What the FijiFirst Government Can Do, Starting Now, to Win the Next Election

An image to foster. pn269 (Renumbered from pn179)

In a curious way, the opposing visions of Sitiveni Rabuka and Voqere Bainimarama that we discussed in an earlier posting (pn182) are examples of what the famous English writer George Orwell* called "doublethink", the ability to hold two completely contradictory thoughts simultaneously while believing both of them to be true. Rabuka wants Taukei supremacy, Bainimarama restrains public debate to ensure equality, and they both think they are being democratic.

The question now is how to reduce the doublethink to improve their party's chances in the 2022 election, and put an end to Fiji's coup culture.

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.

Words by Dallas Swinstead (on Swinstead), Wadan Narsey (on Itaukei), Brij Lal (on Ratu Iloilo) and Mason Smith (on Itaukei Agriculture)

NOTE THE NEW FEATURE at the top of the right sidebar.

N0117. A DELETED COMMENT, published to remind ourselves just who we are dealing with. Joe has left a new comment on your post "Telling the PM ..." (edited): Just butt out croz mother f*****r. Leave us Fijians alone d***head. We could do without you white trashes supporting the treasonous lot. Just F*** OFF.

N0118.ABOUT FACE (AMBIGUITY INTENDED). What on earth is outgoing Fiji Times publisher Dallas Swinstead trying to say? In an open letter on Cafe Pacific he makes six comments on why he left so soon after taking up the job.
1 and 2.  The owners Motibhai couldn't organize insurance or medical evacuation (Why not? Why didn't he organize his own?).
3. He was tremendously proud of what he achieved (This is not a reason for leaving and to be honest I didn't notice any difference).
4. He supported the People's Charter and said so but would not be "kissing arses." (You'd think this would be a reason to stay, not leave.)
5. "The government continues to subsidise the opposition newspaper ... In return it publishes verbatim, mostly, all government releases. It is a shameless, even dangerous, publication."(Okay. He did not like the opposition but how again is this a reason for his departure?).
6. "Depending on what happens in Fiji in the weeks ahead, I may, or may not, fill in the details..." (What details? We don't even have the reasons  All we have are problems with his insurances and a hint that things were not as he expected. For a newspaper publisher this is very wishy-washy.

N0119. FIJIANS AND OR ITAUKEI, INDIANS OR ... For all Prof Wadan Narsey's myopia that sees him analysing almost everything in Fiji in terms of race, his article  'I-Taukei’ or ‘Fijian”? Name change by decree can’t change ethnic mind-set is well worth reading. It makes some very valid (and only a few not very valid) points.

Among the former, two are critical: 1) "without widespread indigenous Fijian consultation and approval, this attempted name change will make little real difference to the social and political realities of Fiji, while it may make racial antagonisms worse." 2) it will be "a nightmare for statisticians and demographers" because a very important demographic characteristic will be removed, and make analyses on a host of social and economic issues that much less useful. He also has useful things to say on the racial marginalising of Indo-Fijians by previous regimes. 

N0120. RATU ILOILO. I find it strange that Radio NZ International had to ring Prof Brij Lal in Australia for his comments on the death of Ratu Iloilo.  A person's death is not the time to make derogatory political observations, and coming from an Indo-Fijian in exile makes it even more inappropriate. See the comments on this blog under "Ratu Iloilo Passes Away" which showed Ratu Iloilo in a very different light.

Condolence messages can be emailed to news@info.gov.fj. These messages will  be posted on a comprehensive website of Ratu Ilioilo's life accessed through www.fiji.gov.fj .

N0121. ASSISTANCE IS NOT SPOON FEEDING. The criteria for the Agriculture Department's Demand Driven Approach programmes that provide assistance to mainly itaukei farmers are being reviewed. The review will that farmers are held accountable for what they undertake to do and take greater ownership of projects.

Agriculture Permanent Secretary Col. Mason Smith says, "It is fundamental for our people to understand that the programmes are not meant for spoon feeding people. They are meant to give them a boost so that they can stand on their own two feet and survive at a semi-commercial level.” By November the Department expects to be able to identify the type of farmers it is going to help in the future, what their contributions will be, and what Government will be responsible for.

[To readers unfamiliar with Fiji, this may seem too obvious to report, but unaccountability and lack of a sense of ownership in the past has seen many million of dollars wasted on rural itaukei development of one kind or another.] -- Based on 2011, No:0312/MOI.

President's Address, Rika to ANU, Work for Elderly, Fruit Flies, More Anons

PRESIDENT'S FIJI DAY ADDRESS. President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau paid tribute to all the leaders who over the past 40 years had contributed to the development and modernisation of Fiji.On Fiji's relations with the international community, he said, "We have been criticised and shunned by some for determining our own destiny, but we will not be deterred. We will work closely with those who care to consult with us and to understand our deep complexities.We will embrace their assistance in helping us to find suitable solutions [and] to those who have closed the doors on us, we will tirelessly seek through quiet diplomacy to reopen those doors, including those doors of the Commonwealth."

NETANI TO NOT SO IVORY TOWER. During the Viet Nam war, anthropologists in northern Thailand and Laos were unsuspectingly passing on information about the Hill Tribes that helped the US war effort.  Over a longer time period, banks of audio equipment in laboratories at the East-West Center in Hawaii helped students learn hundreds of languages, many spoken by people in politically unstable areas of interest to American Intelligence. Further back, prestigious colleges at Oxford and Cambridge offered scholarships and training for Britain's Third World Elite, and Harvard produced a world-wide generation of right-thinking economists and businessmen, who we now see got it all wrong.

Further south, in Australia the National University (ANU) has  programmes, scholarships, workshops and conferences to inform and support its government's policies and "win the hearts and minds" of  overseas scholars from countries in which Australia has a special interest.  Fiji has moved up this list in recent years. It is largely thanks to ANU that we have heard the opinions of ANU academics, Jonathon Fraenkel and Brij Lal, both vociferous opponents of the Bainimarama government. It was ANU that gave former Fiji Land Force Commander Jone Baledrokadroka a scholarship to research the military. And it is ANU that has just given former Fiji Times Editor Netani Rika a scholarship to write up his memoirs.

The Australian  reports that Rika  will "spend time in Canberra writing his account of the almost four years he has spent contesting military government control of the media." Intriguingly, Rika said, "We were always willing to print both sides of the story. But the censors allowed only one side. In such cases, the paper spiked the stories altogether to spare readers being misled."

I have little doubt he truly believes this but an independent, objective content analysis of the paper from 2006 on (and before for that matter) would, in my opinion,  show most definitely that if both sides were printed, they were never printed equally. I stand by my crude assessment of a 3.5:1 ratio of opposition to Government. Content Analysis is a research method where qualitative data are measured and quantified, in this case by categorising the frequency, placement, coverage, extent and "bias" of newspaper headings and articles.

RADIONZI GIVES NEW MEANING TO OLD PHRASE. "Fiji's self-imposed (sic!) prime minister says his country is on track for elections in 2014 provided the international community does not interfere."  They also provide a "Rika" example of how to publish their side of the story while purporting to report another.  Click here.

