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Violence ebbs but tensions remain

Police in the Solomon Islands capital, Honiara, have confirmed that three bodies have been found in one of the burnt-out buildings in Chinatown.

A protest on Wednesday calling for Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to step down degenerated into major unrest and three days of rioting.

A police investigation is under way. A spokesperson said a forensic team had yet to confirm the identities of the bodies.

Local reports said the remains were of looters trapped inside the building.

Most of the rioting and looting took place in Chinatown, where RNZ’s correspondent in the Solomons said only six buildings were left standing.

The government has shown no signs of addressing the underlying grievances that sparked the riots, including concerns about the country’s increasing links with China. Sogavare has sought to deflect attention from domestic issues by blaming outside interference for stirring up the protesters, with a thinly veiled reference to Taiwan and the United States.

Sogavare has been widely criticised by leaders of the country’s most populous island, Malaita, for a 2019 decision to drop diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favour of mainland China. His government is upset over millions in US aid promised directly to Malaita, rather than through the central government.

Sogavare said yesterday he stood by his government’s decision to embrace Beijing, which he described as the ‘‘only issue’’ in the violence, which was ‘‘unfortunately influenced and encouraged by other powers’’.

An overnight curfew declared by Governor-General Sir David Vunagi in Honiara will be repeated every day until revoked.

Jonathan Pryke, director of the Sydney-based Lowy Institute think tank’s Pacific Islands programme, said the demonstrations really boiled down to frustration over the lack of opportunities for a largely young population, and the concentration of much of the country’s wealth in the capital.

‘‘The vast majority of the people involved in the rioting and looting couldn’t point China or Taiwan out on a map,’’ he said. ‘‘They were there as opportunists because they have had very limited economic opportunity.

‘‘It’s a very poor country with high youth unemployment, and this just shows how quickly these things can spiral out of control in a country that’s volatile.’’

Australian police and diplomats arrived in Honiara on Friday to help local police restore order. Up to 50 more Australian police as well 43 defence force personnel with a navy patrol boat arrived yesterday.

They were requested by Sogavare

under a bilateral treaty with Australia, and their presence seems to have helped to quell some of the violence.

Australian Foreign Minister Marise Payne said the Australian personnel were expected to be there for ‘‘a matter of weeks’’.

Australia is not assisting in the protection of the national parliament and executive buildings, in a sign that it is not taking political sides.

Local journalist Gina Kekea said the foreign policy switch to Beijing, with little public consultation, was one of a mix of issues that led to the protests. There were also complaints that foreign companies were not providing local jobs.

Protesters were replaced by looters and scavengers in Chinatown yesterday, Kekea said. ‘‘There’s nothing much left for them to loot and spoil now.’’

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian condemned the violence and stressed Beijing’s support for the Solomon Islands government. He said China was taking measures to safeguard the safety and rights of Chinese people and institutions in the country.

The establishment of diplomatic ties with Beijing ‘‘has won sincere support of the people’’, Zhao said, and ‘‘any attempts to undermine the normal development of China-Solomon relations are futile’’.

World

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2021-11-28T08:00:00.0000000Z

2021-11-28T08:00:00.0000000Z

https://stuff.pressreader.com/article/283038352815880

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