[Marxism] Solomon Islands:Aussie Imperialism at work

[Ggregray@xxxxxxx]

Thousand of Solomon Islanders have continued to demonstrate strongly against
what they have claimed is a rigged outcome to the elections. There has been
widespread destruction in the capital Honiaria and there are reports that the
police have abandoned  Chinatown and other central areas of the city.
The strong  peoples movement has not only forced the newly chosen Prime
Minister to flee and to stay at a secret location. It has ripped open yet again 
the
myth that an oppressed people will welcome the forces of Imperialism in the
guise of liberators.
Australian Prime Minister , John Howard, announced that 110 Australian troops
and an extra 70 Australian Federal Police  officers are being sent into the
Solomons at the request of the SI Government. Howard said that the SI was an
independent nation and that to send in troops without an invitation would amount
to invasion "and we don't do that" he said. Iraq wasn't mentioned by Howard.
But the so-called invitation is just a sham and a formality reminiscent of
the invitation sought from the puppet government of South Vietnam when Howard's
predecessor and idol Sir Robert Menzies wanted to join the imperialist war
there.
Foreign Minister Alex Downer expressed  Australian imperialism's arrogant
attitude
towards the Solomons more directly and more truthfully:
"The situation there is inherently unstable and our police will have to
remain there for a long time to come and we will have to be prepared from time 
to
time to send in military reinforcements if it's necessary just as it is at the
moment."
No worries about invitations and independent countries there then.
The Australian police and military forces are in SI  as part of the Regional
Aid Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI)
This was set up in 2003 after years of fighting in SI was seen as a threat to
stability in the south Pacificregion. Australia supplies the largest number
of forces to RAMSI with participation by New Zealand,Fiji and Kiribati.
The Australian Fedral Police  were singled out by the Speaker of the SI
Parliament, Sir Peter Kenilorea, for having used tear gas on a relatively 
peaceful
demonstration at Parliament house yesterday when news came out that Snyder
Rini had been chosen by the parliamentarians as PM over his rival Job Dudlley
Tausinga. This result was widely considered to be a surprise and corrupt
influence was suspected.
Sir Peter also declared that he had ordered AFP officers to leave Parliament
house when they attempted to use it as an organising base.
Austalian Labor Party leader Kim Beazley has offered his full support to
sending more troops into SI. This should be widely condemned by Labor Party
members, trade unionists and socialists.
We should campaign for Australian imperialist forces to be withdrawn from the
Solomons just as we call for their immediate withdrawal from Iraq.

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