The anger in the streets has been stoked by Foreign Forces; Says Solomon Island PM

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Solomon Islands
Photo Credit: Georgina Kekea/via REUTERS

 Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare of Solomon Islands said on Friday that the foreign forces are responsible for creating anger among the people by feeding a false narrative. 

Trying to quell out the civil unrest, Sogavare imposed a 36-hour curfew in Honiara, the country's capital, on Wednesday, as officials attempted to prevent demonstrators from torching buildings and rampant looting.

Many protesters have come from the country's most populated province, Malaita, where many people feel ignored by the government following its resistance to the Solomon Islands' 2019 decision to sever diplomatic ties with Taiwan and establish official ties with China.

"I feel sorry for my people in Malaita because they are fed with false and deliberate lies about the switch," Sogavare told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

"These very countries that are now influencing Malaita are the countries that don't want ties with the People's Republic of China, and they are discouraging the Solomon Islands to enter into diplomatic relations and to comply with international law and the United Nations resolution."

Sogavare refused to name the nations, despite photographs on social media showing riots in the Solomon Islands.

Sogavare's remarks came when Australian cops landed in the Solomon Islands.

On Thursday, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he welcomed a request for assistance from Sogavare and that Canberra will deploy more than 100 people to assist Solomon Islands authorities in protecting important infrastructure.

Publish : 2021-11-26 09:10:00

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