KHAN APPLAUDS WORK FOR ELDERLY. Recent efforts by government to advocate issues affecting the elderly should be applauded says FCOSS (Fiji Council of Social Services) director Hassan Khan. He said senior citizens are the backbones of their family and government has done a lot recently to provide better services to them. Khan also commended the work of non-government organizations.

FEAR OF FRUIT FLIES. The Tuvalu Government says the lack of proper quarantine facilities in Rotuma means it has to maintain the suspension of fruit trade with Rotuma. Trade will resume when clearances are obtained from Fiji’s Quarantine Department. A new species of fruit flies has been found in Vatoa Island, a thousand kilometres in the Lau Group, but so far as is known there are no fruit flies in Rotuma, and the ban does not prevent exports of root crops. Direct exports between Rotuma and Tuvalu commenced at the beginning of the year following heavy investment in port and shore facilities by the Fiji Government. Properly controlled it will provide valuable income for Rotuma and cheaper, better food supplies for the Tuvalu atolls.

ANONYMOUS. Far more pro-government and neutral people wishing to comment on this blog fail to use pseudonyms. The ratio of unaccepted pro-neutral to anti- anonymous comments is 3:1. The imbalance shows, giving the impression that most readers are anti-government.

To restore some of the balance, and keep the anon issue in readers' minds, an occasional exception will be made to the rule ... as in this comment: "Gerald McGhie appears to be an eminently sensible man. He would appear to know and understand much that his own Government has failed to grasp. His experience is in all the things that really matter. Why are some not listening to what he has to say?" The comment was on the Weekend Reading, Resolving the Fiji Impasse: Let the Pacific Lead.
Pacific Lead

(o+) Making Sense of Recent Government Actions

OPINION
Something's going on. After months of easing tensions-- no fresh reports of possible human rights abuse, supportive statements from many in Fiji, from this blog and many overseas commentators culminating in the McCully-Kubuabola statements this week, slighter better relations between Government and the Fiji Times, and better than expected economic news despite the recent cyclone -- we have a rash of "aggressive" actions by Government, all within the span of a few days.

First, international juror and  government opponent Imrana Lala was charged by FIAC, the anti-corruption commission, with not having a licence to operate her part-owned restaurant (sic!) and the dismissal of some magistrates. Then Dr Padma Narsey Lal, wife of ANU's Prof. Brij Lal and brother of USP's Prof. Wadan Narsey, both staunch government opponents, was refused re-entry into the country.  Then 15 senior Suva City Council employees were sent home pending charges they were using SCC computers and time to write for anti-Government blogs.

Then Bainimarama announces that retired public servants  -- and that includes former PMs Qarase and Chaudhry -- who speak out against the Government will not receive their pensions (see comment below on this). The very same day he says the Methodist Church will not be allowed to hold their annual conference until after the elections in 2014. He said Government spies within the Church report ongoing anti-government activity.

Why this sudden hostility and blustering when things seemed to be going so well for Government? Is it pure coincidence, or do at least some of these events, all of which threaten freedom of speech, have a common cause or explanation?

The Wider Context

The wider context within which these events can perhaps be better understood is one in which Government sees the "normal" workings of civil society, where opinions are freely expressed and exchanged, as distractions and impediments to what it says it is trying to do.

Hence their delayed attention to political change, and their immediate focus on economic and infrastructural changes -- roads, electricity, the use of idle land, and agricultural initiatives in rural areas; getting rid of corruption and poor work ethics in the civil service; reforming national and local institutions such as the NLTB (Native Land Trust Board) and urban councils; opening up jobs and scholarships to all races; support for garment and tourist industry marketing; and a number of actions to reduce poverty, including housing assistance, the introduction of a minimum wage,access to micro-credit, a fairer distribution of land rent money to ordinary Fijian villagers, food coupons and free or subsidized school meals and transport.

Government wants to see major improvements in all these areas before it fully addresses political, constitutional and electoral issues in 2012-13. But just as foreign investors seek political stability to protect their investment, the Bainimarama Government seeks to impose stability (where it is not freely given) so it can get on with the job. Hence its constant references to the need for "unity" to "take the country forward."

This is not the normal way democratic governments operate, but it is not unknown. It is the way Allied governments operated during the two World Wars; how the US military, with and without government connivance, operates from time to time, and, perhaps even more relevantly, how Singapore dragged itself up from a poor, racially and politically fractured Third World country to become the country it is today.  In the early days, Lee Yuan Yew was far more oppressive than Bainimarama, and no less of a dictator. This, I think, is the wider context.

The Immediate Context

The more immediate context involves high celebrity court cases with Qarase, and possibly Weleilakemba and others, charged with corruption and abuse of office. My understanding is that these hearings will commence next week. The other big event is the first meeting of the Citizen's Assembly on the 27-28th.

Whenever Government anticipates its opponents will use events to trigger discontent, it is likely to send out strong warnings about "consequences", take measures to break or disrupt opposition networks, and forestall all overt expressions of opposition. This is how it operated in the lead up to last year's Methodist Conference, and this is how it could be operating now.

What we think of as unconnected, vindictive, arbitrary acts could in fact be part of a pre-conceived plan for civil society until 2014 -- modelled on a first-strike military manoeuvre. –- Crosbie Walsh.

Readers are urged to read comments to all posts, and particularly to this post. Just click "Comments" below.

Snippets: Dialogue Forum, Cyclone Mick,Femlink, Diabetes, Prison Reform, Anonymous Comments, Needy Children, Tourism

There are 12 Comments on this posting. See "Comments" at end..

The National Dialogue Forum on Fiji's future will convene on February 1st and pave the way to the Consultative Constitutional Forum starting in September 2012. Government has urged leaders in the church, vanua, civil groups (but not the old political parties) to participate. Prerequisites for attendance include:

• Interest must focus on Fiji’s future
• Views must not be inconsistent with the principles of the People’s Charter
• Participants must not have any pending criminal charges
• Participants must not represent political organizations based on communal representation.

It is especially important, with the old political parties excluded, that Government appoint as chairperson someone well known to the Fiji general public even if (perhaps especially if) that person does not otherwise support Government.


No good will be served with the appointment of an unknown or a person seen to be a Government stooge.   Full story.


The Disaster Management Committee estimates the financial cost of Cyclone Mick will be about $25 million, much less than the $200 million cost of January's floods.


The NGO Femlink has had its licence to operate its mobile "suitcase" radio station renewed. Radio 89.2FM uses a low powered transmitter that reaches a 10 kilometre radius. 


Diabetes great concern
A Fred Hollows Foundation survey found 40% of adults had diabetes, one of the highest rates in the world. The survey claimed the cost of medication alone will outstrip the present resources of the Fiji health system. Full story.


