Solomon Islands police were maintaining an uneasy calm in the capital Honiara Thursday, a day after more than 50 people were arrested in riots following the contested election of prime minister Manasseh Sogavare. Police commissioner Matthew Varley said most Honiara shops remained closed after Wednesday’s unrest, which saw vehicles damaged, roadblocks set on fire and police stations attacked by people throwing rocks.
“Our officers were battling a moving, running crowd,” he told reporters Thursday, adding more than 50 people were arrested or detained for offences relating to “riots, rock throwing and other acts of criminal damage”.
After Sogavare won a run-off ballot for prime minister, crowds of protestors trashed businesses in Chinatown before causing “serious and substantial” damage to a hotel and casino, the police commissioner said.
Riot police were deployed with tear gas and used “less lethal rounds” to restore order after a dozen officers and a number of civilians were injured, he added.
The Solomon Islands has often struggled with ethnic tensions and political violence since gaining independence from Britain in 1978.