Asian and Pacific nations are watching anxiously as ethnic rivalries flare into violence and political instability in the South Pacific. As Alisha Ryu reports from Hong Kong, there are striking similarities in the conflicts. The attempted coup in the Solomon Islands June 5th by the Malaitan Eagle rebels was the second attack on an elected government in the South Pacific in recent weeks. On May 19th, Fijian armed rebels, led by businessman George Speight, took the country's ethnic Indian prime minister and more than 30 other people hostage.
Regional analysts say events in Fiji probably inspired the coup in the Solomon Islands.
I think what happened in Fiji acted as a catalyst for the fairly rapid copy-cat action we saw in the Solomons. I think the role of the media propels these sorts of changes. In the past, people in the Solomons might not have known the detail of what was happening in Fiji. But now they know instantaneously. So, I think the tendency for copy-cat action is greater.