Ex-Provincial Premier, China Critic Arrested as Beijing’s Influence in Solomon Islands Ramps Up

Daniel Suidani, former premier of Malaita, Solomon Islands, speaks on China's interference in his country, in an interview with The Epoch Times on May 29, 2023. The Epoch Times

Daniel Suidani, the former premier of a key Solomon Islands province, was arrested early this month, along with a former political adviser. The two men were charged with unlawful assembly, related to protests that took place three years ago.

Suidani alleges he was arrested because of his political views, as the South Pacific island nation developed closer ties to Beijing.

Coming just days before the signing of a major infrastructure improvement agreement between China and the Solomon Islands, the arrests were “a gift to Beijing,” says one analyst.

Suidani and his former political advisor, Celsus Talifilu, were arrested on Oct. 3 and released on bail the same day.

Taliflu told The Epoch Times that they were not provided with the charges against them until Oct. 18. Suidani and Talifilu each face charges of unlawful assembly under section 74 and section 21 of the Solomon Islands Penal Code, over protests that took place in Malaita in October 2021.

The men appeared before a judge on Monday, Oct. 21. Their bail was extended and the court adjourned until Nov. 18.

“Three allegations of unlawful assembly for each of us. Copies of the charges were finally given to us yesterday. The police arrested us and then also bailed us out at the same time,” Talifilu told the Epoch Times in an email on Oct. 19.

In an interview with Radio New Zealand, Suidani said the charges against him are politically motivated. After his arrest, police asked him if he was guilty of the charges and he denied them, he said.

“I am going to fight the charges,” he said. “From my understanding these charges have nothing to do with me.”

Background of the Protests

According to an Oct. 22 report in local media The Sun, Suidani and Talifilu were arrested for “allegedly masterminding unlawful assemblies and protests in Auki, the provincial capital, organized by the Malaita for Democracy (M4D) group.”

The protests followed an attempt to remove Suidani from office through a vote of no-confidence in October 2021.

However, an April 2024 report in Chinese state media The Global Times made a connection to riots that occurred almost a month later in the country’s capital.

A map shows the provinces of Solomon Islands. The red dot shows the capital Honiara. Illustration by The Epoch Times, Shutterstock

Guadalcanal, the largest of the Solomon Islands’ nine provinces, is home to the island nation’s capital and largest city, Honiara. In late November 2021, members of Malaita for Democracy traveled to Honiara and gathered outside parliament, calling on then-Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavere to address them, according to reports. 

After Sogavare declined to address the protesters, riots broke out.

Much of Honiara’s Chinatown was destroyed in the ensuing violence, “involving young men from Honiara’s outskirt settlements which have no running water,” according to a Reuters report. Shops were burned and looted and four people were killed.

Sogavare blamed foreign powers—which he called “agents of Taiwan”—for the violence, alleging they were motivated by his 2019 decision to formally recognize China. The Solomon Islands had recognized Taiwan until the change in policy. Taiwan has denied the allegations of involvement.

Bucking China’s Growing Influence

Suidani, a former school teacher, became premier of Malaita in June 2019. As China’s influence in the islands grew under Sogavare, Suidani resisted it in his province, according to reports.

When the Solomon Islands changed its diplomatic allegiance from Taiwan to China in September 2019, Suidani continued to support and recognize Taiwan. Suidani and the Malaitian provincial assembly issued “the Auki Communique,” which banned investment backed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the province. Auki is Malaita’s capital city.

“We are a democracy in Malaita; we believe in the principles of democracy,” Suidani told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in an interview at the time. “They are a communist nation. We are very mindful of involving the communist party here. They must not come, in any way.”

Suidani said he preferred companies from Japan, Australia, and New Zealand to invest in his province. He accepted development aid from the United States, and traveled to Taiwan for medical treatment. He also rejected the installation of 27 Huawei cell phone towers in the province.

No-Confidence Votes

After the October 2021 protests in Auki, a first no-confidence vote against Suidani was withdrawn.

However, another no-confidence vote in February 2023—alleged by Suidani’s supporters to have been bankrolled by Sogavare’s government—succeeded, and Suidani was ousted from power. Sogavare has denied that he was behind the no-confidence vote.

The following month, the national government disqualified Suidani from an elected seat in Malaita’s provincial assembly for “failing to recognize the One-China Policy.”

Suidani had been invited to speak at an United Nations affiliated environmental event in New York in April, but was informed that his application for a U.S. visa had been denied. 

