Solomon Islands - October 2024

On 3 October, Solomon Islands police arrested and charged the former premier of the Malaita province Daniel Suidani and his advisor Celsus Talifilu with instigating unlawful assemblies and protests in the province capital Auki in November 2021. Suidani has been an open critic of the Solomon Islands’ political cooperation with China, and in 2023 was prevented from taking a seat in the Malaita Provincial Assembly because of his refusal to publicly stand behind the central government’s decision to switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. While protests in Malaita remained peaceful, at the time protesters who travelled to the capital of Honiara stormed parliament and set several buildings and businesses on fire. Suidani claims he is being charged due to his openly critical view of the government’s switch of diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. Suidani’s escalating conflict with the central government is potentially volatile, given his popularity in Malaita and the strong sense of the island being overlooked or slighted by the national government in Guadalcanal that has periodically erupted into violence.

Sources: Radio New Zealand, BBC, In Depth Solomons, Solomon Business Online