Roland Tullen Kun (born 6 May 1970) is a

Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...

an politician and Member of Parliament.

Political career

MP and Minister

Kun was elected in 2004 to serve as a Member of the

Parliament of Nauru The Parliament of Nauru has 19 members, elected for a three-year term in multi-seat constituencies. The President of Nauru is elected by the members of the Parliament.

and served as Minister of Justice. Kun was elected to the seat of Buada in 2004, 2007, 2008, in the April and June 2010 elections, and in 2013. He was a member of the Scotty government from 2004 to 2007, a member of the Stephen government from 2007 to 2012, and a member of the Dabwido government for much of the first half of 2013. From December 2007 to November 2011 he was Minister for Fisheries and Minister for Education. From June 2012 until February 2013, he held portfolios of

Finance Finance refers to monetary resources and to the study and Academic discipline, discipline of money, currency, assets and Liability (financial accounting), liabilities. As a subject of study, is a field of Business administration, Business Admin ...

& Sustainable Development, as well as Education and Justice & Border Control. Kun is also an expert on fisheries, one of

's main industries.

Crossing the floor

Kun was one of the founding members of the reform group Naoero Amo (Nauru First). He was appointed

Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...

in 2012 by then President

Sprent Dabwido Sprent Arumogo Dabwido (16 September 1972 – 8 May 2019) was a Nauruan politician who served as President of Nauru between 2011 and 2013, and was also a weightlifter. The son of a parliamentarian, Dabwido was originally elected to the Meneng Co ...

, but resigned and defected to the Opposition after a disagreement with President Dabwido over the latter's declaration of a state of emergency.http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-05-30/nauru-president-defends-state-of-emergency/4723940 Nauru's President defends State of Emergency In 2013, Kun stood for the presidency against

Baron Waqa Baron Divavesi Waqa (; born 31 December 1959) is a Nauruan politician who currently serves as the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, secretary-general of the Pacific Islands Forum. He was the President of Nauru from 11 Ju ...

but his party lost 13 to 5.

Suspension of Opposition members (ongoing current event)

In May 2014, Waqa suspended 5 of the 7 members of Nauru's Opposition from Parliament indefinitely, including Kun. The suspension of Kun and 2 of his opposition colleagues (Hon Dr Kieren Keke and Hon

Mathew Batsiua Mathew Jansen Batsiua (born 27 May 1971) is a Nauruan politician. Batsiua, a former health minister and former foreign minister of Nauru, has served as a member of parliament for the constituency of Boe since 2004. Parliamentary role Batsiua h ...

) was made on the grounds that they had expressed views in the international media that were critical of the government and the breakdown of the rule of law.http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/244277/nauru's-govt-suspends-opposition-mps Nauru's Govt suspends opposition MPs In June 2015, in a crackdown on Opposition MPs, the Waqa government arrested and cancelled the passports of certain opposition members claiming that they had been trying to destabilise the Government by talking to foreign media.Extra cops called in to protect Nauru Govt http://m.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11468615Radio NZ - Arrested MPs to appear in court - 20 June 2015 http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/276754/arrested-nauru-mps-to-appear-in-court As part of the move against opposition members, on 17 June 2015, the Government cancelled Kun's passport and had him forcibly removed from a flight to New Zealand where he had been living with his wife and children since being suspended from Parliament in 2014.Nauru court defers MP's passport appeal http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/277368/nauru-court-defers-mp's-passport-appeal Nauru's Supreme Court was due on 27 June 2015 to hear an application by Kun for judicial review to have his passport returned but the court deferred the application until 8 July 2015. On 11 July 2016 Kun fled Nauru for New Zealand, having been granted New Zealand citizenship and a New Zealand passport. Kun did not run for re-election in the 2016 parliamentary election.

Personal life

Roland Kun is the son of Ruben Kun, a former

President of Nauru The president of Nauru is elected by Parliament of Nauru, Parliament from among its members, and is both the head of state and the head of government of Nauru. Nauru's unicameral Parliament has 19 members, with an electoral term of three years. ...

and a member of Nauru's Parliament for 26 years. Kun's cousin Russell Kun was also a former MP.

References