BY MAVIS NISHIMURA PODOKOLO

THIRTY local community leaders who have attended a conflict sensitivity training are introduced to an effective concept to resolve conflict in the community level.

This concept is called the circle of process. This has been said to be used by ancestors, where they gather around fire to discuss village matters and family matters.

Pacific Centre for peacebuilding office in Fiji believes this will work in Solomon Islands because it had already worked for other Pacific Island Countries.

Circle process is an inclusive process which brings together conflicting parties as well as other members form the community to talk on difficult issues.

Speaking in light of this topic Florence Swamy from the Pacific Centre for Peacebuilding said the main goal of this concept is to be connected with others in good spirit and to act from within our values under challenging circumstances in times of conflict.

She explained that this concept provides greater opportunities for listening and reflection. There are ground rules in this process where one person at a time can speak.

“Also ground rules which is essential in circle process and prescribes the conduct of participants in process and guidelines which provides directions and some information’s on how to begin with the concept.

“The purpose of having this process reintroduced to our communities is because it supports participants in bringing forward their core self, make visible our inter-connectedness even in the face if series differences and recognizes and access gifts,” said Swamy

She adds that this concept had contributed positively in peace making but has its own challenges.

“This includes circumstances where a person goes through the circle process and his/her burning issues resurfaces and as result it will be difficult for him/her to overcome the problem”.

Swamy said with this re-introduced concept it will help peace builders in the country address and manage different levels of conflict in the county peacefully.

The conflict sensitized training was held in Honiara as part of strengthening women’s peace building program in Honiara.

BY MIKE PUIA

SOLOMON Islands will continue to use the BIOMETRIC Technology first used in the 2014 national general elections registration process.

Speaking at the opening of the training, one SIEC’s commissioners, Ms. Taeasi Sanga said the biometric technology will again be used in the voter registration exercise.

Ms. Sanga said the biometric technology will reduce the incidence of multiple registrations that have occurred during previous exercises.

“Using biometric technology, the Commission hopes to produce a more credible register of voters for the 2019 National General elections,” Ms. Sanga said.

She encouraged participants of the training to involve all their community in engaging with them and to provide public awareness about the biometric voter registration program and voter information.

Ms. Sanga said she hopes the training package that is delivered will greatly assist those who are involved in the registration process know and perform their roles at a higher level.

BY ELLISON.T.VAHI

PACIFIC livelihoods and economies reliant on coconuts, oil palm and other palm species are under threat of an invasive biotype Coconut Rhinoceros Beetle (CRB).

According to Dr. Jan Helsen, Director of the Pacific Community (SPC) Land Resources Division, the new biotype of Coconut rhinoceros beetle (CRB), Oryctes rhinoceros was first discovered in Guam in 2007.

He said this biotype known as CRB Guam (CRB-G) is highly invasive with the ability to cause significant damage to palm trees. It can also rapidly adapt to its environment. Since its discovery, new invasions have been recorded on the Papua New Guinea (PNG) mainland (2009), Hawaii (2014), Palau (2014) and Solomon Islands (2015).

Helsen said that CRB Guam is resistant to known isolates of the Oryctes nudivirus (Or NV) which had previously proven effective against the CRB-Pacific (CRB-P) biotype.

He said that study of palms in CRB ‘hot spots’ with uncontrolled breeding sites yielded the following comparative results between the CRB-P and CRB-G biotypes, that is, that the CRB has a long life cycle of around 180 days.

“The adult beetles live up to 9 months, causing damage by chewing into the growing shoot of the palms, which results in the V-shape notches on the leaves after they unfurl, this is only noticeable sometime up to 4 months after the damage has been caused.

“Intensive feeding damage can also causes eventual death to the palms” he said.

He adds that the Tree mortality occurs when beetles destroy the growing tips (meristems) of palms in the immature stages and that the grubs feed on compost materials.

He further adds that the spread of CRB between islands, is highly dependent on human mediated activities.

‘’Soil and plant materials can contain the immature life stages of the beetle. The beetles are attracted to light from boats and planes, which can then transport them to new locations. Detection of first incursions usually results from evidence of physical damage symptoms on palm leaves” he said.

In the meantime Dr Jan said that Management initiatives to suppress CRB populations in infested sites may include; crop sanitation, pheromone trapping, biological control agents, cover-cropping, insecticide application and physical killing of beetles.

“The use of pheromone trap technology is common for CRB surveillance and National Biosecurity Authorities are encouraged to use them for early detection and monitoring programmes” he adds.