Father Arms Corrects Me on an Election Posting

N0262.
For much of last year a number of readers persisted in saying that the Government Roadmap for Democracy and Sustainable Socio-Economic Development (RDSSED) 2009 to 2014 did not exist as a document because it had not been published. In June Pacific Island leaders at the Engaging with the Pacific meeting at Natadola had been informed in sufficient detail of the Roadmap and the Strategic Framework for Change to support them. My understanding was that the Roadmap did exist but only in draft, and it main provisions seemed reasonably clear from what Government was actually doing, but none of this satisfied the critics.

So, in January and early February I published a three-part article showing the linkages from the People's Charter to the Strategic Framework for Change to the elusive Roadmap. Links to the postings are: Part 1 (22 January), Part II (29 January) and Part III (5 February).

Last week I received an email from Father David Arms, a Columban priest who has served in Fiji for many years. A qualified linguist and an authority on the Fijian language, a regular commentator on the Fiji body politic, he took an active part in the discussions that resulted in the draft People's Charter and he is a member of the Citizens' Constitutional Forum. He has some kind — and some kindly critical — comments on Part III of my paper, some parts of which he said  were incorrect, to which I shamefully agree.  Fr Arms would particularly welcome comments on the Open List system recommended in the Charter draft.

Why the Roadmap? The Politics under the Bridges Part II

By Crosbie Walsh

Resume. In Part I that was published last Saturday I argued that the Appeal Court ruling that overturned the High Court judgement (that the Bainimarama government was legal) was a critical turning point when Bainimarama was forced to accept that the only way to implement the principles of the People's Charter was by dictatorial rule, and to ensure their sustainability it was necessary to implement infrastructural and institutional reforms that would shift the people's allegiance from their separate ethnicities to allegiance to a Fiji shared fairly by all its citizens. The Roadmap was the result.

Have a bias toward action - let's see something happen now. You can break that big plan into small steps and take the first step right away. – Indira Gandhi.

Much of the Roadmap deals with economic issues — attracting and streamlining investment, tax reforms, the sugar, manufacturing and tourism industries, fiscal stringency and reducing the cost of government, agricultural, fishing, forestry and mining production and increasing exports and import substitution. 

Growing the economy is the platform upon which Government's other reforms depend. So far, due to a variety of local and global factors, government and Fiji's economic performance falls far short of expected and needed growth levels, and the funding of the infrastructural measures that are an essential part of the Roadmap have relied heavily on local and overseas borrowing. The seriousness of Fiji's macro-economic situation is accepted without further comment here. I wish instead to comment on infrastructural and institutional reforms because of their social and political implications.

Infrastructural and Institutional Reform until 2012

There is little doubt that physical infrastructure and institutional reforms were needed for a more integrated economy and more efficient government but their political purpose, in my view, is to produce a more integrated society where all citizens are treated fairly, irrespective of their race or location. Thus, the emphasis on rural development —the new roads, bridges and jetties, the focus on import substitution, the land bank to bring more land into production, the micro-hydros and bio-diesel schemes, the new rural classrooms and health clinics, micro-businesses for rural women, and the equal distribution of land lease rental moneys — most of which have been announced or opened with much fanfare and a visit from the Prime Minister,  are seen as ways to win the i'taueki's unquestioning support away from the traditional chiefs and church talatala so that in 2014 more people will exercise their votes independent of chief and church influence. 
 

Development projects are underway in all provinces,  but it would seem that those where the extremist CAMV political support was strongest, Upper Naitasiri/Tailevu, Bua, Macuata, Cakaudrove and Taveuni, are receiving special attention. The military leadership of the country's four Divisions and most of its provinces may add to more efficient local government but they are also another way to neutralise the old influences.