Readers' Copmments: 
"Prison reform part of Roadmap"
A reader commenting on this post wrote:"This is true. During a working trip to Naboro about 3 months ago, we were taken around the hills at the back of the complex to see a vast commercial enterprise being undertaken by the Prison Services. There were roughly 80,000 dalo plants already planted and they are still clearing more hillside for this big undertaking. We were told that as this commercial enterprise rolls, the Prison Service will be self-reliant and the government will not need to fund their food supply anymore. I also heard that they will then start supplying the major hospitals which seems to drain a lot of funds for the government, and so forth. This is an amazing undertaking and I was very very impressed." Another reader (Lol, Laugh Out Loud) thought we were making it all up (See Comments). It is unfortunate that people like this Doubting Thomas won't change their minds until their hand can feel a hoe wound  in one of the 80,000 dalo. 



... and another reader commenting on the cyclone, suggested a regional disaster relief organization should be a priority for the Pacific Islands Forum.


... and while on Comments, there is no security risk in signing your comment with a pseudonym. Bebe, Beka or Bulumakau included with your comment is just as safe as Anonymous without.


Reader "Wetsie": Thanks for the greeting to "Croz and team." Other people do help occasionally -- mainly in informing me of news releases I could have missed and in providing ideas on what to publish -- but there is no team. I wish there were.  

Pacific Sun's first flight to Vanuabalavu in the Northern Lau Group and new services to Gau and Cicia in the New Year will probably see the airline add pilots and aircraft to its operations. Full story. Photo: Fiji Village.

A Tamara McLean article in the NZ Herald/AAP provides readers with a rehash of what was once news, and "fresh" comments from "an Auckland University academic sympathetic to Bainimarama" (Prof.Hugh Laracy) countered by three "Pacific specialists (Dr Jon Fraenkel, Jone Baledrokadroka and Prof. Brij Lal) at the Australian National University" who are not." The use of "academic" and "specialists" tells readers where Tamara is coming from, but it's neither subtle nor accurate for all four are academics and specialists.

The article makes no mention of any recent happening in Fiji (this blog has been full of them; not even Bainimarama's response to John Key's Radio Tarana interview -- which, incidentally, the NZ Herald did not even bother to report!), and most of what the trio said resonated like echoes from one or another earlier media source. Click here to add "Forty Foot Echo" ringtones to your cellphone.

For the record, former Land Force Commander Baledrokadroka did not "reject the regime." He was send on leave (suspended) by the military prior to the 2006 Coup before resigning and leaving for an ANU scholarship in Canberra. And Tamara's account of Brij Lal's deportation was predictably light on contextual detail.


Most disturbing, though, was  Fraenkel's unscholarly guesswork in interpretating happenings in Fiji. He speculates government reshuffles are "squables behind the scenes"; thinks 90 percent (sic!) of ethnic Fijians oppose Bainimarama; and that Government's policies are contradictory in providing free school buses (a "socialist" policy) and a business-friendly ("right wing) budget. His imposed left wing-right wing framework does not sit well in the Pacific -- and even in New Zealand we've had free buses for country children and business-friendly budgets for as long as I can remember. 


Supporters of The Foundation for the Education of Needy Children in Fiji (FENC), a group of mainly Indo-Fijians in the Brisbane area, have donated  $8,000 to the Foundation, run by Irshad Ali, formerly of Save the Children Fund.


Tourism target $900m earnings
Tourism Fiji chairman Patrick Wong says the industry is targeting $900m. in direct tourism earnings, and 600,000 visitors, in 2010. Earnings in 2008 were $892m. Wong thinks the targets achievable because of improved marketing, a "good geographic mix, targeting markets of UK/Europe, Russia, China and the Gulf region," new airlines and new routings that increase capacity and provide better connectivity opening up new markets and regions with better market penetration... V Australia and Jetstar [also] give better access from non-mainstream ports, like Western and South Australia. Broadening our markets with a geographic will spread the constant flow of visitor arrivals throughout the year, levelling out the trough and low season periods," he added.

Fiji Rugby Union Chairman Bill Gavoka has confirmed that  the Cibi will be performed by all national rugby teams before international test matches, thereby overturning Coach Samu Domoni Junior's decision to drop the Cibi because it is a "throwback to the days of heathen cannibalism and  not indicative of modern Fiji." Domoni  is wrong on both counts.Full story.

Happy 2010 Everyone. 

May the New Year bring Fiji As It Was and Is appreciably closer to 
the Fiji it Can Be.

 Drawing: Kids Art. www.squidoo.com

Snippets: 2000 Coup, Commonwealth, Crimes Decree, SMH, Ringing Frank, FEA, Xmas Tree

Looking Back: Speight’s psychological warfare
"Every day, the rumours were deliberately planted by Speight’s psychological warfare machine, targeted at the military as well as civilians, as a means of inciting violence, psychological control and inducing submission. These were reinforced by Speight’s daily interviews, news of burning, violence and theft and reporting of happenings in Parliament where the hostages (members of the ruling party) were still being held. The Fijian radio stations repeatedly played nationalistic speeches by nationalist leaders and sermons by Methodist church leaders ...."

If you want to know more about the racism and shady characters behind the 2000 Speight coup read  Dr Steven Ratuva's review of State of Suffering: Political Violence and Community Survival in Fiji by Auckland University anthropologist Susanna Trnka. Better still, read the book.

What a funny Commonwealth we live in

Rwanda with no prior Commonwealth connections but 800,000 genocide deaths to account for and ongoing human rights abuses is admitted because it has "made progress", while Fiji with Commonwealth links forged in war remains suspended -- and denied entry to the Commonwealth Games. Its human rights record: four deaths attributed to the coup, some temporary dententions and restrictions on media freedom. The only new comment from Commonwealth leaders was that the situation had "deteriorated." At the level on which their attention is fixed ("ongoing restrictions on human rights including freedom of speech and assembly"), this is probably true. Sadly, some Commonwealth leaders fail to see that it has been their policies of exclusion that have helped to make things worse. The responsibility does not lie entirely with Fiji.  And Fiji cannot, even with the wildest stretches of imagination, be compared to Rwanda! Apparently, Malaysia lobbied for Fiji's inclusion in the Games.

The soon-to-be-announded sinister Crimes Decree
Victims of Internet crimes committed in Fiji now have access to legal resources with the institution of a new Decree introducing new charges. Full story.Ratu Epeli comments on its significance for human trafficking. There's no doubt this new decree will soon be labelled sinister.

The Sydney Morning Herald ...

has been giving Fiji some attention recently. Almost all comment is hostile and only as well informed as you may expect from visiting journalists but they're worth a quick look. One reader wrote: "Don’t those journalists understand that the reason why Fiji is like it is, is because of the poor governance of past governments for the past twenty years? Watch the video. Those squatter settlements did not spring up overnight – they have been there for decades."

"Fiji's Squatter Settlements" Kate Geraghty
"An unholy alliance of Church and State", Paul McGeough

"Fear and Loathing in Fiji", Paul McGeough
"The quixotic shades of Bainimarama" ,Paul McGeough

"In Paradise Lost, where dissent fears to tread" Paul McGeough & Kate Geraghty

And for good measure, in Green Left, hear what Brij Lal has to say about the military being intent on holding on to power.

Why don't you give Frank a ring?
I wonder how many other Prime Ministers offer this service. Any complaints about the civil service, just text message Frank on your cellphone. The number's 01. One of two specially assigned officers will reply, and often Frank will attend to it himself. Come on Kevin and John, you're not going to let a dictator beat you at this. Full story.

