenged the company’s practice of using work visa holders as drivers who were then paid in cash.

The practice took work away from resident visa holders such as herself who needed the work to support their own families, she said.

When she challenged this practice, she was also removed from the company’s WhatsApp group chat and offered no further work.

ERA member Peter Fuiava said the company had not engaged with the investigation since notifying the authority in May 2025 it would act for itself instead of being represented by counsel it had used earlier.

The company also failed to provide any written statements in reply as directed and did not attend an investigation meeting, he said.

“There being no evidence in reply from FHE (Fast Horse Express) to what the applicants have individually and collectively put before the authority, I have no difficulty finding that Ms Xiao and her husband were unjustifiably dismissed from their employment,” Fuiava said in his ruling.

“As for Ms Liu, by threatening her with suspension and ‘retraining’, FHE did not act as a fair and reasonable employer.

“The company had also dismissed Ms Liu unjustifiably when she challenged her employer about its workplace practices with respect to the use of accredited work visa holders who appear to have been paid in cash.”

Fuiava also took into consideration the length of time the employees took to find alternative work, as well as the detriment to Xiao and Yang’s marriage.

He ordered the company to pay $17,500 to Xiao comprising lost remuneration of $4200 and compensation for humiliation, loss of dignity and injury to feelings of $13,300.

The company was also ordered to pay Yang $15,000, comprising $5,651 for lost remuneration and $9,349 for compensation.

It also needed to pay Liu $17,500, comprising $2,724 for lost remuneration and compensation of $14,776 for unjustified disadvantage and dismissal.

The payments needed to be made no later than 11 May, Fuiava said.

– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/14/auckland-courier-company-to-pay-50000-for-unjustified-dismissal/

April 14, 2026

Corporate Update and Project Development Progress

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-NZ-AU)

Highlights

Surface miner mobilised to Daniel Plateau, with trial mining operations scheduled to commence this month
Updated financial cashflow modelling confirmed that current cash position plus the existing AFG debt financing facility fully supports the Company’s CAPEX requirements to first ore shipment
First production targeted for Q2 2026 and first ore shipment scheduled in Q3, 2026
First seven locomotives were shipped from China at the end of March and scheduled to arrive at Port of Douala in late Q2, 2026
Ongoing engagement with Camrail regarding a potential increase in the Company’s equity interest above the current 9.1%. Targeting completion of increase this quarter
Offtake discussions with multiple potential partners are progressing
Feasibility Study for the proposed alumina refinery is progressing as planned

PERTH, Australia, April 13, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Canyon Resources Limited (ASX: CAY) (“Canyon” or “the Company”) has released a corporate update, along with a progress report on the development of its Minim Martap Bauxite Project (“Minim Martap” or “the Project”), located in Cameroon.

Corporate Update

Chief Executive Officer, Peter Secker, has tendered his resignation from the Company for personal reasons. He will remain in his role over the coming months to lead Canyon through the critical transition to production at Minim Martap, ensuring continuity and momentum ahead of a successor being appointed. Mr Secker has also agreed to remain available for an additional period, if required, to assist with the executive recruitment process and ensure operations continue as scheduled.

The Board and management team extend their sincere appreciation to Mr Secker for his valuable contributions to Canyon during his tenure. They also acknowledge and thank him for his continued support as the Company advances its strategic transition toward becoming a globally significant bauxite producer.

Furthermore, Mark Hohnen has transitioned into a Non-Executive Chairman role and Non-Executive Director Scott Phegan, has informed the Board of his resignation, effective immediately, as he refocuses his priorities on his executive roles.

Mr Phegan was appointed Non-Executive Director in August 2022 and has been a key member of the Company’s leadership team throughout Canyon’s transition into a global bauxite producer. The Company thanks Mr Phegan for his contributions to the achievement of significant milestones during his tenure, as the Minim Martap Project progresses towards first production target for Q2, 2026.

Canyon Non-Executive Chairman Mark Hohnen commented: “Peter has been instrumental in the successful development of Minim Martap which is now on the cusp of becoming a tier-one bauxite operation, and we thank him for his invaluable contribution. We fully understand and respect Peter’s decision and have now commenced a global search for a senior executive with specific bauxite and alumina operations experience to move Minim Martap forward as it commences full production.

“Scott leaves with our best wishes for his ongoing success with his other ventures. We are sorry to see him depart, and we thank him for his contribution to Canyon. We understand the significant time and effort required for non-executive roles and respect his decision to focus on his executive positions.”

Development Update

At Minim Martap the surface miner, which was commissioned in February, has been mobilised to site at the Daniel Plateau, and will commence trial mining operations this month. First production at Minim Martap remains on schedule for mid Q2, 2026.

Upgrade works on the haul road connecting the Danielle Plateau to the Inland Rail Facility (“IRF”) are progressing as planned. The haul road remains on schedule to support the commencement of ore haulage from the mine to the IRF upon the commencement of production.

The first seven locomotives were shipped from China at the end of March and are expected to arrive at the Port of Douala in late Q2 2026, ahead of first shipment in Q3, 2026.

Image 1: Port of Douala

Image 2: Locomotives being prepared for shipment to Minim Martap (left China end of March)

Considering previous adjustments to the locomotive delivery schedule, the Company refined its logistics sequencing, with the maiden bauxite trial shipment scheduled for Q3, 2026, which allows for an extended commissioning and ramp-up phase towards full-scale bauxite shipments in Q4, 2026.

Discussions with Camrail relating to Canyon increasing its current stake from 9.1% to more than 20% are continuing. The increase in investment in Camrail would enable greater participation in the PQ2 upgrade, further strengthening and de-risking the Company’s mine-to-port logistics strategy. Canyon expects to increase its position in Camrail this quarter.

Image 3 and 4: Surface Miner Arriving on Site

Canyon is engaging with several potential offtake partners, with the Company aiming to finalise agreements following the completion of initial bauxite shipments, allowing Canyon to demonstrate the high grade, high purity of the Minim Martap ore reserve, which comprises of 51% alumina and approximately 2% silica.¹

The Feasibility Study for the proposed value-adding alumina refinery is progressing according to schedule and is anticipated to be completed by Q3 2026 for release to the market.

The Feasibility Study is assessing Canyon’s downstream strategy and supporting the primary objective of positioning the Company as an integrated participant in the global aluminium value chain. The Study leverages the cost benefits of operating in Cameroon and the Project’s low-silica, high-grade bauxite.

Recently, updated financial cashflow modelling has confirmed that the Company’s current cash position along with existing AFG Bank Cameroon (AFG) debt facility of US$140M ensures Canyon is fully funded for Stage 1 capital development costs as outlined in the DFS dated 1 September 2025 and up to first shipment of ore from Minim Martap.

The Board has resolved, subject to the completion of investigations into the relevant holders, for the Company issue one option for every two shares acquired by investors who participated in the Company’s Tranche 1 capital raising at $0.26 per share announced on 25 September 2025 and who remained as a shareholder on 9 March 2026. The options are proposed to have an exercise price of $0.255 per option, being a 50% premium to Canyon’s share price on 9 March 2026 and a 2-year term.

The Company will provide a further update and confirmation of the proposed option issue once it has completed its investigations, including who will be entitled to participate in and the terms of the options issue.

This announcement has been approved for release by Canyon’s Board of Directors.

About Canyon Resources

Canyon Resources is developing its flagship Minim Martap Bauxite Project in Cameroon, which contains over 1.1 billion tonnes of high-grade, low contaminant bauxite, with significant exploration upside. Minim Martap ranks among the world’s richest bauxite deposits, with an Ore Reserve of 144Mt at 51.2% Al₂O₃ and 1.7% SiO₂ and a JORC Mineral Resource Estimate of 1,102Mt at 45.3% Al₂O₃.

