Unarmed police officers in
Honiara are shown fleeing the eruption of looting and violence in this
photograph released yesterday by the Solomons Government.
By
AUSTRALIA has rushed a fresh
contingent of troops and police reinforcements into the Solomon Islands capital,
Honiara, after two days of rioting that has devastated the city and left dozens
of people injured.
The toll of wounded Australian
police officers stood at more than 20 last night after battles with hundreds of
rock-throwing demonstrators and looters who have left large parts of Honiara
ablaze.
More than 50 Australian Federal
Police officers and 110 soldiers from Townsville flew into the Pacific trouble
spot yesterday to provide back-up to the existing Australian force of almost 300
police.
New Zealand also sent in dozens
of extra police and troops.
Announcing Australia's immediate
deployment, Prime Minister John Howard said it would "provide much-needed
support to those already there" and "send a strong message to those engaging in
unlawful behaviour".
Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
said more troops would be sent if they were needed.
The rioting erupted in response
to the surprise election of former deputy prime minister Snyder Rini as the new
Prime Minister — despite a big swing against the Government in this month's
general election.
Rioters turned on the capital's
Chinese quarter after rumours spread that Chinese businessmen had bribed MPs to
elect Mr Rini.
Former prime minister Francis
Billy Hilly claimed some MPs had been offered thousands of dollars to vote for
Mr Rini.
Solomon Islands Government
spokesman Alfred Maesulia said 90 per cent of Chinatown had been ransacked,
looted and burned. Ethnic Chinese families had fled burning buildings while
terrified tourists huddled in their hotel rooms.
Honiara's newest hotel was also
set alight about 2am yesterday. "It was unbelievable," said Auckland businessman
Ray Vuksich. "They were trying to get up the stairs with machetes and batons …
women were screaming."
Thousands of protesters later
marched on Government House, threatening more destruction if Mr Rini did not
resign by 6pm yesterday.
As a dusk-to-dawn curfew was
declared across the capital, Mr Rini went into hiding. In a brief statement, he
appealed for calm, but made no reference to the calls for his
resignation.
It was the worst unrest in the
capital since Australia, NZ and other Pacific governments intervened in 2003
with a multinational force of troops and police to end ethnic
conflict.
Mr
Downer said Australia would not abandon its neighbour. "The situation there is
inherently unstable … we will have to be prepared from time to time to send in
military reinforcements if it's necessary, just as it is at the moment," Mr
Downer told Sky news.
The Australian officer in command
of the multinational police operation said sporadic violence was continuing last
night. He said police morale was strong.
The troops' commander, Brigadier
Mick Slater, said his men were well trained to deal with civil unrest. "They're
exceptionally tough, they're highly skilled, they are the best at doing this
sort of work in the country."
But the Australian-led forces
also faced accusations of inflaming a peaceful protest when they fired tear gas
on demonstrators blocking a driveway at the Parliament building on Tuesday
night.
The Speaker of the Parliament,
Sir Peter Kenilorea, criticised handling of the unrest by the Regional
Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI), saying police should have allowed
negotiations to continue between demonstrators, MPs and
police.
Luke Johnston, an Australian aid
worker who was filming outside the Parliament compound for a documentary on the
elections, backed Sir Peter's view.
Mr Johnston, speaking to The
Age by phone from his home in Honiara, said the crowd had been protesting
peacefully until RAMSI officers tried to physically break the
blockade.
"It appears that that's when
things got out of hand, when there were some more aggressive approaches to the
crowd while they were still negotiating through their own local
representatives," Mr Johnston said.
"When they brought a riot squad
in and a lot of riot gear there was a noticeable change in tone," he said. "My
own view of what happened is that there was a lack of
preparation."
Despite the outbreak of violence,
Justice Minister Chris Ellison said the Australian-led peacekeeping operation
had been an outstanding success. "We've seized around about 3700 weapons, (made)
thousands of arrests, we've restored law and order across the Solomon Islands,"
he said.
Australians trying to leave
Honiara have been offered seats on defence aircraft.
Several injured police officers,
including one with a broken jaw and one with a dislocated shoulder, were flown
home yesterday.
With DAN HARRISON, IAN MUNRO
and AGENCIES