By Ryan L. Maness
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji — Australia’s foreign Minister Stephen Smith received a death threat on June 27, the third such threat that the diplomat has received in the last few months.  Describing the death threat, Smith said it was serious credible and offensive.

Tension has mounted between the Australian government and the Fiji’s interim government about the appropriate response to the threats.  Australia has requested that federal police personnel be allowed to enter Fiji to beef up Smith’s security detail, but Fiji said that no Australian police officers will be allowed into the country.  Fiji police spokesman Ema Mua said that local Fiji police were available upon request, insisting that local authorities were sufficient to deal with the death threats.

Minister Smith is now on leave in Australia and has been since receipt of the last death threat in May.

For more information, please see:

Fiji Times — No requests received by police — 03 July 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji refuses to allow Australian police to protect High Commissioner — 30 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Australia’s Fiji High Commissioner receives third death threat — 30 June 2008

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SUVA, Fiji — The interim government came to power in December 2005 under a promise, among other things, to weed out corruption from Fiji’s government.  A central instrument to this policy is the Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption, which was designed to investigate and prosecute public bodies.  While promulgated by the interim government, it was an open question until this week about what the future of FICAC and whether it was legal.  This week, however, a Fiji High Court has confirmed that FICAC has the power to carry out investigations and prosecute those that it finds evidence against.

The Commission’s deputy commissioner, George Langman, said, “I’m glad that the court has finally come out with that. It hasn’t stopped our investigations we have continued to investigate and charge public officials. We are at the moment investigating a number of public bodies.”  Langman also said that twenty-two public officials and two business men have faced charges of corruption.  More indictments are expected to be handed down soon.

The future is still somewhat uncertain though because the full powers of FICAC are dependent on the legality of the interim government.  As such, if ousted Prime Minister Lasenia Qarase is successful in his suit challenging the legality of the interim government then FICAC will not be allowed to operate.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Daily Post — FICAC to charge more — 30 June 2008

FijiVillage — Lawyers to Appeal Judge’s Decision — 30 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji court confirms power of Commission against Corruption — 29 June 2008

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SUVA, Fiji — Over the past several weeks the Fiji Media Council and the interim government have been trading comments, with the government hinting that governmental regulation of the media might be necessary and with the Media Council denouncing any such regulation.  It is in this atmosphere that many international observers have begun to worry about the media’s independence in Fiji.  This is why it has come as a welcome relief to the Fiji Media Council and others that Fiji has decided to consider giving visas to a group of Australian journalists.

The journalists, from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, had originally been denied visas by the interim government when they had requested to enter Fiji after reporting on the Festival of Pacific Arts in American Somoa.  Explaining the reason for the refusal, acting Deputy Secretary of the Department of Information Major Neumi Leweni, said, “”Some reporters from abroad and, the decision has been made and I don’t think I should really been explaining it, because the decision halews been made and Fiji is a sovereign country and decides on who comes in, and that’s it.”

This position has now shifted, however, as reports from the interim government suggest that the journalists will be allowed in after all.  According to Leweni, he had spoken to ABC’s director of international relations and has gotten a better idea of ABC’s mission in Fiji.  This lack of clarity, the Fiji Times reports, was the reason why the visas were to be denied in the first place.  Now Leweni has said that, “We are in the process of advising proper authorities regarding the granting of their visa.”  While not definite, this indicates that it is likely that the reporters will be allowed in.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Times — Visa for journos — 01 July 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji rejection of Australian journalists described as unacceptable — 29 June 2008

FBCL — Reporters likely to get green light to enter Fiji — 29 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Reporters likely to get green light to enter Fiji — 27 June 2008

Fiji Times — Foreign journalists may face ban — 27 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji suggests more journalists’ ban over unspecified negative reporting — 26 June 2008

By Ryan L. Maness
Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji — Ousted Fiji Prime Minister Lasenia Qarase has confirmed that he and the SDL party will be discussing the tax evasion allegations against Interim Finance Minister Mahendra Chaudhry.  Qarase said that while he was pleased that the FICAC proved that any case could be investigated, he still wanted to a full, complete investigation of the matter.  The matter seemed to have been swept under the rug, Qarase said.

Chaundhry responded by calling on Qarase to stop making personal attacks against him and to join Fiji’s way forward by lending his support to the People’s Charter.  He also said that if the SDL party supports the People’s Charter then there will no further talk of excluding the SDL party from the next election.

Fijivillage also reports that ousted Opposition Leader Mick Beddoes said that Chaundhry has referred to Qarase as a part of the problem in Fiji.  This despite the fact that, according to Beddoes, there is no evidence that Qarase has done anything wrong.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Village — Where Is The Evidence? — 04 June 2008

Fiji Village — SDL to ‘Discuss’ Chaundhry Tax Evasion — 03 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji’s ousted Prime Minister says his party wants Chaundhry brought to justice — 02 June 2008

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SUVA, Fiji — Rewa chief Ro Filipe, of the Rewa Provincial Council, said that he has rejected pressure from the interim government to accept the People’s Charter and the GCC task team report.  Interim PM Bainimarama said that the interim government would sack Provincial Council members who did not express their support of the charter.  Bainimarama also said that Ro Filipe could be the first one to go.

