FERRY CHARGES: Four men have pleaded not guilty to manslaughter over the sinking of the Tongan ferry Princess Ashika last year; 74 people died. The Shipping Corporation of Polynesia’s managing director, John Jonesse, as well as the ferry master, first mate, and a senior public servant, face up to 25 years in jail if convicted. At a directions hearing in the Supreme Court at Nuku’alofa this week the accused pleaded not guilty and Justice Robert Shuster adjourned the matter to October 8, when a trial date is expected to be set. The Princess Ashika sank in August last year while on an overnight voyage from Nuku’alofa, the Tongan capital, to an outlying island. Survivors told of water building up in the ferry’s cargo hold before she capsized around midnight, trapping sleeping passengers below deck. – AFP
FERRY CHARGES: Four men have pleaded not guilty to manslaughter over the sinking of the Tongan ferry Princess Ashika last year; 74 people died. The Shipping Corporation of Polynesia’s managing director, John Jonesse, as well as the ferry master, first mate, and a senior public servant, face up to 25 years in jail if convicted. At a directions hearing in the Supreme Court at Nuku’alofa this week the accused pleaded not guilty and Justice Robert Shuster adjourned the matter to October 8, when a trial date is expected to be set. The Princess Ashika sank in August last year while on an overnight voyage from Nuku’alofa, the Tongan capital, to an outlying island. Survivors told of water building up in the ferry’s cargo hold before she capsized around midnight, trapping sleeping passengers below deck. – 
