24 August 2022
Quote
The Solomon Islands' Government denies it "summoned" Australia's high commissioner over concerns about a special investigation into its ties with China by an ABC programme.
On Monday, the ABC reported Australia's top diplomat in Honiara, Lachlan Strahan, was called into the foreign affairs ministry with officials warning "negative media coverage by Australian outlets could damage ties between the two countries."
According to the ABC, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare and senior officials were "furious" about a programme that examined the impact of Chinese state-owned companies' economic and security connections in Solomon Islands.
But the Solomon Islands' Government rejected claims made in an ABC article via a statement late Tuesday, labelling it as "misinformation" and "attempts to damage the country's image and threatens its nation-building process."
Instead, it said the foreign affairs ministry only had a "neighbourly discussion" about the Four Corners programme with the high commissioner and "discussed other issues."
"The intentional use of misinformation and distribution of pre-conceived prejudicial information speaks so very little of ABC," it said, adding "This is also racial profiling that is bordering racism and race stereotyping."
"The Solomon Islands' Government is deeply concerned that such offensive materials are produced by ABC and are allowed to be beamed to Pacific Islands states."
The Four Corners episode also revealed that a Chinese firm is going to buy off the Kolombangara Forests in the Western Province to build a deep water port and airstrip.
But the government claims "it is baseless allegation".
"The KFPL [Kolombangara Forests Products Ltd] is a joint venture of the Nien family of Taiwan who hold 60 percent of shares and the Solomon Islands Government with 40 percent shares," it said.
"At no time have the shareholders made a decision to sell off the company to a Chinese firm."
It said Beijing has "no intention to set up a naval base at Kolombangara."
The government claims the producer of the episode, Angus Grigg, allegedly manipulated the interviewees to respond to his questions in a certain way to fit a particular narrative.
"That speak volumes of his intention which is clearly to allegedly cause division between the governments of Australia and Solomon Islands," it said.
RNZ Pacific contacted Solomon Islands' Government about the claims on Monday but have not received a response.
Source – Radio New Zealand.
End of quote.
Yours sincerely
Frank Short
