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EU expresses disappointment over Fiji situation

April 19, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Wellington, April 16 (Xinhua) The European Union (EU) said Thursday that developments in Fiji were unacceptable and called on the interim Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama to honour the commitments his government pledged to the international community.

EU Cooperation and Humanitarian Aid Commissioner Louis Michel said he was ‘particularly disappointed’ because the interim government had agreed to a plan that would have allowed the EU to provide substantial financial support.

‘These developments are unacceptable for the international community,’ he said in a statement.

‘Commitments must be respected. An early and inclusive domestic political process leading to a return to constitutional order and democracy in Fiji will allow us to provide assistance to that country at a time when global economic prospects are becoming increasingly difficult,’ he said.

Fiji’s military government, which is ruling with emergency powers since April 11 after sacking the judges and imposing a news blackout on local media, defied international critics and tightened its grip on the Pacific island country.

It took over the Reserve Bank to stop a flood of capital leaving the country, assumed control of the public prosecutions office, closed the Human Rights Commission and kicked out foreign journalists to stop them reporting what was happening, according to reports from the capital Suva.

Census figures showed that 25,000 Indians left the troubled country from 1996 to 2007 while the number of indigenous Fijians rose by more than 82,000.

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Fiji military leader defiant over clampdown

April 16, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Wellington – Fiji’s military ruler Voreqe Bainimarama defiantly defended his clampdown on freedom of speech saying Wednesday he wanted no opposition to his plans to abolish the existing electoral system based on race. Bainimarama, who has ruled since ousting the elected government in December 2006, insisted in an interview with Radio New Zealand from the Fiji capital Suva that he would not hold fresh elections before 2014.

He said the judges of the Court of Appeal who declared his government illegal were sacked last week and the constitution abolished because they wanted to force him into holding elections under the current system, which favours indigenous Fijians over the ethnic Indian minority.

Emergency regulations were introduced including posting military censors in local newspaper, radio and television stations and ordering foreign journalists to leave.

“We now decide what needs to be done for our country, for the reforms to be put in place for us to have a better Fiji,” Bainimarama said.

“We want to do these changes, we want to come up with these reforms, and the last thing we want to do is have opposition to these reforms throughout. So that is the reason we have come up with emergency regulations.”

Bainimarama said that a survey showed that 64 per cent of Fijians wanted electoral reform.

He rejected foreign criticism of his clampdown, saying: “This is nothing to do with the Australian government and the New Zealand government – this is to do with Fiji and the people of Fiji.”

Bainimarama shrugged off threats of Fiji being expelled from the Pacific Island Forum grouping and the British Commonwealth, saying if they “decide to remove us, what can we do?”(dpa)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: australian government, bainimarama, British Commonwealth, Capital Suva, clampdown, court of appeal, current system, electoral reform, Electoral System, Emergency Regulations, fiji, freedom of speech, Indigenous Fijians, military censors, Military Leader, military ruler, New Zealand Government, pacific island forum, Radio New Zealand, survey showed that, Television Stations

Military coup was illegal, rules Fiji court

April 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Wellington, April 9 (DPA) Fiji’s Court of Appeal Thursday ruled that the military coup that ousted an elected government in December 2006 was illegal, according to reports from the capital Suva.

The court ruled that military strongman Voreqe Bainimarama’s government was unlawfully appointed and the president should appoint an independent caretaker prime minister to dissolve parliament and call a general election.

Bainimarama, who appointed himself prime minister after taking over, has refused calls by New Zealand, Australia, the European Union, the US and the Pacific Islands Forum to restore democracy by holding fresh elections this year.

The decision of the three judges of the Court of Appeal overturned a decision by the High Court that held that Bainimarama’s regime was legitimate.

But the panel rejected a call by attorneys for ousted prime minister Laisenia Qarase that he be reinstated pending new elections, the independent Fijilive website reported.

Bainimarama, who accused Qarase’s government of being corrupt and biased in favour of the indigenous Fijian majority against the ethnic Indian minority, has refused to go to the polls until a new one-man, one-vote electoral system is in place.

He said the existing system was to blame for the four coups and army mutiny that have devastated Fiji’s fragile economy since 1987 and divided the South Pacific nation, which has a population of 837,270, according to a 2007 census.

Census figures showed that 25,000 Indians left the troubled country from 1996 to 2007 while the number of indigenous Fijians rose by more than 82,000.

The Court of Appeal granted Solicitor-General Christopher Pryde leave to appeal its judgement while refusing his application to grant a stay on its decision, Fijilive reported.

Meanwhile, four political parties were excluded from a dialogue forum of political leaders that Bainimarama called Thursday to discuss a solution to Fiji’s political and constitutional crisis.

Qarase said the four parties represented the majority of Fiji’s voters and could not be left out of the discussions.

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Fiji appeals court rules military coup was illegal

April 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Wellington – Fiji’s Court of Appeal ruled Thursday that the military coup that ousted an elected government in December 2006 was illegal, according to reports from the capital, Suva.

Bainimarama, who appointed himself prime minister after taking over, has refused calls by New Zealand, Australia, the European Union, the United States and the Pacific Islands Forum to restore democracy by holding fresh elections this year.