	Ore (DMT)	Alumina (Al₂O₃)		Silica (SiO₂)
Total Ore Reserves¹	144.0	51.2	%	1.7	%
Proved	133.3	51.2	%	1.7	%
Probable	10.7	51.8	%	1.7	%
Total Mineral Resources²	1,102	45.3	%	2.7	%
Measured	394	46.8	%	2.1	%
Indicated	502	44.7	%	2.9	%
Inferred	206	44.0	%	3.4	%
^{(1) Ore Reserves reported as per JORC Code} ^{(2) Mineral Resources reported as per JORC Code, at a cut-off grade of 35% Al2O3. Makan & Ngaoundal tenements are included}

Table 1: Ore Reserves and Mineral Resources – September 2025

Forward-looking statements

This announcement contains “forward-looking statements” and “forward-looking information”, such as statements and forecasts which include (without limitation) financial forecasts, production targets, industry and trend projections, statements about the feasibility of the Project and its financial outcomes (including pursuant to the DFS), future strategies, results and outlook of Canyon and the opportunities available to Canyon. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of words such as “plans”, “expects”, “is expected”, “is expecting”, “budget”, ‘outlook”, “scheduled”, “target”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates”, or “believes”, or variations (including negative variations) of such words and phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might”, or “will” be taken, occur or be achieved. Such information is based on assumptions and judgments of Canyon regarding future events and results. Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, targets, performance or achievements of Canyon to be materially different from any future results, targets, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements and information.

Forward-looking statements and information are not guarantees of future performance and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, sensitivities, contingencies, assumptions and other important factors, many of which are beyond the control of Canyon and its directors and management. Past performance is not a guide to future performance. Key risk factors (including as associated with the DFS) are detailed (non-exhaustively) in this announcement or in Canyon’s previous ASX announcements. These and other factors (such as risk factors that are currently unknown) could cause actual results, targets, performance or achievements anticipated (including in the DFS) to differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements and information.

Forward-looking statements and information (including Canyon’s belief that it has a reasonable basis to expect it will be able to fund the costs of the Project for its estimated life of mine) are (further to the above) based on the reasonable assumptions, estimates, analysis and opinions of Canyon made in light of its perception of trends, current conditions and expected developments, as well as other factors that Canyon believes to be relevant and reasonable in the circumstances at the date such statements are made, but which may prove to be incorrect. Although Canyon believes that the assumptions and expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements and information (including as described throughout this announcement) are reasonable, readers are cautioned that this is not exhaustive of all factors which may impact on the forward-looking statements and information. Canyon does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements or information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Investors should note that there is no certainty that the Project will be feasible and there can be no assurance of whether it will be developed, constructed and commence operations, whether the DFS results will be accurate, whether production targets will be achieved or whether Canyon will be able to raise funding when it is required (nor any certainty as to the form such capital raising may take, such as equity, debt, hybrid and/or other capital raising). It is also possible that such funding may only be available on terms that dilute or otherwise affect the value of Canyon’s shares. It is also possible that Canyon could pursue other ‘value realisation’ strategies such as sale, partial sale, or joint venture of the Project. Risk factors which are set out (non-exhaustively) in this announcement, or in Canyon’s previous ASX announcements, highlight key factors identified by Canyon which may cause actual results to differ from the DFS or may otherwise have material detrimental impacts on Canyon and its business.

Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves

This announcement contains estimates of the Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves estimated for the Project. This information in this announcement that relates to those Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves has been extracted from Canyon’s accompanying ASX announcement entitled “Definitive Feasibility Study Results and Reserves Upgrade Confirms Minim Martap as a Tier-One Bauxite Operation” dated 1 September 2025, a copy of which is available at www.asx.com.au. Canyon confirms that it is not aware of any new information or data that materially affects the information included in that announcement and, in relation to the estimates of Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves, confirms that all material assumptions and technical parameters underpinning the estimates in that announcement continue to apply and have not materially changed. The Competent Person for the Mineral Resources estimate in the announcement was Mr. Rodney Brown and the Competent Persons for the Ore Reserve estimate in the announcement was Mr. Donald Eld.

Production Targets and Financial Forecasts derived from the Production Targets

This announcement contains production targets for the Project, which are 100% underpinned by the Proved and Probable category Ore Reserves estimated at the Project pursuant to the JORC Code (2012). The estimated Ore Reserves underpinning the production targets have been prepared by a competent person in accordance with the JORC Code.

The Inferred category Mineral Resource estimates at the Project have not been included in the Ore Reserves or production targets and have not been included when determining the forecast financial information detailed in this announcement. There is a low level of geological confidence associated with Inferred Mineral Resources and there is no certainty that further exploration work will result in the determination of Indicated Mineral Resources (or Ore Reserves) in relation to that mineralisation.

The production targets for the Project and the financial forecasts disclosed in this announcement (including as derived from those production targets) are based on the material assumptions outlined in this announcement and are subject to various risk factors, such as those (non-exhaustively) outlined, or referred to, in this announcement and in previous ASX announcements. These include assumptions and risk factors about the availability of funding. While Canyon considers all the material assumptions to be based on reasonable grounds, there is no certainty that they will prove to be correct or that the Mineral Resource and Ore Reserve estimates are accurate or that the production targets or financial forecasts as indicated in this announcement will be achieved.

_________________________________
¹ Refer ASX announcement dated 1 September 2025 “Definitive Feasibility Study Results and Reserves Upgrade”

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/287ff232-42ed-4560-a448-78f22ea6270f
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/89cc41ad-b0df-406c-8e1f-0c76cf4db4cd
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/7b406278-3494-4979-a83d-941ba9879ab4
https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/60db6cfc-033e-4c60-9096-3d5c53caf5da

– Published by The MIL Network

LiveNews: https://feedcreatorngin2.fifthestate.nz/2026/04/14/corporate-update-and-project-development-progress/

April 14, 2026

NZ-AU: Corporate Update and Project Development Progress

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-NZ-AU)

Highlights

Surface miner mobilised to Daniel Plateau, with trial mining operations scheduled to commence this month
Updated financial cashflow modelling confirmed that current cash position plus the existing AFG debt financing facility fully supports the Company’s CAPEX requirements to first ore shipment
First production targeted for Q2 2026 and first ore shipment scheduled in Q3, 2026
First seven locomotives were shipped from China at the end of March and scheduled to arrive at Port of Douala in late Q2, 2026
Ongoing engagement with Camrail regarding a potential increase in the Company’s equity interest above the current 9.1%. Targeting completion of increase this quarter
Offtake discussions with multiple potential partners are progressing
Feasibility Study for the proposed alumina refinery is progressing as planned

Corporate Update

Development Update

The first seven locomotives were shipped from China at the end of March and are expected to arrive at the Port of Douala in late Q2 2026, ahead of first shipment in Q3, 2026.

Image 1: Port of Douala

Image 2: Locomotives being prepared for shipment to Minim Martap (left China end of March)

Image 3 and 4: Surface Miner Arriving on Site

The Feasibility Study for the proposed value-adding alumina refinery is progressing according to schedule and is anticipated to be completed by Q3 2026 for release to the market.

This announcement has been approved for release by Canyon’s Board of Directors.

About Canyon Resources

	Ore (DMT)	Alumina (Al₂O₃)		Silica (SiO₂)
Total Ore Reserves¹	144.0	51.2	%	1.7	%
Proved	133.3	51.2	%	1.7	%
Probable	10.7	51.8	%	1.7	%
Total Mineral Resources²	1,102	45.3	%	2.7	%
Measured	394	46.8	%	2.1	%
Indicated	502	44.7	%	2.9	%
Inferred	206	44.0	%	3.4	%
^{(1) Ore Reserves reported as per JORC Code} ^{(2) Mineral Resources reported as per JORC Code, at a cut-off grade of 35% Al2O3. Makan & Ngaoundal tenements are included}

Table 1: Ore Reserves and Mineral Resources – September 2025

Forward-looking statements

Mineral Resources and Ore Reserves

Production Targets and Financial Forecasts derived from the Production Targets

_________________________________
¹ Refer ASX announcement dated 1 September 2025 “Definitive Feasibility Study Results and Reserves Upgrade”

– Published by The MIL Network

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/nz-au-corporate-update-and-project-development-progress/

April 14, 2026

ISCA and LawSoc Team Up to Help Professional Services Firms Expand Regionally and Offer More Value

Source: Media Outreach

SINGAPORE – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 April 2026 – The Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) and the Law Society of Singapore (LawSoc) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work more closely together, as more businesses expand across the region and face more complex issues.

