AUSSIE WANTS MURDOCH OUT. Australian millionaire Dick Smith thinks the Australian Government should follow Fiji’s lead and “rack-off” Rupert Murdoch’s News Limited and its national newspaper The Australian out of the country. He described the Murdoch-owned media as the "evil empire" and claimed The Australian constantly runs biased news.
CONFUSED TOURISM INFORMATION. A reader writes:"I'm confused. You report that tourism figures are booming? Why then is Air Pacific going broke, resorts are closing and no one is making money? Doesn't sound like a successful business plan to me? My son and his family just came back from a holiday in Fiji. I cannot believe how cheap it was. He almost got paid to go there? He demanded discounts on everything and got it."
Answer: There's good and bad news on tourism but Air Pacific is not going broke. It had a huge loss of $F60 million this year and is facing competition from larger airlines. One or two small resorts have closed because they could not meet debt obligations, and two large unfinished resorts never fully opened. The larger hotels and resorts are open but in competition with popular tourist destinations in Asia. Hence their basement prices. Samoa and Vanuatu have also benefited from Fiji's negative publicity.
But tourism numbers are up, and if they stay up and the world economy recovers, and if Fiji can fight off the negative publicity, the future should be brighter. That's a lot of 'ifs' but there would be one 'if' less if Australia and NZ really put their shoulders behind Fiji's economic and political recovery. That's another 'if.'
Note: Saras'sista is a a regular anti-government commentator on this blog. Irrespective of near full flights by three international carriers, and the advent of Jetstar, he or she writes: "i don't accept any figures from this regime' as even they accept that there is no oversight by anyone, is this a bit like famine in north korea claiming to be a bountiful harvest??? No doubt there are tourists and no doubt they will still come, but the idea that we just accept whatever figures are plucked from the sky to reflect the actual position is highly amusing. This regime would not allow the reporting or anything else would it???
CARVING UP AUSSIE AID. Click here.
UPDATE ON TUISOLIA & JALAL CHARGES. High Court Judge Priyantha Fernando will make a ruling this Friday on whether the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions can expand on the two charges which remain against former Airports Fiji Ltd CEO Sakiasi Tuisolia and his wife Imrana Jalal. Last week the Court ordered a permanent stay on six of the eight charges while it allowed the DPP to pursue the case only on two charges where it is alleged that Tuisolia was operating a restaurant without a business license and Jalal is alleged to have given false information to a public officer.The trial date is set for August 27th-30th.
VANUATU OPPOSITION LEADER Maxime Carlot Korman says Prime Minister Edward Natapei was influenced by Australia when he made the call to defer the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) meeting, which Fiji had been due to host last week."Australia ... influence Natapei, also it was trying to divide, create a division, between our Melanesian leaders."
BIGGER COMPANIIES TO TAKE UNEMPLOYED. All companies that have more than 50 employees will have to take on a certain number of unemployed people as attachees from the National Employment Centre. Read more.
Saras'sista says the comments on this posting are fantastic, and I agree. Click on "Comments" below to read them.
26 comments:
What are 'unempoyed' Croz. If you mean 'unempowered' you are spot on given the current situation for Fijians.
However if you mean 'unemployed' - which is an increasingly serious situation in Fiji under the junta - the attempt to hide the figures by forcing employers to take on 'attachments' is a farce - unemployment is unemployment!!! Burma, North Korea and Zimbabwe have a similar situation - it is not uncommon when democracy is destroyed.
Croz,
I think you will find it was the military coup that created the negative publicity (this was caused by the Fiji military not Australia) and recent flare ups come from their expolsion of Australia's senior diplomat, not to mention the regular rants and raves from Frank on how everything in Fiji is Australia fault.
Fiji should move first....
Respectfully I would suggest that it is Fiji who first needs to "put it's shoulder" behind Fiji's economic and political recovery. Also despite any best effort economic recovery is unlikely to come without political recovery. The idea that you do one first and then the second later is just childish.
If Fiji announced it was going to start drafting a new constitution tomorrow I am sure Austrlaia would offer to help. If Fiji anounced a genuine time line and inclusive process for dialogue I am sure Australia would help. Actually the EU, Commonwealth, US, Japan, AU and NZ would all help.
It could even be a catylst for a slow lifting of travel bans.
