Solomons mission to be reviewed
By Howart Dan,WNS Australia Bureau Chief
NADI - Leaders of the 16-nation Pacific Islands Forum have agreed to review the operations of an Australian-led security force in the Solomon Islands. The move came as a result of complaints from Solomons leader Manasseh Sogavare. Ahead of the regional meeting, Mr Sogavare had threatened to expel the peace mission after Australian police took part in a raid on his office. The raid was in connection with a child sex abuse investigation concerning one of his ministers.
Branding Australia as a regional bully, Manasseh Sogavare had demanded major reforms to the regional assistance mission, which was sent to the Solomon Islands in 2003 to put an end to years of communal violence. Angry over the office raid last week, Mr Sogavare wanted to weaken Australia's involvement in the 700-strong force, and hand more oversight to other members of the Pacific Islands Forum. Instead he has been granted a relatively small concession, with the forum agreeing to appoint a task force to review the peace mission but not to challenge Australia's control. Essentially it is a diplomatic fudge designed to defuse this acrimonious row.
The Australian government regards the security force in the Solomon Islands as crucial to its region-wide strategy of stamping out corruption, promoting good democratic governance and preventing nations from becoming failed states. But close neighbours like Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands deeply resent this approach, and have accused Canberra of arrogance and of acting like a colonial power.
posted by wnsworld @ 5:26 PM
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