Solomon Islands Govt fears second coup

TOWNSVILLE - The Solomon Islands government said on Wednesday it feared militiamen could attempt another coup because they still controlled weapons in the violence-racked South Pacific nation.

Warring ethnic factions are meeting in Australia in an attempt to hammer out a peace agreement.

Solomons Deputy Prime Minister Allan Kemakeza said the government was wary of a coup attempt by one of the factions, the well-armed Malaita Eagles Force.

"It is possible, but what can we do? The only way I can take control of the situation is to co-operate with (the MEF)," he said.

Solomons government spokesman Alfred Maesulia said: "We cannot rule out the possibility of another coup; there is a certain amount of concern about this."

The MEF, which staged a bloodless coup in June forcing an interim government to be appointed, remains heavily armed despite a ceasefire dictating the surrender of weapons.

Malaita spokesman Andrew Nori said the MEF was willing to negotiate, but weapons would not be handed back to the government until the MEF was satisfied with the terms of any peace deal.

"We all agree to the surrendering of arms, we only differ in terms of methodology," Nori told Reuters on day two of the peace talks at the Townsville airforce base.

"The guns are in our hands, of course, and there are certainly still a few of our soldiers misusing them, but we are attacking that problem seriously now," he said.

"I'm sure in the next few weeks we will have all the arms under control and the peace agreement will be signed."

Tension between the MEF from Malaita island and rival Isatabu Freedom Movement from the island of Guadalcanal exploded in late 1998 and more than 70 people have since been killed in fighting.

The MEF stole a large cache of semi-automatic weapons from a police armoury in the capital, Honiara, when they staged a coup on June 5.

The MEF has taken on a security role in the Solomons, which does not have an army, working with unarmed police. But many police have walked off the job in fear and have not returned.

"To ensure law and order, with the arms in the hands of militants and my civil regular police force are without arms, we have to work with them as a bridging gap until an agreement is signed," Kemakeza said.

"Then we will see the transitional stage until the regular police take over the arms again."

Crime in Honiara was rife with armed assaults and robberies a daily occurance against foreigners and businessmen.

"There is much crime, especially against the Chinese who own most of the businesses and armed robberies and assaults are happening in Honiara all the time," Government spokesman Maesulia said.

"But the government and the police are powerless to act, because the MEF has the guns," he said.

A ceasefire signed on August 2 outlined a plan for weapons to be laid down, leading the MEF to stash hundreds of weapons in seven militia-guarded tents around Honiara.

Tension between the Malaita and Guadalcanal islanders has simmered for decades in the former British colony, 1600km northeast of Australia, with people from Guadalcanal resenting Malaitans taking jobs and land in Honiara.

- REUTERS