Pacific beauty
Report: Cpl Mike McSweeney
Photos: Cpl Rachel Ingram

Operation Anode soldiers patrolling the island province of Malaita have assisted police in countering criminal activity while at the same time building a strong rapport with the people.

Section 2IC LCpl Jim Caird said troops came within seconds of apprehending a person of interest near the town of Malu’u.

“We got pretty close … the lead scout managed to see him but he had been tipped off before we got there … and he managed to slip through our fingers,” LCpl Caird said.

At the provincial capital of Auki, Pte Mark Whiting and his section were also supporting international and Solomon Islands police.

“Just the other night two of us, along with a policeman, had to arrest a bloke with a knife, which was interesting,” Pte Whiting said.

Malaita is only a half-hour helicopter ride from the Solomon Islands capital of Honiara.

The villages, made up of palm-leaf huts on stilts, are carved into the dense jungle. It seems like a different world to the nation’s capital, but the mission is still the same.

Section commander Cpl Andrew Morris said support to police was only part of his team’s task.

“The role of the section has been to conduct presence patrols, predominantly around the harbour and CBD of Auki,” he said.

“From what we’ve all found, maintaining a good rapport with the people is 90 per cent of our job, rather than just the security support to the police.”

Everywhere the soldiers went, they were greeted warmly by the locals. Children’s faces lit up when they saw the Army, and they waved and yelled with joy.

Cpl Morris said his section patrolled some areas by foot or vehicle, but others were only accessible by rigid-hull inflatable boats.

One such place was nicknamed Skull Island, after the macabre tradition the village still maintained.
Most of the villages, though, were Christian. One in particular, Bina, provided Cpl Morris’ section with an unforgettable experience.

“Bina was great. We had the opportunity to stay with one of the community leaders there, Phillip, and he put us up at his house for three nights,” Cpl Morris said.

The diggers patrolled from Bina to neighbouring villages but also enjoyed fishing and canoeing with their hosts.

“We organised a community event where every digger got up in front of about 200 people and introduced themselves,” Cpl Morris said.

“We had an open forum where we discussed RAMSI and invited some of the community leaders and adults to ask questions.

“We ended up having a singalong with the kids, where the kids sang songs for us and we attempted to sing Waltzing Matilda for them.

“It was a really good experience. We also played a game of soccer with the kids and with the champion soccer team of the village.

“Overall it was a great experience for the fellas as it brought it right down to the individual soldier who got a chance to make a difference and get involved with the community.”