Eating out and about in Suva
Did a quick survey of my favourite cuury spots, pizza place, grocer, grog shop, watering hole and strolled through the market and craft market.
Looks like FICAC and DPP are about to get very busy. I managed to find less than half these businesses displaying a licence. They should all be arrested, threatoned, passport removed and presented to the high court. They can always get their passports back after great efforts and legal battles.
Lucky for them none of them are publicly vocal or critical of the coup and military government.
Unemployed....
If the article is correct it states big companies must take on unemployed including those who have retired ? So those forced to retire from public service will have to be picked up by the private sector.
This is a big story and if the decree came into effect in January 2010 why are we only hearing about it now. I'm sure there was lots of consultation with business.
Will the government and military also be taking on the uneployed ?
@ unempoyed...
What ever do you imagine democracy has to do with unemployment? Spain has the EU's highest rate of unemployment: 20%. It is the worst it has ever been in Spain. Under General Francisco Franco fewer would have been unemployed. In fact they would have been 'deployed' to build dams and other large infrastructural projects. France had almost 10% unemployment during the entire 1980s. France did not cease to be a democracy at that time. And at least 4% unemployment was the rate that PM Margaret Thatcher found necessary in the mid 1980s to keep inflation at bay. She was frequently attacked for this by the UK trade unions. However, she firmly believed that inflation was a worse scourge and had led to the outbreak of World War Two in Germany. So, for heaven's sake, let us be clear about any notional relationship between 'notional democracy' and unemployment. If you are talking of investment - that might make more sense. But investment was never high in Fiji under Qarase et al. And the notional benefits it yielded were quickly dispensed with when an idiotic loan in US dollars was taken out: US$150m now repayable in September 2011 with interest out of devalued by 20% Fiji dollars. That is something to bemoan. Guess who voted for it? Did you by any chance?
@ unempoyed ... Do can't possibly think unemployment is confined to the countries you mention? Or perhaps you can, since you are trying to make a point. The employment attachments are of limited duration and seem to me to be a sensible way to get some people employed. But then you are probably not interested in sense, either.
@ Anonymous... I agree the coup started the overseas negative publicity. There certainly wasn't any when Qarase and his cronies were robbing the country, and even the Fiji Times was commenting on the their corruption. I agree also that the Aus HC expulsion was unwise, but not unwarranted, and that FB's PR is not good.
But I fail to see how any intelligent foreign government thinks ongoing negativity is helping to resolve the situation in Fiji. We should all be working to make sure FB gets the reforms done and has no excuse to delay elections beyond 2014.
You may not agree, but it's impossible to claim any successes from Aust and NZ actions to date. If a policy does not work, wise men look at alternatives.
Croz
Australia, NZ, EU, US, indeed no country that values democracy and rule of law is going to give legitimacy to a military junta. To think otherwise is wishful thinking. All these countries, and others, want to help Fiji - and continually do help them when it is needed - but if Bainimarama genuinely wants Fiji to move forward (and many are NOT convinced that is is real agenda) - then he needs to stop fooling himself and immediately go back to the barracks. He will NEVER get legitimacy or credibility until he does so.
And Croz, and in your heart you know this is true, the longer he remains as a dictator the bigger the whole is he digs for himself. Many dictators before him have tried the same thing - all have failed - nobody cares if he takes 4 years or 40 years - he will fail. And the people of Fiji are the losers.
Reality check Croz - before it is too late!
@ croz and @anon
Perhaps BOTH Australia and Fiji need to change their approaches.
Frank can't expect Au to accept him as a legitimate PM becuase he is not.
If he resigned from the military that might help.
He would at least be a civilan then and perhaps he should formally
adopt the title of interim PM. He should also
ask miltary appointments in government to resign from military or return.
Australia should then find a way to engage and help that is not seen
as supporting the coup or military who enacted it but
genuinly helping a return to democacy.
With a election this will not be high on Australias
Prioity list but it could happen if Fiji takes the
lead.
There are some who believe Frank is genuine and he needs
to show the rest he is.
@ Wishful thinking ... Nothing I have ever written in the blog has ever called for the legitimisation of the government. My focus has been on dealing with a reality; the imbalance of overseas media (and earlier, the bias in the Fiji Times); recognizing the good (and long overdue) things being done; questioning in a helpful manner the poor decisions and "bad" things being done, and of course criticising the well meant but unhelpful policies of Aust and NZ.
