There is "anger in rugby-mad Tonga over a government letter that apparently bans women from playing the sport in public schools," according to Alistair Coleman of the BBC. Tonga's Ministry of Education & Training confirmed it issued the edict in order to "preserve the dignity of Tongan women and hold on to Tongan cultural values." The ruling reportedly emerged after a member of Tonga High School's girls tag rugby team revealed that the team "had been withdrawn from a competition last week because they were girls." The official letter "has not gone down well with sports administrators and politicians, who see it as a blow to women's rights." Tonga Women's Rugby Association President Fehoko Tu'ivai said, "How can we teach our girls to be independent when we keep making choices for them?" New Zealand PM Jacinda Arden said, "I would encourage all the young women to engage in whatever sporting code they are interested in." The Tongan authorities, however, said that the reasoning behind the letter "may have been misunderstood." Senior Education Ministry official Manu 'Akau'ola said that the edict was in response to February's Cyclone Gita, which was the "worst storm to hit Tonga in 60 years." He said, "Our minister had directed that all government schools, because of the cyclone, are not going to be involved in any sports during this term because we have already lost enough school time" (BBC, 3/20). In London, Jonathan Pearlman reported Tonga women's rugby sevens team head coach Hoko Tuivai said, "It is most unfortunate. ... In this time of teen pregnancies and social problems, rugby has served to provide young ladies with focus and determination" (TELEGRAPH, 3/20).