The reforms underway in the public service to downsize government, farm off state-owned enterprises and make ministries and departments more efficient and accountable through regular reports to the SFCC,  should minimise opportunities for misuse of office and petty corruption. These reforms, together with decrees making scholarships equally available to all races, the introduction of civics and financial management education in schools, the removal of race-based school names, and the decree that makes all Fiji citizens Fijians, have, I think, wide support among educated urban people of all races whose main complaint against government is not with what government is doing but with the fact that they have no say in the decision-making and limited opportunity, because of the Public Emergency Regulations (PER) and the Media Decree, to discuss what is happening.

Other Government policies are also likely to have won support among ordinary urban people. These include lifting taxable incomes from $9,000 to $15,000, the exclusion of basic foodstuff from VAT, concerted moves to improve access to low cost housing, the upgrading of urban squatter settlements, moves to introduce a minimum wage, and various other anti-poverty measures such as increased and wider benefit payments, and for those eligible, free or subsidized transport, free textbooks and school fees. Work to reduce corruption is ongoing. No major heist has been revealed but the exposure of those caught with their hands in the kitty, better auditing and better police work must be having made some impact. 

Other measures include: 

The Media Decree, much maligned by overseas media, contains a code of ethics and a mechanism for complaints. The old Media Council lacked the teeth to introduce these long overdue changes. For the present, media freedom is limited but I would expect the situation to slowly improve after 2012, and in the longer term the Media Decree will serve the country well. 

The Legal Practitioners Decree is a welcome improvement. Mechanisms are now in place for criticism and complaints that were previously lacking. Many would also approve the prison reforms with their greater emphasis on education, rehabilitation and non-reoffending. Considerably more attention has also been given to women, domestic violence, child labour and sexual offences. The list could go on but I think this is sufficient to indicate government concerns about important social issues that are likely to win it support for its constitutional and electoral reforms. 

A dictatorship Fiji definitely is, but it is quite unlike the dictatorships of Burma and North Korea that its detractors would have us believe, and is more akin to Singapore whose advice has already influenced its policies and may continue to be a model for the future.

Constitutional Reform 2012

We are now [2011] into the last year of economic development. Next year our whole focus 

goes on governance. – Pio Tikoduadua, Permanent Secretary, PM's Office

What these reforms will be and how inclusive dialogue will be leading to their formulation is, of course, unknown but there have been some strong indicators. If we start from what Government might think is wrong with the old constitution, we should not be too far wrong. 

First, the electoral system was enshrined in the constitution making even small amendments a major task. I think only the broad principles of the proposed new electoral system —non-ethnic voting, equal franchise and proportional representation—will be enshrined in the new constitution. Amendments to the electoral law will be made by Parliament or possibly by a popular referendum.  I will discuss these issues more fully next week.

 

Secondly, the old constitution gave special powers to the Great Council of Chiefs and the Fiji Law Society. The GCC could veto the Prime minister's nomination for President and it could —and did— veto its nomination for Vice-President. The new GCC role is likely to be limited to providing advice to Government on matters concerning i'taukei culture and custom. The Fiji Law Society will have no special role. 

Thirdly, the powers and method of appointment of the President will be revisited. Fiji may decide to move away from the Westminster system that limits the authority of the Head of State and move more towards other models. The least we can expect is an increase of his “emergency” powers. The presidency will be open to all races. 

Fourthly, the above changes will necessitate changes in the authority of Parliament, the governing party and, more specifically, the Prime Minister. It seems unlikely these powers will be increased without new checks and balances. I would expect Government to seek the advice of the local legal fraternity and overseas constitutional lawyers on what they should be. 

Fifthly, the new constitution will almost certainly spell out the role of the military in upholding the principles of the People's Charter. This is a contentious issue with some inherent dangers but it is most unlikely Bainimarama and the Military Council will order a “return to the barracks” unless they are empowered to protect the Constitution, which will embed the principles of the Charter. 

A New Role for Senate?

