China is queering Solomons Islands pitch, says AFP

Chinese training of Solomon Islands’ police is undermining Australia’s training, could escalate law and order situations, and is ‘not fair’ on local officers, the AFP has warned.

Australian Federal Police officers patrolling with local police in Honiara in 2021 after days of rioting. Picture: AFP

Chinese training of Solomon Islands’ police is undermining Australia’s training, could escalate law and order situations, and is “not fair” on local officers, the Australian Federal Police has warned.

China has been running a ­parallel training effort in Solomon Islands alongside the AFP’s, teaching martial arts, crowd control and firearms tactics to local police members.

AFP Pacific commander Mel­inda Phelan said Australia’s training program was “very much around de-escalation”, negotiation, and “peacefully working to resolve the situation”.

“If there are others that are teaching (policing doctrine) that isn’t aligned … then there is risk for conflict,” she said. “And that is, in our mind, certainly not the best outcome for these Pacific Island nations.”

The AFP has more than 100 members stationed in the Pacific, strengthening the capabilities of local police and undertaking joint law-enforcement activities.

The Solomon Islands deployment is the biggest, with 60 AFP members stationed in the country amid lingering tensions from last year’s riots against the Sogavare government, and training missions by Chinese police under the countries’ controversial security agreement.

Commander Phelan said the AFP respected Solomon Islands’ sovereignty and worked collaboratively with the Royal Solomon Islands Police to respond to its ­priorities. But she said having ­Chinese officers in the country teaching different policing methods made the AFP’s job more difficult, and was “simply not fair on the (local) officers”.

She said inconsistencies in Australian and Chinese policing doctrines around the use of force and even the interviewing of suspects was a source of “confusion” for those receiving the training.

“Obviously, we highlight where we think there could be inconsistencies in practices,” Commander Phelan said. “But at the end of the day it goes back to what we agreed to and what we signed up to, and we will continue to deliver that.

“And irrespective of the country, if we do see that there’s conflict in regards to practices being applied, then all we can really do is highlight that and keep going on with the work that we have committed to do.”

About eight weeks ago, the AFP handed over an arsenal of 60 new semiautomatic rifles to the RSIP, prompting criticism that Australia had over-armed the country’s police to out-do China.

Commander Phelan said the assertion was “factually incorrect”. She said the provision of the guns was backed by training and the upgrade of RSIP facilities, and was “aligned to international best practice”.

“The AFP would assess that capability, in its limited-phased way, is appropriate for a police force like the RSIP,” she said.

The AFP’s contingent of 43 officers in Papua New Guinea is its second largest in the region and is focused on supporting local police to deal with the country’ difficult law and order situation.

In a country where tribal and gender-based violence, payback crimes and horrific attacks on ­alleged “sorcerers” are common, Commander Phelan said much of the AFP’s training was aimed at helping local counterparts build cases that would stand up in court.

She said the AFP was providing training to PNG counterparts on evidence collection, interviewing, and community engagement.

“It’s a broad spectrum. Forensics is also an important capability and we’re really looking at how we can continue to support that.

“And of course, with digital and cyber growing (as problems) as well, that’s a significant need right throughout the Pacific which the AFP is looking at, on how we can lift the capability there.”

Fighting transnational crime was also a priority across the region, Commander Phelan said.

The AFP’s Pacific Task Force partnership with Fiji, Tonga and New Zealand had, since 2019, led to the seizure of 86kg of cocaine, 70kg of methamphetamine, 2kg of MDMA and 4.5 tonnes of cannabis, she said.

The partnership had also resulted in more than 30 outlaw motorcycle gang and high-level crime figures being refused entry to Fiji and Tonga, and the interception of more than 20 high-risk vessels.

“Our personnel are on the ground supporting local police to ensure they are well-equipped to respond to any challenges,” Commander Phelan said.

“Some of these challenges – such as those presented by organised crime groups trafficking drugs through the region – are a ­direct result of Australia’s insatiable appetite for illegal drugs.”