Despite this, the Rewa chief said that his position was researched and discussed before the decision was taken and that pressure from the government would not change that stance.

As of this writing, there are no reports of Ro Filipe has been sacked.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Broadcasting Corporation Limited — Sacking won’t change stance: Rewa Chief — 03 June 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Rewa Provincial Council in Fiji will not change its stance on Charter — 03 June 2008

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PORT VILA, Vanuatu — Following the Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders Summit, Fiji’s interim Prime Minister agreed to conduct an interview with the Fiji Times.  During that interview, Bainimarama reemphasized his desire to hold elections, but that Fiji’s way forward required unanimous support of the People’s Charter.  If groups, specifically SDL party, obstruct the process then they will be barred from contesting the election.  When the Fiji Times interviewer asked if abrogating the constitution was an option for effectuating this end, Bainimarama replied, “Yes, that’s one way. To abrogate the Constitution is no big deal if we have to find a way forward for Fiji.”

During the interview, Bainimarama also defended the coup of 2006 and the military government.  He insisted that the military’s acted for the best intentions of the people of Fiji, but  because the military was responsible for the coup observers assume that they are “power grabbers.”  “Because we’re the military and the military all over the world, as soon as you overturn the elected government, you’re seen as being out to grab power.”

He also said that the purpose of the 2006 coup was to change how Fiji was governed and now that the government is in power the ousted PM Qarase and the SDL party need to come to terms with Fiji’s new direction.  “The charter is the only way forward,” Bainimarama said.   “So if we want to have elections, the way forward for us is to have elections without the SDL. The military can find 50 ways to get rid of them.

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International — Fiji regime leader says removing constitution no big deal — 02 May 2008

Fiji Times — Charter, the way out for Fiji — 02 May 2008

By Ryan L. Maness
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji — The interim Prime Minister said today that the media needs to be regulated in order to ensure that the reporting is pro-Fiji.  Bainimarama followed this statement to say that he did not want the media to report with bias or be pro-government, only pro-Fiji.

“We don’t want to gag the media, we don’t want to stop media freedom,” Bainimarama said, but that it is “common knowledge” that the media has been trying to undermine the government.  This, he said, was why he wants someone from the outside to check up on the publishers and editors of Fiji’s media, rather than allowing them to regulate themselves.

Foreign Minister Ratu Epeli Nailatikau made a similar statement, saying that the interim government does not intend to gag the media, but that the interim government wants fair and balanced reporting.

Fiji Media Council chairman Daryl Tarte was wary of these statements.  “If the Government steps in to regulate the media, it would be a sad day for Fiji,” said Mr Tarte.

For more information, please see:

Pacific Magazine — News Media Must Be Regulated, Bainimarama Says — 01 June 2008

Fiji Times — Media must be pro-Fiji, says PM — 01 June 2008

Pacific Magazine– Fiji Foreign Minister: No Gag on Media — 31 May 2008

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LONDON, UK — Amnesty International, in its annual report of top human rights abusers around the world, has listed Fiji among the 150 other nations on its list.  According to the report, the state of human rights in Fiji have deteriorated since the coup in December 2006.  The report was particularly critical of the interim government’s intimidation of the media, its stance towards the judiciary, the complicity of the human rights commission and the military’s record of pursuit and detention of bloggers critical of the coup.

The interim government was quick to criticize the report.  Interim Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has said that the report damages Amnesty International’s international credibility by releasing a “outdated” report.  According to the interim AG, the report was short on specific allegations of human rights abuses, specifically he decried claims that the media or the judiciary are under attack because the media is free to express itself and the courts have freely expressed themselves.

Fiji Human Rights Commission chairwoman Dr Shaista Shamee, who herself was targeted by Amnesty’s report, has also called it outdated and inaccurate.  She also thought that it was ridiculous for the report to suggest that world leaders should apologize for any human rights abuses in their country.

For more information, please see:

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji human rights chairs says calls for apology for human rights abuses a publicity stunt — 30 May 2008

Australian Broadcasting Corporation — Amnesty tells Fiji to stop threatening media — 30 May 2008

Fiji Times — FHRC tells Amnesty International to get facts right — 30 May 2008

Fiji Times — Amnesty International undermines its credibility — 29 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji and PNG criticised in Amnesty report — 29 May 2008

International Herald Tribune — Amnesty International: Fiji human rights on downward spiral since military coup — 29 May 2008

FijiVillage — Amnesty International reports highlight serious concerns — 29 May 2008

Fiji Times — Amnesty information out of date: Shameem — 29 May 2008

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SUVA, Fiji — Fiji Election Chairman Mohammed Sahu-Khan has told Fiji Live that nothing will stop the Electoral Commission from carrying out its duties and holding an election.  This statement comes after several days of hard rhetoric from interim PM Frank Bainiamarama who has been adamant upon the fact that the 2009 election timetable will not be possible unless the People’s Charter is passed.  The Fiji Times reports that Sahu-Khan said that it is important for Fiji to have a free and fair election.

