SYDNEY, Australia (16 Sep 2002) -- There is a warning that the troubled South Pacific faces a long period of political instability and will need constant help from wealthier neighbours and aid donors. The New Zealand Government has predicted that a long period of uncertainty lies ahead, particularly in Melanesia. This is the area of the south-west Pacific that includes the island states of Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands. The report by the New Zealanders paints a gloomy picture. It claims the region is plagued by ethnic and tribal violence, separatism, economic decline and political corruption. Professor Brij Lal from the Centre for the Contemporary Pacific in Australia believes a lack of political direction is partly to blame. "We now have leaders in a whole range of countries in the south-west Pacific who are embroiled in local issues and do not have the vision or the skill to provide the kind of overarching leadership that these countries require," he said. Britain's role It is the chaos in the Solomon Islands that concerns Australia and New Zealand the most. Earlier this month three women and two children were shot dead, caught in the cross-fire in a battle between rival gangs near the capital, Honiara. Last month a government minister was assassinated. A pastor was found beheaded in the same region days later. "Law and order is out of control, the economy is destroyed and the government is broke," said Mark Otter from the University of Queensland's School of Political Science. "Corruption has gone through the roof," he said. "It's extraordinarily depressing." His solution to prevent the entire country falling apart is the deployment of an armed peacekeeping force, led by Australia or New Zealand with support from Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and Fiji. Analysts believe the problems in the Solomons began back in 1893 when the islands became a British protectorate. Efforts were made by the colonists to unify a diverse range of people, whose sense of loyalty rarely stretched beyond their own communities. Clashes between rival villages and islands were bloody and commonplace. Since independence, Western-style government has failed to bring stability to this historically divided nation. | | Solomon Islands An ethnic war between militants from the main island of Guadalcanal and migrants from the nearby province of Maliata ended two years ago. Inter-factional disputes, however, continue. Corruption and violence This week two heavy-armed gunmen opened fire on a market in Honiara in a revenge attack. Remarkably, no-one was killed. There have been no arrests either. Mark Otter believes the violence will only get worse. "There's no political will to help the police crack down on the gangs," he said. The long list of problems in Melanesia continues on the equator with the tiny republic of Nauru, which is now bankrupt. All the riches from phosphate mining have gone. For the first time, Nauru is receiving aid from Australia to feed its people. In Vanuatu, a political power struggle and a police mutiny are causing concern to the international community. In Fiji, the racial tensions sparked by a nationalist coup two years ago still hinder efforts towards reconciliation. Melanesia's most populous nation, Papua New Guinea, is struggling after a chaotic election earlier this year, in which more than 30 people were killed. Vote rigging and violence forced officials to abandon the ballot in more than a dozen seats. There is a concern this arc of instability around eastern Australia could become a haven for international crime syndicates involved in people smuggling, money laundering and the trafficking of drugs and arms. One senior Australian diplomat said Canberra's policy objective in the Pacific was simple - to carefully manage trouble. SCUBA FORUMDISCUSS THIS TOPIC - Dive in and have your say at Scuba Forum |