They are unhelpful to a good resolution because they are unrealistic. They make the economic situation worse; they prevent the more able from applying for key government and board positions; and they undermine the political process which makes FB even less likely to engage his opponents in dialogue. In short, they help to create a seige situation and a seige mentality which could produce what we both fear most: an entrenched military after 2014.
Nearly two years ago I wrote about the dangers of a failed coup. It may seem strange to say so but ANZ should help the coup to succeed, because in this way they would make it doubly difficult for Bainimarama (or God help us, someone else) not to hold elections in 2014.
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Tuisolia and Jalal, and their takeaway shop. Wow, what a catch in the name of "cleanup campaign" Amen. Goodbye NBF and your debtors. I bet any money, that if there is an investigation regarding the NBF, the Maras and Ganilaus will split the army.
The first step that the NZ and Oz governments need to do immediately, is drop the travel bans - at least on those civilians who want to help Fiji move forward. Maybe then there will be a reduction in the military presence in government. If they don't do this it will probably take much longer than 2014 for Fiji to be ready for free democratic elections. NZ and Oz need to start practically helping Fiji once the upcoming Pacific Leaders Forum meeting is concluded. I heard something interesting the other day and I am not sure if it is true and I would like it to be confirmed. Is it true that every top ranking officer who goes through Sandhurst Military Academy in the UK is told that when their government stops working for and listening to the people - the military are to take over until the situation is sorted out and democracy is restored. If this is true then does this mean that the military, (possibly in NZ and Oz too,) is the ultimate watchdog for protecting and upholding true and proper democracy in a country that practices true and proper democracy?
@ Croz
The dangers of failed coups? Well, let's get back to General Francisco Franco. His coup did NOT FAIL. He rule, draconian and cruel, finally propelled Spain into modernity and allowed a Communist turned Socialist to be a democratically elected PM in 1976. This was done at the same time as enabling a Constitutional Monarchy to be established and King Juan Carlos came back to his homeland from Portugal (a descendant of Queen Victoria interestingly). Spain has been stable ever since. It currently is in economic woe: it is a democracy. Fiji is not but it is also challenged hugely by natural disasters and the global economic crisis. Fiji would have been in dire straits anyway with a racist, profligate and completely incapable government ensconced in May 2006 in elections which were not free nor fair - which were a disgrace to any electoral process anywhere in the globe.
So what does this have to do with the "price of fish"? Quite a lot and if Australia and New Zealand refuse to be sufficiently honest to grasp this, then they too are seriously flawed democracies. Ask their taxpayers and voters what they think of the plight of the Pacific Island small nation states. Not for one moment may we suppose they would support the curious foreign policy of their leaders. There is a streak of justice and fair play in most Kiwis and in most Aussies. We all fought together for this "fair play" in 1940s in theatres of war near to home and afar. Why are we so at odds now? Or is this perceived and not real?
The thing that strikes one most when reading what has been said is how profoundly unaware of history and macro-economics so many appear? It is impossible to determine events on the ground if one fails to appreciate the evolution of other nation states and how they became what they are today. Most went through periods of instability, turmoil and even terror (like France? like the US of A?) before they became free. Many suffered from insurgent and corrupt agents doing their best to tear them apart. We need to round out our appreciation of past world events and beef up our knowledge of current affairs outside this region to get a hold on why freedom is attained through struggle and difficulty. Freedom is the most ardently wished for condition for mankind: Liberty through Justice. Do New Zealand and Australia sniff at this? If they do, have they any business doing so?
@ croz
To be clear , again, i am not anti-government, i am anti 'this government/regime'. It is different to being pro-regime, very different. I have no wish to see fiji going down the same path as Qararse et al, but i make it very clear i see this as an illegal occupation and there needs to be consequences to all.
In addition, related to this current topic, my concern is what sort of government is there going to be when there is huge vacuum left . ven if ther is an election in 2014.It is not obvious to anyone what actual 'progress' there has been towards this end. In Spain , a curious example, the monarchy was re-imposed without a referendum or consultaion at the behest of an ailing dicator who was also given immunity .It worked and I would be the first to say the spanish and latino poeple have generally embraced the symbolic and unifying nature, and cache of a king, but there was also an attempted coup by militray officers after his installation. this may well be the case here too after 2014. it does not bode well.