Despite the chairman’s commitment to the electoral process in Fiji, he believes that reforms are needed before elections should be held.  Specifically, the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation reports that Sahu-Khan believes that the voting system needs to be seriously looked at, despite the fact that any such changes would require a change to the Fijian Constitution.

In order to impress upon the people the need for free and fair elections in Fiji, Sahu-Khan is holding meetings with civil servants to provide a forum to allow them to discuss their comments and criticisms of the current system.

For more information, please see:
Fiji Times — Election work goes ahead — 28 May 2008

Fiji Times — Commission continues with poll preparations — 27 May 2008

Fiji Broadcasting Corporation Limited — Electoral reform needed: Sahu Khan — 27 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji’s Electoral Commission says elections will take place — 27 May 2008

By Ryan L. Maness
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji — Constitutional scholar, Brij Lal, has said that Fiji’s lack of a vice president has created problems that need to be addressed.  Fiji has been without a vice president since the military coup in 2006.  The trouble, according to Lal, arises because, under the Constitution, the role of appointing a vice president rests with the Great Council of Chiefs, but interim PM Frank Bainimarama suspended the GCC last year.

Without a vice president, if something should happen to the current president Ratu Josefa Iloilo, then a presidential power vacuum would ensue.  In such a situation, says Lal, Bainimarama would declare a state of emergency and assume the powers of the presidency. “He has done it before. Soon after the December 2006 coup, he simply asked the President aside and he assumed his powers,” he said.  “Given the power he has –he is the most powerful man in modern Fijian history: commander of the military forces, head of government, minister for Fijian Affairs and a host of other ministries including the Public Service—he can do anything he wants.”

Earlier this week interim PM Bainimarama addressed the question of the fate of presidential appointment.  While speaking with a group of villagers, Bainimarama indicated that the electoral system might be amended to allow the people to vote for the president and vice president, rather than have then appointed by the GCC.

For more information, please see:

Fijiive — Bainimarama may be President, again — 26 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji presidency needs attention, says academic — 26 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji interim PM says electoral system to by-pass GCC role — 23 May 2008
SUVA, Fiji — The interim administration has warned that democratic elections will not be held in 2009, as it has promised the international community, if local politicians do not support the People’s Charter.  Interim PM Bainimarama said that he wants the charter to be in place no later than March of 2009.  Reiterating a point he has made before, he declared at a church opening this week that, “We can’t have elections without the charter.”  He also said that the military would ensure that whoever wins the eventual election will uphold the charter’s ideals, including ending racist policies and thwarting corruption.

Bainimarama has tirelessly extolled the charter, despite mounting resistance.  Radio New Zealand International reports that he said that the military would like to see unanimous support for the charter, but that if the people did not support the military and the interim administration then there would be no election.

Ousted opposition leader, Mick Beddoes, said that he has become used to these kinds of statements from Bainimarama.  However, he said that he expects that the interim PM’s mind will change many more times before the election deadline, but that it is unfortunate that he resorted to threatening people.

For more information, please see:

The Press Association — Fiji leader gives democracy warning — 23 May 2008

Pacific Magazine — No Election Without Charter Says Bainimarama — 23 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Former Fiji Opposition leader not surprised by latest threats over elections from military leader — 23 May 2008

Radio New Zealand International — Fiji Interim PM says next year’s election dependent on passage of People’s Charter — 22 May 2008

WELLINGTON, New Zealand —  The New Zealand Law Society has issued a statement this week that they fear that the rule of law is being eroded in Fiji.  The Law Society indicated that they had been concerned since the suspension of Chief Justice Fatiaki last January 2007, since then, they say, other acts have further indicated the interim government’s disregard for the rule of law.

Specifically, the Law Society is concerned about the recent deportation of Fiji Times publisher Evan Hannah.  According to Law Society president John Marshall, “What made Mr Hannah’s deportation of even more concern was that it was made in defiance of a court order staying his deportation and requiring him to be brought before the court.”

Marshall also expressed his concern about comments by interim Attorney General and Minister of Justice Aryaz Sayed-Khaiyum who said that Fijian judges are entering the political arena and are prejudging cases before they are officially tried.  “The constitutional role of the Attorney General is to defend judges from public attack, not to criticise them publicly,” said Marshall.

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International — Law Society fears for rule of law in Fiji — 23 May 2008

TV3 — Law Society voices concern about Fiji government — 21 May 2008