Bob Howarth
6 November 1944-13 November 2025
OBITUARY: By Robert Luke Iroga, editor and publisher of Solomon Business Magazine
In June 2000, I travelled to Port Moresby for a journalism training course that changed my life in ways I did not expect. The workshop was about new technology—how to send large photo files by email, something that felt revolutionary at the time.
But the real lesson I gained was not about technology. It was about people. It was about meeting Bob Howarth.
Bob, our trainer from News Corp Australia, was a man whose presence filled the room. He was old school in his craft, yet he embraced the future with such excitement that it was impossible not to be inspired.
He was full of energy, full of stories, full of life. And above all, he was kind. Deeply kind. The sort of kindness that stays with you long after the conversation ends.
He had just returned from East Timor and knew what life was like in the developing world.
In just one week with him, we learned more than we could have imagined. It felt like every day stretched into a month because Bob poured so much of himself into teaching us. It was clear that he cared—not just about journalism, but about us, the young Pacific reporters standing at the start of our careers.
That week was the beginning of his love affair with the Pacific, and I feel proud to have been a small part of that story.
Before we closed the training, Bob called me aside. He gave me his email and said quietly,
“If anything dramatic happens in the Solomons, send me some photos.”
I didn’t know then how soon that moment would come.
I returned home on Sunday, 4 June 2000. The very next morning, June 5th, as I was heading to work at The Solomon Star, Honiara fell into chaos.
The coup was unfolding. The city was under siege. I rushed to the office, helping colleagues capture the moment in words and images. And just as Bob had asked, I sent photos to him. Within hours, those images appeared on front pages across News Corp newspapers.
Bob wrote to me soon after, saying, “You’re truly the star of our course.”
That was Bob—always lifting others up, always encouraging, always giving more credit than he took.
From that week in PNG, we became more than just colleagues. We became friends—real friends. Over the years, whenever I travelled through Port Moresby, I would always reach out to him.
Sometimes we shared a drink, sometimes a long talk, sometimes just a warm hello from his home overlooking the harbour. But every time, it felt like reconnecting with someone who genuinely understood my journey.
Bob was the person I turned to for advice, for guidance, for perspective. He believed in me at a time when belief was the greatest gift anyone could offer. And he never stopped being that voice in my corner—whether I was working here in the Solomons or abroad.
This morning, I learned of his passing. And my heart sank.
It feels like losing a pillar. Like losing a chapter of my own story. Like losing someone whose kindness shaped the path I walked.
To his wife, his children, and all who loved him, I send my deepest condolences. Your husband, your father, your friend—he touched the Pacific in ways words can barely capture.
And he touched my life in a way I will never forget.
RIEP Bob. Thank you for seeing me when I was still finding my footing.
Thank you for believing in me. Thank you for being my friend.
Robert Luke Iroga is editor and publisher of Solomon Business Magazine and chair of the Pacific Freedom Forum. He wrote this tribute on his FB page and it is republished with permission.
