CUSTOMARY LAWS OF SOLOMON ISLANDS
Solomon Islands is a country of many cultures and customs. Natural resource Investors who are interested in Solomon Islands therefore must have a fair idea of the cultures and customs of particular Islands. It is not-uncommon that difficulties arise mostly from discontent from resource owners and investors lost investment and resources in attempting to resolve such discontents. We therefore wish to
provide a glimpse from what is expected.
ISABEL PROVINCE-RESOURCES.
Whitlam K Togamae lawyers are native Isabel Islanders and know the Island culture and traditions. Chief Cecil Togamae, it's customary law & traditional dispute advisor has resolved disputes between tribes, families and individual Isabel basing on Isabel dispute resolution as practiced from ages. His wealth
of Isabel custom and more than 30 years of settling disputes earned him so much respect and a leader in the Isabel community and he has so much to offer.
Land in Isabel is owned by tribe. There is more than just this simple customary law in Isabel. In the land there are resources, forests, rivers, the land itself etc that stays within the land. In order to understand and identify the owners of the resources in Isabel Island, one must know the main lineages in Isabel and
how their ancestors moved around the Island. The traditional respect between in-laws, uncles, aunties,parents and grandparents. One has to know which tribal blood he/she comes from, and which tribal blood he gives birth and nurtured.
Lineages.
There are three main lineages in Isabel, directly linked to three totemic birds-Parrot, Cuckatoo, and Eagle.
The first one is Thauvia, the second is Phosamogo, and the third is Nakmiru funei. This runs through the legislated boundaries of Isabel Province. Every Isabellian connects itself to either of these. To this day, it is unimaginable for one to marry a person of the same lineage.
Succession.
The land and resources are passed down matrilineal through the tribe. It belongs to every person to the tribe, however, every fruit trees planted or any other plants planted on the land belong to the planter. The planter do not have to be a
member of the tribe owning the land. These planted trees can be handed matrilineally if the mother plants them. If the father planted the trees then, unless the siblings of the planter give thanks to the father before the trees can be passed to the siblings.
Who makes the decision over Land & Resources.The tribal ownership of the land poses the challenge to current developments such us Mining or other form of major commercial ventures. An elder or leader of a tribe is not an absolute decision maker of the land and resources of the tribe. This was the case in pre-Christian era but no longer today. The individual rights bestowed by the National Constitution. The availability of Courts and it's dispute resolution process raised gives an avenue to ordinary members of the tribe to challenge the elders.
The Mistakes.
The major mistake by current developers or investors commit is to hold elders or leaders of the tribe as a trustee of the tribe or as for behalf of the tribe. This approach can only breed distrust among the tribal members .Developments
hampered and investors lost their time and resources. The logging related litigations in Isabel Island attested to this. Several Prospecting License has been issued to prospect for minerals on the Islands with promising results. Investors
surely will loose their resources if there hangs an environment of distrust among the communities and tribes.
Traditional dispute Resolution.
The way Isabellian resolve disputes, settle issues between families and tribes without resorting toextra-ordinary litigations is well known in the Solomons. This has been the case since our ancestors. This is the approach we advocate, to enable smooth transition to those genuine investors for Isabel Island.