SOLOMON IS: Sogavare on RAMSI Consultative Meeting
Updated
Former Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare insists that the Regional Assistance Mission should have an exit strategy. Mr Sogavare says the right time for RAMSI to leave should be decided in a national referendum - not unilaterally. In saying so, he has accused RAMSI of taking unilateral decisions which were assumed to be acceptable to everybody. Mr Sogavare who's now Opposition Leader, made his comments as the parties to RAMSI begin their senior officials' and Ministerial meetings in Honiara. These are the first talks between the RAMSI since the Forum Leaders meeting in Tonga last October. That meeting was boycotted by Mr Sogavare, who was at that time Prime Minister. This week's meetings will address a number of issues, including the RAMSI Review Forum Taskforce Report, and recommendations on how RAMSI can support the policies and priorities of the new Solomons government, headed by Dr Derek Sikua.
Presenter: Samuel Seke
Speakers: Former Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Manasseh Sogavare
SOGAVARE: Well, what is outstanding right now is of course the review of RAMSI, so it is also a matter that is agreed to by all the parties and I would hope that because of Asian meetings should also be looking at how to take that review forward. As you know, the terms of reference have been adopted by all the parties, except that the government then under our leadership had questioned certain aspects of the terms of reference and we feel that they need to give more emphasis to it. For example, the review of the facilitation act and the legal framework that governs the presence of RAMSI in Solomon Islands. We feel that that is the area that needs to be re-looked at, because that is where it gives rise to all the issues that we are currently facing on the difference of opinion on these issues.
SEKE: Is there any particular direction that you want the Regional Assistance Mission to take now in its deliveries and in Solomon Islands?
SOGAVARE: Well, they are five years now in the country. They came here with a specific mission and that is to restore law and order, improve our government machinery, and improvement in the ministry of finance as far as the governance of the economy is concerned. So much of that has been achieved, especially return of law and order. We still insist on an exit strategy at some point in time. Now, how that exit strategy will look like is something that will be discussed with all the parties. Now I think we're sometimes quoted wrongly in saying that we are anti-RAMSI or we want RAMSI to go out and that's not the case. All we want to see is that there is a mechanism in place that will some day transfer the responsibility of taking control of government system by Solomon Islanders, then that's all right. Now the problem is that we are not seeing that happening.
On the basis of this report by the independent study, we want RAMSI to do more on the development side. I have a very strong view on that. As I said, RAMSI is here for a specific mission. It is more an interventionist mission with a very heavy military agenda. And if RAMSI is to continue with the development side of things, it will leave a whole legal framework needs to be reviewed and any movements to development side of things has to be done through the present aid agencies, like AUSAID, and New Zealand aid, and UNDP and the UN who are already delivery agents that are already on the ground.
SEKE: But as far as you are concerned, how do you know that the time is up for RAMSI to leave the country?
SOGAVARE: Well, that is an issue that we want to bring to the people of this country. Now, under the review that we're proposing, there's going to be a nationwide consultations with the people of this country. We are not going to do it in unilaterally, that no-one has the right to do anything unilaterally about the presence of RAMSI in Solomon Islands. What RAMSI has been doing so far is they've been deciding on this matter unilaterally and assume that what they're doing in Solomon Islands is acceptable to all the people. Now that cannot be true.