What clients need from professional services firms is changing. It is no longer just about meeting compliance requirements. Companies now require coordinated advice across legal, financial and governance areas to support growth, manage risk and execute transactions with confidence. As more work spans multiple jurisdictions, clients are also looking for integrated teams that can support cross border needs seamlessly. This partnership brings the legal and accountancy professions together to meet that demand and create new opportunities for members.

A key focus of the collaboration is building skills that match how professionals learn and work today. ISCA and LawSoc will jointly develop a digital learning platform that allows lawyers to learn anytime, anywhere, through on demand modules that are practical and relevant to daily work. The platform is the first of its kind that will also support cross learning, enabling lawyers to build knowledge in accounting, finance and governance, while accountants strengthen their understanding of legal concepts relevant to risk, transactions and advisory work.

To help more legal professionals benefit from the learning platform, ISCA and LawSoc are working with NTUC LearningHub to enable funding options for eligible legal professionals. Continuing Professional Development (CPD) training courses are also expected to be made available through NTUC LearningHub’s Learning eXperience Platform (LXP) later in the year, with options such as SkillsFuture Credit and the Union Training Assistance Programme (UTAP) funding to help keep training affordable and accessible. This will enable more professionals to upskill more quickly and strengthen capabilities across the profession.

The partnership will also strengthen Singapore’s position as a trusted base for professional services work in the region. Amid an increasingly complex geopolitical and economic landscape, Singapore continues to stand out as a stable and resilient hub for global business. ISCA and LawSoc will advance discussions on setting up a Professional Services Centre in Singapore. The Centre is intended to help two groups. First, it will support investors and companies who want to set up or expand in Singapore. Second, it will support Singapore based companies that want to expand overseas. By connecting businesses to coordinated legal and accountancy expertise, the Centre will help companies deal with cross border requirements, governance expectations, and expansion decisions. This builds on earlier Professional Services Centre efforts in Nanjing, Hongqiao and Ho Chi Minh City.

Mr Teo Ser Luck, President of ISCA, said: “This is a significant partnership for both organisations. Together, we are establishing a Professional Services Centre that connects businesses with the legal and accounting expertise they need, helping them close deals with confidence and manage the risks that come with operating across borders. It is about building real capability, strengthening Singapore’s professional services ecosystem, and giving our professional services firms and businesses, including SMEs, the support they need to pursue opportunities together with confidence.”

Professor Tan Cheng Han, SC, President of the Law Society of Singapore, said: “Clients increasingly face issues that sit across law, finance and governance. Good advice depends on closer teamwork between lawyers and accountants. This partnership supports our members by strengthening training, expanding cross learning, and advancing initiatives such as a Professional Services Centre in Singapore to help firms compete and grow in the region.”

Mr Joe Loy, Assistant Chief Executive and Managing Director of Digital Business, NTUC LearningHub, said: “CPD is essential in ensuring lawyers keep their skills current as practice areas, regulations and client expectations continue to evolve. At NTUC LearningHub, our focus is on making CPD training practical, accessible and affordable, enabling lawyers to fulfil their professional requirements while building relevant capabilities. By working with industry partners such as ISCA and LawSoc, we aim to lower barriers to training and help more lawyers stay competent, compliant and ready for the demands of their profession.”

Ms Junie Fo, Vice President & Head, Professional Services, Singapore Economic Development Board, said: “Singapore is a trusted business hub where professional services firms support global and local businesses in navigating complex global dynamics. The partnership between ISCA and LawSoc strengthens Singapore’s professional services offerings through deeper cross-sector sharing, while helping our accounting and legal talent develop emerging skillsets and enhance capabilities to support businesses in capturing new opportunities across the growing region. EDB looks forward to working with both organisations as we continue to grow Singapore’s Professional Services sector.”

Hashtag: #ISCA #DifferenceMakers #Accounting #Accountancy #CharteredAccountants #ChooseAccountancy #MOUSigning

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/isca-and-lawsoc-team-up-to-help-professional-services-firms-expand-regionally-and-offer-more-value/

April 14, 2026

Meet kungaka – ‘the hidden one’. This ancient lizard could be the rarest reptile in Australia

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Warlpa Thompson, Wiimpatja Aboriginal Owner of Mutawintji National Park, Indigenous Knowledge

Hidden among the red sandstone escarpments of Mutawintji National Park in western New South Wales lives a rare lizard, long isolated in this arid landscape.

Known to Wiimpatja Aboriginal Owners as kungaka – “the hidden one” – we have now scientifically described it as a new species: Liopholis mutawintji.

For decades, this little lizard was thought to be an isolated population of a widespread skink. However, through a research collaboration between Wiimpatja and scientists we have confirmed it as a distinct species found nowhere else on Earth.

We have been monitoring them for 25 years. We believe there may be only be up to 20 individual kungaka remaining. It may be one of Australia’s rarest reptiles.

A kungaka peeks out from underneath a rock. Tom Parkin, CC BY-ND

How we identified this new species

The kungaka was previously thought to be a highly isolated population of White’s skink (Liopholis whitii), a widespread species that lives in rocky habitats across south-eastern Australia.

But through analysing its genetics, and variations in body shape, we confirmed this skink is actually three distinct species. Two of these, the southern White’s skink (Liopholis whitii) and northern White’s skink (Liopholis compressicauda) occur across large areas of south-east Australia. The third – the kungaka – is restricted to Mutawintji National Park, about 500km from its closest relatives.

The kungaka represents an ancient lineage that likely originated during earlier, wetter periods in Australia’s history. As the continent dried, this skink persisted in humid rocky refuges. Today, it survives in a tiny, isolated pocket of sheltered gorge in Mutawintji, surrounded by a hot and dry expanse of saltbush and stony plains.

Wiimpatja have worked alongside ecologists and the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service to monitor the kungaka population since 2000, with surveys intensifying since 2019. Over that time, the outlook has become increasingly concerning. Fewer than 20 individuals have been counted since surveys in 2024, using pattern recognition methods from photographs. And there has been a decline in its range, the number of skinks observed and the habitat where it lives.

Goats, cats and foxes

One of the most significant threats to the kungaka is feral goats. These occur in large numbers in the region and damage the environment by overgrazing vegetation and trampling fragile rocky areas.

This damages the rocks kungaka rely on for shelter, and exposes them to predators and extreme temperatures. Goats are also a significant threat to Mutawintji’s endangered Wangarru, or yellow-footed rock-wallaby, as they compete for the same food and shelter. However, conservation work for Wangarru has been a major success story, with the population growing over the past decade.

Other threats are compounding the problem for the kungaka. Introduced predators such as cats and foxes may prey on them, while climate change is intensifying heat and drought across the region. The 2017–19 drought was the hottest and driest on record for far western NSW. For a species with such a small population, these pressures may be overwhelming.

A feral goat in Mutawintji National Park. They overgraze vegetation and trample fragile rocky areas. Tom Parkin, CC BY-ND

Kungaka as family

From Warlpa Thompson: For Wiimpatja, the kungaka is inseparable from people, country and culture. Every animal and every plant have people attached to them. There would have been people whose meat, their blood, their family is the kungaka. And these people are now gone. But the lizards aren’t.

In some places the animal is gone out of the landscape, but the people are still there. Like the bilby mob that live in Wilcannia, or the dingo mob from Mutawintji. With the kungaka, we’ve got the reverse. The people are gone but the lizards are still here.

Our old people had to fight for the right to get their country back. Now we’ve got it, we’re looking at how do we bring things back. How do we bring culture back? How do we bring our animals back?