Bias in the Aussie media reporting on Fiji, bias in Fiji Times? Does this imply that there are 'unbiased' media? If it does I consider this view - with all due respect - a bit naive. Most would agree that all media are biased and have to be. Objectivity is a very elusive principle and in most parts of the world it is achieved through a free press that reports from their different perspectives. The BBC reports differently from CNN after all. Governments normally believe that their citizens are grown up and intelligent enough to form an educated opinion from the variety of 'biased' reporting. In Fiji, we have Orwell's brave new world. I am sure Croz, you would consider the Fiji Sun 'unbiased' would you?
The thing that strikes one most when reading what has been said in many of these latest blogs is the increasing sense of desperation of coup supporters who are now realising the dictatorship is crumbling? Many seem so profoundly unaware of history?
Sanctions are obviously working well and now need to be increased. As an Australian it does not concern me at all if people who are coup supporters can't travel to Australia. As Bainimarama says - go north or wherever. Cheap tourism to Fiji is good - a coup bonus for Australians!!
It is all very simple really - Fiji will move forward when the military realise their mistake and go back to the barracks, and Fiji returns to democracy and the rule of law. The coup has failed - just accept it and move on.
I have been making this observation for quite some time now.
Anti-Fiji/Bainimarama bloggers normally stop commenting on an article whenever someone write something that suddenly shred all their arguments to pieces. For example, SOE's comment above. None of the anti-Fiji/Bainimarama people have so far said anything about SOE's comment. This proves to me one thing. The anti-Fiji/Bainimarama people are just a bunch of narrow minded people.
Thinking....not sleeping
(Part FOUR – Croz responding to some of your questions)
9．The good news on business
Tourism is generally a good news story for Fiji. There are some good operators in Fiji and large chains are backed by branding and networks that feed their chains. Government can’t really claim the success as it is the industry that has adapted to the challenges of operating in Fiji. The best thing government has done is stop attacking tourism (although the RBF gov still lashes out now and then). They will continue to grow their businesses. Sadly they all now have a ‘coup plan’ just in case. It’s not just big brand names and chains – look at Rosie’s who own LikuLiku for an example of home grown success and a well run operation.
The likes of Hari and his chips and biscuits are also success stories. Everyone loves to have a go at these local tycoons but they are exporting to Australia and New Zealand. Look at the other Punja’s in the west who are exporting to many pacific islands. These companies should be encouraged not attacked. Fiji water is a success story that has survived the Mahen and crazy views from his government. They are not perfect but the overall impact is good for Fiji’s economy. Government would do well to celebrate these companies success. Business including foreign investment follows success not government propaganda (a friend once described the FTIB as the turd polishing department).
10. The bad new
Sugar is dead, or more correctly dying. I have seen no real positive action on sugar in the 3.5 years of this government and none for that matter from the previous government. It was hard for the previous government with massive union/opposition pressures and influence but no such barriers exist now. Why have government done nothing to fix this ? There is no opposition – they act like a military dictatorship all day every day but when it comes to sugar they worry about who they will offend. The one area that probably needs a military dictatorship to push things through is sugar. Even then there is a good chance they will fail but trying something now is better than crying later.
The new RBF focus on micro business and micro credit is hobby horse and pipe dream stuff. The models from India will not work in Fiji. By all means encourage financial literacy (good place to start would be with some of the military and senior government people). Also, yes - encourage small business but don’t pretend this is an answer to the economy or that government or RBF can teach small business. They can’t.
The focus on so called ‘leakage’ in all industries is rubbish. You can’t stop it – why should every dollar stay in Fiji ? If Au applied the same the tourism money coming to Fiji would stop. A better way to think about this is if I have $1 coming into the country today and 40c of that going out focus on making the “$1” into “$2”. That way 80c is going out but you have “$1.20” left behind. Tinkering with the 40c to make it 45c or 50c won’t work and the benefit small.
Thinking...not sleeping
(Part Five - croz, thanks for your note it encouraged me to finish.)
