Rugby Accord, Brij Lal Expert on Tourism

See new QUOTE OF THE WEEK in the right sidebar. Ideas on FAQ and timeline still welcomed.

No137.  CONVERTED TRY. After all the kerfuffle, it's difficult to remember what it was all about. The FRU mucks up it's lottery; Government asks for the Board to resign or it will withhold its F$3m contribution for the World Cup team; someone in the FRU cried "Government interference; the IRB world body believed this and is thought to have threatened to prevent Fiji from playing in the World Cup. The IRB visit Fiji to talk with all concerned. And following its visit last week, chief exec Mike Miller has these words to say:

"The government's commitment to significant investment in Fiji's Rugby World Cup 2011 campaign (will) go ahead as previously planned.  All three parties want ...the Fiji national team to perform to the best of its abilities in New Zealand and it is encouraging that we now have an agreement in place that underscores this objective."

Now, hold it. Mike Miller continues: "The government's financial support is both generous and unprecedented."  Generous? Unprecedented? Is this the same government that was supposedly trying to take over the FRU?

No138. IS NZ REALLY SO LACKING IN EXPERTISE?  Fiji has been picked as the best place in the world to honeymoon, after Hawaii and French Polynesia. They are apparently flocking to Fiji and overall tourist numbers are up. TVNZ reports that "this is despite the presence of a military regime which has been in power since a 2006 coup." Similar negative comment follows.

Then TVNZ ask "South Pacific specialist Professor Brij Lal"  what he thought. Prof Lal is an historian who is yet to say one complimentary word about the Baininamara government. He lives in Australia. He has no specialist knowledge of tourism.  And this shows. He said Fiji was a popular destination worldwide,  thanks [among other things] to marketing of the bottle brand Fiji Water and Oprah Winfrey's visit.  What utter .....!  Fiji has been a popular tourist destination from Australia and NZ well before there was a Fiji Water brand or an Oprah Winfrey show.

This is not the first time NZTV and RNZI have sought inappropriate (but politically correct) information from Australian sources. Tourism is taught and researched in Fiji and almost all NZ universities. Why did our media not ask an expert in Fiji or New Zealand, rather than a person resident overseas with no tourism expertise? Someone with fewer negative vibes on Fiji?

One suspects these journalists have an address book of  preferred sources. [Sorry, Brij.  This is not a personal attack.  Surely you'd agree there are more appropriate sources than you on this issue.]

If you missed them, check out the Weekend Readings and comments on postings from last week.