The Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands Derek Sikua has called on Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu to assist in setting up a Truth and Reconciliation Commission that will help foster peace on the Islands, following years of ethnic tensions. 

Situated just north east of Australia, the Solomon Islands is a country in Melanesia made consisting of nearly 1000 small islands.

The recent history of the Islands has been marred by political tensions largely fuelled by geographic and linguistic fragmentation.

Tutu has been invited to share his expertise and help the Islanders to reconcile with each other.

The retired archbishop, who played an instrumental role in South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission in the late 1990s, will visit the Solomon Islands in April.

Closing the violence chapter

Tensions in the Solomon Islands reached heightened levels in 1998, when fighting between rival armed ethnic factions led to a civil war. By 1999 a group called the Istabu Freedom Movement had embarked on a campaign of ethnic cleansing, displacing thousands of Malaitans and killing several of the natives.

At the height of the fighting, New Zealander and Australian officials intervened through evacuations, while a commonwealth delegation moved to establish peace. A peace accord was signed in October 2000.

Years of quiet followed, however tensions flared up again at least twice, despite Australian-led regional assistance to the Solomon Islands deployed in 2003.

The Islands are now hoping that Tutu will help to bring a lasting solution to their crisis.

Sharing the South African story

Archbishop Desmond Tutu was the chairperson of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which began in 1996 and continued for several years.

Perpetrators and victims of apartheid gathered in different parts of the country to testify to the atrocities that took place during the regime.

A number of commissioners presided over cases, as the victims recalled their personal experiences and perpetrators admitted to their actions and asked for amnesty from prosecution.  

The job of the TRC was to investigate violations that took place between 1960 and 1994 and to provide support and reparation to victims and their families. Some of the perpetrators who came forward to testify were given amnesty.

For Tutu, the TRC was a vital part of South Africa's history. Speaking on the topic of forgiveness following his reflections post the TRC, Tutu said, "When I talk of forgiveness I mean the belief that you can come out the other side a better person. A better person than the one being consumed by anger and hatred."

"Remaining in that state [of not forgiving] locks you in a state of victimhood, making you almost dependent on the perpetrator. If you can find it in yourself to forgive then you are no longer chained to the perpetrator. You can move on, and you can even help the perpetrator to become a better person too."

Source: www.mediaclubsouthafrica.com