The Wangurru, or yellow-footed rock wallaby, in Mutawintji National Park. Conservation work for Wangarru has been a success story, with the population growing over the past decade. Tom Parkin, CC BY-ND

The numbers of Wangurru have boomed in the last ten years. Hopefully we can do the same with the kungaka. A big part of that is making sure that our young people are involved so they know what it means to look after country, and the plants and animals from our country.

It’s important our kids don’t just get the cultural knowledge from us, but they get the scientific knowledge and understanding, so they know everything that it is to talk for that animal, not just balanced with one side or the other.

A group on the lookout for kungaka. Front: Keanu Garni Bates (left) and Ray Hunte-Mckeller. Back: Gerry Swan (left) and Lyndy Marshall. Tom Parkin, CC BY-ND

The future of the kungaka

There is a shared responsibility to protect and conserve the kungaka. We need to control goats, cats and foxes, search for additional populations and monitor them long-term. Given the kungaka’s extremely small population size, actions such as captive breeding may be required.

Scientific description of the kungaka is just the first step. If fewer than 20 individuals remain, it stands on the brink of extinction. The survival of this unique lizard will depend on sustained, long-term collaborative partnerships.

From Warlpa Thompson: Whatever we do needs to be done on Country, and led by Wiimpatja. That knowledge has to be driven by us but we need help to look after this lizard. It’s in such a bad position that we’re going to need everyone working together, in a culturally grounded way.

Acknowledgements: scientific description and conservation of the kungaka has been a truly collaborative effort, made possible through the dedication and knowledge of many individuals. We acknowledge the important work and contributions of Gerry Swan, Lyndy Marshall, Keanu Garni Bates, Ray Hunter-McKeller, Nhalpa Thompson and Dane Trembath, whose involvement have been integral to this research and its outcomes.

– ref. Meet kungaka – ‘the hidden one’. This ancient lizard could be the rarest reptile in Australia – https://theconversation.com/meet-kungaka-the-hidden-one-this-ancient-lizard-could-be-the-rarest-reptile-in-australia-279561

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/14/meet-kungaka-the-hidden-one-this-ancient-lizard-could-be-the-rarest-reptile-in-australia-279561/

April 14, 2026

ER Report: A Roundup of Significant Articles on EveningReport.nz for April 14, 2026

ER Report: Here is a summary of significant articles published on EveningReport.nz on April 14, 2026.

Pope Leo’s resolute response to Trump attack reveals a man of God, not politics
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darius von Guttner Sporzynski, Professor of History, Australian Catholic University When Pope Leo XIV condemned threats to destroy Iranian civilisation as “truly unacceptable” in April 2026, the backlash was immediate. US President Donald Trump unleashed a tirade against the pope on social media, accusing him of being

Victoria has made public transport free – NSW hasn’t. Has there been any difference in uptake?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Milad Haghani, Associate Professor and Principal Fellow in Urban Risk and Resilience, The University of Melbourne The recent military conflict in the Middle East triggered a sharp increase in petrol prices throughout March, with the federal government’s subsequent excise cut providing only partial relief. To address the

Why Trump’s naval blockade to ‘strangle’ Iran is a joke
COMMENTARY: By Lim Tean This US naval blockade is meant to strangle the Iranian economy by preventing it from exporting oil — the economic lifeline of Iran. It will do nothing of the sort. Please study the infographics below. Before the war started, Iran was furiously loading tankers with oil at 3 times the normal

It’s right under your nose – why some people can’t find things in plain sight
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Michelle Spear, Professor of Anatomy, University of Bristol Many households will recognise this familiar exchange. One person insists an object simply isn’t there: impossible to find despite what they describe as a thorough and highly competent search. Another walks in, glances briefly at the same spot and

An extinct echidna the size of a small child once roamed Victoria, new fossil shows
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Tim Ziegler, Collection Manager, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Museums Victoria Research Institute Those who venture into Foul Air Cave, below Buchan township in eastern Victoria, quickly realise how it got its ominous name. In its deepest chambers, bacteria consume oxygen and excrete organic gases to produce a toxic stench.

Strait of Hormuz blockade: the complex regional realities the US ignores at its peril
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Leon Goldsmith, Honorary Senior Lecturer in Middle East and Comparative Politics, University of Otago After the breakdown of ceasefire talks between the United States and Iran, President Donald Trump has now ordered a blockade of the pivotal Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf. It’s just the

Iran threatens retaliation over Gulf ‘piracy’ in Trump’s naval blockade
Democracy Now! AMY GOODMAN: Ship traffic has halted again in the Strait of Hormuz after President Trump ordered the US military to begin a naval blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas starting on Monday. Iran denounced Trump’s move as an illegal act amounting to “piracy”. Iran has threatened to strike Gulf ports in

Google promotes ‘teacher approved’ apps for kids. Here’s what parents should know
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Chris Zomer, Research Fellow at the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child, Deakin University As school holidays continue around Australia, many parents are looking for educational ways to keep their children entertained. If you own an Android device and have young children, you may find

Is Shaddap You Face Australia’s best ever novelty song, or a poor ethnic stereotype?
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Jess Carniel, Associate Professor in Humanities, University of Southern Queensland American Australian performer Joe Dolce’s 1980 one-hit wonder Shaddap You Face was recently inducted into the National Film and Sound Archive’s Sounds of Australia collection, which also named it Australia’s best novelty song. For its fans, the

NZ may be winning the fight against the invasive yellow-legged hornet – but a crucial phase lies ahead
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Phil Lester, Professor of Ecology and Entomology, Te Herenga Waka — Victoria University of Wellington Six months on from the discovery of a yellow-legged hornet queen in Auckland there are encouraging signs New Zealand’s eradication effort is gaining ground. Teams that have been searching intensively for the

Global Sumud Flotilla heads from Barcelona to break Gaza blockade
Asia Pacific Report A group of 39 boats known as the Global Sumud Flotilla has set sail from Barcelona to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, with organisers saying more vessels are expected to join along the route — making this their largest mission so far, reports Al Jazeera. Israeli security forces illegally intercepted and detained

Roblox is boosting safety features for young people. It’s a step in the right direction
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Lisa M. Given, Professor of Information Sciences & Director, Social Change Enabling Impact Platform, RMIT University Roblox has announced significant changes to its gaming platform to enhance safety for children under 16. The announcement comes just days after a man in the United Kingdom was jailed for

French Polynesia’s legislature shows new shape, more divisions
By Patrick Decloitre, RNZ Pacific correspondent French Pacific desk The Territorial Assembly of French Polynesia has for the first time shown a new configuration during its first administrative sitting on Friday, following a mass resignation of a group of young elected members of the ruling Tavini Huiraatira. This follows the mass resignation of a group

Claude Mythos and Project Glasswing: why an AI superhacker has the tech world on alert
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Stan Karanasios, Professor in Information Systems, The University of Queensland New, more powerful artificial intelligence (AI) models are announced pretty regularly these days: the latest version of ChatGPT or Claude or Gemini always has new features and new capabilities that its makers are eager for customers to

What I would do if I was Mojtaba Khamenei – a Kenyan perspective
COMMENTARY: By Bonface Chisutia On the night of February 28, the Israel-US airstrike killed his father, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, his wife, his brother-in-law and sister-in-law. According to a recent report from Reuters, Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Khamenei suffered life threatening injuries and apparently lost his leg and has a disfigured face. The report said

Trump’s Strait of Hormuz blockade risks new costs for the global economy
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sanjoy Paul, Associate Professor in Operations and Supply Chain Management, UTS Business School, University of Technology Sydney For weeks now, the world economy has been on tenterhooks, waiting for one outcome: reopening the Strait of Hormuz. In response to war with Israel and the United States, Iran

As Artemis II is celebrated, the world faces hard questions about US leadership in space
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Art Cotterell, Postdoctoral Fellow, Faculty of Law & Justice, UNSW Sydney The successful Artemis II trip around the Moon was a historic achievement – the first crewed lunar fly-by in more than 50 years, and the greatest distance yet travelled by humans from our “pale blue dot”.