A few weeks later, a second request for a visa was accepted after bipartisan congressional support poured in for his cause, from legislators including Rep. Neal Dunn (R-Fla.), Rep. Ed Case (D-Hawaii), and Del. Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen (R-American Samoa).

Celsus Talifilu, advisor to Daniel Suidani, the former Premier of Malaita, in Solomon Islands, speaks about Chinese interference in the country during an interview given in Toronto, Canada, on May 29, 2023. The Epoch Times

Timing of the Arrest

Just a few days after the charges were brought against Suidani and Talifilu, representatives of the Solomon Islands and China signed the Auki Road project, a major road network project in Malaita to be built in partnership with the Chinese regime.

The signing on Oct. 10 was witnessed by country’s prime minister, Jeremiah Manele, and the premier of Malaita, Elijah Asilaua, according to a report by Solomon Islands Broadcasting Corporation (SIBC). Both men were elected in April.

“This road, which will benefit generations to come, stands as a symbol of what we can accomplish when we work hand in hand toward a shared vision for progress,” said Manele, adding that the project is a key outcome of his recent visit to Beijing in July.

Asilaua said Malaita applauds the bilateral ties between Solomon Islands and China, and believes the Auki Road project has strengthened the relationship further.

“On behalf of my provincial government and people of Malaita, I convey our heartfelt gratitude for the gift of the Auki road infrastructure.”

A feasibility study by six Chinese engineers on the project concluded in January. Funding for the project was secured in July after a state visit by Manele to Beijing. In August, it was announced that work on the project would commence. 

In April, before the country’s national elections, Malaita signed a memorandum of understanding with China’s Jiangsu province.

An article in The Global Times reported on the signing with approval, saying, “This new chapter follows years of skepticism.”

It ascribed that skepticism to Suidani’s leadership, which, it said, “attracted attention for his opposition to Solomon Islands’ relations with China.”

The article noted Suidani’s close ties with Taiwan, and said that Sogavare’s government had condemned Suidani’s “unauthorized” visit to Taipei for medical treatment.

Political Rivalry

Talifilu said the timing of his arrest was “interesting.”

“It happened after my petition came before the court,” he told The Epoch Times. In this year’s parliamentary elections, Talifilu lost the parliamentary seat for the constituency of Baegu-Asifola to Makario Tagini. Subsequently, Talifilu filed a petition in the court against Tagini for bribery.

“Rumors had it that this is the working of the current national government. Nowadays it’s very challenging in Honiara to conduct any thorough investigation [of] such rumors.”

‘After the Switch’

Suidani told Radio New Zealand that through his arrest, the government is trying to link the case to his political views, namely his opposition to the diplomatic shift from Taiwan to China.

When the police questioned him, he said, “they always referred to ‘after the switch’ you were masterminding, and every question the police asked me they always refer to as ‘after the switch’ so I can understand that they want to drive these allegations to connect with the switch from [China] to [Taiwan].”

Suidani said that he’s not shaken by the allegations against him and will continue to prioritize working for the rights of his people.

“We must fight for this freedom, the democracy. We might change leaders but we want the system to remain. That is what I always hold close to my heart, so I will be still standing for the rights of my people.”

Suidani was re-elected this year as a Malaita provincial assembly member for the West Baegu-Fataleka ward.

‘Lawfare’

Cleo Paskal, a senior fellow for the Indo-Pacific with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, has been following Suidani’s case and the geopolitics surrounding the Solomon Islands for years.

Paskal told The Epoch Times that the charges against Suidani and Talifilu are a typical case of lawfare—the strategic use of legal proceedings to intimidate an opponent.

“There are glaring irregularities in the way these charges were laid—as evident by the response of the Magistrate Court,” she said in an email. “It is difficult to see the cases against Suidani and Talifilu as anything but lawfare that suits the ends of both the national government and the PRC [People’s Republic of China].”

Paskal said that Suidani and Talifilu have ongoing court cases that impact the national government, as both are fundamentally against the wider policies of the national government, particularly its foreign policy vis-a-vis China.  The new charges are depleting them of time, resources and international support, she said.

According to Paskal, there’s a public perception in Solomon Islands that the charges against the duo are a “gift to Beijing,” a quid pro quo for its announcement of the Auki Road project.

“This sort of lawfare reduces trust in the police—and now let’s see how the judiciary responds. If rule of law disintegrates in Solomons, it will be very difficult for investors—other than the PRC—to work with locals to build the country,” said Paskal.