by Charley Piringi
The Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan has awarded Honiara-based investigative news outlet In-depth Solomons one of its 2025 Freedom of the Press Awards at a special ceremony held in Tokyo tonight.
The club’s Freedom of the Press Committee annually recognises outstanding individual journalists and media organisations that contribute to upholding the values of a free press in Japan and the wider Asia-Pacific region.
This year, the club presented In-depth Solomons with the Freedom of the Press “Honourable Mention” award for the Asia category.
Co-founder Georgina Maka’a said she and her colleagues at In-depth Solomons were thrilled and honoured by the recognition.
“This is a huge boost for our small news organisation—one that will go a long way in building our reputation as an up-and-coming investigative newsroom in the Asia-Pacific region,” Maka’a said.
She said the award came as a surprise, as the nomination was made by a foreign journalist who has been closely following In-depth Solomons’ work from abroad.
Eric Johnston, Senior National Correspondent for The Japan Times and a member of the Freedom of the Press Committee, commended the newsroom for its impactful journalism.
“In-depth Solomons set out not only to uncover official wrongdoing but also to spark public conversations that could lead to meaningful change,” Johnston said.
“From the outset, the organisation made an impact. And despite starting with a small team, they published six major investigative pieces in 2024 alone,” he added.
He noted that one of those reports—produced in video format and published online—investigated the wealth of former Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, raising questions about his millions of dollars in property holdings.
“Published shortly before the elections, the story drew significant public attention by highlighting the lack of transparency in the management of public funds and the imbalance of power and resources in the Solomon Islands,” Johnston said.
He added that, given the outstanding and ground-breaking journalism In-depth Solomons has produced to date, the Freedom of the Press Committee believes the organisation is more than worthy of the 2025 Honourable Mention for the Asia category.
In-depth Solomons co-founder and editor Ofani Eremae said the award is a powerful affirmation of the work his small team has been doing over the past two years—pursuing truth through rigorous investigative journalism in the Solomon Islands.
“It has not always been easy. In an environment where press freedom is increasingly tested, this recognition reminds us that courage, integrity, and persistence still matter,” Eremae said.
“I wish to dedicate this award to our readers, our sources, and our communities—whose stories drive us, challenge us, and inspire us to keep asking the hard questions,” he added.
The other three Press Freedom awards presented during the ceremony went to two media organisations in Japan and the other in South Korea.
