Jimu news reporter Li Lili
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On November 24, local time, a large-scale demonstration broke out in the Solomon Islands, and more than 1,000 people gathered in the capital Honiara to demand the resignation of Prime Minister Sogavare. As a result, a large number of shops have been attacked and Chinatown has been burned to ashes. Jimu news reporters connected with the vice president of the Fujian Chamber of Commerce and the Chinese, who both said that the attack was the worst in years.
Chinatown was burned down, and someone's life's work was ruined
The Solomon Islands are located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean and belong to the Melanesian Islands. It is 1600 km from Australia to the southwest, 485 km to the west to Papua New Guinea, and across the sea from Vanuatu to the southeast, and is a member of the British Commonwealth. There are more than 990 islands in the country.
Solomon Islands is one of the least developed countries in the world, with the majority of the population living on farming, fishing and farming, and the national economy is dominated by farming, fishing and gold mining.
On September 21, 2019, China and the Solomon Islands established diplomatic relations.
There are about 2,000 Chinese in the Solomon Islands. Fourteen years ago, Weng Neli, vice president of the Fujian Chamber of Commerce, came here to do beer and grocery business. This time, since his shop was not in Chinatown, he was lucky enough to escape the disaster.
This afternoon, when the reporter contacted Onneli, he was staying at the home of a friend on the mountain and did not dare to go home for the time being.
According to Onneli, the riots began on the afternoon of November 24, when a group of people gathered in the capital Honiara, where they were chased by police and marched to Chinatown.
According to the local Chinese Feng Dangjin, in Chinatown, the first to suffer was a beer shop, the mob pried the shop open, and then broke into the hardware store next door, so one after another attacked... When they had finished snatching things, they started burning.
Onneli got the photos of the scene from a friend, and he was very distressed: "The shops in Chinatown are basically burned, and some people have worked hard here all their lives." ”
The current situation of Chinatown (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)
According to Onnelly's incomplete statistics, at least 50 Chinese shops have been destroyed, most of them concentrated in Chinatown, and a few in the Hendeson area near the airport.
Suddenly, the Chinese in Chinatown were busy escaping, and there was no time to take anything away. They did not dare to return to the shop, some of them lived in the church, some of them lived in the homes of friends, and some of them lived in the homes of their employees.
Burned shops (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)
The Chinese Embassy in Solomon has been the first to express its high concern about the riots. Onneli said that this afternoon, the embassy has convened a meeting of representatives of several chambers of commerce to negotiate a plan to resettle the affected Chinese.
At this meeting, Onelli also heard the cries of a Chinese woman who lost several shops in a row, "She cried very sadly, worked hard all her life, thought she could retire, didn't expect a riot to have nothing..."
The mob attacked indiscriminately, and the prime minister's house was burned
The losses of Chinese shops were enormous, but the attack was not just directed at the Chinese.
According to Onneli, the country's prime minister, Sogavare, whose home was also burned, has fled to the ship for refuge. At that time, the prime minister's wife went everywhere for help, and Onneli and his Chinese friends learned of the situation and sent supplies through the Chinese embassy.
Rumored prime minister's residence (courtesy of interviewee)
Riots broke out in the country in 2006, people were dissatisfied with the results of the parliamentary elections, and rioters set fire to Chinese shops. But this riot is obviously more serious than the last. Onneli said the mob had reached the level of indiscriminate attacks.
According to reports, after burning Down Chinatown, the mob targeted the white shops. They burned down a large number of breweries and tobacco factories, most of which were opened by white people. Then they attacked the institutions of their own country.
"They burned a middle school, and then they burned the bank..." Onnelly said, adding that the group first robbed and burned after the robbery, regardless of the country.
The Chinese themselves set up a security team, which cost an average of 100,000 yuan per day
Feng Said the mob came from Mareta Island, not far from the capital. Mareta Island clamored for independence and confronted the local government for quite some time.
The unrest is still ongoing, and Feng Dangjin, who lives in the Henderson area, has been less affected, but they still feel panicked.
There are about hundreds of Chinese in the Hendeson area. Mr. Feng, who was working on warehouse management, said hendeson was close to the airport and there was a bridge ahead, and that his boss and friends had formed a security team in the hope of keeping the mob across the bridge.
The security team is made up of local residents, about 200 people, armed with guns, and the cost per person per day is about 500 yuan, so the cost of security for a day is 100,000 yuan. Feng Dangjin said: "Although it is very expensive, as long as the shop is not burned, it can only be endured." ”
With no army and just over 800 police, the Solomon Islands government has been unable to respond to these unrest. Prime Minister Sogavare had to turn to neighboring countries for help.
Police at the scene (courtesy of the interviewee)
Onneli said that last night there were already Australian and Papua New Guinea troops coming in. Will it get better tomorrow? Onnelly, who has been here for 14 years, has no heart, and his borrowed friend's house, located in the mountains of the city, is generally safe.
According to AFP, Australia has now taken full control of the security guard in the capital, Honiara. Australia will send more Wehrmacht into the Solomon Islands and hopes to be able to quickly control the riots.
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