FEA and Niranjan
I've heard someting about  $2 million the Fiji Electricity Authority had to pay Niranjans for four defunct HIAB Trucks. If true, is it corruption, incompetence, or what? And why has Government said nothing? 

Muslim lights Fiji’s biggest Christmas tree 

Imported by Digicel, taking three weeks to set up in Ratu Sukuna Park, Suva, and measuring over 12 metres, the giant Christmas tree was lit (turned on) by A-G Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum. The Conservatorium of Music will be performing Christmas carols at the park every Thursday and Friday until the end of December.

2010 Budget. I will have something on the 2010 Budget later, when I get this Auckland PIPSA paper out of the way.

(o) Snippets: Pensions, Debt, NLTB, Prices, Brij Lal, ECREA "Widespread Dialogue" , HIV/AIDS, PSYCHIATRIC CARE

A UNIVERSAL PENSION SCHEME for people who are not civil servants or member of the Fiji National Provident Fund is being called for by Fiji Council of Social Services (FCOSS) Director Hassan Khan (photo Fiji Village). Full story.

GOVERNMENT DEBT was $3.066bn or 51.3% of GDP at the end of June, compared with $2.769Bn and 47% of GDP at the same time last year. Cash flow data, however, showed a net surplus of $39.6m for the first five months of this year, and revenue collection increased 6.5%. Full story.

FORMER NATIVE LANDS AND TRUST BOARD General and Legal Managers have pleaded not guilty of conspiracy to defraud the Vanua Development Scheme, the business  arm of NLTB,of trust funds totalling $3.7m. Full story.

A PROPOSAL BY THE PRICES AND INCOMES BOARD to control prices of 24 items has been rejected by Government. The Board claimed widespread inconsistencies in retail prices for these items. Government said the move would have created distortions in the economy, is anti-business and is not an effective means to cushion those on low incomes from inflation.Business is reported to have breathed a sigh of relief. Full report.

 

BRIJ LAL says "academic duty and a sense of outrage" drove him to speak out against the expulsion of the Australian and NZ High Commissioners. Speaking of his part on work leading to the 1997 Constitution, he said the constitution "that resulted was not reframed exactly as he  and his colleagues recommended."  Full report.

ECREA's CHANTELLE KHAN is urging Government "to encourage widespread involvement in an upcoming forum on the nation's future." The National Dialogue for Fiji's Future will build on the issues raised by the People's Charter and will probably not include former political leaders. Khan says she understands it can be very difficult to make progress in discussions when sectors stick to their individual agendas, but ECREA experience has shown the importance of hearing diverse opinions. -- RNZI.

THE PRESIDENT SAYS HIV/AIDS is a "profound threat in Fiji and the region,"and has called for joint efforts to fight against the disease. Senior Medical Officer Dr Ilisipeci Vereti, also speakng on the proposed HIV Prevention Treatment Decree, said the CWM Hospital is urging expectant mothers to be tested for HIV. This follows the death of several babies. Full report.

ST GILES PSYCHIATRTIC HOSPITAL has won an award from the Asian Federation of  Psychiatric Association (AFPA) for its improved services.  Full report.

(o) The Brij Lal Incident: Disentangling the Consequences

All acts have consequences. In Brij's case, from one act (and a history of previous acts) there were three consequences in Fiji and more, in happier circumstances, in Australia.

The act? Giving interviews to foreign media when on a visitor's visa to Fiji where emergency regulations are in place expressly forbidding such activities. While his criticism of the Government was relatively mild, any such statement put him in breach of his visa requirements and the Public Emergency Regulations. This assessment makes no judgment on PER. It merely recognized its reality.

The consequences?  First, the detention. We may not like it, and it certainly should have been by the police, and not the army, but the detention was almost inevitable because of what Brij said, where and when he said it, and who he is. And surely Brij must have known this.

Secondly, the interrogation at the Queen Elizabeth Barracks. He should have been taken to the Suva Central police station, not the barracks. He should have been formally charged, and granted access to a lawyer. I suspect his treatment at the barracks was worse than verbal abuse, even though he denies this. Fiji's police and military have a long and unfortunate record of sometimes roughly treating those they detain for questioning. I doubt Government ordered his poor treatment. The telephone call during the interrogation, and the better treatment when the interrogating officer returned, suggests the interrogators were told to stop.

Thirdly, the deportation. Had Brij retained his Fiji citizenship (or successfully applied for dual citizenship) this would not have occurred.

Conclusion? The de facto Fiji Government was within its rights in detaining, interrogating and deporting Brij. But not in how the military exercised these rights. This is where those criticizing these consequences should direct their attention.

Of the Australian consequences, the incident has enhanced Brij's academic and political standing. Briefly, in many people's eyes, he is a hero and even something of a martyr.

But the incident has done nothing to take Fiji forward, and it has further distanced Brij from any chance of future involvement in Fiji's political process. Had he been more circumspect (and earlier shown some willingness to detach himself from his partisan past), he could have played an important role in the dialogue and reconciliation that must come in Fiji someway further down the road.

From Australia, Brij sent this message to friends in Fiji: "I am touched by the messages of support. Please extend to everyone my sincere thanks. Silence in the face of oppression is not an option, and speaking up for the values of a humane society is not a crime."

Thus, for the time being, Brij has the final word. And the military, in its clumsiness, has made another hero, and lost the Bainimarama Government some support. If both really want to find a peaceful solution to Fiji's imbroglio,  this is not the way to go about it.

Logo: Clean up Fiji. Fiji Times.

(o) Prof. Brij Lal Says He Was Not Physically Assaulted

AMENDED. The false information referred to was mostly from Coupfourpointfive  and not from "Bai." My comment is therefore now redirected to them.

It seems reasonable in the light of Brij's denial (see below) to ask who told you he was physically assaulted, spat at, hit in the mouth several times and had his glasses broken.  You may also care to correct the error on your blogsite.

I know abuses occur, but so too do intentionally false reports of abuse.  This wasn't you, of course, but for your own interest (if not mine) you may care to trace the relaying of this false information back to its source.

It is, of course, quite possible your source was partly correct and  that Brij "played down" the incident when back in Australia. But he did deny there was physical abuse, and this should be reported

I note also Brij was not beyond making this hyperbolic political comment on his arrival in Australia: "My personal agony and difficulties are nothing compared to what is endured by the people of Fiji on a regular basis."

What The Australian had to say. Click here for full report.

On his arrival in Sydney, Professor Lal said he was detained on Wednesday for three hours in custody and subjected to a very unpleasant interrogation but not any physical abuse. "It is very difficult to distill that experience into words, but intense verbal abuse, foul language and explosive anger on the part of the officer who was interrogating me," he said.

