Politics of the Solomon Islands
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Template:Politics of Solomon Islands
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The Solomon Islands is a parliamentary democracy within the Commonwealth, with a unicameral Parliament and a ministerial system of government. The British monarch is represented by a governor general, chosen by the Parliament for a 5-year term. The national Parliament has 50 members, elected for 4-year terms. However, Parliament may be dissolved by majority vote of its members before the completion of its term. Parliamentary representation is based on single-member constituencies. Suffrage is universal for citizens over age 18. The prime minister, elected by Parliament, chooses the other members of the cabinet. Each ministry is headed by a cabinet member, who is assisted by a permanent secretary, a career public servant, who directs the staff of the ministry.
For local government, the country is divided into 10 administrative areas, of which nine are provinces administered by elected provincial assemblies, and the 10th is the town of Honiara, administered by the Honiara Town Council.
Land ownership is reserved for Solomon Islanders. At the time of independence, citizenship was granted to all persons whose parents are or were both British protected persons and members of a group, tribe, or line indigenous to the Solomon Islands. The law provides that resident expatriates, such as the Chinese and Kiribati, may obtain citizenship through naturalization. Land generally is still held on a family or village basis and may be handed down from mother or father according to local custom. The islanders are reluctant to provide land for nontraditional economic undertakings, and this has resulted in continual disputes over land ownership.
No military forces are maintained by the Solomon Islands, although the police force of nearly 500 includes a border protection element. The police also have responsibility for fire service, disaster relief, and maritime surveillance. The police force is headed by a commissioner, appointed by the Governor General and responsible to the prime minister.
Political conditions
Solomon Islands governments are characterized by weak political parties and highly unstable parliamentary coalitions. They are subject to frequent votes of no confidence, and government leadership changes frequently as a result. Cabinet changes are common.
The first post-independence government was elected in August 1980. Prime Minister Peter Kenilorea was head of government until September 1981, when he was succeeded by Solomon Mamaloni as the result of a realignment within the parliamentary coalitions. Following the November 1984 elections, Kenilorea was again elected Prime Minister, to be replaced in 1986 by his former deputy Ezekiel Alebua following shifts within the parliamentary coalitions. The next election, held in early 1989, returned Solomon Mamaloni as Prime Minister. Francis Billy Hilly was elected Prime Minister following the national elections in June 1993, and headed the government until November 1994 when a shift in parliamentary loyalties brought Solomon Mamaloni back to power.
The national election of August 6, 1997 resulted in Bartholomew Ulufa'alu’s election as Prime Minister, heading a coalition government, which christened itself the Solomon Islands Alliance for Change. In June 2000, an insurrection mounted by militants from the island of Malaita resulted in the brief detention of Ulufa’alu and his subsequent forced resignation. Manasseh Sogavare, leader of the People's Progressive Party, was chosen Prime Minister by a loose coalition of parties. New elections in December 2001 brought Sir Allan Kemakeza into the Prime Minister’s chair with the support of a coalition of parties. Bartholomew Ulufa’alu is currently Leader of the Opposition.
Kemakeza attempted to address the deteriorating law and order situation in the country, but the prevailing atmosphere of lawlessness, widespread extortion, and ineffective police, prompted a formal request by the Solomon Islands Government for outside help. In July 2003 Australian and Pacific Island police and troops arrived in the Solomon Islands under the auspices of the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI). The mission, consisting of a policing effort, military support, and a large development component, has largely restored law and order to Honiara and the other provinces of Solomon Islands and has been seen as highly successful so far. Efforts are now underway to identify a donor base and reestablish credible systems of governance and financial management.
Country name:
conventional long form:
none
conventional short form:
Solomon Islands
former:
British Solomon Islands
Data code: BP
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Honiara
Administrative divisions:
The Solomon Islands are divided into 9 provinces and 1 capital territory*:
Independence: July 7, 1978 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 7 July (1978)
Legal system: English common law
Suffrage: 21 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state:
Queen Elizabeth II (since February 6, 1952), represented by Governor General Sir Nathaniel Waena (since July 7, 2004)
Head of government: Prime Minister Allan Kemakeza
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
Elections:
None; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch on the advice of Parliament for up to five years; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by Parliament; deputy prime minister appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister from among the members of Parliament
Legislative branch:
Unicameral National Parliament (50 seats; members elected from single member constituencies by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections:
Last held 6 August 1997 (next to be held by August 2001)
election results:
Percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - GNUR 21, PAP 7, NAPSI 5, SILP 4, UP 4, independents 6, other 3
Judicial branch: Court of Appeal
Political parties and leaders:
Characterized by fluid coalitions:
- Christian Fellowship [leader NA]
- Group for National Unity and Reconciliation or GNUR [leader NA]
- Labor Party or LP [Joses TUHANUKU]
- Liberal Party [Bartholomew ULUFA'ALU]
- National Action Party of Solomon Islands or NAPSI [leader NA]
- National Party [leader NA]
- Nationalist Front for Progress or NFP [Andrew NORI]
- People's Alliance Party or PAP [leader NA]
- Solomon Islands Labor Party or SILP [leader NA]
- Solomon Islands National Unity, Reconciliation, and Progressive Party or SINURP [Job Duddley TAUSINGA] (leader of opposition)
- United Party or UP [leader NA]
International organization participation:
ACP, AsDB, C, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), IOC, ITU, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO
Flag description:
Divided diagonally by a thin yellow stripe from the lower hoist-side corner; the upper triangle (hoist side) is blue with five white five-pointed stars arranged in an X pattern; the lower triangle is green