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Pol I T Ical Reviews • Melanesia 373 Solomon Islands pol i t ical reviews • melanesia 373 http://www.foreignpolicy.com /story/ Islands Patrick Cole as persona non cms.php?story_id=4480 grata in the Solomon Islands. This Independence Magazine 2008. Special and other issues, including concerns magazine insert, Post Courier, about the gcc government’s “dictato- 16 September. rial” leadership style, led to Sogavare’s ouster. The National. Daily. Port Moresby. Sogavare was replaced in December Post Courier. Daily. Port Moresby. 2007 by Dr Derek Sikua, a longtime Radio Australia. Online at http://www public servant who was in his fi rst .radioaustralia.net.au / term as a member of Parliament. Sikua formed a Coalition for rnzi, Radio New Zealand International. National Unity and Rural Advance- Online at http://www.rnzi.com ment (c-nura) government that faced many challenges, including how to deliver services and salvage relations with neighbors like Australia, New Solomon Islands Zealand, and Papua New Guinea. Yet For Solomon Islands, 2008 was domi- expectations were high for improved nated by the establishment of a new governance under c-nura leadership. government, the mending of diplo- The failure of the Sogavare-led gov- matic relations, an attempt to improve ernment to deliver on its “Bottom Up governance processes, and the continu- Approach” policy, the controversial ing challenges associated with post- manner in which it fi lled important confl ict development and a struggling positions, and its mishandling of dip- economy. For most Solomon Islanders lomatic relations had caused wide- there was an expectation that political spread skepticism in the government, leadership, especially at the national and placed pressure on the c-nura level, would improve. This was seen as government to turn the tides of public the core of the country’s challenges. opinion. There was also a dire need to In late 2007, the Manasseh Soga- salvage Solomon Islands’ reputation vare–led Grand Coalition for Change in the international arena, improve the (gcc) government, which had been in delivery of social services, and provide power since April 2006, was ousted in credible leadership. a motion of no confi dence. Many of In January 2008, the c-nura the cabinet ministers in the Sogavare government launched its policy state- government withdrew their support ment, outlining a broad number of amid controversies over the appoint- issues that it hoped to address. One of ment of Julian Moti to the position the fi rst things the Sikua-led govern- of attorney general and Jahir Khan ment did was dismiss Julian Moti as as commissioner of police. In late attorney general and replace him with 2006, the appointment of Moti, an Gabriel Suri as acting attorney general. Australian citizen wanted for child This was part of an attempt to give sex charges, strained relations with credibility to the Offi ce of the Attor- Australia and led to a diplomatic row ney General and to mend relations that saw the declaration of the Austra- with neighboring countries, especially lian High Commissioner to Solomon Australia. The commissioner of police, 374 the contemporary pacifi c • 21:2 (2009) Jahir Khan, who had been appointed Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands under similarly controversial circum- (ramsi) in February 2008. During the stances, was also asked to resign. visit Smith reiterated Australia’s com- Immediately after assuming offi ce, mitment to provide “an environment the Sikua-led government set out to of peace and stability and security mend and strengthen relations with to enable the Solomon Islands to governments of neighboring countries get back on its feet again in terms of and donor agencies, which had been building itself as a nation” (Pacnews, strained under the previous adminis- 22 Feb 2008). Smith’s February visit tration. As part of the government’s was complemented by the inaugural efforts to mend relations, in January meeting of the Pacifi c Islands Forum 2008 Sikua visited Australia, New Ministerial Standing Committee on Zealand, and Papua New Guinea, ramsi. The committee was tasked and met with his counterparts in these with overseeing the Australian-led countries. This was vital because assistance mission. During that meet- Solomon Islands depended on Aus- ing, the committee agreed that ramsi tralia, New Zealand, and other aid would now report directly to the Solo- donors to fi nance its development mon Islands government. This, it was programs. In its 2009 national budget, envisaged, would ensure that ramsi for example, Solomon Islands develop- post-confl ict reconstruction efforts ment expenditure of si$2.7 billion was were aligned with the Solomon Islands to be funded entirely by development government’s development plans and partners. (One Solomon Islands dollar priorities. is the equivalent of approximately Australia Prime Minister Kevin us$.14.) Rudd visited Solomon Islands in At the national level, the prime March 2008. The Labour Government minister wanted to reassure the in