Tonga to help with investigation into death in Solomons [1]
Saturday, August 14, 2010 - 15:43. Updated on Saturday, May 17, 2014 - 18:21.
Tonga's Brigadier Tau'aika 'Uta'atu, Commander of the Tonga Defence Service, said that as of yesterday, August 13, he had not received any written report from the Solomon Islands following Thursday's fatal shooting in a rock throwing incident in which one person died and another was injured.
The Brigadier could not confirm that the dead man was shot by Tongan soldiers.
On Monday the Solicitor General, 'Aminiasi Kefu and Commander Fonokalafi from the Tonga Defence Services will leave for the Solomon Islands to help with the investigation into the death of a Solomon Islander following a confrontation by a group of islanders and RAMSI's Participating Police Force (PPF) and a section of Tongan soldiers.
The Solicitor General will assist with legal matters relating to the inquiry into the incidence and Commander Fonokalafi will talk to the soldiers.
Disturbance
Brigadier 'Uta'atu said that from conversations with people on the ground in Honiara he was told that the incident took place at 2.40 am on Thursday, August 12 when RAMSI police and a 10-members section of the Tongan military contingent were called in to deal with a disturbance at the village of Titinge on the outskirts of Honiara.
He said that before the RAMSI police and soldiers arrived at the scene, which was on a higher ground, the Tongan soldiers were called to clear a road block where they came under sustained attack from a group of rock throwers.
Throwing rocks at RAMSI police and soldiers was a daily occurrence in the Solomons and the Brigadier said that the soldiers had been trained to counter such attacks. "They have shields and hard helmets, but from some of the pictures of the rocks that were thrown, if it hit you on the head it will knock you out."
He said that initially the Tongan soldiers said there were only 20 or 30 rock throwers but as they advanced toward the higher ground where the center of the disturbance was they were confronted by about 80 to a 100 rock throwers and the police were retreating. When the Tongan soldiers were firing warning shots into the air only five of them were still holding their ground.
Warning shots
He said that following the warning shots the rock throwers began to disburse and that was when the wounded person was apprehended.
"The person that was injured now has been confirmed that he was not injured from a gun shot. The investigation is still on-going but the dead person apparently had severe bruises on his body."
Tonga's 34 soldiers have been in the Solomons since in April and were due to return home on August 3 but were requested by Australia for a further extension until August 25.