Solomon Islands

Monthly Event Reports GSOD Indices

Solomon Islands exhibits mid-range performance across all categories of the Global State of Democracy framework. It is a parliamentary democracy, falling within the top 25 per cent of the world’s countries with regard to Free Political Parties, Freedom of Religion, Judicial Independence and Personal Integrity and Security. At the same time, it is among the bottom 25 per cent in the world when it comes to Local Democracy, Political Equality and Gender Equality. Over the last five years, it has made significant advances in regard to Access to Justice. The country’s economy is driven by the agriculture, forestry and fisheries industries, although approximately 85 per cent of the population relies on subsistence agriculture. The archipelago consists of 992 islands, with two-thirds of the population living on the largest islands of Malaita and Guadalcanal. Seventy-five per cent of the islands’ people live in rural areas. Solomon Islands also has the lowest per capita income in the Pacific Region.

The ‘British Solomon Islands Protectorate’ was established in 1893, although European presence and exertion of power had begun by the beginning of the nineteenth century. After approximately two decades of struggle, the country was granted independence in 1978. The population is largely indigenous Melanesian, with small Chinese, European, Micronesian and Polynesian minorities. Between 1998 and 2003, the country suffered from a low-intensity civil conflict known as “The Tensions” in which 200 died, 20,000 were displaced, and rape, gender-based violence, and other human rights violations were widespread. The conflict was fueled by various intercommunal grievances, ethnic tensions, economic precarity, and contested inter-island migration. International peacekeepers departed finally in 2013, but intermittent violence has continued, pointing to unresolved issues over power-sharing and disagreements over peacebuilding processes. Issues related to land ownership, the unequal distribution of economic opportunities across the islands and youth frustration over the lack of employment opportunities persist.

Clientelist politics have also been a key driver of poor governance. Public dissatisfaction with and mistrust in the legitimacy of elections, the lack of a strong party system, issues with transparency and corruption in public affairs and social tensions over growing Chinese influence have led to sporadic anti-government riots in both 2006 and 2019. Geopolitics has also impacted political cleavages, with riots erupting in 2021 when the government switched its diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China, exacerbating tensions between the central government and Malaita, which had received extensive support from Taipei.

Patriarchal customary law is exempt from constitutional anti-discrimination measures, and the Solomon Islands have one of the highest rates of sexual violence in the world. As of June 2023, 4 of 50 members of parliament were women, although one was elected in her husband’s place after he was found guilty of bribing voters and removed from office.

Looking ahead, it will be important to watch how the new relationship with China impacts politics in the Solomon Islands, especially as the country remains a site of geopolitical contestation between China and Australia and the United States. The increased influence of foreign powers may also have significant consequences for the internal security of the country and may impact independence demands from the poverty-stricken and under-resourced island of Malaita. The country is also at increasingly high-risk to rising seas and more powerful tropical storms due to climate change

August 2023 | Major newspaper trades friendly coverage for cash

Leaked documents obtained by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project showed the Solomon Star, a major national newspaper, accepted over USD 130,000 from the Chinese government in exchange for a promise to “promote the truth about China’s generosity and its true intentions to help develop” the Solomon Islands. The newspaper used the funds to replace outdated or failing equipment. Its chief of staff denied that the agreement had impacted its coverage, but said that the Solomon Star had tried unsuccessfully to receive the same financial assistance from the Australian embassy for years and added “My summary on the whole thing is China is a doer, others are talkers. They spend too much time talking, nothing gets done.”

China Transnational

February 2023 | Critical governor removed from office

The prominent critic of the central government, Daniel Suidani was removed as Premier of Malaita Province in a no-confidence vote on 7 February, sparking protests in the provincial capital of Auki. The provincial parliament accused Suidani of corruption, but he rejected both the charges and the legality of the vote and said he planned to challenge it in court. Suidani has been a key critic of the 2019 decision to switch the country’s diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing, and it was a protest against that decision that devolved into riots in November 2021. Suidani’s removal signals a further deterioration of already-poor relations between Malaita and the national government. Observers cited the increasing geopolitical contestation between China and the United States in the country and political positioning before the national elections due in 2024 as key context for the move.

Protests Daniel Suidani

August 2022 | Pressure on public broadcaster

The government accused the public broadcaster of a “lack of ethics and professionalism” for covering riots and a no-confidence vote against the Prime Minister, and moved to take more direct control of the organization. This has sparked concerns over censorship.

Censorship Manasseh Sogavare