AFP pushes back looters as Solomon Islands PM stands firm

Australian Federal Police have dispersed looters and saved businesses but rampaging protesters have burned down a house in PM’s compound.

A framegrab shows Australian Federal Police officers patrolling with local police in Honiara on November 26, 2021 after two days of rioting which saw thousands ignore a government lockdown order, torching several buildings around the Chinatown district including commercial properties and a bank branch. (Photo by Jay Liofasi / AFP)

Australian Federal Police personnel dispersed looters and saved businesses from being torched in the Solomon Islands capital of Honiara on Friday, as rampaging protesters burned down a house in Prime Minister Manasseh ­Sogavare’s compound.

Shots were fired to disperse ­rioters – some brandishing axes and knives – but it was unclear if they were fired by Solomon ­Islands police or AFP members.

An extra 50 AFP and 43 Australian Defence Force personnel arrived in the capital late on Friday, bolstering the initial deployment of 23 police from the AFP’s Canberra-based Specialist Response Group.

In a third day of rioting, protesters continued to rampage through the city’s Chinatown and business districts.

There were gunshots as rioters breached the Prime Minister’s compound, setting alight an outer building behind his residence.

But sources on the ground said the presence of the Australian police had helped to bring the situation under control, and by late in the day the crowds of protesters had been largely pushed towards the capital’s outskirts.

“I guess it’s also a bit of a morale boost for our police here on the ground,” Solomon Islands ­opposition MP Peter Kenilorea Jnr said. “There was a massive crown coming down from the east side, but they were stopped.”

The protesters, mainly from the country’s largest island province of Malaita, continued to demand Mr Sogavare’s resignation, accusing him of corruption and ignoring the needs of the people.

Mr Kenilorea said the arrival of Australian peacekeepers had eased the political pressure on the embattled Prime Minister.

“It has had an impact on the political situation on the ground. He has really spun it to his advantage,” he said.

Mr Sogavare had lost five of his MPs by Friday, but still ­retained a comfortable majority.

The tensions, predominantly driven by economic issues, have been inflamed by divisions over the Sogavare government’s decision to break diplomatic ties with Taiwan in favour of China in 2019.

Taiwan has continued to provide support to Malaita, while the Sogavare government has been a strong backer of Beijing.

Mr Sogavare told his Papua New Guinea counterpart, James Marape, in a letter that “certain elements” had “attempted to overthrow a democratically elected government”, and called for a peacekeepers to be sent for a ­“period of three to four weeks.” Papua New Guinea agreed to send 34 peacekeepers to help staunch the violence.

In Chinatown, a large warehouse was set alight, causing an explosion that sent scores of ­people fleeing in panic. A tobacco warehouse was also set alight as smoke from previous days’ fires cast parts of the devastated city of 80,000 people in an acrid haze.

The overrun Royal Solomon Islands Police Force said on Friday it had made just two arrests, despite two police stations being among the many buildings burnt.

Tan Jingquan, secretary of the Solomon Islands Chinese Association, told the Global Times that more than 100 shops owned by Chinese nationals had been ­destroyed, and at least 100 ­Chinese nationals had expressed their wish to be evacuated.

In an address to the nation on Thursday, the Prime Minister said the country had been “brought to its knees” by the rioting, but vowed to resist calls for his resignation.

Scott Morrison said the Australian deployment was intended to last for a matter of “weeks”, amid a determination not to be drawn into a lengthy intervention.

Australia’s 2003-17 mission to Solomon Islands, RAMSI, cost more than $2.6bn.

Additional reporting: AFP