The old constitution gave Fiji a bicameral parliament. Government has already indicated it may  seek the abolition of Senate, probably because they associate it with the Great Council of Chiefs and the manipulations of the former adversarial parliament system. In my opinion, Senate should not be abolished until its possible complementary roles are fully examined. 

Senate should, in my opinion, have no (or very limited) political powers but wide advisory functions with extensive ad hoc sub-committees. It could, for example, include professional experts and representatives of business, the trade unions, tertiary education institutions, and the different professions. Temporary, rotating or permanent places could be set aside for youth, women's organizations, the disabled, disadvantaged minorities, and small ethnic groups such as Rotumans, Kai Solomoni, Banabans and Tuvaluans. There could be a permanent sub-committee representing the major religious affiliations. 

The possibilities are endless but an advisory body of civilians and civilian organizations would, I think, made for better government than a parliament consisting of only one chamber. Members of Senate and its sub-committees should receive a per diem but only to cover their actual travel, accommodation and incidental expenses.

Overseas governments have insisted on inclusive dialogue involving the 2006 political parties. I think dialogue will be representative and reasonably inclusive but it is unlikely to include leaders of the political parties, least of all Laisenia Qarase and Mahendra Chaudhry, unless in exchange overseas governments offer the Bainimarama government incentives it cannot afford to decline. Qarase is on record saying he opposes the People's Charter and saw no reason to change Fiji's communal electoral system for years come. Given that the Charter and electoral reform are at the centre of Government policies, all he could do would be to play fool's advocate.

The series will conclude next Saturday.

Australian Meddling Part of Agenda to Dominate Fiji

Tom Orsag 

in Solidarity

(o) The Link Between February's Dialogue Forum, the 2012-13 Constitution Forum and the 2014 Elections

This post is a summary of an exclusive interview by Samisoni Pareti of  Islands Business with the Prime Minister's Office Permanent Secretary, Col. Pio Tikoduadua (photo), in which Tikoduadua spells out the functions of next month's nationwide dialogue forum and its relationship with the constitutional dialogue scheduled for between September 2012 and September 2013, exactly 12 months before the 2014 elections.  Click here for the full article.

Next month's National Dialogue for Fiji’s Future (NDFF) will have an “open” agenda  to be decided by  the NDFF Secretariat and its yet-to-be appointed chair.  People and organisations that participate will meet four basic prerequisites.They be forward looking, have the best interest of Fiji at heart,  hold views consistent with the People’s Charter for change, will not have an outstanding case before the courts, and not  represent a political party that espouses ethnic based politics.

Civic rather than political party participation is desired on the state of the nation and economic and political issues.  "You can’t really separate political issues from the people’s discussions," says Tikoduadua."That is going to come through but as long as they don’t go in and try to further their own political party agendas. It is hoped the  outcome will be previous support for “They can gauge their way from there and go forward. What we would like to see is for the forum to develop further into what could become a consultative body for the new constitution by way of input.” [It will be noted that former PM Qarase, who has a court case pending, and race-based parties, are excluded. It will be interesting to see how race-based parties are defined.]

The Constitution Dialogue Forum consultations during between September 2012-2013  will be  extensive and not limited to political parties.  Issues to be decided include the size of the new parliament, the appropriateness of a bi-cameral system, the length of a government's term of office, and systems of checks and balances. [It is probable that the political parties involved will not include the old race-based parties.]

The new Constitution will be in place by September 2013 at the latest and will be translated into the vernacular languages. Pocket-size editions will be be made widely available so that candidates and all citizens can  familiarize themselves with its provisions.

[It will also be interesting to see how this enhanced sequence of popular consultations is received by Australia, New  Zealand and the international community. India, the most populous Commonwealth country, has already indicated it will help in any ways it can to pave the way for democratic elections.]

