Malaysian oil palm project paves the way



News from the Solomon Islands continue to be mostly good. An economy broken by communal fighting and corruption is continuing to make a strong recovery.

Recovery is led by a Malaysian investment in the rehabilitation and expansion of oil palm plantations and the reopening of a small but economically significant gold mine.

Fishing and tourism are recovering also, but authorities have belatedly realised that the pace of the already completely unsustainable logging has accelerated.

Politically, two more cabinet ministers face trial on corruption charges and several more are in line for prosecution. Criticism of the presence of the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) is motivated primarily by influential politicians who have been prosecuted or are likely to be so by RAMSI investigators working with the Solomon Islands police force.

RAMSI authorities have agreed to waive immunity to enable the high court to deal with a case of a man who claims to have been improperly detained and questioned after the murder of an Australian police officer.

Generally, RAMSI enjoys widespread grassroots support from Solomon Islanders disenchanted by the performance of past political leaders.

After a trip to China as guests of the Chinese government, opposition politicians returned home to intimate that links with Taiwan, an important aid donor, would be cut off and full diplomatic recognition transferred to China should the 2006 election put them in power.

Political parties are beginning to prepare for a general election to be conducted by the end of the first quarter of 2006. The outcome is unpredictable since in all past elections two-thirds of all MPs lose their seats to be replaced by unknown people.

Prime Minister Sir Allan Kemakeza, whose own political future is uncertain, hopes to make November the month of the introduction to parliament of a bill to replace the present central government with a federal government working with provincial governments. The bill is expected to be enacted, although critics question the viability of a federal system in view of limited financial and skilled administrative manpower resources.

The first of a series of trials of violent militant leaders ended with the conviction of the notorious gang leader Harold Keke and two accomplices on a charge of murdering a priest, a member of parliament, who was kidnapped and killed on a peace-making mission. Several other trials of major figures on murder and corruption charges are imminent.

The restoration of confidence in the economy is everywhere more evident. Several small resorts have opened. A Papua New Guinea hotel company is preparing to invest several million dollars in converting a former official residence of the head of state into a luxury hotel.

The ports authority has called for expressions of interest from prospective tenants for space in a five-floor waterfront building it plans to construct. Long plagued by seriously disruptive power cuts, Honiara now has a reliable electricity supply able to meet the city's needs for many years ahead, according to the Solomon Islands Electricity Authority.

The Central Bank of the Solomon Islands has reported that production of some main export commodities is hampered by a need to repair or replace obsolete or broken down equipment. This affects fishing, logging and timber milling. Local and foreign investors indicate they are ready to expand present business and make fresh investments in others.

The purchase from overseas of three small ships signals a renewed interest in rebuilding the badly rundown but vital local inter-island shipping business. Government finances are improving dramatically under the management of RAMSI advisers posted to the finance, income tax and customs departments.

The balance of payments, according to the Central Bank of the Solomon Islands, registered an outstandingly strong performance in the fourth quarter of 2004, lifting international reserves to a historic record of 8.8 months of import cover.

With a general election less than 12 months away, government and opposition parties are considering their options. None of the country's political parties have serious substance. Many are one-man shows with no organisation or funds behind them.

In parliament, political loyalties are completely flexible and influenced primarily by what the prime minister of the day bids for them. Going by past records, two-thirds of the members of the present parliament will be defeated in the election and be replaced by newcomers, mostly of little or no previous political experience.

The prime minister has been endorsed by a local council of chiefs as an election contestant for the constituency he represents, but can't be certain of retaining it.

A draft for a federal form of government as a proposed replacement for the centralised administration used since independence has gone to all 50 constituencies for local consultations. After the inclusion of any warranted input, a bill will go to parliament in November where, according to the prime minister, it will certainly pass.

A federal regime would transfer many of the powers and functions of the central government to nine provincial administrations that would become state governments.

These would receive a considerably larger portion of the national budget. But sceptics doubt the ability of the planned state government to operate more effectively than the provincial offices do now.