Transparency Solomon Islands supports customary landowners raising concerns over alleged unlawful mining at Kamaboe Camp, South Choiseul.
Transparency Solomon Islands (TSI) stands in support of customary landowners who have raised serious and documented concerns regarding mining activities at Kamaboe Camp in South Choiseul. These concerns, reported in the Solomon Star on Friday 23 January 2026, relate to allegations that mining operations have commenced at Kamaboe Camp in an area claimed to fall outside the originally approved Siruka tenement. Furthermore, the Solomon Islands Mining Company Limited of Mr Johnny Sy has not complied with the laws of Solomon Islands.
At issue is not disagreement among individuals, but whether mining activity is being conducted lawfully and transparently.
TSI notes that landowners opposing the Kamaboe Camp operation have consistently pointed to the absence of publicly verified Development Consent, Mining Lease, and Land Acquisition approvals for the site. They have also referenced meetings with officials from the Ministry of Environment in which it was reportedly stated that required approvals had not been granted. These concerns were followed by formal written complaints to the Ministry of Mines and the Ministry of Environment. To date, there has been no clear, public clarification to resolve these competing claims.
In response, a counter-article authored by Chief David Akizama asserts that Kamaboe Camp falls within an approved mining tenement and that the company is therefore operating lawfully. However, these claims rely largely on personal assurances and inference rather than publicly verifiable documentation.
In natural resource governance, legality is not established by title, position, or verbal assertion. It is established through official approvals, gazetted tenement maps, lease instruments, environmental impact assessment report, development consents, land acquisition etc. – demonstrated compliance with the law. Assertions that an operation must be lawful because authorities have not intervened do not, by themselves, satisfy this standard, particularly where formal complaints have been lodged and enforcement action has not been transparently demonstrated.
TSI is concerned by attempts to characterise landowner grievances as being motivated by jealousy or opposition. Such framing risks unconcerned legitimate questions about consent, environmental protection, and lawful process. Disputes over mining frequently arise where clear information is lacking and regulatory decisions are not publicly explained, leaving communities divided and distrustful.
This pattern is not new. Solomon Islands has seen similar situations before, as in the case from West Rennell to Gold Ridge and in the logging and forestry sectors. There were early warnings from landowners that were dismissed, regulatory oversight was weak, and environmental and social damage followed. In each case, the cost of inaction was borne not by companies or officials, but by communities and future generations.
TSI also notes that prior reports raised credible concerns about environmental compliance at the Siruka operation and cautioned against expansion into Kamaboe Camp to avoid repeating environmental harm. Until independent monitoring findings are published, assurances of environmental compliance remain unverified.
The burden of proof in this matter does not rest with customary landowners. It rests with the company and the Government. Where mining is lawful, the evidence should be openly available. Where it is not, enforcement must follow.
Transparency Solomon Islands therefore calls on the Solomon Islands Government to:
- Publicly release all relevant mining leases, development consents, and tenement maps relating to Kamaboe Camp and operation in the Siruka Tenement.
- Clarify whether required approvals have been granted, and if so, under what authority and timeframe
- Publish findings of environmental inspections and monitoring visits
- Take lawful and proportionate enforcement action where breaches are identified
Until these steps are taken, landowners are justified in seeking answers and protection of their land, environment, and livelihoods.
Natural resources whilst a national asset, they are finite resource. Once gone it is gone. Decisions affecting them must be governed by law, evidence, and transparency. But not silence, assertion, or assumption.
SOURCE: Transparency Solomon Islands Media Release