(B) Election Formats: Part II Walsh - "New Election Playing Fields and Outcomes"

Last week I summarized two articles by Prof.Wadan Narsey on Fiji's election system, and provided links to the originals. The articles explained proportional voting and the list system which seem likely to replace the AV system used in Fiji's 2006 election. Using the 2006 election results, Wadan showed that irrespective of the system used (AV or proportional representation), the SDL would have been elected and Indo-Fiians were not under-represented by either system. The only difference was that the "fairer" proportional voting system would have seen two minor parties, the NFP and NAP, win 5 and 3 parliamentary seats respectively.

In Part II I comment on Wadan's articles, the NCBBF election proposals, the importance of the "split vote", the abolition of communal seats and ethnic minorities, Independent candidates, the number and size of constituencies, open and closed party lists, minimum votes needed to win a seat in parliament, and (thanks to notes by Ranjit Singh) on useful lessons from New Zealand's experience with its proportional and party list election system.

Snippets: NZ, China, Economy, Religion, Melanesian Spearhead Group, Political Change

Notice: See new poll in lefthand column.

Now Hear This!

John Key has told China its aid the the Pacific Region may undermine what he called Australian and NZ efforts to "improve governance in the region."

China, Government Loans to Housing Authority
Government has guaranteed $150m over five years to the Housing Authority in case the Authority's soft 2% loan of $70m with China falls through. The money will be used to house approximately 10,000 families, including squatters.

Fiji-China Trade
A China Embassy spokesman said trade last year was good for both countries, and is expected to increase again this year, especially in tourism from China.

Tourism Up
The Hoteliers Association says tourist numbers have increased over the past two months and are expected to remain bouyant until Christmas. Many, however, are visiting for shorter stays.

Read more...

Momi Bay Auction The failed multi-million dollar Momi Bay resort will be auctioned tomorrow. The auction has attracted over 100 possible buyers from around the world.

At Last
The Fiji Times in its first political coverage for months reported "Some Methodist churches, particularly in greater Suva, yesterday sang songs they had prepared for the banned annual choir competition." Subtle, eh!

Assemblies of God
AOG, with about 40,000 members and 80% ethnic Fijian membership, is holding a week-long conference in Nausori this week. Over 5,000 people are expected to attend. They had no difficulty in obtaining a permit.

Melanesian Spearhead Group
MSG foreign ministers meeting in Suva this week have taken legal opinion into account in stating that "Fiji should be part of the PACER-Plus discussion," according to PNG's Rima Ravusiro. MSG holds that Fiji's suspension from the Forum should not affect its PACER and other trade positions because they are legally different. This view is not shared by Australia, NZ and Samoa, although Mr Ravusiro thinks there has been some improvement in this regard. Fiji says it has every legal right to be part of the negotiations meetings and that its role in such trade agreements is separate to its Forum status.

New District Commissioners
Radio NZI reports Tupou Vere of the NGO Pacific Concerns Resource Centre as questioning why army officers have been appointed commissioners for Fiji's four administrative divisions, and not civilians from the Ministry of Provincial Development. Is it, as Government claims, part of plan to improve efficiency, or evidence that "Fiji’s military regime has increased its grip on power," as Vere and RNZI obviously believe?

PM on Political Changes
Radio Fiji reports the PM as saying the Presidency and the Parliamentary system will be two issues that Government will consider when drafting the new Fiji Constitution during the the upcoming Constitutional review. He said "it will be put to the public if they want a President to be leading the country or just to have a Prime Minister to lead the country". Other decisions to be made include: whether there's a need for Senate, whether to reduce the number of MPs, and whether to adopt a new electoral system.

Photo credit: Chinese dragon. www.scapetv.com.

(0) ANZ-US: Who's Kidding Whom?

See Comments on this post by clicking "comment" at the end.

Outgoing Acting US Ambassador to NZ Dr Dave Keegan was interviewed by NZTV1's Mark Sainsbury on Sunday. He had this to say about Australian, NZ, the US and the Fiji "situation."

