Prime Minister Mark Brown, who runs it, is also the Minister for Tourism and Minister for Seabed Minerals. He made it clear that he wanted the Cook Islands to be a leader in this area.
“It gives our children the opportunity to study at any university in the world without taking out a student loan,” says Brown, who intends to follow Norway’s lead in creating a sovereign wealth fund.
“It allows us to have the kind of health care that our people have to travel to New Zealand or Australia for. This gives our young people the opportunity to live a fulfilling life here in our country without having to travel to other countries to continue their work. trade in an industry that doesn’t exist here.”
To those who say a country threatened by climate change risks becoming part of the problem, he claims to be trying to find solutions.
“We know that for the last 20 years we have not been able to get financing from the major issuers, so we have to look for ways to protect ourselves.”
But activist June Hosking is not convinced.
She is from one of the remote islands, Mauke, with a population of only 300 people.
While the government has held consultations with islanders, as well as the large diaspora in New Zealand, she says the industry’s potential downsides are not being discussed.
“People don’t like to rock the boat on the outer islands,” she says. “So when we do these consultations, only maybe three of us will be talking.”
June says what life is like on the island, many call the Prime Minister just Mark. She also says that his wife is married to her husband’s cousin.
But family ties do not prevent her from being seen as a kind of problem with questions.
“When the locals say, ‘Oh, no, I’m staying neutral on (deepwater mining)’, I say, ‘You can’t go very far on neutral,'” she laughs.
“There are times in your life when you have to actually stand up for something — we’re talking about our future here.”
Additional reporting by Lindl Markwell.
You can listen to Kathy Watson Documentary from the Cook Islands on assignment on BBC World Service radio.