(o) Professor Brij Lal's Detention and Deportation

Please note that this incident was unreported by the Fiji 
media  due to the Public Emergency Regulations

Croz to Bai.
Thanks Bai for the information on Brij's detention (Click here.) There is no excuse for the physical attacks on Brij (if substantiated, they are abhorrent and must be condemned) but we would all be very naive if we thought an outspoken opponent of the regime, with pronounced political views, who is no longer is a Fiji citizen, and who presumably entered Fiji on either a tourist or work permit, would be immune from detention and deportation if he made any political comment during a time of national emergency. This is not to condone his treatment  or the continuance of the Public Emergency Regulations (PER) -- far from it -- but no one, least of all Brij, should have been surprised at his deportation.

Personally, I thought his comments on the High Commission happenings fair and reasoned, and there can be little doubt PER should be lifted.  But the incident further aggravates an already inflamed situation. I wonder what on earth Brij was thinking of when he agreed to give these interviews. He must have known the likely outcomes.

More generally, I believe it is not helpful to ignore realities, however unpleasant they may be. They should be recognized and turned, where ever and when ever possible, towards positive outcomes.  However obdurate the regime, it is the de facto government.Confrontation and the escalation of tensions makes dialogue and engagement -- which is the only peaceful way forward -- even more difficult.

It is easy, of course, for me to write this from New Zealand, but engagement is desperately needed, focusing on the positives. Further disengagement and repetition of the now well-known negatives can only make things worse. This is not letting the regime off the hook; it is a tactical shift to another fishing ground because the fish are not biting where were are currently fishing.


Stewart to Croz.
I could not disagree with you more.
 
Rod Ewin to many readers.
The diplomatic tit for tat that has been playing out over the past couple of days is one thing, but this is quite another. After the relative moderation and coherence of his press address two days ago, Bainimarama gives way to this self-indulgent folly. I sometimes disagree with Brij's views on various matters but that falls within the scope of a right to disagree and debate, something now also abrogated in Fiji. For VB to sanction Brij's arrest, humiliation and the expulsion simply for saying things that, on this occasion at least, are self-evident to everyone of passing intelligence, seems not merely petulant but extraordinarily politically naive. The incident will inevitably be tied to and consolidate the critique of his expulsion of the diplomats, and negate any political point he might have sought to make by that action. If VB could learn to think awhile before he acted rashly, it might enhance his prospects of managing affairs to a satisfactory conclusion in Fiji.

Bai, replying to Croz.
I can confirm that Brij was manhandled, sworn and spat at. One particular military person used especially foul language through the interrogation until he attended to a phone call. He became more ‘civil’ after taking the call. Officers who arrested Brij Lal came in private cars and were dressed in civilian attire. They were generally courteous.

The treatment meted out to Brij hits at the heart of an academic's work. Critical thinking, dissent and debate are fundamental. What happened to Brij is reminiscent of the experience that several of my friends had in 1987 and with the string of rather heavy handed treatment of outspoken individuals since December 2006. The extension of PER on a monthly basis means that gross violation of fundamental human rights by police and military is possible at the slightest pretext. Brij is an Australian citizen but also the most internationally well known Fiji scholar –a descendant of Girmiteers.

There is a fundamental disconnect between this regime’s avowed aim to lead us to a coup-free, non- racist nirvana, and its treatment of dissenters. I am not sure that genuine democracy will arise out of a barrel of a gun.

(-+) Brij Lal’s Speech that Could have Been

Thanks once again to Coupfourpointfive, this time for publishing the address Prof. Brij Lal would have given to the Accountants' Conference had Government not decreed otherwise. Its publication by at least two blogs supports a point made in his speech: “The whole exercise of controlling speech is futile and self-defeating.” To read the full address on the topic of ‘Fiji and the International Community: Acceptance or Isolation: Are these the only choices?’ click here.

Summary

On Fiji's relations with the international community, his main points were: Fiji cannot go it alone; Australia, the EU and New Zealand want to help but need evidence of “progress” from Fiji; China's interests in Fiji are limited. “Many initiatives contemplated by the interim administration [IG] are praiseworthy, and I have no doubt that there would be a meeting of minds on many of them. That is why there is an urgent need of tact and diplomacy.”

He thought the situation had deteriorated sharply since April 10^th The Constitution has gone. The political dialogue process has ceased. “There is now no pretence about finding a solution to Fiji’s political problems in a timely fashion, in consultation with its friends in the regional and the international community. Fiji is now telling the world: we will find solutions to Fiji’s problems on our own terms, in our own time …. we are the guys who are on the right side of history; we are doing the right thing; why doesn’t the world understand us? “

On where Fiji should go from here, he said elections must be held earlier than 2014 if Fiji is to win international support. He agrees that elections alone will not solve Fiji's problems but asks what kind of political culture the Government want to create. He says a non-racial electoral system will not remove race as a factor in politics. He thinks the military want a permanent place in politics, and that their “utopia” will delay elections long after 2014. He says the Government should spell out what is wrong with the 1997 Constitution. He thought the Constitution’s compulsory power-sharing provision addressed “the most fundamental problem that has beset Fiji since the inception of party politics in 1966” in that it enabled one community, the Indo-Fijians, to share power. He said the Constitution was partly based on “‘Consociationalism … a grand coalition of elites representing different segments of society...”

My Comments

Brij blames the deteriorating situation on the Interim Government alone. No mention is made of the role of Australia and NZ, the Fiji media, the “Qarase” faction, and others who constantly placed obstructions in the IG's path.

Elections are not held to satisfy the international community. Fiji will only hold elections (hopefully before 2014) when the system under which they are to be held is decided upon, and when race has been removed as the factor. The Government has made quite clear the “political culture” it wants to create.

Brij continues to see Fiji's problems in purely racial terms. The 1997 Constitution was an improvement on the decidedly racist 1991 Constitution, but the Great Council of Chief's provision, the reinforcement of race by its electoral provisions, and the parliamentary “power sharing” provision effectively deprived Fiji of a parliamentary Opposition, need revisiting. True, future modifications were expected, but none occurred in the next ten years. His “grand coalition of elites” is based on racial “segments of society.” Fiji is, and can be, “segmented” in many more ways.

I do, however, share Brij's and many other people's concern about the never-ending role of the military in Fiji's politics. I also sometimes doubt their real intentions but, for the moment, they have the benefit of my doubt.

In sum, Brij warns of everything that has, and can, go wrong. Wisely so, perhaps, but we already know most of them. He supports an agenda rejected by the Interim government. I would like him to have proposed some new ideas on the “way forward.” Perhaps a hypothetical redrafting of the 1997 Constitution, with the benefit of hindsight, or the drafting of a new Constitution that would win wide support? Photo: Fiji Times.

(o) Emergency Extended: Poor Call

PER (the Public Emergency Regulations), introduced on April 10th, extended in May, have been extended again for another 30 days until July 10th due, says Government spokesman LtCol Neumi Leweni, to the security situation in the country, but he did not say what the security concerns were.

Could the "concerns" include expected backlashes from the Methodist Conference, now cancelled by Government, despite the Church saying that politics will not be discussed? Or the Fiji Institute of Accountants' Congress due to start on Friday, but with keynote speakers anti-Government Brij Lal, Graham Leung and Richard Naidu now removed from the billing at Government insistence? (The reasons the Institute invited them are pretty transparent but I doubt the trio's oratory would rouse the masses.)