Australia, which came to power in country of his government’s commit- 2007, had pledged to work coopera- ments as stated in its policy statement. tively with its Pacifi c Island neighbors. Therefore he visited Malaita and Rudd reaffi rmed his government’s the Western Provinces and met with commitment, saying that relations provincial leaders. This was a move with Pacifi c Island countries would be designed to familiarize himself with based on partnership: “I will use the issues that were pertinent to those visit to underscore Australia’s com- provinces and at the same time share mitment to work in partnership with with provincial leaders the national our friends and neighbours in Papua government’s visions and development New Guinea and Solomon Islands on policies. regional challenges, including eco- For Australia, the advent of a new nomic sustainability, effective develop- Solomon Islands government pro- ment and climate change” (Pacnews, vided an opportunity to mend and 3 March 2008). strengthen bilateral relations. Austra- Meanwhile, Taiwan was also keen lia’s Foreign Affairs Minister Stephen to ensure that a change in government Smith made his inaugural visit to Solo- did not mean a change in Solomon mon Islands to review the Regional Islands policy to accord diplomatic pol i t ical reviews • melanesia 375 recognition to Taiwan. Consequently, community believe in—democracy, Taiwanese Vice President Annette good governance, anti-terrorism—can Lu visited Honiara in January 2008. entertain a country that works against During that visit, Prime Minister Sikua every principles that all right thinking told Ms Lu that Solomon Islands governments of the world believe” would continue to support Taiwan’s (Pacnews, 29 Oct 2008). The c-nura bid for membership in the United government defended its plan to sign a Nations and defend its interests at the bilateral cooperation agreement with international level (Pacnews, 4 Feb Iran. Foreign Affairs Minister William 2008). In March, Dr Sikua visited Haomae called for Iran’s assistance Taiwan, where he met the Taiwan- in dam construction, training skilled ese president, vice president, and personnel in oil and gas industries, government ministers. In a show of and trade. goodwill, the Taiwanese government As of this writing, Solomon Islands offered to fi nance the completion of has yet to establish diplomatic rela- the multimillion-dollar Stage 2 of tions with Iran, although it has the Solomon Islands National Parlia- signed a cooperative memorandum to ment Building Project. Stages 2 and allowed the two countries to explore 3 of the building project included the specifi c cooperative arrangements, construction of offi ces for members including the possibility of formaliz- of Parliament as well as amenities for ing diplomatic relations. Iran and the recreational activities, such as a gym, Solomon Islands are both members swimming pool, and tennis courts of the Group of Developing Coun- (Pacnews, 4 March 2008). The offer tries at the United Nations. Hence, was made on the condition that Solo- the cooperative memorandum was mon Islands agreed to host the 2009 seen as within the spirit of “South- Taiwan–Pacifi c Allies Summit, which it South Cooperation” (Pacnews, 31 Oct agreed to do. In the meantime, Taiwan 2008). Meanwhile, Israel Ambassador continued to provide about si$50 Michael Ronan, during his visit in million annually, to fund the Rural November, commented on Solomon Constituency Development Fund, as Islands’ relations with Iran, saying well as provide fi nancial support for that his country was “not worried at the agriculture and education sectors. all [and] that Solomon Islands is an Despite its success in normalizing independent country and is at liberty relations with Australia and New Zea- to choose its diplomatic friends” (Pac- land, the Sikua-led government was news, 28 Nov 2008). criticized for its moves to strengthen Within the Pacifi c Islands region, bilateral ties with Iran, a country that the Sikua-led government announced US President George W Bush had the establishment of the Solomon branded as a member of the “axis of Islands High Commission Offi ce in Fiji evil.” Opposition leader Manasseh in August. However, by March 2009 Sogavare condemned the move: “I’m the offi ce was still without a high com- shocked that a government that boasts missioner. Meanwhile, two impor- itself to believe in the principles that tant international organizations, the other members of the international World Bank and Asian Development 376 the contemporary pacifi c • 21:2 (2009) Bank, opened their offi ces in Honiara nor-General Sir Nathaniel Waena, in 2008 and expressed the desire to for example, said that he regretted work closely with the Solomon Islands the “serious negligence” shown by government. responsible authorities and relief agen- As the government attempted to cies toward the tsunami victims. Many mend and strengthen its international were still living in tents a year after the relations, in Honiara a group of tsunami destroyed their homes.
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