What Viktor Orbán’s election loss means for Putin, Trump and the rise of right-wing populism
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Matthew Sussex, Associate Professor (Adj), Griffith Asia Institute; and Fellow, Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Australian National University Hungary’s most consequential election in decades has just delivered an important victory for democracy and accountability. For Hungarians, opposition leader Péter Magyar’s emphatic defeat of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán

Do you taste words or hear colours? Here’s the neuroscience behind synaesthesia
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Sophie Smit, Postdoctoral Research Associate in Cognitive Neuroscience‬, University of Sydney Have you ever tasted a word, or seen colours while listening to music? If you have, you may be among the 1% to 4% of people who have a fascinating trait known as synaesthesia. Synaesthesia is

ABC’s Caper Crew delivers heists and heart – a bright spot in a struggling kids’ TV sector
Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Alexa Scarlata, Lecturer, Digital Communication, RMIT University Australian kids’ TV shows are now few and far between. During the pandemic, the Australian government scrapped decades-old quotas for minimum hours of children’s content to try and bail out flailing commercial television networks. They were never reinstated. In 2023,

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/14/er-report-a-roundup-of-significant-articles-on-eveningreport-nz-for-april-14-2026/

April 14, 2026

Police seek information after ambulance tyres slashed

Source: New Zealand Police

Counties Manukau Police are seeking information into two incidents where ambulances were targeted and damaged.

Police are investigating the wilful damage reports at two Hato Hone St John bases in Manukau and Ōtāhuhu.

A new appeal is being issued after the latest incident was reported at the Ōtāhuhu Station, on Atkinson Avenue, on 9 April.

It follows the first incident at the Manukau Station on 28 February.

Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Hayward, Counties Manukau West Area Investigations Manager, says, “in both events, an offender has illegally gained access to the stations’ compounds before slashing tyres of ambulances parked there.”

Six ambulances have had tyres slashed in total.

“We are keeping an open mind as to whether these two events are linked,” he says.

“This sort of offending is extremely reckless, given the ambulances were rendered inoperable.

“It’s thoughtless and risks the lives of anyone who required urgent medical care during the period that ambulances were out of action.”

The risks became clear in Manukau, when Hato Hone St John staff first noticed the damage when trying to respond to a priority job.

Hato Hone St John Acting Auckland District Operations Manager, Angela Jardine, says damaging ambulances is a serious and unacceptable act that directly affects the community.

“Ambulances are a critical part of the emergency response system.

“When vehicles are taken out of service, it has the potential to delay care for patients who need urgent medical help.

“Our people come to work to care for others, and incidents like this are incredibly frustrating.

“We are working closely with Police and urge anyone with information to please come forward,” she says.

Police are now seeking any information that might help identify the person, or persons, responsible for both wilful damage incidents.

– Manukau Station: Offending has occurred overnight between 28 February and 1 March

– Ōtāhuhu Station: Offending has occurred overnight between 8 and 9 April

Detective Senior Sergeant Hayward is calling on those with information to come forward.

“There will be people in the community that know who is responsible and they need to do the right thing and come forward.”

Anyone with information can update Police online now at 105.police.govt.nz, or call 105, using the reference number 260409/0402.

Information can also be reported anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS.

Jarred Williamson/NZ Police

MIL OSI

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/police-seek-information-after-ambulance-tyres-slashed/

April 14, 2026

Māori sisters lead engineering project to protect mana of pou

Source: Radio New Zealand

Phoenix Manukau, Tiaho Wihongi-Minhinnick, Ngarui Manukau at He Kura Nā Rāta, He Kura Pūkaha Engineering NZ event September 2025 Supplied

Māori sisters are combining engineering and tikanga in a landmark project to ensure the mana of traditional pou is upheld.

Ngāpuhi and Waikato sisters Ngarui Manukau and Tiaho Wihongi-Minhinnick have been working on a design solution for Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, which plans to install four 10-metre-tall tōtara pou at a papakāinga in Ōrākei, Tāmaki Makaurau/Auckland.

The project, supported by MĀPIHI, the Māori and Pacific Housing Research Centre at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland, focuses on how to secure the 1.2 tonne carvings in the ground without compromising their cultural significance.

Wihongi-Minhinnick, 21, was chosen to lead the kaupapa while completing her Bachelor of Engineering.

“These are not just posts, they have stories, histories and mana in and of themselves,” Wihongi-Minhinnick said.

Her older sister, Ngarui Manukau, was called up to help with the kaupapa, after years of experience working in the industry. She told RNZ Ngāti Whātua wanted a solution that protected the integrity of the pou from the outset.

“They wanted something that actually enhanced the mana of the pou and didn’t distract or take away from it,” she said.

“They’ve seen a lot of instances where that has happened.”

Traditional engineering approaches often prioritise function over form, but Manukau said that mindset did not align with the kaupapa of the project.

“It’s not just if it works, that’s the bare minimum.”

Instead, the sisters have been working to develop a design that balances structural strength with cultural considerations.

The pou, which will stand 10 metres tall and measure about 600 millimetres in diameter, present significant engineering challenges. While concrete is still required, the sisters have explored ways to conceal structural elements and incorporate natural materials such as stone.

Manukau said there was little existing research in Aotearoa on how to approach this kind of work.

“There’s a big gap for this type of foundation design,” she said.

“We had to look at examples overseas, like Native American totem poles, because there wasn’t anything here.”

The project is still in its early stages, with the research phase completed and findings yet to be presented to Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei. The pou have not yet been carved, allowing the engineering design to be integrated into the process from the beginning.

Manukau said this approach should become standard practice.

“In other cases, it’s often an afterthought. This is the time where you want to make these decisions.

Ngarui Manukau working on Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū-Tararua Highway. Supplied / Ngarui Manukau

Beyond the technical challenge, the project highlights a broader issue, Manukau said, the lack of Māori, particularly wāhine Māori, in engineering.

Manukau, who graduated with a Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) from the University of Auckland in 2021, said she did not grow up knowing what an engineer was.

“I didn’t even know engineering existed,” she said.

“That door only opened from a random conversation with a careers advisor.”

Since then, her two younger sisters have followed in her footsteps. Phoenix Manukau graduated in recent years, while Wihongi-Minhinnick has just completed her degree and will graduate soon.

“There’s three of us now,” Manukau said.

“That sort of blows my mind sometimes.”

The sisters are the only engineers in their whānau.

“It’s a brand new world to us,” she said.

“It’s rare to have a Māori female engineer, and even rarer to have three Māori engineer sisters together in a family.

“The challenge was that this was a whole, brand new world to us. The journey to get there was rough,” Manukau said.

Their presence in the field is still rare. Manukau said the number of Māori students in her university lectures was small, and even fewer were women.

“The amount of Māori in that room was tiny,” she said.

“When you get into the workforce, it’s even less – especially for Māori women.”

The three sisters as tamariki. Ngarui Manukau (age 6), Phoenix Manukau (age 3), Tiaho Wihongi-Minhinnick (1) Supplied

She said a lack of visibility was a key barrier.

“If you don’t even know it exists, you can’t aim for it.”

Manukau said that people might assume Māori have an easier time getting a degree, because of targeted entry schemes, but her and her sisters say the opposite is true.

“The reality is that as Māori and as women we have to work at least twice as hard to prove ourselves,” she said.

“And just when you think that it can’t be more isolating than that experience, you’re in the workforce … and it’s even worse,”

“At my last company I was the only Māori engineer … Phoenix and Tiaho share similar experiences, as well as others I know.”

Manukau said when working on large infrastructure projects, people often assumed she worked in the office.

“If a man was with me, they automatically assumed he was the engineer.

“Imagine their surprise when I introduced myself.”

Ngarui pictured alongside her māmā Celia Taylor at her graduation in 2021. Supplied / Ngarui Manukau

Manukau said increasing Māori representation in engineering was critical to ensuring projects like the pou installation are approached in culturally appropriate ways.

“There’s a very one-dimensional way of thinking sometimes – as long as it works, that’s it,” she said.

“But that’s not the way we should be thinking about it.”

She said Māori perspectives were essential in projects involving taonga, where cultural meaning and whakapapa must be considered alongside technical requirements.

