Hamartia Antidote
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Violence shook the capital of the Solomon Islands for a second day despite a lockdown, with protesters targeting Chinatown as the nation’s embattled leader vowed to hold the perpetrators accountable and Australia said it would send troops to quell the unrest.
Smoke billowed over Honiara on Thursday, a day after protesters demanding the prime minister’s resignation set fire to Parliament and several other buildings.
The escalating riots — fueled by domestic grievances over development priorities and the country’s decision to switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China — led Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to call on neighboring Australia for help. His Australian counterpart pledged to send about 120 soldiers and police officers to keep the peace.
“Our purpose here is to provide stability and security to enable the normal constitutional processes in the Solomon Islands,” Scott Morrison said in a news conference Thursday. “It is not the Australian government’s intention in any way to intervene in the internal affairs of the Solomon Islands. That is for them to resolve.”
Morrison said two dozen Australian police officers were on their way to Honiara, where they would soon be joined by more than 40 soldiers and 50 additional police. He expected the deployment to last “a matter of weeks.”
“We have always been there to help our Pacific family when they have needed us, and this is such a time,” Morrison said.
Mihai Sora, a former Australian diplomat who was posted to Honiara from 2012 to 2014, said the quick request for help and Australia’s rapid response were hopeful signs that the Solomon Islands could avoid a repeat of past bloodshed.
“How rapidly the situation escalated came as a surprise to many,” Sora said. “If Australia hesitated, if they took days or weeks to consider a response, the situation may have deteriorated to such a low point where recovery would have been difficult.”
In a national address late Wednesday, Sogavare called the riots a “sad and unfortunate event aimed at bringing a democratically elected government down” and announced a 36-hour lockdown in Honiara.
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