Former New Zealand Cabinet Minister, Richard Prebble, has blamed Australian police for last week's riots in Honiara and says Canberra should compensate Solomon Islands for the damage.
Mr Prebble, who was once married to a Solomon Islander, and has been a frequent visitor to the country, says, in an ACT political party newsletter, that the Australian Federal Police attached to the Solomons' Participating Police Force, had erred by firing tear gas at a peaceful demonstration.
He says this outraged the crowd and sparked the riot.
Mr Prebble says Canberra should hold a proper inquiry and then pay compensation.
He also accused logging companies wanting to continue unsustainable cutting of rainforests of bribery.
And Mr Prebble says the Taiwanese government, which generously funded politicians also played a part.
He says the average bribe at the previous election to encourage MPs to support the government was around 25 thousand US dollars.
