ABSTRACT
Fifty exhumations and autopsies were conducted in the Solomon Islands between 2003 and 2006 as part of the medico-legal investigation into the Ethnic Tensions murders. Fractiousness between these people has been recorded since colonial times, but the recent Ethnic Tensions caused economic and political chaos for the Solomon Islands, because its capital city, Honiara, was engulfed in the turmoil. The Tensions culminated in the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF)-led coup, and international intervention was requested by the Solomon Islands Parliament following the Prime Ministers forced resignation. It is estimated that around 100 fatalities resulted from the Tensions and thousands were internally displaced and terrorised before the first contingent of the Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI) arrived on 24 July 2003. Surprisingly, RAMSI forensic officers found numerous fragments of material that appeared to be Solomon Islands bank notes under the stones on Marasa Beach in September 2003.
