11 Mar 2010

More volunteers to testify at Solomons Truth Commission

2:28 pm on 11 March 2010

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Solomon Islands says more witnesses have volunteered to testify at future hearings into the ethnic tensions.

The Commission says it will hold seven more public hearings this year, with the next to be held on the island of Malaita on April 10.

Jo O'Brien has more

"The first hearing into the conflict, which left about 100 people dead and 20,000 displaced between 1998 and 2003, concluded yesterday. 19 witnesses gave testimony, including a woman who lost her husband, brother and niece, a man whose father was tortured by militants, and a Guadalcanal woman who was attacked because she married a man from Malaita. During the hearing there were calls for perpetrators to come forward to tell their stories, and the commission's chairman, Father Sam Ata said it will invite them to testify because they also need to heal. The Minister for National Unity, Reconciliation and Peace, Sam Iduri says the level of public support and interest in the hearing has far surpassed the ministry's expectations."