Manukau hopes the work will not only benefit Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei, but also provide a foundation for others.

“I hope it’s a starting point for things to be built on,” she said.

“There is a different way to design things, and it should be normalised.”

She also hopes it encourages more Māori, particularly rangatahi, to consider engineering as a career.

“There are so many opportunities that come with it,” she said.

“If I can do it, you definitely can.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/14/maori-sisters-lead-engineering-project-to-protect-mana-of-pou/

April 14, 2026

Vietnam-China Agricultural Cooperation in a New Era: From Strategic Vision to a Sustainable and Prosperous Supply Chain

Source: Media Outreach

BEIJING, CHINA – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 April 2026 – At the invitation of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam To Lam will lead a high-level Vietnamese delegation on a state visit to China from April 14 to 17, 2026.

This constitutes a diplomatic event of paramount significance, aimed at concretizing high-level common understandings and further enriching the substance of the Vietnam-China Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership. Within this framework, agricultural cooperation is identified as a crucial pillar, contributing to sustainable development and delivering tangible benefits to the peoples of both nations.

Strategic Imprint and a Visionary Roadmap for Agricultural Collaboration

The State Visit unfolds against the backdrop of the finest phase of development in relations between the two Parties and two countries. It leaves a profound strategic imprint and bolsters high-level political trust, an essential prerequisite for substantive cooperation across all sectors.

Within the guiding framework of building a “China-Vietnam Community with a Shared Future of Strategic Significance,” agricultural collaboration is prioritized as a linchpin, playing a pivotal role in the deep economic integration of the two economies and the safeguarding of national food security.

This vision not only strives for balanced trade and sustainable regional development but also embodies the spirit of being “both comrades and brothers.” It serves as a solid foundation for translating practical commitments into reality and generating robust momentum for the agricultural value chain in this new era of development.

Agriculture: A Dynamic Pillar of Bilateral Trade

The strategic vision and shared perceptions of the two countries’ top leaders generate powerful momentum for promoting trade in agricultural, forestry, and fishery products, thereby highlighting the complementarity and comparative advantages of the two economies. Leveraging its abundant tropical agricultural resources, Vietnam is increasingly effective in meeting the diverse and high-quality demands of the Chinese market.
Currently, China remains Vietnam’s largest export market for agro-forestry-fishery products and a leading import partner. Reciprocally, Vietnam maintains its position as China’s largest trading partner within ASEAN. These outcomes clearly demonstrate the efficacy of trade promotion policies and the concerted efforts of both sides to facilitate customs clearance and market connectivity.

Impressive growth is substantiated by concrete figures: in 2024, bilateral trade in agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products reached US$17.8 billion (a 14.6% increase year-on-year); in 2025, total trade surged to US$20.94 billion (a 17.6% increase), with Vietnam’s exports to China reaching US$15.97 billion, a remarkable 41.1% jump compared to 2024.

These figures not only affirm the growing importance of Vietnamese agricultural products in the Chinese market but also indicate substantial potential to be harnessed through future cooperation. This provides a solid empirical foundation for both sides to continue fostering in-depth collaboration, striving to build a transparent, safe, and sustainable agricultural supply chain that better addresses the needs and expectations of consumers in both countries.

Realizing Commitments and Expanding Market Access

In implementing the common understandings reached by the high-ranking leaders of the two Parties and States, Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment and relevant Chinese agencies have coordinated closely to refine the legal framework, dismantle technical barriers, and broaden market access.

To date, the two sides have signed 33 Agreements and Protocols, establishing an increasingly synchronized and favorable legal corridor for the trade of agricultural, forestry, and aquatic products.

Consequently, efforts to expand the portfolio of exportable agricultural commodities have yielded significant positive results. Vietnam has standardized technical procedures for 15 fruit and vegetable export items, nine of which are key staples managed under Protocols. Notably, an additional five new Protocols were concluded in 2025 alone.

In the fisheries sector, China has licensed hundreds of Vietnamese establishments to participate in exports, contributing to an expansion in both scale and product diversity.

Currently, both sides are actively advancing negotiations to open markets for numerous promising products. Concurrently, trade and investment promotion activities during the visit are expected to play a vital role in transforming high-level commitments into concrete outcomes, steering agricultural trade toward stable, sustainable, and efficient development.

Standardizing Production Processes to Align with International Benchmarks

To meet the increasingly stringent quarantine and food safety requirements of the Chinese market and other international destinations, Vietnam’s agricultural sector is accelerating production restructuring in tandem with quality standardization. This represents a strategic pivot, shifting the development paradigm from a focus on “quantity” to one prioritizing “quality and value.”

Vietnam’s Ministry of Agriculture and Environment is concentrating efforts on establishing and strictly managing a system of planting area codes and packaging facility codes to ensure transparent traceability. Simultaneously, full compliance with food safety regulations, particularly Orders 248 and 249 of the General Administration of Customs of China, has become a mandatory requirement for exporting enterprises.

These endeavors not only help sustain and expand access to the Chinese market but also lay the groundwork for Vietnamese agricultural products to integrate more deeply into global value chains.

Strengthening Investment and Forging a Modern Agricultural Supply Chain in Vietnam

Attracting investment, particularly Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), is emerging as a key priority in Vietnam-China agricultural cooperation. Vietnam is steadily enhancing its transparent and open investment climate, offering a host of competitive advantages: (i) Locational and Raw Material Advantages: Abundant and stable agricultural inputs, coupled with an increasingly efficient logistics system, exemplified by the “smart border gate” model, optimize transit times and costs; (ii) Attractive Incentive Policies: Projects in high-tech agriculture, deep processing, and green agriculture benefit from preferential corporate income tax rates and favorable land policies; (iii) Gateway to Global Markets: With a network of over 16 Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), Vietnam stands as a strategic investment destination, enabling Chinese enterprises to capitalize on opportunities to expand exports to major markets under preferential terms. Notably, investment cooperation in cold chain logistics infrastructure and post-harvest preservation technology is anticipated to be a critical factor in reducing losses, enhancing value addition, and bolstering the competitiveness of agricultural products from both nations.

The State Visit of Vietnam’s General Secretary and President To Lam to China is set to generate significant political momentum, propelling bilateral cooperation into a new phase of development. With strategic consensus from the highest levels of leadership and the active engagement of regulatory agencies and the business community, a modern and sustainable Vietnam-China agricultural supply chain is gradually taking shape, promising to elevate value addition, spur economic growth, and contribute to the overall stability and prosperity of the region.

Hashtag: #MAE

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/vietnam-china-agricultural-cooperation-in-a-new-era-from-strategic-vision-to-a-sustainable-and-prosperous-supply-chain/

April 14, 2026

Timetable tested as Auckland’s City Rail Link moves closer

Source: Radio New Zealand

It’s the morning peak at one of Auckland’s newest train stations.

The rumble of the tracks, the hiss of the brakes, and the doors slide open … but instead of suits and briefcases, it’s clipboards and high-vis.

This week, staff are putting the near-completed City Rail Link to the test, running dozens of mostly-empty trains to simulate the daily timetable.

Martin Kearney, the chief executive of Auckland One Rail, said the tests were improving day by day.

“Yesterday, I think the start-up was slower than it has been today. So today the start-up has performed really well. We’ve made sure that our train managers have got better timings with the dwell times, and we’re just doing tweaking,” he said.

But with so many eyes on the $5.5 billion project, he admitted he was nervous.

RNZ / Yiting Lin

“Lots of anxiety. Look, this is New Zealand’s largest infrastructure project, of course I’ve got anxiety about it,” he said.

“I’m happy how the testing’s going so far today, and you’re only as good as you last day, so I’m happy with today.”

Te Waihorotiu is one of four stations on the City Rail Link, alongside the brand new Karanga-a-Hape station and the significantly redeveloped Mount Eden and Britomart stations, now named Maungawhau and Waitematā respectively.

All except Mount Eden were underground, and Auckland Transport’s rail services manager, Mark Lambert, said that had been a unique challenge.