Keegan: The role of the US in the Pacific I think is longstanding, you know out of Hawaii which is our Pacific state, out of American territories, Guam, American Samoa, and others, but we're also not going to step in and try to recreate the kind of expertise that Australia and New Zealand bring to the table. You have a degree of knowledge and a degree of understanding of how to make things work there that we want to take advantage of and be the beneficiary of, and figure out how we can add value.

Sainsbury: But the US congressman for American Samoa Faleomavaega, now he says that - he has criticized New Zealand and Australia's attitude to the Pacific, and said America should be looking at - in terms of Fiji - that we're too tough on Fiji, America needs to take a sort of softer stance there.

Keegan: I know that Mr Faleomavaega has made that argument, Secretary of State Clinton, Assistant Secretary Kurt Campbell have made it absolutely clear that in the government's assessment, New Zealand and Australia are taking a strong line with Fiji that is appropriate, and that we want to figure out how to work with your governments as we have been to continue the pressure on Fiji to move back to a real democracy.

To read the whole interview, click here. Our thanks to Pacific Media Centre for this.

Meanwhile, contemplate how our knowledge and understanding of the Pacific have really made things work since the military takeover .

Think of --

1. How the Fiji situation has got progressively worse since December 2006.
2. How we have not modified our approaches as the situation changed.
3. How we have not accepted Bainimarama has far more support than we first realized.
4. How we have failed to understand Qarase and the extreme opposition will not modify their stance unless we stop backing them.
5. How we do not understand it is only Fiji's "middle ground" (not the racist extremists) that can bring about reconciliation.
6. How our policies have further divided Fiji's people, and delayed reconciliation.
7. How we have not acknowledged democracy cannot be achieved by an undemocratic electoral system and injust government.
8. How we have failed to grasp that our stance on Fiji has accelerated Chinese influence to the detriment of our diplomatic influence and trade interests in the Region.
9. How we continue to accept the Pacific Island "yes" at the Forum, and on PACER plus and PICTA, as unreserved approval of our benign leadership.
10. And, most importantly, how our lack of humility -- and deep-down belief in human equality and justice -- has failed to boost our knowledge and enhance our understanding of people and nations whose cultures and histories are different than our own?

This is not to excuse the human rights and other abuses that have occurred since 2006 but, given that our Fiji policies have demonstrably failed, we must ask Dr Keegan: "Who's kidding Whom?" One must hope the incoming ambassador will have more nous.

(+) Race Used to Divide the Nation

There is no room for racial discrimination is this government, says interim PM Cde Voreqe Bainimarama. Speaking at Dawasamu, Tailevu yesterday Cdre Bainimarama said the interim government was committed to eradicating discrimination at all levels. "I will not tolerate racial discrimination as a way of dividing people of this nation."

This may mean having to write a new constitution "so that racial discrimination, a tool previously used by many politicians to win votes, is eradicated."

Cdre Bainimarama said Government did not want a repetition of the 2000 [Speight coup] event where little trust was shared by Fijians and other races and drove many people to parliament to support rebel leader George Speight for no reason. FijiSun.

(-+) The Coup Was Not Necessary: Expert

One of the especially sad things about the Fiji situation is that family, friends and colleagues often find themselves on opposite sides. It never was, as the media mostly present it, a case of baddies versus goodies. I find myself in this situation with regards to a letter published in The Australian by former colleague Robbie Roberston. Robbie, now of Adelaide's La Trobe University, has written three books on the 1987 and 2000 coups, one co-authored with his wife, Akosita Tamanisau, and he wrote most of the political section in my Fiji: an Encyclopaedic Atlas (see advertisement, in left column). He's an expert on the earlier coups (supposedly carried out to defend ethnic Fijian rights) but I think he's misread the 2006 Coup (the first where Indo-Fijians were not the scapegoats).
Here are the points he made (RR) and my responses (CW).

