Author: Norm Kelly, ANU

The Solomon Islands elections held in August were conducted peacefully, and largely without incident – a relief to the RAMSI security force which had been bolstered in the months leading up to the elections. The increased RAMSI presence was a reaction to the 2006 elections and the then election of Snyder Rini as Prime Minister, when RAMSI was found wanting amid riots and looting and Honiara’s Chinatown was largely destroyed.

As elsewhere in Melanesia, voter registration continues to be one of the main challenges for election administrators. Read more…