The Watery Border

 

SOGAVARE and The Shortlands border

The porous watery border.

Come January 17, Solomon Islands PM Manasseh Sogavare will turn 67.

The Papua New Guinea born Solomons Prime Minister has set some sort of  a record for PNG's closest Melanesian neighbour.

He is serving his tumultuous fourth stretch as Prime Minister of the country where trouble flared in the capital Honiara last December when rioters targeted and razed parts of Chinatown. 

There is no doubt that Sogavare is a pro China leader. Whatever may be his birthday present from China, we don't know.

But from his place of birth PNG, he got an early Christmas bash when PNG police and warders were sent to Honiara to quell the rioting.

PM Manasseh Sogavare, born in Popondetta, PNG, now PM of Solomon Islands.

Now Sogavare is turning his attention to PNG's Autonomous Region of Bougainville, which shares the closest stretch of water with SI's Shortland Islands.

It seemed that 2 weeks ago, 4 Bougainville villagers from Buin transported a sole Solomon Islander back to Shortlands, a 5 minute boat ride from south Bougainville. 

The border is reported closed but Bougainvilleans and neighbors Shortlands islanders have traditional border crossing arrangements so they come and go.

It wasn't the arrangements that ticked off birthday boy Sogavare but the latest ravage on the planet Covid 19.

According to Sogavare as reported in PNG's Post-Courier newspaper, that the man who entered Shortlands has tested positive for C-19.

That seemed to have shaken and stirred PM Sogavare.

Last Friday,  Sogavare appealed to his fellow Solomon Islanders specifically at the Western Border not to allow Bougainvilleans across the border.

In his national address, Sogavare recapped the country’s first COVID 19 case recorded from a Shortland Islander, dropped off by four Bougainvilleans in Shortland who was automatically tested positive and is still in a 14 day quarantine with his seven family members who also tested positive.

The four visitors returned to Bougainville the same day and are back in their respective villages.

PM Sogavare singled out the New Year Delta and Omicron cases recorded in Solomon Islands which were brought in by citizens returning from outside Honiara hence his appeal.

“The Western Border continues to be an area of priority for health. The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force and other and other border force agencies, it represents a potential source of COVID 19 incursion into the country.

“For example, on New Year’s Day January 1, a man from Shortlands travelled with four Bougainville nationals from Bougainville to Shortland.

“The four Bougainvilleans returned straight after dropping off the man. The man is now held at the quarantine facility in Nila along with seven of his family members with whom he had made close contact.

PNG PM James Marape has something in common with Sogavare. They are both sons of SDA pastors and recognize the  one China policy.

“They will undergo 14 days of quarantine and only released if all tests results are returned negative, five who had been held at the Nila isolation ward at Shortlands will be released after serving 14 days if their results return negative.

“These five individuals have made close contact with people from Bougainville.

“My good people, living along the Western Border, I ask you to refrain from going across the border to Bougainville and I also ask you to not allow any visitors from Bougainville to come to your villages during the period of the State of Emergency. Please continue to be vigilant to prevent the entry of COVID 19 through our Western Border,” he said.

ABG Health Secretary Dr Clement Totavun said they were not aware of the incident singled out by PM Sogavare, but also said the border was closed since 2020 when the COVID 19 initial measures were released and PNG Immigration and other border offices instructed for immediate closure.

Dr Totavun said: “There is currently a ban on Traditional Border crossing. The border is closed. The Border Protection Authority is supposed to man the border but surveillance at the moment is not effective.”

But Totavun said he will communicate with the PNG National Pandemic Controller David Manning and discuss this issue further.

Happy Birthday in advance Mr PM Sogavare.

A SI police patrol. They keep watch on the border.