“It’s a whole different ballgame for Auckland. We don’t have underground stations at the moment, so how do you make people feel safe, secure? How do you operate things like tunnel ventilation systems? You’ve got whole different mechanisms, different equipment to manage, to operate, to maintain,” he said.

Martin Kearney, CEO of Auckland One Rail, Mark Lambert, general manager of rail services for AT, and Bevan Assink, City Rail Link programme director at KiwiRail. RNZ / Yiting Lin

Though the project had been built in Auckland’s central suburbs, KiwiRail’s Bevan Assink said those living out west would see the biggest benefits.

“West Auckland, currently, when you ride the train, has to go all the way into Newmarket, through Parnell to get into Britomart. So it’s got a really long journey,” he said.

“Whereas now, you’ll be able to come directly from the west and everything, and come straight into Maungawhau station, then into Karanga-a-Hape, down through to Te Waihorotiu and Britomart.”

He hoped the new stations would be as transformative to Auckland as the Britomart station had been when it opened in 2003.

“If you go back in the history of the metro, back to 2003, the metro was nearly dead. But there was a good vision to build Britomart, and so you started seeing the growth in the metro,” he recalled.

RNZ / Yiting Lin

“And now when you look at what we’re going to do with the CRL, if history is anything to go by, it’s really pointing where we’re going to get to.”

Amongst all that excitement, some uncertainty remained.

Lambert said the CRL was on track to open by the end of this year, but couldn’t confirm a date.

“It will open sometime in the second half of this year. We’re currently going through a lot of testing at the moment. Right now we’re just about to start trial operations across the three CRL stations, and we need to do emergency services testing as well over the next few months,” he said.

RNZ / Yiting Lin

“When we see how those go, we’ll be able to narrow it down further.”

Lambert hoped a clearer picture would emerge as testing continued over the next few months.

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/14/timetable-tested-as-aucklands-city-rail-link-moves-closer/

April 14, 2026

Pope Leo’s resolute response to Trump attack reveals a man of God, not politics

Source: The Conversation (Au and NZ) – By Darius von Guttner Sporzynski, Professor of History, Australian Catholic University

When Pope Leo XIV condemned threats to destroy Iranian civilisation as “truly unacceptable” in April 2026, the backlash was immediate. US President Donald Trump unleashed a tirade against the pope on social media, accusing him of being “weak on crime”, “terrible for foreign policy”, and acting like a politician rather than a religious leader.

But the exchange that followed matters more than the accusation. Confronted with criticism from Trump, Leo did not retreat. He made his position explicit: he was not afraid to speak, because his task was to proclaim the gospel.

Leo said he had “no fear of the Trump administration”, and “I don’t think that the message of the Gospel is meant to be abused in the way that some people are doing”.

That response clarifies the logic of his pontificate. Leo XIV is not trying to enter politics. He is defining the limits within which politics can operate.

Trump’s attack was heightened when he posted an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus, which caused an outcry even among his supporters. He has since deleted the post.

[embedded content]

God, not politics

Pope Leo’s opposition to the Iran war is not political in origin. It is moral and theological. It rests on a consistent claim: power must be judged, violence must be restrained, and invoking God to justify destruction is a distortion of both religion and public life.

From the beginning of his pontificate, Leo XIV has made this clear. Elected on May 8 2025, he used his first public address to call for dialogue, unity, and what he described as an “unarmed and disarming peace”. This was not positioning. It was a statement of purpose.

Since then, his interventions have followed a clear pattern. In 2025, as conflicts intensified in Ukraine, Gaza, and Sudan, he called repeatedly for ceasefires, humanitarian protection, and renewed diplomacy. He avoided strategic language. Instead, he focused on human dignity and the moral cost of war.

The pattern continued into 2026. On March 8, as the Iran conflict escalated, he called for an end to bombing and urged that “weapons may fall silent” to allow dialogue. On April 11, at a prayer vigil in St Peter’s Basilica, he sharpened his language. He warned of a “delusion of omnipotence” driving war and declared: “Enough of war”.

These are not policy prescriptions. They do not tell governments how to conduct war. They ask whether such wars can be justified at all.

This distinction lies at the centre of the current dispute. Political leaders operate within frameworks of interest, security, and power. Leo XIV operates within a framework of moral judgement. When those frameworks collide, his interventions are labelled political.

Yet his response to Trump shows he does not accept that framing. He has insisted his role is not to compete with political authority, but to speak from the gospel, even when that provokes criticism.

This is not new, but it is unusually explicit. Leo is drawing a line between two forms of authority: one grounded in power, the other in moral responsibility. He does not claim to direct political outcomes. He claims the right, and the duty, to judge them.

Beyond war

The same logic shapes his interventions beyond war. On migration, he has framed the issue in terms of human dignity, questioning whether harsh treatment of migrants can be reconciled with a consistent ethic of life. On social questions, he has resisted partisan categories, insisting moral coherence matters more than political alignment.

His engagement with artificial intelligence follows the same pattern. In December 2025, he warned that technological development must serve the common good, not concentrate power in the hands of a few. The question, again, was not technical but ethical: what does it mean to respect human dignity in a changing world?

Across these issues, the method is consistent. Leo XIV begins with principles, not interests. He does not align with factions. He applies moral reasoning to contemporary problems, even when doing so invites political backlash.

This approach reflects his formation. Born in Chicago in 1955 and shaped by decades of pastoral work in Peru, he encountered the realities of violence, inequality, and political instability firsthand. Those experiences did not draw him into politics. They reinforced a conviction that power must be accountable to moral limits.

His intellectual work supports this view. In his 1987 doctoral thesis, he argued authority is not domination but service, grounded in a moral order rather than human will. That understanding carries into his papacy. When Leo XIV speaks, he does not seek to exercise power. He seeks to define its boundaries.

[embedded content]

This is why his interventions provoke strong reactions. They do not remain abstract. They challenge real decisions, real policies, and real uses of force. They question the assumptions that underpin them.

In a political culture that often treats moral claims as secondary, this is disruptive. It exposes a tension that cannot easily be resolved: whether decisions about war, migration, or technology can be separated from questions of right and wrong.

Leo XIV’s answer is clear. They cannot.

His exchange with Trump brings that tension into focus. Trump’s criticism reflects a familiar expectation: that religious leaders should avoid direct engagement with political decisions. His response rejects that expectation. He does not present himself as a political actor. He presents himself as a moral voice that cannot be silent.

There is also a longer perspective at work. Political leaders operate within electoral cycles. Their decisions are shaped by immediate pressures. The papacy operates across generations. Its interventions are rarely decisive in the moment, but they shape how events are judged over time.

Leo XIV’s stance on the Iran war belongs to that longer horizon. It is not an attempt to determine outcomes. It is an attempt to set limits: on power, on violence, and on the use of religious language to justify either.

– ref. Pope Leo’s resolute response to Trump attack reveals a man of God, not politics – https://theconversation.com/pope-leos-resolute-response-to-trump-attack-reveals-a-man-of-god-not-politics-280469

Evening Report: https://eveningreport.nz/2026/04/14/pope-leos-resolute-response-to-trump-attack-reveals-a-man-of-god-not-politics-280469/

April 14, 2026

Advocacy – Auckland council votes to investigate sanctioning Israel for war crimes – PSNA

Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa – PSNA

PSNA has congratulated Auckland City Councillors who voted this morning to investigate supporting sanctions against Israel for war crimes.

The Auckland Council Policy, Planning and Development Committee has just voted 14 to 2 to request a staff report by July on sanctioning companies on the UN’s Human Rights Council who are complicit with Israel’s illegal occupation and settlement of the Palestinian Territory.

“Israel has been stealing Palestinian land and moving Israeli settlers onto the land in defiance of international law”, says PSNA Co-Chair Maher Nazzal.

“The local Palestinian community and our supporters sincerely thank the Auckland councillors who today have voted for steps to refuse to procure goods or services from any of the companies involved in building and maintaining these settlements.”

“Auckland ratepayers deserve to know their rates are not being used to support Israeli war crimes, as designated by the UN General Assembly, Security Council, international conventions and the International Court of Justice.