11. Can the chambers of commerce help
I don’t think so. One of the chambers is run by a failed businessmen and well know coup apologist (I actually think he is more correctly described as coup opportunist). It is the only chamber government talk to because like good soldiers they tell them only what they want to hear. The other chamber is more practical but government wrote them off long ago for daring to say something different to government.
Maybe government could take on some advisers – business people from outside Fiji perhaps with one or two from within Fiji but conflict of interest will always be present.
12. What should Fiji do
It will be impossible for a 100% military run government to hand over to a civilian run government. It would be impossible today and it will be impossible in 2014. Assuming government is genuine about 2014 and democracy etc it has to start changing how government is run now. I’m no politician but here are a few thoughts
A) Make a deliberate and purpose full shift to something similar to a civilian government – hire more people think Peter and Sharon. How about appointing a deputy PM who is a civilian with no military background. Ask the good performers amongst the military in government positions to resign from the military. Ultimately I would like to see Frank resign his post from the military as well. This might be a catalyst for a real change in international support. How about a more transparent cabinet where we can see the decisions being made and the arguments. Maybe invite international observes to observe cabinet ?
B) Allow some freedom of expression and gathering. Fiji I think will now self censor to a certain extent. Lift the PER but at the same time launch a solid government media plan…have the good stories ready to go. Ignore the critics that will come. Better to get used to a bit of critism now rather than 2014.
C) Put some signs and directions on the roadmap. Currently it’s pretty much a map without scale or markings. The road map should have hills that need crossing, forests that need to be cleared, speed limits that must be obeyed etc (sorry taking the analogy a bit too far). Basically no one believes it because no detail is published and no minor milestones marked – change that.
D) This idea is a bit crazy but why not start a count down to free and fair elections NOW. “Billboards” that count down showing how many months to go could be put up. That would certainly show commitment and get everyone serious and focused on meeting the deadline.
E) As previous logger suggested bring the election forward even by 3 months and it would be a huge symbolic message that Fiji is reasonable and is prepared to negotiate not just dictate.
13. What should Australia/New Zealand do ?
A compromise on travel bans maybe. Ask Fiji to provide a list of say 50 names in order of priority it wants removed from the travel bans. One by one Australia/NZ could address these quickly. Fiji should be realistic though eg the names should be people like PS PSC and people who want to help government not military personnel.
Admit it is too late and impractical for MC or LQ to return to power. Agree on a few points with the Military eg the economy was already struggling before 2006. Au/NZ do not have to endorse or accept coups (nor should any of us) but they could acknowledge it has happened and say they will work with the current power for the purpose of returning democracy. Perhaps some sort of engagement agreement ?
One final comment - wouldn't it be great if i could put my name to this without fear of persecution. Sadly no one wants to be the next Imrana....even if she is cleared imagine the pain and cost her and family have gone through.
Thinking...not sleeping
...I feel I should add one more comment on the AG. There is a lot of negativity directed his way and many calls for Frank/Military to remove him. I don't agree with this. I concede he is arrogant, misguided at times and perhaps not as clever as he thinks. I also don't like some of his decrees but..
I like the fact that he is hard working (more output than anyone else in government). He is also productive - look at the volume of decrees and imagine if he could put the same effort into a constitution. He's actually not corrupt. A friend had a quick lunch with him a while and actually insisted they each pay for their own lunch. Thats never happend before that I know of. You can argue with him to an extent. He does take some advise. He can to some extent influence PM especially on issues the PM will just never understand. Without him there is a danger of government returning to a nationalist agenda.
Channel him not sack him.
@ Thinking not Sleeping...
The anecdote about lunch with the A-G is telling. There is NO SUCH THING AS A FREE LUNCH. The older and wiser among us know this. For years and years overseas diplomats have been wining and dining "Le Tout Fiji" at will. Nauseating to watch if delicious to indulge? Our conflicting interests at most levels of Fijian Society have levelled us to the drains and dregs of human behaviour. Even boxers in Fiji are now engaged in the drugs trade? What does that say about us? There is simply no point in having a vision if it cannot be implemented without greasing palms or by coercion? It will never work. But instilling a sense of "Power to the People" - MAY work. Empower taxpayers to recognise their right to accountability. This accountability must be required for all measure of infractions and for all dishonest handling and diversion of PUBLIC MONEY: go back twenty years. Investigate, encourage and then "Go for the Jugular" - make examples 'pour encourager les autres' and prepare Fiji for the modern world and full democracy as General Franco did Spain. The Army Officers who tried a Coup d'etat in the Spanish Parliament were hung out to dry by His Majesty King Juan Carlos who told them straight on Spanish television: Go back to your Barracks! That is what great, great grandsons of Queen victoria several times over are able to pull off. Courageous and Honourable conduct and the King put the Spanish people first. He was the C in C after all? Even today, the King of Spain is held in the highest esteem because he allowed liberty and justice to triumph. This can be a great unifying factor when all around the economy lies in tatters.
