Category: Manasseh Sogavare

Australia, NZ Intervention Prolonging Rule of Unpopular, Pro-Beijing Solomons Leader: Pacific Expert

Australia and New Zealand should adopt a hands-off approach to the Solomon Islands and leave embattled Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare to deal with Beijing-linked bribery allegations and deep dissatisfaction with his rule, according to a South Pacific expert. Cleo Paskal, an associate fellow of the Asia-Pacific Programme at Chatham House, said last November’s intervention from…


Solomon Islands Leader Survives No-Confidence Vote Amid Increasing Discontent

A no-confidence vote against Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has failed in the country’s Parliament amid increasing unrest and dissatisfaction with his tenure as the Pacific nation’s leader. On Dec. 6, Sogavare’s backers easily voted down the motion of no confidence, 32 to 15. However, the prime minister gave a scathing, 90-minute address against…


Fiji Dispatches Troops to Troubled Solomon Islands

The prime minister of Fiji has announced the deployment of 50 soldiers to the Solomon Islands after riots saw numerous buildings razed to the ground. The contingent will join the mostly Australian forces—with 34 Papua New Guinean troops—already dispatched to the island to maintain peace and order. “Out of concern for the safety and well-being…