The decision of the three judges of the Court of Appeal overturned a decision by the High Court that held that Bainimarama’s regime was legitimate.

But the panel rejected a call by attorneys for ousted prime minister Laisenia Qarase that he be reinstated pending new elections, given the length of time since his removal, the independent Fijilive website reported.

Census figures showed that 25,000 Indians left the troubled country from 1996 to 2007 while the number of indigenous Fijians rose by more than 82,000.

The Court of Appeal granted Solicitor-General Christopher Pryde leave to appeal its judgement while refusing his application to grant a stay on its decision, Fijilive reported.

Meanwhile, four political parties, including Qarase’s own, were excluded from a dialogue forum of political leaders that Bainimarama called for Thursday to discuss a solution to Fiji’s political and constitutional crisis.

Qarase said the four parties represented the majority of Fiji’s voters and could not be left out of the discussions. (dpa)

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Indian population rapidly declining in Fiji due to repeated coups

March 10, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Suva, Mar. 10 (ANI): As people flee the coup-hit nation of Fiji, its ethnic Indian population is rapidly declining, a Government statistic has revealed.overnment Statistician Timoci Bainimarama, brother of Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama released last year’s census data on Monday, which shows that Indians now make up only 37.5 percent of the 837,000 people.

“The dramatic change of the ethnic composition of the population gained momentum with Sitiveni Rabuka’s 1987 coups and continued in the two further coups between 1996 and 2007,” Stuff.co.nz quoted Timoci Bainimarama, as saying.

In 1966, 51 percent Fiji residents were of Indian origin, which has gone 13.5 percent down in 55 years. In the 11 years to 2007 the Indian population fell 25,020.

Another bureau data reveals that 80 percent out of 5000 people who emigrated from Fiji during 2008 were of Indian origin.

Commodore Bainimarama staged a military coup in 2006; overthrowing native population dominated democratic government, and was justified by the commodore on the grounds of ending race-based politics in Fiji.

The data gathered by his bother, however, suggests that that the Indians, who predominantly supported his coup, are still leaving.

Indigenous Fijians made up 56.8 percent of the population, 37.5 percent Indian and the remaining groups including Chinese made up 5.7 percent, the data shows.

Declining fertility among the remaining population was counted as another reason of decreasing population in Fiji.

Indo-Fijians are mostly descendants of indentured labourers bought in by the British to work on CSR Australia owned sugar plantations. In the 1966 census Indians accounted for 51 percent of the population.

The colonial government of Fiji feared that Indians would take over the country, and several complicated measures were taken to ensure indigenous Fijians would never lose their land or political dominance. (ANI)

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Fiji gets “passport to poverty,” says New Zealand leader

March 9, 2009 By admin Leave a Comment

Wellington – Fiji military strongman Commodore Frank Bainimarama is delivering his country “a passport to poverty” with his refusal to hold democratic elections, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said Monday.

“He needs to recognize that if he wants Fiji to progress and to be taken seriously by both the (British) Commonwealth and the Pacific Forum leaders he needs to demonstrate that he has got a willingness for democracy to be restored,” Key told reporters at his weekly news conference.

Bainimarama, who seized power from the elected government in a bloodless coup in December 2006, has rejected appeals by the Commonwealth and fellow leaders in Pacific island countries to hold elections this year.

The European Union and United States have also told Bainimarama, who has declared himself prime minister, that they will not revive their badly needed economic aid to his South Pacific nation of 932,000 people until he restores democracy.

A group of ministers from the 53-member British Commonwealth who met in London on Wednesday said Fiji would be suspended in September if Bainimarama did not go to the polls this year.

Bainimarama immediately responded by saying, “If they want to suspend Fiji, they can do it now. Nobody is going to interfere with what we are trying to do. There’s going to be no election.”

Leaders of the 16-member Pacific Forum said last year that Fiji, a founding member of the paramount regional organisation, will be suspended if it does not announce an election date by May.

Key said New Zealand was willing to help Fiji with money or administrative assistance to hold elections “but at this stage there doesn’t appear to be a lot of desire by Mr Bainimarama to move.”

Bainimarama has consistently said that he wants to change the voting system which favours indigenous Fijians over the ethnic Indian minority before holding fresh elections.

He blames the system for four coups which have toppled elected governments in Fiji since 1987, damaging the economy and scaring off investment capital. (dpa)

Filed Under: International News Tagged With: Administrative Assistance, bloodless coup, British Commonwealth, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, Democratic Elections, economic aid, Fellow Leaders, Forum Leaders, founding member, Indigenous Fijians, John Key, Military Strongman, Pacific Forum, Pacific Island Countries, Prime Minister John, Regional Organisation, South Pacific Nation, Voting System, Weekly News Conference, Zealand Leader

EU expresses disappointment over Fiji situation

Fiji military leader defiant over clampdown

Military coup was illegal, rules Fiji court

Fiji appeals court rules military coup was illegal

Indian population rapidly declining in Fiji due to repeated coups

Fiji gets “passport to poverty,” says New Zealand leader

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