Former Malaita premier Daniel Suidani and his adviser Celsus Talifilu arrived back over the weekend after six months abroad. Suidani spoke briefly to In-depth Solomons in a Q&A about their trip, the countries they’ve visited and who they met: 

1) In-depth Solomons: You have been away from the Solomons for six months; a lot of us have seen social media updates but can you tell us yourself where you travelled to?

Daniel Suidani: We travelled to some of the world’s leading democracies, including Australia, Canada, and the United States of America and have participated in discussions in Washington DC, New York, Hawaii, Toronto, Ottawa, Canberra and Sydney. 

2) In-depth Solomons: What was the reason and objective of your travels? And did you achieve those objectives? 

Daniel Suidani: Under the restorative economy policy and the Sky Island Pledge that were made by the MARA government, Mala I Tolo Education Initiative came into being. As part of Initiative we were invited to attend the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues meeting at the UN. Thus, upon being removed from my elected position by the national government, it became impossible for me to serve my people directly and to deal with these initiatives until my court cases are resolved. So we decided there is no time to waste by sitting around doing nothing – while we wait for our court cases and the next elections, we decided to focus on how we can advance Malaita. 
We visited those democracies that were successful. We wanted to understand what made them successful and how we can reproduce these successful characteristics in Malaita. We learned that proper education, a free media and fighting corruption were essential to have a successful and developed society 
We also wanted to bring proper ethical development to Malaita and so we met with a variety of stakeholders. We are very pleased to say that we developed some very good relationships with stakeholders who also shared willingness to invest in Malaita given the right and favourable investment conditions. Celsus and I look forward to continuing these relationships and to bring some of these developments to Malaita. 

^{Daniel Suidani welcomed at the International Airport when he arrived in Honiara}

3) In-depth Solomons: There was a lot of talk and reports in the media recently about your stance on China in Solomon Islands. Was this discussed in your travels? 

Daniel Suidani: Yes, actually the government officials, politicians, think tanks and businessmen in these countries were interested in understanding our experience as to the influence PRC has had on our people and government since the diplomatic switch was made. One of which was the use of law-fare in their operations and mission to get the results they wanted. 
We actually presented to the US Congressional hearing in Washington DC to US elected politicians. 
When we explained the facts of what is happening in Solomons and Malaita about the PRC, they were all shocked and sadden to hear what is happening. Like we have said the uses of law-fare and propaganda was very visible. They are also surprised that it has been allowed to occur. All of these countries are taking action including through legislation to push PRC agents out of their countries due to the discovery of corrupt findings against PRC. 
 
4) In-depth Solomons: Wendy Amangono joined you on your trip back to Honiara and you have been publicly advocating for her? 
 
Daniel Suidani: Celsus and I were grateful to meet Wendy again. She has some excellent high-level contacts and relationships which assisted us but most importantly she is intelligent and passionate about Solomon Islands and Malaita Outer Islands. So we worked very well with Wendy on our travels. She is not afraid to speak publicly about issues of our province. She is a genuine person, we believe she will be one of our leaders one day. It is a loss to have her outside of Solomon Islands. Celsus and I want her on our team working with her, so we convinced her to return back to Solomon Islands with us. We are excited about what Wendy can deliver to MOI and all of Malaita. 
 
Wendy: I was impressed at the commitment of Daniel and Celsus, they have genuine love for Malaita and Solomon Islands. Daniel is very different to most of the politicians we have here – he genuinely cares for the people. So I supported them where possible with their meetings and things like that. The former premier is truly one of Solomons best ever leaders, I believe he will one day be Prime Minister, hopefully soon. If that occurs, things will be different here. Celsus is a great support to Daniel as he is smart, experienced and educated. They are an unstopped combination. 
What the public does not know is that they both suffered a lot over the past six months. They were separated from their families for six months, all for the benefit of Malaita and Solomons. They did not live high, they did not survive from SIG monies like RCDF, imprest or the like. They used their own resources and sacrificed their time for the benefit of Solomons. At times they were both sick including the former premier becoming very ill even being hospitalised from working so hard. Thankfully he recovered!