South Malaita Island Province. South Malaita came under effective control of the colonial administration after the Solomon Islands was declared a British Protectorate in 1893. The administration included the collection of taxes from the islanders. During the colonial days, the island was divided by the colonial government and missionary establishments into the "Asimeuri", "Asimae", and "Raroisu'u" districts. Away from Malaita, most people from "Small" or "South" Malaita usually just say the word "South", everyone knows what they mean. People on the island, however, preferred to identify only with members of their extended families, where ties are the strongest, and with members of their
Bartholomew Ulufa'alu the last of which he only won in a tied vote. The second-half of the Ulufa'alu government was overwhelmed by the internal conflict commonly known as the 'Ethnic Tensions'. By late 1998, militants on the island of Guadalcanal commenced a campaign of intimidation and violence towards Malaitan settlers. During the next year, thousands of Malaitans fled back to Malaita or to the capital Honiara (which, although situated on Guadalcanal, is predominantly populated by Malaitans and Solomon Islanders from other provinces). In 1999, the Malaita Eagle Force (MEF) was established in response. The Ulufa'alu government struggled to respond to the complexities