RAMSI to be decommissioned in September

Transcript

The Pacific Islands Forum is looking at decommissioning the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands in September this year.

Senior representatives of the PIF made the consideration in Honiara after hearing the priorities and plans of the Solomon Islands government and RAMSI.

These include ongoing preparations for RAMSI's drawdown and the staged and limited rearmament of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force.

Acknowledging that Forum leaders authorised the RAMSI mission in 2003, the Enhanced Consultative Mechanism meeting anticipated Forum leaders may wish to de-commission RAMSI formally when they meet in September.

The meeting's Chairperson, Papua New Guinea high commissioner to Solomon Islands, Fred Yakasa spoke with Koroi Hawkins about some of the outcomes.

FRED YAKASA: RAMSI has been around for the last 12 or 13 years so it is a long, long time and whether they are ready to go and they are prepared to leave and will that be accepted by Solomon Islanders, that is something for Solomon Islands. I think we are here helping it of course and I would think it is quite a long time, time enough for RAMSI to depart.

KOROI HAWKINS: And what kind of preparations and priorities did you hear about from the Solomon Islands government and RAMSI in terms of the drawdown?

FY: I think one of those priorities is the rearmament of the Royal Solomon Islands Police Force which is from what we have seen is satisfactory. Other projects that RAMSI has taken there is a lot of a wide range of activities not only in terms of policing but other sectors related sectors as well. Infrastructure, you know training in general there is a lot of other areas of training that they have got involved in. So there is a wide range of issues RAMSI got involved in while they were here and trying to get the national police up to a level where they are comfortably able to do things on their own.

KH: And you also heard a little bit about the future of this partnership I also understand there is a shift from the RAMSI mission model to a more bilateral approach?

FY: Yes there is some level of confirmation of discussion between particularly Australia and Solomon Islands and of course New Zealand. They are in the region, they are here and ready to help where Solomon Islands requires them and that is the kind of indication given. But I do not want to make a strong statement on this one because it is something that is going to go to the leaders and the foreign ministers in the region to deliberate on further before a statement could be released by those respective countries in that regard.

KH: Speaking of the leaders and that there is a major meeting for the Pacific Islands Forum in September is it possible that there maybe a formal ceremony or a decommissioning of the mission so to speak?

FY: That is something the Solomon Islands government has indicated they are working on in terms of a good farewell. But the meeting will be to see the reports of the outcome of the meeting that we had and the money that we had will then go to a security council which will also deliberate on that and other issues maybe. And then of course there are the ministers and then the leaders. So the draw down has been actually concurred with by the leaders already. So whether or not there will be a decommissioning or not I am not sure but they will be looking at other issues like post RAMSI and lessons learnt and that kind of thing. What we actually saw and this has been expressed across the floor is that there is some level of satisfaction that RAMSI intervention was one of the biggest achievements for the region in terms of us coming together in times when one of our countries in the region needs such assistance and that was well appreciated across the floor. And it was also said that we will learn from here and you know the developments that have taken place and experiences and that is something that we can take onboard for the future in the region.