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Aporosa
<br />Fiji, and currently the Minister of Health, described con-
<br />cerns regarding the high number of young malt Fijian
<br />I drinkers who were presenting at the hospital with
<br />liver abscesses. Although Dr Wagaimahete made it clear
<br />that it was not kava that caused these .hues.sr, , hal
<br />poor water quality and hygiene, approximately 3 hours
<br />after his presentation, Television New Zealand's 6 p.m.
<br />news reported a direct link between kava and liver
<br />abscesses, quoting Dr Wagmraftcte Forayer, 2016).
<br />That news report was watched at the conference venue
<br />by more than IN attendees, some of whom were medical
<br />professionals sitting drinking kava. This used a great
<br />deal of discussion and criticism, mainly because the article
<br />had suggested kava, and not poor water quality and
<br />hygiene, was the cause of these liver abscess. The author
<br />contacted the reporter and challenge her regarding this and
<br />was advised that no correction or apology would he made
<br />2 Pasifika/Pasifikan is a terra often used in Aotearoa New
<br />Zealand and Australia to demM those of Pacific Island
<br />ancestry as a collective and/or those who live in a'foedgn'
<br />country, whether as visitors, recent migrants, or even those
<br />born in that 'foreign' country, who identify first and fore-
<br />most with their ancestral homeland in the Pacific
<br />(Aporosa, 2015).
<br />3. As if to confirm Apmrsu's warning, a few months after his
<br />comment, DWT (2018) reported the 'mandatory recall' of
<br />Kratom (Mhragyna speciosa) a natural pain reliever
<br />and recreation drug from Asia — after '200 individ-
<br />aals._developed Salmonella infections' fall., the
<br />K carom use
<br />4. Until recently, The United Arab Emirates (UAE), Poland
<br />and Australia were the last remaining countries to main-
<br />tain bans and/or restrida on kava. The UAP has 'a very
<br />strict, oro -tolerance anti -drugs policy' which includes
<br />I (Ementes.com, 2018). This is unlikely to change
<br />Until late 2017, kava in Poland was 'listed in the same
<br />category as heroin, cocaine, amphetamine, LSD and so
<br />on (Game, 2017), although following a Newel media
<br />driven campaign, Poland legalized kava mid 2018
<br />(Game, 2018). The kava situation in Australia is vastly
<br />more interesting and complex. particularly as it was intro-
<br />duced to the indigenous peoples of the Northern
<br />Territories in the 1980 as part of a' harts reduction"
<br />measure' aimed at curbing alcohol use (Hunter and
<br />D'Abbs, 2003'. 333). As Professor Peter D'Abbs (1995)
<br />from the Darwin School of Medicine commented, that no
<br />native proved valuable as Lava 'did not befuddle the mind
<br />and could therefore be used to simulate `blear -headed'
<br />discussions' (169), interaction that also melded well with
<br />'traditional drinking practices,. _ [and] their [Abortgtnall
<br />attendant social control mechanisms' (168). Additionally,
<br />the unregulated availability of kava in Australia provided
<br />the Pacific dtasporic community with their indigenous sub-
<br />stance, which also reduced alcohol use and the socio -cm -
<br />total problems associated with it Winona, 2008) -
<br />Following regulatory change in 2007, unrestricted access
<br />to kava altered. Kava in Australia now falls under one of
<br />two regulatory systemsan amendment to the Theralierau
<br />Goods Administration (2007) whicheffectively ternift ed)
<br />the supply and availability of kava to Indigenous people in
<br />Arnhem Land' making kava possession in Australia's
<br />Northern Territories illegal (Urquhart and Thomson,
<br />2008p and a 2007 amendment to the Customs
<br />(Prohibited Imports/ Regulations 1956- This essentially
<br />prohibited the advertisement and sale of kava whereas
<br />importation was strictly limited to scientific and medical
<br />purposes. 'Ihe only concession was that passengers arriv-
<br />ing into the country would be permitted to bring with them
<br />2 kilograms (kg) of powdered kava without a permit pro -
<br />sided they were over 18 years of age and the kava was
<br />packed in their personal baggage (Australian Customs
<br />and Border Protection Service, 2011). According to the
<br />Australian Department of Health and Aging (2011). this
<br />2 kg allowance was to be used to recognize the cultural
<br />importance of kava to the Pacific Island community resid-
<br />ing in Australia. This concession though did not extend to
<br />the Northern Territories where a complete ban remained
<br />in place- For more on this topic, including why change
<br />occurred and the consequences, see Aporosa (2014: 161-
<br />162). The Australian Government is currently considering
<br />increasing the 2 kg kava allowance to 4 kg. Some eommem
<br />tators arc questioning why a kava restriction exists at all,
<br />particularly when similar restrictions do not apply to alco-
<br />hol in Australia (Aporosa, 2019a). This argument appears
<br />to have great merit considering the recent Australian drug -
<br />ham assessment which ranked alcohol and kava at oppos-
<br />ing ends of the risk scale (Bonomo et al., 2019. 764).
<br />5. Indirectly, kava has been reported as 'contributing' to
<br />death. For instance, Ketol. et al. (2015) report the use of
<br />an intravenous kavalacmne ethanol cocktail mix to
<br />commit suicide by a victim with a history of 'depression
<br />and... suictdal[ityl' (e8). They add, the oral acimmistra-
<br />tion of kavalactones has generally been considered to be
<br />fairly safe, but our case implies that an intravenous injec-
<br />tion of these compounds can be fatal even though the coo-
<br />centrdtons in the femoral Mood were about the same as to
<br />non-fatal cases' (e11) Additionally, Tarbah et al. (2003)
<br />report the death of a man following 'head injuries caused
<br />by a falling wall after the person had consumed kava
<br />together with cannabis'. This raises several questions
<br />regarding We action of kava in there two fatalities includ-
<br />ingwas it the intravenous use of kava specifically that led
<br />to death, or other conditions related to the cocktail mix;
<br />and, why was kava identified as responsible for death by a
<br />`falling wall'? Death as a result of falling from, or into, a
<br />wall as a result of kava use has greater merit In a more
<br />direct but confusing report, Barguil et al. (2013) discuss
<br />what they call'post -kava session sudden death syndrome'
<br />(165). This 'syndrome', or the possibdity of an association
<br />between kava consumption and ischaemic heart disease
<br />❑HD), was first investigated by Clough et al. (2004) In
<br />that case control study, they reported, 'I here is no clear
<br />evidence for an association between kava use and Till)
<br />(140). Moreover, they doubted such a causal relationship
<br />'would develop m time... Iasi kava has been used for cen-
<br />turies by Pacific peoples with no evidence for an assisin
<br />,mon with heart disease' (140) Nine years Tater. Barguil
<br />et al- (2013) made a brief but sensational claim, stating that
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