School violence is Tonga’s biggest social problem. Now, an ex-police officer and a taekwondo master plan to simultaneously solve this problem and massively expand taekwondo’s population across the South Pacific kingdom

It consists of 177 islands scattered over the surface of the South Pacific. With a population of just 103,000 people, there is more than enough sun, sand and sea for all. Given these natural blessings, the Kingdom of Tonga may sound like a slice of heaven. But there is trouble in paradise.
“The biggest social problem now is fighting – fighting in the schools,” said Kuata Tokolahi, a 41-year-old Tongan with the physique of a pro-wrestler, a shaven skull and a pair of calloused knuckles. “So many fights!”
Fortunately, a solution may be at hand: the way of foot and fist.
“The good point of taekwondo is discipline,” Tokolahi - who, despite his formidable appearance, combines the meekness of a mouse with the manners of a prince – continued. “Self control! Cool every day! If someone attacks - you calm it down!”
It may seem paradoxical that a martial art and combat sport can be a solution to juvenile violence, but Tokolahi knows whereof he speaks.
An ex-sumo wrestler and taekwondo 3rd dan black belt, he is a former police officer who currently operates a 48-man security and executive bodyguard business, Tiger Protection. As an example of taekwondo’s efficacy as a counter-violence agent, he cites his 14-year-old son. “He is a junior black belt and everyone in his school, from the principal to his teacher, likes him because of his discipline,” he said. “Every day, he does not fight.”
Currently, however, taekwondo has low visibility across the kingdom: The sport’s population is approximately 300, one third of whom are black belts, and a handful of small dojang.
It is the juvenile violence problem facing Tonga that may grant taekwondo to a sudden leap in prominence. Tokolahi and his master, Yoon-pil Baik, are in talks with Tonga’s Minister of Sport – who happens to be Tokolahi’s cousin – to introduce taekwondo into the curriculum of all primary schools across the island. That would upgrade children’s discipline while also giving them an outlet for their youthful energies.
And the timing is right, for in 2019, Tonga hosts the South Pacific Games, a huge event for the little island kingdom. As all stadia are currently being renovated in preparation for the Games, there are few dojang for students to practice in. Space in schools would solve that problem.
Baik himself is a key figure in the history and development of taekwondo Tonga.
A 7th dan black belt, the 75-year-old (who looks 30 years younger) started taekwondo in Korea in 1956. He relocated to Tonga in 1996 as a pastor, and has taken an active role in expanding the sport’s practitioner base and formalizing its administration.
The Tonga National Taekwondo Federation was affiliated with the WTF in 2001 and Baik, with significant support from New Zealand taekwondo authorities, helped incorporate five more territories – Cook Islands, Tuvalu, Nauru, Palau and Micronesia – into the Oceania Taekwondo Union.
Now, with the proposed in-school program offering massive potential to both cut youth violence and breed a new generation of Tongan athletes in the run up to the 2019 Pacific Games, it looks as if the stars are aligned for taekwondo in the kingdom.
But however promising that program might be, there is a shortage of everything taekwondo-related. “We need mats, we need equipment, we need dobok,” Baik said, pleading for WTF support.
In addition to Tonga’s material shortfall, there is a lack of human resources. Both Baik and Tokolahi hope that the WTF will be able to arrange for Korean instructors to be dispatched to Tonga and its neighboring islands. “Tuvalu had a Taekwondo Peace Corps instructor,” Tokolahi said. “But he stayed for less than two months.”
Rugby is the most popular sport in Tonga, but taekwondo’s profile around the South Pacific has been raised thanks to its Olympic status. And it is in relation to the upcoming 2016 Olympics that the veteran master makes one last plea to the WTF.
“It is really, very difficult for athletes from the South Pacific to qualify for the Olympics,” Baik said. “So I really hope we can get a wild card for Rio.”
In fact, at the Oceania Qualification Tournament for the Rio Olympics, a Tongan athlete won Tonga’s first-ever Olympic taekwondo slot.