His Credentials
Born in Fiji, 16 years in the Fiji civil service, district officer, permanent secretary to the Governor-General when the 1987 coup occurred, author of Kava in the Blood about the coup (he was arrested on the first day), Fiji diplomat in Tokyo and Sydney, and now a private consultant in Australia on Pacific Affairs, Peter Thomson (photo) has recently returned from a visit to Fiji where he had a one and a-half hour one-on-one talk with PM Bainimarama. Click here to listen to what he had to say in an ABC Counterpoint programme. The interviewer is Paul Comrie-Thomson.
Thomson's comments are best heard in full and in context but for those in a hurry, these are the points I found most interesting:
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Reasons for the 2006 "Bainimarama" Coup
In talking about the reasons for the 2006 coup he drew attention to one cause that had slipped "under the radar," the military's opposition to Qarase's Indigenous Claims Tribunal Bill that would have opened the door to multiple, conflicting indigenous claims to all freehold land in the country, and made lawyers "fat for 30 years." The other bills opposed by the military were the Qoliqoli Bill that would have seen a similar scramble among mataqali (tribes) for exclusive foreshore rights, and the Tolerance and Reconciliation Bill that would have freed the Speight 2006 coup-makers from court and jail. [We need to be reminded of these three racially-motivated bills when talking about human rights abuse by the Bainimarama government.]
Bainimarama seeks to remove all vestiges of institutional racism
He talked with Bainimarama about the "way forward" and left convinced Bainimarama would not allow the ethno-nationalist agenda of the past to resurface, hence his actions against two of the drivers of ethno-nationalism: the Great Council of Chiefs and sections of the Methodist Church. All vestiges of institutional racism will be removed. Thomson was happy about this. There was no threat to Fijian interests, but an unanswered question was how to protect the interests of ethnic minorities in a new constitution and new electoral system.
Australian and NZ "smart sanctions" disastrous
Australian and NZ "smart sanctions," especially the travel bans on senior government personnel and their families, made it difficult for the Governmnent to operate and were indirectly supporting a return to the racism of the past. He urged these government to accept the reality of the status quo, drop the sanctions, and engage in positive dialogue to speed up return to civil government and elections.
America and China
On American policies, he said America had followed the Australian and NZ lead since World War II but he thought "cracks in confidence" were emerging as our policies had failed and as Chinese influence increased. The Chinese ambassador saw Bainimarama almost daily; the Australian High Commissioner was not allowed by Canberra to meet him!
Public Opinion in Fiji "shifting"
Asked about public opinion in Fiji, he said Fijian opinion was "ambivalent" but there did seem to be a "shift" towards Government since his last visit. Non-Fijians (about 40% of the population) were worried about the economy and human rights but he thought they were generally behind the Government. Mu>He hadn't found even one person, of different political persuasions, who supported the "smart sanctions."
What will the future bring?
Asked about future scenarios, he said foreign governments can continue to isolate Fiji, and drive it towards what he called the "Burma Road:." He could not dismiss the possibility of an insurrection. He found his option "repellent" and condemned the outgoing chair of the Pacific Forum' s recent call for an uprising "irresponsible." The best option (for Australia and NZ, but also by interference, for internal actors also) is to work with the Government in a positive way to lead Fiji to elections by, or before, 2014.
When time permits - but soon - I urge you to listen to the full interview.
2 comments:
Without yet having an opportunity to hear this interview in full, everything stated by former Fiji diplomat Peter Thomson, is correct and makes sense. Plain common sense. Yet Australia and New Zealand persist and have persisted in a position which is unhelpful, undermining of Fiji's sovereignty and also unmindful of the position of minorities in Fiji, their land and their investment. Will Australia and New Zealand eventually be prepared to account for this undermining of the rights of minorities in a sovereign country where democracy and its processes were used/abused to instill and to reinforce racist/supremacist ideology which they assisted to install through 'bought' and rigged elections? Is this too far-fetched? No, experience on the ground in two elections past has assured many of us that it is not. Neither is it a figment of anyone's imagination. This is known by these two countries who appear immersed still in a futile attempt to justify policy which has patently failed.
VII Generation
Is it not indeed ironic that the former US Ambassador to Fiji, known irrevently here as 'Mr Bean', is now in Burma? This man had sufficiently skewed judgement to believe that the Qarase government would modify these three racist and divisive Bills. How does one know? He told me so himself, face to face. He was advised that this was all 'hot air' that nothing would come of any suggested modifications. Prevarications and lies. However, Mr Bean insisted he knew best. How much more effective will he be, one is driven to wonder, dealing with the Burmese Generals? Has he learned a single thing of use from his time in Fiji when he managed so ably to 'get it' all wrong?
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