Tongan Capital Burns · Global Voices
Preetam Rai

Riots broke out this afternoon in Tongan capital city Nuku'alofa.
Image from Tonga Now Portal
Samiuela LV Taufa  on Nomoa.com, a community site in Tonga posted this email
Today we finally hit the bottom of the bucket. It started with the stoning of the Prime Ministers office at 3:30pm and then quickly led to stoning of the Finance Ministry, a smash and grab raid of Molisi Supermarket (PMs private business), smashing of front of Pacific Royale and burning down of the Shoreline offices. This led to the stripping of Leiola Duty Free shop and then burning of Molisi supermarket, ANZ Bank, Tonghua, Taumoepeau family business, …
A market in Nuku'alofa city centre on a regular day
Ms. Vakaivisavosa in neighbouring Fiji Island says the Tongan Prime Minister Feleti Sevele was targetted by the mob because they felt disappointment at the pace of democratic reforms in Tonga. Pro-Democracy groups in the islands want a lesser role for the royal family in running the country. The blogger remembers the 2000 riots in Fiji where the protests ended up in looting.
I am reminded of the riots that took place in Fiji in 2000 where looting became a crime of opportunity and organised gangs of robbers led the smashing of showglass windows and burnt selected businesses.
Chinese businesses were also the target of the mob and the Chinese families who own the shops had to seek refuge in the Chinese embassy.
Nomoa has another post earlier that tried to figure out the mob's objective
We don't know whether this was a politically motivated attack, or whether it was scare-mongering personal by the detractors to government against the Prime Minister and any other scape goat they can blame to increase their own power-base in Tonga. What we do know is that the most high profile properties of the Prime Minister and a few business leaders were primary targets of attacks, with no direct connection to government propriety or accountability.
Ms. Vakaisavosa asks the Fijian government to take a hint from the situation in Tonga.
This explosion of anger in Tonga where representation in parliament and cabinet is reserved for certain bloodlines is a warning to Fiji where life gets harder everyday while the elite visibly get richer and do not seem to notice the discontent and hunger around them. We see increasingly violent and desperate criminals who lurk and prey on the successful for any opportunity to grab at the material goods denied based on the ability to pay.
Whatever the justification for the riots, Samiuela LV Taufa does not agree with the mob's action
All, in all, whatever the justification from the “Democratic Movement” to incite this level of violence against members of society, they surely walk a fine line between Stalinistic and Hitlarian methodologies that justifies the means by the cause.