Waves of Devastation

Remoteness, now so often a blessing, has come to be a curse for Solomon Islanders living near Gizo, in the country’s distant Western Province. The April 2 earthquake, measuring 8.1 on the Richter scale, and the ensuing wall of water that swept away anything in its path as it reached land, have left a quarter of the area’s population without a home. Unlike in Asia’s 2004 tsunami, the water has not receded, adding to the locals’ distress.

In coming days, the number killed is expected to climb well beyond the toll of 30 reported in the early aftermath of the disaster. For those thousands now camping out on higher ground or sheltering under plastic sheeting, food, water, medicines and other supplies can’t come quickly enough.

The unspoilt beauty—aquamarine waters, coral reefs, lush forests and white sands—that lures foreign adventurers to these temperate parts has already hosted man-made destruction. It experienced the blood and thud of modern warfare when Japanese and Allied Forces fought crucial battles here during World War II. Still, outsiders don’t play much of a part in the traditional lifestyle of fishing, gardening and carving that has sustained these Melanesian people of the islets and lagoons. Christian missionaries, as well as some shady proselytizers, have founded peaceful flocks. Time lolls about in this clime, news occasionally wafts in. Now they are the news.

Public attention and help will only last so long. Even with the aid of the Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands and international charities, the country’s far-flung provinces are neglected. Honiara’s bureaucrats—foreign and local—don’t get out this way. Violence in the capital eventually shows up in the remote islands as severe shortages of food, chronically ill and unschooled children and dire family poverty. This lack of administrative oversight and political will brings resentment, to be sure. But it also allows charlatans to flourish. When natural resources such as fish and trees aren’t being plundered, then assets like public land and houses are being stolen by crooked politicians and officials. Normality, for these unlucky folk, is a short hop from despair.