Councillor Julie Fairey moved the resolution and rejected the arguments of councillors who opposed it, on the grounds that the Council should ‘stick to its knitting’, by stating decisions should be made so that ‘the needles and the wool do not have blood on them.

Councillor Maurice Williamson voted against the resolution. But as a cabinet minister of the Key/English government at the time, he stated he had supported New Zealand co-sponsorship of the UN Security Resolution 2334 in 2016, calling Israeli settlements ‘a flagrant breach of international law’.

Williamson then went on to attack the UN Human Rights Council, falsely claiming it is chaired by Iran, when in fact the UNHRC’s President is from Indonesia.

Nazzal says, “Already six different local bodies have taken this step – it’s good to see Auckland following along the same path.”

Environment Canterbury (March 2024)

Christchurch City Council (October 2024)

Nelson City Council (December 2024)

Wellington City Council (August 2025)

Environment Southland (September 2025)

Palmerston North City Council (September 2025)

The United Nations Human Rights Commission has produced a list of 156 companies involved in illegal settlement activities; the database is here in a pdf: https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/hrbodies/hrcouncil/sessions-regular/session60/advance-version/a-hrc-60-19-aev.pdf

Maher Nazzal

MIL OSI

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/advocacy-auckland-council-votes-to-investigate-sanctioning-israel-for-war-crimes-psna/

April 14, 2026

Skincare Brand KK Éclat Celebrates Vogue Beauty Award Triumph with Exclusive Gala in Hong Kong

Source: Media Outreach

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 April 2026 – In March 2026, French luxury skincare brand KK Éclat hosted a special celebratory dinner at The Pin, an elite private club in Central. The event honored the brand’s major victory at the Vogue Beauty Awards 2026.

KK Éclat celebratory dinner

The gala brought together over 30 distinguished guests, including celebrities, industry leaders, entrepreneurs, and influential tastemakers, to celebrate the brand’s UV and Pollution Blocker Cream, which was crowned “Best Everyday Sunscreen” by Vogue Beauty Awards.

The Vogue Beauty Awards are a global benchmark for excellence, recognizing products that define the pinnacle of innovation and efficacy in the beauty industry. KK Éclat’s UV and Pollution Blocker Cream stood out for its revolutionary approach to sun protection, seamlessly blending high-performance defense with an unparalleled sensory experience.

The Vogue Beauty Awards 2026

This success is powered by KK Éclat’s patented Nano Frame Technology. This smart system encapsulates active ingredients for a 72-hour sustained release into the skin. It also creates a breathable moisture shield on the surface, perfectly balancing deep nourishment with long-lasting hydration.

During the event, founder Katherine and Karen detailed the rigorous research and development process, noting the formula underwent hundreds of iterations to achieve perfection.

Founder Katherine and Karen

Addressing the classic sunscreen dilemma, Katherine explained: “Physical blockers often leave a white cast, while chemical filters raise absorption concerns recently flagged by the FDA. KK Éclat offers a groundbreaking alternative.”

By merging Nano Frame technology with high-shearing encapsulation, the formula utilizes sunscreen particles with a slight negative charge matching the skin’s natural state. This creates a precise, repelling “safety layer” that keeps active filters effectively on the skin’s surface without penetration.

Additionally, the cream features Biosaccharide Gum-4, a breathable biological barrier that shields against UV rays, environmental pollutants, including PM2.5 particles. This multi-layered defense specifically combats photo-aging, meeting the high-frequency demands of modern urban life.

https://www.kkeclat.com
https://www.instagram.com/kkeclatskincare/
https://xhslink.com/m/6wHiQNAqkD8

Hashtag: #KKÉclat #NanoFrameTechnology #LuxurySkincare

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/skincare-brand-kk-eclat-celebrates-vogue-beauty-award-triumph-with-exclusive-gala-in-hong-kong/

April 14, 2026

Otis Takes Majority Stake in WeMaintain, Supporting Growth and Innovation in Service Technology

Source: Media Outreach

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach Newswire – 14 April 2026 – Otis Worldwide Corporation (NYSE: OTIS), the world’s leading company for elevator and escalator manufacturing, installation, service and modernization, and WeMaintain today announced that they have closed an agreement under which Otis will acquire a majority stake in WeMaintain, a fast-growing, technology-enabled service company for the elevator and escalator industry. The investment reflects Otis’ continued focus on advancing service and service technology to deliver the best possible solutions for customers.

Otis and WeMaintain leadership teams. Pictured left to right is Nora LaFreniere, Executive Vice President & General Counsel, Otis Worldwide Corporation; Judy Marks, Chair, Chief Executive Officer and President, Otis Worldwide Corporation; Jade Francine, Chief Growth Officer, WeMaintain; Benoit Dupont, Chief Executive, WeMaintain.

“Service is the foundation of our business, and innovation in how service is delivered is increasingly important as customers seek greater reliability and better visibility into performance,” said Judy Marks, Chair, CEO and President, Otis Worldwide Corp. “WeMaintain has built a strong technology platform and agile operating model that reflects how quality service is delivered in a fast-paced, digital and customer-centric environment. We are confident in their growth potential and believe this investment supports their continued success while creating long-term value for both organizations.”

“Otis’ investment allows us to stay focused on what we do best – continuing to build and advance our technology and scale our business as an independent company,” said Benoit Dupont, WeMaintain CEO. ” With the stability and support of the global industry leader, we are well positioned to strengthen our offering while maintaining the close customer relationships and high standards that have always defined our approach.”

Otis and WeMaintain will operate as separate entities, and WeMaintain will continue to offer its agnostic IoT and AI-based solution to its current and future customers.

Hashtag: #Otis #WeMaintain

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

– Published and distributed with permission of Media-Outreach.com.

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/otis-takes-majority-stake-in-wemaintain-supporting-growth-and-innovation-in-service-technology/

April 14, 2026

Auckland man accused of pointing laser at police helicopter

Source: Radio New Zealand

The Police Eagle helicopter. Supplied / NZ Police

An Auckland man faces up to 14 years in prison after allegedly shining a laser at the police’s Eagle helicopter.

The incident happened in Glen Eden at about 2.35am.

The laser shone directly into the cockpit, Senior Sergeant Garry Larsen said, subjecting the crew to glare and “flash blindness”.

“Our onboard technology was able to clearly capture the alleged offender in the act, and instantly identified their address.

“Police ground units arrived quickly and took a 50-year-old man into custody without incident.”

He will appear in court next Monday, charged with endangering transport

“This offence carries a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment, recognising the terrible consequences that could occur after lasering any aircraft,” Larsen said.

“The Police Eagle helicopter is out there working hard for the protection and safety of our community and this type of behaviour is unacceptable.”

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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand

LiveNews: https://livenews.co.nz/2026/04/14/auckland-man-accused-of-pointing-laser-at-police-helicopter/

April 14, 2026

Name release and appeal for information: Lower Hutt

Source: New Zealand Police

Attribute to Detective Inspector Jamie Woods, Wellington Police:

Police can now release the name of the man found deceased at a Malone Road, Lower Hutt property on 9 April.

He was 29-year-old Nathaniel Sturmey.

We acknowledge this is an incredibly difficult time for Mr Sturmey’s family and support is being provided.

The investigation into the circumstances of Mr Sturmey’s death continues, and there will continue to be an increased Police presence in the Lower Hutt area.

The scene examination has been completed, and Police are working to understand Mr Sturmey’s movements in the hours preceding his death.

Police are appealing to the public for information about the incident and are particularly interested in any suspicious activity in the Waterloo, Lower Hutt area between the hours of 10pm on 8 April and 3am 9 April 2026.

Anyone with information that might help our enquiries can go online or call 105, quoting reference number 260409/9927.

Information can also be provided anonymously via Crime Stoppers on 0800 555 111.

ENDS

Issued by Police Media Centre

LiveNews: https://nz.mil-osi.com/2026/04/14/name-release-and-appeal-for-information-lower-hutt/

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