Amnesty – 2000
2000
The Townsville Peace Agreement stipulated amnesty for militants engaged in the conflict on the condition of weapons surrender. On December 18, the Solomon Islands parliament passed a bill formally granting amnesty to former members of the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF) and Isatabu Freedom Movement (IFM)who have surrendered weapons or stolen property.[1][2] However, according to the Constitution of the Solomon Islands, “when a Bill has been passed by Parliament it shall be presented to the Governor-General who shall assent to it forthwith on behalf of the Head of State, and when such assent is given the Bill shall become law.”[3] According to the bill text, the Governor General did not sign the bill until February 19. 2001. As a result, the Amnesty Act did not appear to be in force in 2000. The High Court of the Solomon Islands writes in Regina vs. Su’u (2007) that “This [Amnesty] Act was assented to by the Governor-General on 19 February 2001 and came into force on 13 June 2001” (italics original).[4]
[1] “Amnesty passed, Downer visits,” BBC Summary of World Broadcasts, December 20, 2000.
[2] “The Amnesty Act 2000,” National Parliament of Solomon Islands, December 18, 2000.
[3] “The Constitution of Solomon Islands,” June 8, 1978.
[4] “Regina v. Su’u,” High Court of Solomon Islands, March 1, 2007.