Or a once again hostile print media only temporarily held in check by the Regulations? Or revived negativity from the ousted political parties, at present totally silent in Fiji for the same reasons? Could there be a split, or tussle for power, within the military as was rumoured, and denied, last month? Should the overseas-inspired plot to "remove" Bainimarama as advocated by one anti-Government blog, and repeated anothers, be taken seriously? Or is it the threat of a nationwide stop-work protest, or the politically-tinged prayers? Or is PER reimposed merely to prove -- if proof is necessary -- that Government is still in charge, and nothing, no nothing, will stop it "completing the work it initially set out to do”? If so, it will need a lot of help and PER may not be the best way to get it.

In something of an understatement, Leweni accepted that "the initial period of the re-building process would naturally be difficult for some members of the public to understand [but he asked for] public understanding and active support." He did not explain why someone should support something they did not understand, or why Government does not explain more fully so they can understand. And what, it might be asked, is Government hoping to re-build? The judiciary is almost back in place; umpteen decrees have closed holes left by the abrogated Constitution. But politically, for the past two months it has merely reacted to perceived political threats, when it also needed to be pro-active, picking up on the People's Charter process, and clearly showing the way forward.

Leweni, incredulously, went on to say that "Fiji as a whole benefited from the emergency regulations...The absence of politics from the national agenda, for instance, is contributing positively to the peace and stability of the nation. People are now more focused on their lives, families and work without being distracted by the divisive and fragmentary views that were prominent in the period before the emergency regulations were implemented."

What Fiji needs if it is ever to achieve the peaceful, harmonious society, free from discrimination and corruption, that he talks about is more, not less, politics. Politics is the lifeblood of all democratic societies. The People's Charter is politics. Dialogue is politics, and politics dialogue. Both proceed from the assumption that there is more than one way of looking at every situation, that reasoned disagreement is healthy and leads to better conclusions. I think, and hope, he means the often one-sided reporting of politics, and not politics per se.

The sorts of change envisaged by Leweni has the public playing only a passive role. Just keep your heads down while we, the Government and military, fix Fiji for you. Surely this is not what Government wants. The particularly sad thing about PER is that there has been no public political discussion. The baby has been thrown out with the bath water! PER has paralyzed civil society turning its more intelligent members into "monkeys" who are allowed to hear, speak and see nothing. This is PER's biggest casualty. Surely the Government has sufficient support, and a sufficient number of erudite people to put its case to the public, expose the arguments of the opposition, and protest publicly about one-sided, biased journalism. Government needs to argue its case to win back the "middle" ground. And it needs the media to do that.

Peace, of a fashion, and stability can be imposed on a country, but not harmony. The future society Government envisages requires that the public play an active role in its formulation. If the People's Charter is to be adopted, the public has to adopt it, and for this, meetings, discussion, debate and press releases are needed. Major discrimination and corruption will only end when the public expose and condemn them. People of all races need to condemn the racist bigots among them, and all religions should condemn their religious fanatics. The Government, by legislative measures and institutional changes, can assist the process but only the people can bring about lasting change.

There may be good reason to extend PER at this point in time, but the public needs to be informed why. PER must be progressively relaxed, starting with the more responsible media and non-government organizations. There is a risk, of course, in relaxing the Regulations too early, but there is a far greater risk in relaxing them too late. The Government's top-down, heavy-handed approach can only work for a while. If it does not soon show more faith in the basic good sense of "middle Fiji" and behave more in line with its stated good intentions, it will fail, and all that has been achieved since 2006 -- and all that it wants to achieve -- will fail with it.

It is a strange and ironic twist, but Government's decision to extend PER will leave many of its supporters hugely disappointed (because it will further alienate "middle Fiji") while those opposing the Government will be delighted (because Government has played into their hands).

(o-) Important New Book on 2006 Coup

The 2006 Military Takeover in Fiji: a Coup to End all Coups, edited by Jon Fraenkel, Stewart Firth and Brij V. Lal, ANU E Press.

An invaluable, wide-ranging collection of papers, mainly by Coup opponents, but with no apologies for the policies of the deposed Qarase Government. Click here for the whole 472 pages. 1.5MB, but quick broadband download.

Brij Lal's comment quoted below points to one, as yet little considered, possible consequence of a failed coup. While race is not the only driver of politics in Fiji, it is an easy way for the unscrupulous to rally support.

"People in power in the FLP–RFMF* interim administration appear unconcerned about the incontrovertible fact that a large cross-section of the indigenous Fijian community feels deeply humiliated. They are the outright majority of the population, and in their view they are the underprivileged ones who needed special assistance, who as the taukei, the indigenous inhabitants, were ‘by right’ entitled to control the levers of power. And now this: Unceremoniously tossed out of office, deprived of government handouts, and told to compete on equal terms with everyone else. The days of state-sanctioned pampering are over. It is a timely, if severe, message relayed with unprecedented bluntness. If the SDL and the nationalists ever return to power, they would likely pursue an ethno-nationalist agenda with a vengeance never seen before in Fijian politics.

"It will be the politics of grudge and relentless score-settling all over again. This is a fear that lies deep at the back of the Indo-Fijian mind. This is the main reason why so many are so desperate for the military to succeed in its campaign. For, if it fails, Indo-Fijians know they will be doomed permanently to a subordinate future in the cul-de-sac of Fijian politics from which escape will be difficult."(p.434) * Republic of Fiji Military Forces- Fiji Labour Party.

(o+) You Can't Please Everybody: Reactions to the pre-PPDF Meeting

Almost everyone (minor party GVP and CAMV party representatives excepted) seemed content with the agenda agreed upon by political leaders at Friday's Political Parties Leaders' Forum meeting. Former PM Laisenia Qarase spoke highly of the meeting. Former Opposition Leader Mike Beddoes was reported as saying the Forum went well and that everyone was presented an equal opportunity to express their views freely on all matters listed on the agenda. He added that the outcome of the Forum was significant considering how things had turned out in the past six months. Even the press was enthusiastic. "Political Leaders Find Some Common Ground" (Fiji Times); "Beddoes Happy with Forum Outcome" (Fiji Sun); "SDL Hails Political Party Meeting" (Fiji Live).

But not so the Fiji Daily Post. Its Saturday super-large front page banner headline read "No Change, No Polls". The paper went on to write about "an ultimatum issued to political leaders " ... by the Interim PM who was reported to have told the meeting that there would be no elections "if the participants failed to agree on a new electoral system." This may well be so but no reference to this statement was mentioned by any other paper; no participant mentioned it; it was not even given the status of a direct quotation by the Post; and since no journalist attended the meeting, one is left wondering what the Interim PM actually "told the meeting."And why spoil an otherwise happy day! [See "Bainimarama Urges Unity", below.]

Someone else not at the meeting, Professor Brij Lal, must have been phoned by the Fiji Sun for his comments on the agenda. The Sun (15 March) reports him as saying "This [the absence of direct reference to the military] is a glaring omission because unless the role of the military is publicly discussed, there can be no assurance of democratic rule in Fiji." I agree with him but the Constitution, that Bainimarama and many others want to see amended, was also not specifically mentioned. Those attending the meeting would ensure both topics will be discussed under item one of the agenda: The democratic experience in Fiji. [I'm wrong. It will be discussed under People's Charter.]

