PINA

-Fiji stands ready to support the Solomon Islands government alongside its Australian Vuvale following the second day of uncontrollable riots in Honiara. Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama, Thursday spoke to his Australian counterpart, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and expressed support for Australia’s positive response to a direct request for assistance from the Solomon Island government under Article 2 of Australia’s Bilateral...

Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne says Australia “does not take a position” on the internal matters of the Solomon Islands. Violent protests have broken out in the capital Honiara as citizens are calling for Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare’s resignation. Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday responded to Sogavare after he wrote to Morrison, deploying ADF and AFP to assist in...

The Pacific Islands Minister has confirmed there are concerns for a number of Australian businesses near the unrest in the Solomon Islands. Pacific Islands Minister Zed Seselja says there are no reports of Australians in danger in the Solomon Islands but there are “concerns” around Australian businesses as the Morrison Government deploys Defence Force personnel. Prime Minister Scott Morrison has announced...

The role of traditional and cultural practices and religion in influencing positive environmental behaviours amongst Pacific Island communities was discussed during the sixth day of the Third Clean Pacific Roundtable (3CPRT). Alannah Smith of the Cook Islands’ Te Ipukarea Society, shared how the people of Rarotonga have returned to subsistence living as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. This has...

By Transform Aqorau The riots in Honiara Wednesday, disturbing the city’s normally quiet atmosphere, were unexpected but not surprising. Someone made reference to a possible protest that would coincide with the convening of parliament, but details were sketchy and social media was tightlipped about a protest for a change. Arguably, the riots are a culmination of a number of flashpoints that...

Solomon Islands Leader of Opposition, Matthew Wale has called on Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to immediately resign. “I call on the Prime Minister to do the right thing and resign’ – given the current situation in Honiara. Wale pointed to Wednesday’s protest and current ongoing unrest in Honiara as a consequence of years of neglect by his government of pressing issues...

Dozens of seafarers from Kiribati remain locked out of their country and grounded in Queensland after more than two years away from home. But facing uncertainty on their return, some are pleading to stay in Australia to better support their families. As Australia and much of the world reopen their borders, a group of merchant seafarers from the tiny Pacific...

The Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG) joins over 130 global, regional and national civil society organisations in calling for the postponement of next week's World Trade Organisation's (WTO) 12th Ministerial Conference in Geneva. They claim the Director General, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala took the decision to meet in person despite significant number of ministers and their lead officials not being able to...

Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape has appealed to the people of neighbouring Solomon Islands to “respect the rule of law and democratic institutions and not to take the law into their own hands”. He said this after receiving a call from Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare, on protests and vandalism by protestors in Papua New Guinea’s closest...

In a special nationwide address Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare says the government will track down those responsible for Wednesday’s protest and riots. “The Governments investigative arm is working to track down those behind the destruction, they will face the law, no one is above the law. “These people will face the consequences of their action, the symbol of our...