@ Thinking not sleeping...
Thinking about your mention of Fiji's "success stories": there are some very apparent success stories but you fail to mention how some of them came about and this is relevant to our present situation. There are more than a few businessmen (and women) who have sought success at the expense of their countrymen and women. They pursued unfair and exclusively beneficial legislation during the 1990s when 'democracy' was actually more akin to autocracy. They exploited their privileged position and ensured that prices were imposed upon the people which were rigged. Even now, allegedly some hardware companies in Fiji have acted in the manner of a cartel and upped their prices for small hardware items which are required to obtain an engineering certificate by "34,000%" - this morning's radio news. 34,000 percent - what were the Fiji Chamber of Commerce, the regulatory bodies doing during so many years? Allowing us to be ripped off and grossly inflated profits made which were siphoned off to overseas nest-eggs? I rather think that we shall find so. The businessmen and women in Fiji who strutt about annually need to look to their own practices and consider long and hard how they brought their own country to its knees yet relished the accolades handed to them by poorly scrutinised and considered results. Their lawyers and accountants and indeed their bankers and insurance brokers should also think carefully about the role they have played in all this. Commissions are required to scrutinise all these professions and bring some of the actors in them to heel.
So, 'Thinking not sleeping' brings useful reflection but it MUST lead to action and this action of necessity must make up for years of regulatory neglect.
Nobody is against prosecution of those who are guilty of large scale abuses of public money. However the circumstances by which the phrase 'pour encourager les autres' entered the English language 250 years ago mean that it's frequently used whenever the official punishment for an act has seemed to be out of proportion to the act itself, or where the punishment has an element of political bias to it (in order to encourager les autres to shut up and keep their heads down).
In light of the gross misuse of FIRCA to prosecute Jalal and the IG's ongoing efforts to stamp on the jugulars of other high profile figures, SOE's use of that phrase is quite apt.
Be very wary of what you wish for, SOE. When high profile jugulars are no longer available, the jackboots may well start descending on the jugulars of those lower down the pecking order.
'Let those without sin cast the first stone'.
@ red dragon and @ Thinking not sleeping
I don't disagree that some businesses in Fiji have been less than honest in their dealings. They have in Fiji and all around the world.
If there is evidence of collusion between hardware operators people should be charged period.
On hardware stores we have not seen the detail yet and the claim of margins from 15% to 3500% is spin until we see the detail. How many items where 10%/20%/30% ? How many where 40%/50%/60 ? How many items where actually 3500%. Was it one or two or hundreds ? Sounds like a good excuse to price control another industry to me....which never attracts competition and always leads to ineficiency. In the mean time more damage to Fiji's potential investment reputation.
But lets not assume all successful business acts in the wrong way.
The point is that "success" is the best way to sell "future success". Fiji needs investment and no amount of government spin will make a investor invest. It has always amused me how important people think the FTIB is or how important tax packages are.
I agree with Thinking ot sleeping we should celebrate successful investors and business as use them to promote Fiji (not fire cheap shots at them). By the way Au banks have successfully invested in Fiji over a long period of time yet the RBF under the ego of Sada love kicking the boot it and making life very difficult with rule that change daily.
Potential investors make their own assessments on investment. During that assessment they will
1. Speak to other business in the area.
2. Speak to the banks
3. Speak to accountants/lawyers
4. talk to government
...and it is in that order they usually take the advise.
If government or FTIB say "there are no restrictions on taking profit out of the country" a good business will then ask the bank for example "do any of your customers have problems taking profit out of the country" ?
This is the biggest problem facing finding new investment. The answers business and banks give (reality) do not match the answers government and FTIB give (propaganda).
Have a read of the FTIB website and tell me if you think it acurately reflects the current situation in Fiji. No.
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