Politics
Who's Footing the Solomon Islands' Compensation Payout?
Questions are being asked by civil society.
The Solomon Islands government has been busy handing out 23rd independence anniversary awards, some as medals and some as big cheques.
The Star of the Solomon Islands went to President Chen Shui-bian, of Taiwan. This country showers the Solomon Islands with millions of dollars in aid as a reward for giving it full diplomatic recognition instead of its rival, China.
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The Cross of the Solomon Islands went to four recipients for outstanding community services and the Solomon Islands Medal to another 30 community worthies. Someone else got a medal for services to tennis.
There was nothing really controversial about these awards. What is arousing the curiosity of Solomon Islands and foreign governments bearing the cost of rebuilding an economy ravaged by a small but nasty civil war is the millions of dollars the supposedly broke government has given away. This has come as "compensation" for civil war victims and rebates of duty on imports of liquor, cigarettes, cars and export duty of logs.
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If the government is giving away millions by paying rebates, where is it getting the millions it has paid in "compensation"?
Duty and export tax rebates amounting to about Sol$40 million were allowed between August last year and July, according to a leaked document. Duty of Sol$51.2 million should have been collected on imports valued at Sol$113.9 million.
Much to the surprise and distress of local cigarette and beer producers rebates on cigarette imports cost more than Sol$16 million in lost revenue, on liquor about Sol$2.25 million and rebates of log duty more than Sol$15 million.
Other rebates were allowed for imported cars, bales of imported second-hand clothes and containers of mixed goods. The Solomon Star newspaper said recipients of duty remissions were mainly supporters or those who have close association with the current government of Manasseh Sogavare. He took over as prime minister after the June 2000 armed removal of the then government. The Solomon Islands Civil Society group condemned remissions as being immoral and unfair. "It does not make sense to expect aid donors to continue financial assistance to the country when the government continues to grant excessive remissions," spokesman Bob Pollard said.
Remissions could be granted legally only to assist business development or special welfare needs. "In most cases the remissions totalling close to Sol$40 million do not appear justifiable, but rather benefit the personal interests of a few," Pollard said.
"PM Sogavare himself has been on record several times, calling for remissions to cease, and giving this direction to the finance minister. Why does this self-serving practice continue? A privileged few still now continue to enrich themselves while basic services to ordinary people suffer."
Finance Minister Snyder Rini told Parliament, after Opposition minister attacked the remission: "It is not a sin to give remissions. Has it not been done by previous governments? "The previous government granted 283 remissions in the second half of 1999 and members of the present government hadn't complained. "Yet when we grant remissions to our people, the previous government said it is wrong. What we are trying to do here is to help our own people."
During fighting on Guadalcanal between Guadalcanal landowners and island settlers from the neighbouring Malaita Islands there were demands from both sides for big sums of compensation. A peace settlement last year, which officially ended 20 months of conflict, also mentioned compensation. According to another leaked list, between October last year and late May this year, the Ministry of National Unity, Reconciliation and Peace made 270 payments totalling Sol$18.82 million. While some payments appeared to be legitimate, "we must raise serious questions," the Civil Society Network said. "Have all the payments been through the correct procedures? How many were paid out under duress or under threat of a gun?"
It asked if the leaked list revealed all payments, which it understood were still being made. If wrong precedents were being set the dispersion of a big loan from Taiwan "may pose a further minefield of immoral payments. "The people of the Solomon Islands are suffering and lacking the most basic life essentials that governments should provide. Misuse of public funds must be brought to justice."
Numerous payments were above Sol$100,000. According to the leaked list Sol$1 million was paid as "compensation to militants."
Some others payments were:
- Sol$150,000 to politician J D Tausinga for "educational assistance."
- Sol$123,840 to Guadalcanal militant leader Andrew Te¹e for "disarmament
allowance."
- Sol$50,000 each to two other MPs as "danger allowance."
- Sol$50,000 to another politician, Sethuel Kelly as "compensation for being
attacked."
- Augustine Taluamen got Sol$20,000 for "injury and swearing."
- Rence Taga got Sol$114,000 for "damage to vehicle."
- Richard Baokosu picked up Sol$2000 as compensation for "being threatened."
In August, the Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporations reported that the government had frozen payments of Sol$10,000 to Sol$25,000 to some of its staff as compensation for being harassed by militants. According to one analyst of Solomon Islands affairs "the Big Boys - Ministers of the Crown, members of parliament, officials - are importing goods from overseas and are given healthy duty remissions, some up to 100%."
No date for the election has been set yet, but November is being mentioned now as the month for it.
