Home » News » Spanz Magazine » All Issues » March 2008 » Solomon Islands women confront the challenge of logging

Solomon Islands women confront the challenge of logging

"We don’t want to change our lifestyle," says Ruth Liloqula. "We like the island lifestyle. All we want is a better standard of living - not to become rich but to have enough for
the basics.”

Ruth is from Choiseul in the Solomon Islands. Known locally as Lauru, the island is isolated and lacks basic services. Women are struggling to protect their land and culture while trying to clothe, feed, house and get medical care for their families. There are no sealed roads, few health clinics, and little paid employment. Schooling is prohibitively expensive. Transport is mainly by boat but as fuel costs rise, people must rely on paddle power - taking much longer to reach medical centres, schools and other facilities. Logging, however, is proving to be the biggest challenge.

For the women of Choiseul, logging is more than just the removal of trees. They rely on the forests for the necessities of life including food, medicinal plants for primary healthcare, income from string bag making, and housing materials. The land is part of their identity and a rich resource they want to pass on to future generations. Unsustainable logging by foreign companies is threatening it all.

There are no laws protecting the Solomons’ forests, leaving each tribal group to decide whether their land can be logged. With few other options for cash income there is huge pressure on people to sell logging rights, often creating deep divisions within local communities. Those who have sold remain living in poverty. They receive only a small payment and then the trees have gone.

Logging is destroying the environment as foreign weeds that choke native plants take over, water supplies are contaminated, soil is eroded and other food sources are lost as increased flash flooding washes away shellfish beds.

Ruth is especially concerned about the leko tree. It grows in only two areas of Choiseul and its bark is used to produce a strong string that is then made into bags. “It lasts for a very, very long time and that’s what is special about leko,” explains Ruth. But the trees may become extinct and “our future children will not have the opportunity to use and to know about this very important tree here in Choiseul.”

CWS partner the Lauru Land Conference (LCC) women’s programme, of which Ruth is coordinator, is helping local women address these challenges. The programme brings women together in workshops to be trained in new skills and revive traditional handicrafts. Groups have recently taken up tie dying and screen-printing fabrics, clothing and linen using old x-rays for the stencils. The finished products are sold in the capital Honiara. By developing alternative income opportunities, the LCC hopes there will be less pressure and women will gain in confidence to argue against the sale of logging rights.

The craft workshops also provide an opportunity for women to share information, learn about environmental and political issues, and decide on strategies for change. Women are now speaking out in tribal councils and in some cases picketing the boundaries of their land to stop the encroachment of loggers. They are enthusiastic about the LCC women’s programme. One trainer says, “I’m glad to say that the programme is important to them because it brings them together to support each other.”

Their main hope now is to save their forests. “I love the traditional way of life,” says Ruth, “because we’ve got our peace of mind. When you’re sad you can go to the forest and you can look at the trees and be happy.” She is working to ensure her island can meet its own development needs without giving up its traditional culture.

You can learn more about the LLC Women’s programme, its development approach and the challenge of logging in the CWS study series “Lauru Our Land: Solomon Islands women face the future” available on DVD or video with accompanying study material. Contact CWS: 0800 74 73 72 or cws(at)cws.org.nz