Nelson Ne'e (February 2, 1954 – c. March 13, 2013"Former MP dies" , ''Solomon Star'', 13 March 2013) was a
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands, also known simply as the Solomons,John Prados, ''Islands of Destiny'', Dutton Caliber, 2012, p,20 and passim is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 1000 smaller islands in Melanesia, part of Oceania, t ...
politician.
Ne'e was born in Ambu,
Malaita Province
Malaita Province is the most populous of the nine provinces of Solomon Islands. The population of the province is 122,620 (1999). The area of the province is .
It is named after its largest island, Malaita (also known as "Big Malaita" or " ...
. After studying at the Institute of Administration in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
Malaysia
Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...
, he worked in administration for the Solomon Islands Electricity Authority, eventually becoming its Deputy General Manager, before going into politics.Official biography page
National Parliament of Solomon Islands
The National Parliament of the Solomon Islands is the legislature of the Solomon Islands. Its 50 members are elected for a four-year term in 50 single-seat constituencies.
He first entered the
National Parliament
In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...
independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
.
In May 2006, following
riots
A riot or mob violence is a form of civil disorder commonly characterized by a group lashing out in a violent public disturbance against authority, property, or people.
Riots typically involve destruction of property, public or private. The p ...
Manasseh Sogavare
Manasseh Damukana Sogavare (born 17 January 1955) is a Solomon Islander politician serving as Minister of Finance since 2024. He served as the prime minister of Solomon Islands for a total of nine years from 2000–2001, 2006–2007, 2014–2017 ...
appointed Ne'e as Minister for Tourism and Culture. At the time of his appointment, Ne'e had recently been arrested, by "Australian and local police" acting within the
Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands
The Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands (RAMSI), also known as Operation Helpem Fren, Operation Anode and Operation Rata (by New Zealand), began in 2003 in response to a request for international aid by the Governor-General of Solom ...
(RAMSI), whereby Australia and other Pacific countries provided essential services to the country after the inter-ethnic violence from 1999 to 2003. He was charged with having participated in the earlier riots which had led to the fall of the Rini government. He was released after several months, reportedly on medical grounds, but did not retain his position in government after June; Sogavare "was forced to replace imafter a backlash from local church and community leaders, as well as foreign aid donors". Ne'e remained in gaol during the entirety of his hypothetical time as government minister. The charges were eventually dropped, for lack of evidence. A Cabinet leak, however, alleged that Sogavare had exerted influence to have the charges against Ne'e called off. In 2011, Ne'e sued for
malicious prosecution
Malicious prosecution is a common law intentional tort. Like the tort of abuse of process, its elements include (1) intentionally (and maliciously) instituting and pursuing (or causing to be instituted or pursued) a legal action ( civil or crim ...
, alleging that the charges against him had been politically motivated, instigated by Australian police due to his "anti-RAMSI views". His case was delayed when his
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdiction (area), jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include arguing cases in courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, jurisprud ...
was convicted of
criminal conversion
Criminal conversion is a crime, limited to parts of common law systems outside England and Wales, of exerting unauthorized use or control of someone else's property, at a minimum personal property, but in some jurisdictions also applying to types ...
. The case was ongoing as of early 2012; there is no accessible record of it having ultimately been decided.
On 5 December 2007, Sogavare appointed Ne'e as Minister for Home Affairs. The appointment was short-lived; the Sogavare government was brought down by a
motion of no confidence
A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...