Happy Isles in Crisis

Happy Isles in Crisis
Author: Clive Moore
Publisher:
Total Pages: 282
Release: 2004
Genre: History
ISBN:

Gaining independence in 1978, the Solomon Islands, or 'Happy Isles' as they are commonly known, have recently been rent by crisis. The nation has been torn by dissent and violence, which saw the removal of a legitimate government in 2000 and culminated in the intervention of an Australian-led regional assistance mission in 2003. The forces unleashed by Guale and Malaitan militants in recent years-atrocities, chaos and dislocation-have terrorized the people of the Solomon Islands and will not easily be controlled. A large-scale program of restorative or transformative justice is needed. Militants on all sides need to confess their terrible acts; criminals, the pain and distress they have caused; and leaders the mess they have overseen. Happy Isles in Crisis traces the deep historical roots of this crisis of discontent, disaffection and dissatisfaction among the sometimes disparate communities of the Solomon Islands over land and resources, over the complex entwinement of traditional culture and modern society, and over poor governance and poor economic performance.

Contested Terrain

Contested Terrain
Author: Steven Ratuva
Publisher: ANU Press
Total Pages: 305
Release: 2019-09-10
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1760463205

Contested Terrain provides a cutting-edge, comprehensive and innovative approach to critically analysing the multidimensional and contested nature of security narratives, justified by different ideological, political, cultural and economic rationales. This is important in a complex and ever-changing situation involving a dynamic interplay between local, regional and global factors. Security narratives are constructed in multiple ways and are used to frame our responses to the challenges and threats to our sense of safety, wellbeing, identity and survival but how the narratives are constructed is a matter of intellectual and political contestation. Using three case studies from the Pacific (Fiji, Tonga and Solomon Islands), Contested Terrain shows the different security challenges facing each country, which result from their unique historical, political and socio-cultural circumstances. Contrary to the view that the Pacific is a generic entity with common security issues, this book argues for more localised and nuanced approaches to security framing and analysis.

Temporary Special Measures

Temporary Special Measures
Author: Ineke Boerefijn
Publisher: Intersentia nv
Total Pages: 272
Release: 2003
Genre: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women
ISBN: 905095359X

Revised papers en comments that were presented at the meeting organised in Maastricht, in October 2002. The aim of the meeting was threefold: to provide input for the CEDAW Committee; stimulate the legal debate on the issue of temporary measures; and contribute towards the promotion of positive action measures in the Netherlands.

Passage of Change

Passage of Change
Author: Anita Jowitt
Publisher: ANU E Press
Total Pages: 378
Release: 2010-11-01
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1921666897

Numerous issues face Pacific states trying to find their way in the early 21st century. Countries are striving to secure the benefits of modernisation. Governance, law and order are needed to reach such a goal, but development cannot be at the price of culture or the environment. The question of how to develop and maintain sound legal systems and legal rules whilst maintaining the unique cultural heritages within the Pacific is a challenge with no easy answer. This interdisciplinary collection locates issues of law and governance within the particular socio-political context of the Pacific island region, presenting sociological, anthropological and political insights alongside jurisprudential analysis. Key issues including corruption, the role of customary law in modern legal systems, the place of human rights in the Pacific, environmental issues and the structure of the state are explored from a variety of perspectives.

A Kind of Mending

A Kind of Mending
Author: Sinclair Dinnen
Publisher: ANU E Press
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2010-11-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1921666838

With their rich traditions of conflict resolution and peacemaking, the Pacific Islands provide a fertile environment for developing new approaches to crime and conflict. Interactions between formal justice systems and informal methods of dispute resolution contain useful insights for policy makers and others interested in socially attuned resolutions to the problems of order that are found increasingly in the Pacific Islands as elsewhere. Contributors to this volume include Pacific Islanders from Vanuatu, Fiji, the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea including Bougainville, as well as outsiders with a longstanding interest in the region. They come from a variety of backgrounds and include criminal justice practitioners, scholars, traditional leaders and community activists. The chapters deal with conflict in a variety of contexts, from interpersonal disputes within communities to large-scale conflicts between communities. This is a book not only of stories but also of practical models that combine different traditions in creative ways and that offer the prospect of building more sustainable resolutions to crime and conflict.