BY MIKE TUA AND LYNNISSHA RUNA
AFTER the tragic and unjust burning of business houses in China Town’s Business District, local communities, companies, and individuals across the Honiara have come together to clean up along the streets.
When the coach and former national and professional footballer, Batram Suri was watching live footage on social media of the protests in his home in Honiara, he decided to take matters into his own hands and do something about the damage that was done.
Yesterday, he got dressed and went out to join the massive clean-up operation in Chinatown’s burnt commercial district. Equipped with his gloves and bare hands Suri spent almost half of the day removing burnt materials, debris and glass from the roadside and cleaning up the surroundings of the J&M Enterprise building which accommodated DNS and Partners law firm (Batram Suri’s wife place of work).
“I want to help with the clean-up efforts by helping the staff of DNS and Partners Law Firm.
“It’s very disappointing. It was a frightening and saddening scene in China Town,” Batram told Isles media. “I am sad but we will bring it back to life.”
“Although, I am very sympathetic to the country’s Chinese community. It’s important to note and understands the anger of the protestors, but it’s also important to understand that we can protest, but we don’t have to destroy the commercial hub of China Town.
“For now, we must continue to support the local authorities to keep our businesses safe, because after all, it is us (the people) who are going to suffer from our actions,” he appealed.
Batram Suri is still involved with football as he became one of the best head coaches in the country.
For now, it has been peaceful as signs of normalcy have returned to Honiara, after the Governor-General, His Excellency, Sir David Vunagi declared a curfew for Honiara City from 7 pm to 6 am daily effective on November 26 until revoked after days of violent protests and chaotic unrest.
