News and Comments Tuesday 13 February 2012

Two-storey toilet

CONSTITUTION PROCESS COMMENTS 
JENNIFER HAYWARD-JONES ON THE CONSTITUTION PROCESS. Stars align for Fiji policy shift  Unfortunately, it was a shooting star.

WOW! two stories on Fiji in the NZ Herald that are not nasty, in one night!
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10790989
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10790967  
Nothing on NZOne News but 3News screened this report: -- Lesley Opie in Facebook's Fiji Economic Forum.
 
AND ANOTHER STORY: YASH GHAI SPEAKS ON  Constitution Plans. Thank you, RNZI.

MANIPULATED BY THEIR CHIEFS. “We were instructed not to accept any reforms and the People’s Charter proposed by the Bainimarama government. It was not the people’s choice that led them to ignore the changes that had taken place, because they were only following the chiefs’ decisions.”

 These were the words of Mokani village chief Jona Mualevu in offering a traditional apology to the PM from Mokani, Bau, Tailevu villagers last week. The PM grasped the opportunity to once again talk about dirty chiefly politics that helped bring Fiji "to its knees,"and  his reason for suspending the Great Council of Chiefs.-- Based on FijiSun,7/3/12,
For more about how itaukei  villagers think and act, read Preparing for Democracy II and III (published Wed.Thurs) and then ask what this meant for past elections, and may mean for future ones.

NZ HELP FOR SMALL BUSINESS. Small and medium business enterprises in Fiji will soon be boosted through the assistance of the Business Mentors of New Zealand.Business Mentor CEO said the organization had been in NZ for 20 years and had assisted 60,000 businesses. They have  some 1,800 volunteer mentors, and by the end of this year they hope to have helped 600 businesses throughout the Pacific. In Fji they will work with  Fiji Commerce and Employers Federation (FCEF) to assistance to  small to medium enterprises. General Manager Pacific Ian Furlong said that business owners in Fiji can enroll in this programme by either by visiting their website www.businessmentors.org.nz  or by contacting the FCEF.