Prof. Lal warned a "set agenda would not be welcomed by the UN and Commonwealth, who had been requested to facilitate the PPDF. [They] will not sully their reputations by getting involved in a sullied process. The Commonwealth communiqué is clear: it wants the dialogue process to be open, transparent and unprejudiced about the final outcome. They will not come in to endorse a pre-arranged agenda," he said.

On this, I do not agree. Most agenda items are usually decided before meetings. Why should they not agree to a pre-arranged agenda? How can an agenda agreed to by all parties be "a sullied process"? The task of the UN/Commonwealth is to facilitate, not set the agenda. That is the sole responsibility of Fiji. I think Prof. Lal, presuming the worst, responded too quickly to a newspaper enquiry seeking a negative response. He could have waited until the dust had settled and a clearer, less ambiguous, view of what the agenda entailed had emerged.

Not to be outdone in "anticipatory negativity", Fiji Women's Crisis Centre Co-ordinator Shamima Ali, welcomed the decision to include 15 NGO and civil society groups in the PPDF, but then added "inclusion should not be conditional on who supports the coup and who doesn't." Fiji Times 15 March. [Of course. Why anticipate the worst?]

Bainimarama Urges Unity

Fiji Daily Post 13 March. Text in full.

Interim Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama is urging all political leaders to put their negativity aside and support the People’s Charter. Speaking at the Political Party Leaders Forum at the Parliamentary Complex in Nasese, Bainimarama called on leaders to unite and move forward. “Pointing fingers at one another and continuing to engage in the blame game is neither helpful nor constructive,” he said.“More than ever, now we must recognise that the only way to move forward is to tackle years of systematic problems by reforming. “To face our global economic challenges we must make paradigm shifts, be positive and resilient and promote equal citizenry, we must be one nation,” he added.

Bainimarama told the leaders at the forum that they must unite as one.“We must be creative and innovative to mitigate our risks and we must become self sufficient. “We can ill afford to view the situation through narrow religious, ethnic, political, personal vantage points or as advocates of foreign interests,” he said.

The Election-Constitution Dilemma

(-o) Brij Lal on Why Only Parliament Can Amend the Constitution

Condensed from Fiji Sun article 2.2.08 . My emphasis.

Co-author of the Reeves Commission report which led to the 1997 Constitution, Professor Brij Lal, says only parliament can amend the Constitution. Anything else will have no legal validity. He says there are no shortcuts. The best course of action for the Commodore would be to put his proposed electoral changes before the President’s Forum for discussion by all stakeholders. Any consensus reached there could then be inserted into the constitution by a recalled parliament.

We know that the High Court has legitimised the appointment of the interim administration by the President through reserve powers derived by convention under common law (and that this ruling is being challenged in the Court of Appeal by ousted PM Laisenia Qarase) but the key question today is: How can the constitution be amended without a parliament? There is a constitutional crisis.

The current government says it wants to restore democratic rule but this can only be done by returning the nation to the polls. It is committed to elections but wants to amend the constitution so that the new electoral system is used.

Already the new electoral system has been supported by all the political parties. It is a fact the matter will be discussed at the President’s Political Dialogue Forum.

Former CEO of the PM's Office, Joji Kotobalavu offers a solution that may be acceptable to all parties:

"Once political consensus is reached on this new system of national elections, the President can invoke his emergency powers under the Constitution to reconvene the dissolved Parliament solely for the purpose of suspending the current electoral and multi-party provisions of the 1997 Constitution and to adopt the new system for the next elections.

The reconvened Parliament could also formalise other political agreements such as the ratification of the President’ promulgation on immunity, and the formation of a government of national unity after the elections, to bring about national unity and reconciliation, and, in conjunction with that, to undertake a comprehensive independent review of Fiji’ Constitution in all aspects.

This, said Prof Lal, is the only constitutional way to amend the constitution when parliament had already been dissolved, but if the Government's chief legal adviser, the Attorney General, thinks there is another way, he must tell the public.

Read the Constitution at this site
http://www.unescap.org/esid/psis/population/database/poplaws/law_fiji/fiji_004.htm

(+oB)... But What a Constitution! Fact and Opinion
Crosbie Walsh

The Constitution Review Commission whose recommendations, after wide consultation and with some changes, became the 1997 Constitution Amendment Act, was "commissioned" by the Great Council of Chiefs in the aftermath of the 1987 Coup and the even more racially lopsided 1990 Constitution. The commissioners were New Zealander Sir Paul Reeves, ANU academic and former Fiji resident Prof. Brij Lal, and the late Tomasi Vakatora. Their recommendations were considered by the then PM Sitiveni Rabuka and the Leader of the Opposition, Jai Ram Reddy, unanimously endorsed by the Great Council of Chiefs, debated by a joint parliamentary committee, and finally put to the House for approval.

The preamble of the Constitution states (my emphasis): "In the interpretation of a provision of this Constitution ... regard must be had to the context in which this Constitution was drafted and to the intention that constitutional interpretation takes into account social and cultural developments, especially (a) developments in the understanding of the context of particular human rights; and (b) developments in the promotion of particular human rights."

Last Monday I sat down to re-read the 1997 Constitutional Amendment Act partly to see how the "context" had shaped the law but mainly to see whether Brij Lal or Voqere Bainimarama was correct. Could a fair and free election be held without breaching the Constitution, or could it not? Perhaps there was some legal loophole or ambiguity to support Bainimarama's position. Several hours later I was in no doubt. Elections along the lines proposed by the Interim Government can only be decreed by Parliament. Any other way is in breach of the Constitution. Brij Lal is correct.

So, where does this take us? One view, which supports the Interim Government position, is that the electoral system, and much else in the Constitution, could well breach basic human rights. Most people in Fiji accept the need to protect indigenous Fijian (and Rotuman and Banaban) "first nation" rights pertaining to land and custom, and even, within limits, to the retention of a parallel system of government, as spelt out in the Fijian Affairs Act, Fijian Development Fund Act, Native Lands Act, Native Lands Trust Act and other Acts, but their implementation should be transparent, and not used -- as they have so often been -- as a means to protect and embed the power and privilege of sections of the Fijian elite under the guise of protecting the interests of ordinary Fijians.

The constitution's political provisions are another matter altogether. They affect citizens of all communities; Fijians no more than others. Major changes are needed at all levels of administration: provincial, municipal and national. When we say all citizens are equal under the law we should mean with respect to all constitutional provisions other than those excepted .

But almost all provisions in the Constitution dealing with the executive, legislative and even some judicial functions of government, from the appointment of the President and Vice President, to representation in the House of Representatives and Senate, the drawing of election boundaries, the alternative vote system and elections; the many powers of the Great Council of Chiefs, the appointment of senior judges, and the provisions for amending the constitution, to a greater or lesser extent, under the circumstances prevailing in Fiji for the past several years, entrench Fijian paramountcy, potentially to the detriment of other communities. And this paramountcy is by no means shared equally from the top to the bottom of Fijian society. A constitution which guarantees that all are not equal under the law makes other references to human rights sound rather hollow.

