Petition receive, police reminds public to refrain from any plan protest in Honiara

The Royal Solomon Islands Police Force (RSIPF) have received a copy of the petition handed over to the Prime Minister's Office and strongly reminds those who intended to stage a protest to overthrow the Government to refrain from it.

Police Commissioner Mostyn Mangau says, “The planned protest was illegal under the Procession Act and the current State of Public Emergency Regulation. Your police will not tolerate such illegal activities that threaten Public Safety and National Security.

Commissioner Mangau says, “Request for permission to stage any public protest must be received and approved by the Provincial Secretary and the Provincial Police Commander (PPC) before the event takes place. In the case of Honiara, the request must be received by the Honiara Council City Clerk and the PPC Honiara City for further assessments before any protest could be allowed to take place.”

He says, “The RSIPF recognise the right of all citizens to protest peacefully but that has to be made within the bounds of our law and consideration must be given to public safety. Police have learnt from previous protests that though the majority of our protestors adhered to the conditions that were attached to the approval of their requests, some opportunists hijack the situation turning the otherwise peaceful intention into violence damaging properties and causing injuries.”

I want to assure the good citizens of Solomon Islands especially in the capital city Honiara to continue with ‘business as usual’. Police will continue to monitor the situation to make sure our people are safe and secure,” says Commissioner Mangau.