RR: “Fiji emerged from those political storms [the 1987 coup] stronger than ever, with a hugely sophisticated and active civil society, a dynamic free media and a strong legal system... and ethno-nationalism had retreated.”

CW: A rather rosy picture of Fiji not altogether borne out by more recent reactions of some NGOs, the media and the Fiji Law Society, but not altogether wrong either. But on ethno-nationalism, unfortunately, absolutely wrong. The racist reasons forthe Speight Coup were identical to those of 1987. Further witness to ongoing ethno-nationalism of the worst kind includes: the votes won by the extremist CAMV party in 1991 and its absorption into Qarase's SDL for the 2006 election; the overt racism of some of his Government ministers; the sporadic desecration of Hindu temples; the continuing use of the race card, and the blatant racism in numerous anti-Government blogs.

RR: “A new constitution in 1997 that it could rightly be proud of.”

CW: Appearances in 1997 were not borne out by realities, especially from 2000 onwards. The Constitution, eagerly adopted by the Great Council of Chiefs and an exhausted Indo-Fijian population thinking anything was better than the totally racist 1991 Constitution, has proved defective in (a) its electoral system; (b) its Government power-sharing provisions; (c) the power given to the Great Council of Chiefs, and their representation in Senate; and (d) the absence of the President's “reserve” powers, or similar.

RR: “The 1997 Constitution was helping to break down the racial divide through eventual power-sharing … Bainimarama chose to overthrow the recently elected parliament in which power was being shared for the first time among the representatives of 80 percent of the population.”

CW: Qarase refused to admit the Fiji Labour Party to power-sharing, and at the time of the 2006 Coup, the “Opposition” was Mike Beddoes, representing the UPP, a very small party. Power-sharing deprived Parliament, and Fiji, of an effective opposition.

RR: “There was no need for the coup. Change was already in the air because the purported threat Indo-Fijians posed to Fijian dominance has dissipated....may fall to under 25 percent by 2020”

CW: I can't see what has this to do with the Coup? Does Robbie propose a correlation between increasing “Fijian democracy” and a decline in Indo-Fijian numbers, presumably because Fijian politicians would no longer need to play the race card? The 2006 coup had several causes: Qarase's betrayal of Bainimarama's trust by entering politics and his inclusion of 2000 plotters and activists in his government; the high level of corruption; proposed legislation that would have excused the plotters; the divisive Qoliqoli Bill, and other bills promoting ethnic Fijians (more accurately their elite and chiefs) to the detriment of other races. It had nothing to do with current or future demographic shifts.

RR: “This [the smaller Indo-Fijian population] will mean electoral change will have to take place ….”

CW: The only change required from a smaller Indo-Fijian population would be a decrease in the number of their Communal seats. Robbie seems to assume (despite opinions to the contrary in his own writings) that race is the sole driver of Fiji politics and Fiji society. This view has some merit if we substitute “race card” for “race” but only if we also ignore significant divisions within both Fijian and Indo-Fijian communities.

RR:...and such change was already being publicly debated before Bainimarama chose to overthrow the recently elected parliament. “

CW: The Reeves Commission that resulted in the 1997 Constitution recommended the gradual reduction of Communal electorates and an increase in Open electorates, a change that Qarase's SDL would have blocked. The “public debate” was mainly about the scrapping of the Alternative Vote and its replacement by proportional representation. This would be an improvement, but as long as the Fijian Communal seats remained, the value of Fijian votes in some (mainly rural) provinces would continue to be worth between two and four times the value of Fijian votes in other (mainly urbanized) provinces; General Voters (other races) would be over-represented, and Fijians living in towns and cities would continue to be under-represented. In other words, it would continue to be grossly unfair and undemocratic. And as the saying goes: There's many a slip between the lip(debate) and the cup(genuine electoral reform). Robbie wrote of 20-30 years. Bainimarama decided not to wait that long!

