Solomon Islands: Pacific elections in the spotlight from China and the West

In the Solomon Islands, the night before an election is known as “Devil's Night.”

Political candidates offer last-minute bribes to secure votes, handing out everything from cash to bags of rice to Chinese-made solar panels.

Vote buying is a common tactic in elections in Pacific countries and difficult to eradicate despite tougher electoral laws.

But that's not why some of the world's biggest powers are paying such close attention to Wednesday's polls.

The remote island nation plays a key role in the battle between China, the United States and its ally Australia for influence in the region.

But back on the ground, voters will focus primarily on immediate needs.

More than 80% of the country's 700,000 people live on the outskirts of the capital, Honiara, and most lack access to basic services such as electricity, medical aid, schools, and transportation.

Election Day is a day of festivities, with street parties in Honiara and voters blowing conch shells at rallies. But local residents want improvements.

“I'm really excited [to vote] And I want to see that change,” one voter, Judy, who only gave her first name, told the BBC.

It's good that the government is proactive about foreign relations, but Solomon Islanders want their next elected leaders to “focus on the local level as well,” Marklin said.・Keremama (44) said.

“The next government that comes to power should do what the people of Solomon Islands want…We want a leader who cares about our needs,” he said.

Wednesday's election, postponed from last year, will be the first time citizens will be able to vote since the Solomon Islands pivoted from the West to Beijing.

As a result, the vote could be seen as a “referendum” on incumbent leader Manasseh Sogavare's support for China, he said. Edward Kavanaugh, a researcher who traveled there, said:

“The Prime Minister has been very skilled at leaning into this issue. [geopolitical competition] And you're pitting each of these major regional powers against each other to get incredible concessions,” he says.

The Solomon Islands, about 1,600 km (900 miles) north of Australia, is one of the region's poorest countries due to decades of tribal conflict.

Until 2017, Australia led a peacekeeping mission here.

Two years after his mission ended, Prime Minister Sogavare ended decades of diplomatic relations with Taiwan in favor of Beijing. In 2022, he signed a security agreement with China, the details of which have not yet been made public.

This was a huge wake-up call for Australia and other Pacific neighbors. At one point, there was talk that the treaty could allow China to establish naval bases in the U.S.-controlled Pacific region, but Sogavare dismissed those rumors.

But if he wins again, the prime minister has only promised to deepen ties. The prime minister sees China as the provider of his country's future prosperity, while also making clear his distaste for his traditional partners Australia and the United States.

Since the deal, Chinese aid and investment has flowed into China, bringing new stadiums, roads and other infrastructure. Sogavare told the United Nations last year that China is Solomon's main infrastructure partner.

But his political opponents have criticized his approach to China and questioned whether it is the best path forward for the country. Some say China will review China's security agreements if it takes power, while others prefer working with traditional Western powers like Australia.

People from around 900 islands will head to polling stations between 07:00 local time (23:00 GMT) and 16:00 to cast their votes for their national and local representatives.

There are 50 seats for members of parliament. Negotiations are then held to form a ruling coalition, and members of parliament vote among themselves to elect the prime minister.

Historically, party lines have not been fixed, with more than 100 candidates running as independents. There are only 20 female candidates, and this is a long-term problem.

Meg Keene, a Pacific analyst at the Australian Lowy Institute foreign policy think tank, said the two competing coalitions (DCGA and CARE) fielded enough candidates for one to win.

The main candidates for PM are:

Beyond geopolitics, analysts say this is a crucial election in strengthening democracy in a country with a history of riots and coups.

Memories of recent riots in the capital, Honiara, including those in 2021, still linger, with anger over perceived corruption in the political class, persistent poverty and dependence on China. The situation erupted, and demonstrators attempted to set fire to the prime minister's official residence.

It is also only the second election in the country since the departure of the Australian-led regional support mission.

Election monitors are traveling to the country to monitor whether voting meets fair and free standards amid long-standing concerns over practices such as devil's night. An election monitoring report by Australian academics found that candidates freely handed out cash and other goods in the last election in 2019.

“In the Solomon Islands, elections are fought primarily on local issues and promises. Candidates with deep pockets and wealthy supporters are more likely to gain support and even buy votes.” Dr. Keene says.

But corruption is also rife in post-vote negotiations, where “money, ministerial promises and hotel closures are used to secure support for the coalition,” Dr Keane said in an election briefing last week. mentioned in.

Some politicians have also claimed that the Chinese government interfered in elections, and some researchers have pointed to its influence. Chinese embassy provides gift Days before the vote, fishing nets, knives, fish tanks and solar lights were delivered to the key province of Malaita.

Previous research by Australian academics has concluded that China, and before it Taiwan, funneled money into constituency development funds, effectively considered slush funds, for members of parliament.

Dr Keene said these pots went almost exclusively to MPs who supported Prime Minister Sogavare.

Additional reporting by BBC Media Action's Dipak Bhattarai