By "under the circumstances prevailing in Fiji for the past several years" I mean the pervasive and universally dominant influence of extreme Fijian nationalism, reinforced by religious extremism, in almost all spheres of public life. In the SDL Government where supporters of the Speight coup were made cabinet ministers, and a Minister referred to IndoFijians as "weeds" to be rooted out and sent to India. In Senate where religious extremists like Tomasi Kanailagi held sway. In the leadership of the Methodist church. In a Great Council of Chiefs led by equally rabid nationalists. In the absence of an effective parliamentary opposition, thanks to the failure of the "multi-party Cabinet" clause in the Constitution, in large part brought about by Qarase's refusal to allow Chaudhry in his cabinet, despite an Appeals Court and Supreme Court ruling. In ethnic Fijians heading almost all government ministries and departments. In the absence of transparency and high levels of favourism and corruption. In the general ignorance of political realities and apathy by the public. In the Indo-Fijian population's fear of retaliation. And, last but not least, by a not very vocal fourth estate. In other "circumstances" most Constitutional provisions could have produced a fair and just society; in the particular circumstances of the 1990s and early 2000s, they could not. Democracy, which the SDL called a "foreign flower" not suited to Fiji, never stood a chance.

Check reinforces check, building impregnable barriers against change to the Constitution. The President and Vice-President are appointed by the Great Council of Chiefs (GCC) following consultation with the Prime Minister. The PM and Cabinet are appointed by the President, acting on his own judgment, from the party with the confidence of the House. The President appoints as Leader of the Opposition the MP who, in his opinion, would be acceptable to the majority of MPs in the opposition party or parties. [The ousted Leader of the Opposition's party had two seats!]

The upper house or Senate consists of 32 unelected members. All are appointed by the President on the advice of others: 14 on advice from the GCC; 9 on advice from the PM, 8 on advice from the Leader of the Opposition, and one on the advice of the Council of Rotuma.

The powerful Great Council of Chiefs consists of 55 unelected members: three each are nominated by the 14 provinces (irrespective of population size); 3 by the Council of Rotuma, and 6 by the Minister of Fijian Affairs in consultation with the President. The President, Vice President, PM and 1987 coup leader Sitiveni Rabuka are members.

The Chief Justice is appointed by the President on the advice of the PM. The CJ presides over the Supreme Court that deals, among other things, with "any matters arising under the Constitution or involving its interpretation." The Election Boundaries Commission and the Electoral Commission are appointed by the President after consulting the PM and Leader of the Opposition. The chairperson in both cases is a judge.

Parliamentary representation derives from fixed communal seats (17 rural Fijian; 19 Indo-Fijian, one Rotuman and three General voters) based on provinces (which serve few other purposes, except for Fijians) and six urban Fijian and 25 Open seats. The boundaries, the number and type of seats, and the system of voting is inflexible and grossly unfair, especially to urban Fijians and Indo-Fijians. One wonders whether such an unequal and unfair electoral system breaches UN declarations on human rights.

Despite these provisions, a multi-ethnic government led by Mahendra Chaudhry's FLP won the 1999 election. Speight and Qarase sought, and many in today's opposition seek, to prevent this ever happening again.

To change this system within the Constitution requires a specially announced bill to be read three times in the House of Representatives and to have the support of at least two-thirds of the members in the House and the Senate at its second and third readings. Sixty days must separate the last two readings.

This may seem not unreasonable. It should not be too easy to change a constitution, though election system details should not need to be enshrined in the Constitution. One might have thought principles alone would have sufficed, with details left to subsequent legislation. But the story does not stop there.

The Bill, even with this support, can be vetoed by "certain members". It still needs the support of 15 of the 23 Fijian MPs, 13 of the 19 Indo-Fijians, and 2 of the 3 General Voter MPs. Given that rural Fijians and General Voters are over-represented, it seems unlikely that their MPs would vote for a fairer system that could see them out of job.

Which takes us back to the "context" within which the Constitution was drafted and accepted. The dominant Fijian leaders refused to accept the possibility of a non-Fijian president or vice-president; they wanted to further entrench Fijian land and sea ownership; special assistance for Fijians to compete in business; and special mention of Christianity. The Constitution's preamble defers to "the enduring influence of Christianity in these islands and its contribution, along with that of other faiths, to the spiritual life of Fiji".

[The Methodist Church submission to the Reeves Commission wanted much more: Fiji to be declared a Christian state; a ban on Sunday work; Christian teaching to be taught and safeguarded in government; no other ethnic group to be allowed permanent residency in Fiji, and provision, also within the Constitution, for the safeguarding of Fijian "values, religion, culture, their land and sea." (* Tuwere, 46: 1997). Most, but thankfully not all, Methodist Church leaders were core supporters of the 1987 and 1990 coups. As the religious element in extreme Fijian nationalism that provided the "foot soldiers" for these coups, they must bear much responsibility for the bigotry, intolerance and inhumanity which has allowed Fiji's "coup culture" to fester and flourish. Their thoughts have no place in a democratic constitution.]

Non-Fijians (mostly non-Christians) had little choice. Under the 1990 they had limited rights; under the new constitution they would in some respects be second-class citizens, but their rights appeared more protected. This is the "context" of the 1997 Constitution. Its prime cause and effect was not to advance democracy -- or establish parliamentary (sic!) paramountcy -- but to draw the fangs from Fijian ethnic and religious extremism, ensure Fijian paramountcy, give non-Fijians an acceptable recognized place in the country, and create the political stability necessary for economic and social advancement.

In a healthy democracy (which the Constitution claims Fiji to be) one particular human right is that one person's vote should be worth no more or less than any other person's.

The role of an unelected, "aristocratic-bureaucratic" body like the GCC would appear to have no proper place in the running of the state. Its role should be restricted to Fijian affairs, as indeed was long ago intended. It has no mandate from or over others, and should, in my opinion, play no part in national politics.

Provinces (today's approximations of pre-contact Fijian political units, the yasana) are the geographic strongholds of the chiefs and the units used for the Fijian administration. They are vastly unequal in population size and have no meaning for non-Fijians. They are an unsatisfactory and undemocratic way to determine parliamentary seat allocations.

Bainimarama is right in wanting a truer democracy but I don't see how he can do it without breaking the Constitution. The only legal way out would seem to be along the lines suggested above by Joji Kotobalavu: persuade his opponents to change the voting system (and later conduct a further constitutional review) after the elections. There could then be an election in December followed by the agreed-to changes; and a new election, based on the new system, soon afterwards.

For this ever to happen, much is being asked of the President's Dialogue Forum, and the international community. The EU, Commonwealth, Forum and particularly Australia and New Zealand will need to lean far more heavily on Bainimarama's opponents than they have on Bainimarama. How each party acts will tell us much about the true value they attach to democracy.

* Ilaitia Tuwere "The Church State Relation in Fiji", pp25-52 in Brij Lal and Tomasi Vakatora (eds), Fiji in Transition, Vol. I.1997.