But all this begs the question, the People's Charter is now central stage, and of this electoral reform is only a part. In a message to Café Pacific Robbie said: “I fear that even if he [Bainimarama] delivers, the result may not be what we wish for. [adding] Bainimarama should be judged by what he does, not what he says.” How true, on both counts. Bainimarama may not get the full People's Charter--it is still to be discussed-- but if he gets the major part of it, an optimistic view could be that the Coup and all it has brought may yet be judged worthwhile.

RR: Robbie expresses a far less optimistic view:“The danger Bainimarama poses lies not in what he says he will do but what he does. Here is a man who claims he and the military forces he represents have the right to interfere in the political process whenever they, and they alone, choose. This is the Rabuka legacy, and if Bainimarama succeeds in recreating Fiji's democracy in five years' time, he will have confirmed for all time the role of the military as Fiji's political kingmaker.”

CW: Yes, this is a distinct possibility and a very real concern that will be addressed during the People's Charter process. But one could also argue that without the Coup, Fiji would have become even more racist. We can no more read past futures than present ones.

(o+) Dealing with the Dictator: Highly Recommended Commentary*

*Graham Davis is a Fiji-born journalist living in Australia. I think he's done a remarkably good job summmarising the main issues in the present situation; in tracing its roots back to earlier coups and before (with interesting comments on Bainimarama's background, personality and clumsy diplomatic skills);  and in offering ideas about what can now be done. To read his article in full, click on The Australian or the Fiji stuckinthemud blog.

Here are the first two paragraphs of his article-----

"Like many military leaders before him, Frank Bainimarama can be autocratic, stubborn, wilful, obstinate and disdainful of the traditional nuances of civilian politics. He may also be the best hope, albeit in five years' time, of a democratic Fiji for all its citizens and not just the amply endowed indigenous majority. If that seems a ludicrous proposition when constitutions are being abrogated and the media proscribed, it's time to consider some basic truths that seem to have been overlooked in the "good guy,[Qarase] bad guy" [Bainimarama] narrative that invariably passes for analysis in much of the Australian media ...

.... It's time to dispense with this simplistic premise because a compelling argument can be made that, in fact, the reverse is true; that Bainimarama and Iloilo, for all their flaws, are embarked on the more worthy crusade. Or certainly more worthy than they're being given credit for by their burgeoning number of foreign opponents. The Fiji saga, by its very nature, defies simplicity, yet stripped to its bare essentials presents the international community with a stark choice between upholding the principle of democracy now and sacrificing racial equality in the process. Wait five years - maybe less if some international agreement could be brokered - and we might get both." [Read on, by clicking one of the sites noted above.]

(o) 1997 Constitution Did Not Stop Communalized Politics

(o) "Fiji's 1997 Constitution failed to stop the drift to more [ethnic] communalized politics, although this time its power-sharing provisions have produced a multi-party cabinet.* In the long term communalization will not enable political stability, although seeking to remove communalizaton is not likely to be immediately possible politically. Nonetheless, at least three amendments to the Constitution need to be addressed, the first being the adoption of a system of proportional representation instead of preferential voting to give scope to the increasing diversity of positions within all communal groupings, so that no one feels excluded; the second being the amendments to compulsory power sharing in government (guidelines for communal responsibilities in cabinet might be more effective); and the third being the ability to redistribute communal seats after each census on the basis of population without recourse to Constitutional change. These changes would allow Parliament to be more representative of Fiji's population as a whole." [Prof. Robbie Robertson, in Walsh 2006, Fiji: an Encylopaedic Atlas, p.383.]

* After the 2001 Election, PM Qarase refused to allocate cabinet posts to the Labour Opposition, as required in the Constitution. The "power sharing" after the 2006 election finally turned to farce when Mike Beddoes (whose General Voters party, the UPP, had two seats in Parliament) became Leader of the Opposition, and not Labour with its 31 seats. Personal animosity between Qarase and Chaudhry was partly responsible but whatever the causes, power-sharing had not worked.