Fiji election of 2006
Encyclopedia
The Constitution of Fiji
requires general elections
for the House of Representatives
to be held at least once every five years. The latest election was held on 6-13 May 2006. Acting
President
Ratu
Joni Madraiwiwi
issued a proclamation on 2 March, effective from 27 March, dissolving Parliament. The previous parliamentary term had been due to expire on 1 October 2006.
The Writ of Elections was issued on 28 March; candidates filed their nominations on 11 April and published their preference lists
on the 13th, while voter registration closed on 4 April.
Vote counting began on 15 May, with the results, a narrow victory for the ruling Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua
(SDL) Party, announced on the 18th. Following the election, the President is required to summon the new House of Representatives not later than 12 June.
Depending on ideological, demographic, and electoral factors, parties may seek to consolidate their position in communal constituencies
(reserved by ethnicity) by forging alliances with other parties appealing to the same ethnic group, or improve their position in open constituencies
(elected by universal suffrage
) by entering into alliances with parties that appeal to different ethnic groups. There are 46 communal constituencies (23 reserved for indigenous Fijians
, 19 for Indo-Fijians, 1 for Rotuman Islanders
, and 3 for minorities
such as Caucasians, Chinese, and Banaban Islanders), and 25 open constituencies.
(SDL), which the nucleus of the present ruling coalition of Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase
. (A smaller party, the Conservative Alliance
(CAMV) was part of the ruling coalition and of the Grand Coalition, but was dissolved and merged into the SDL in early March).
On the other hand, intense rivalry between the Fiji Labour Party
(FLP) of former Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry
and the National Federation Party
, the two main parties with significant Indo-Fijian support, appears to make any alliance between them problematic. Both have expressed interest in forming a multi-racial alliance with the National Alliance Party
(NAPF) of Ratu Epeli Ganilau
(an avowedly multiracial party) and the United Peoples Party
(UPP) of Mick Beddoes
, which appeals mostly to minority groups. On 16 October, the UPP announced that negotiations to form an electoral pact with the FLP had been concluded, and the decision to go ahead had been endorsed by the UPP executive the day before. On 2 December, the two parties signed a memorandum of understanding
, agreeing to draw up a joint manifesto
and to exchange preferences, but leaving both parties free to contest any or all of the 71 seats separately, or to field joint candidates by mutual agreement. The memorandum also left open the possibility of other parties joining the coalition.
SDL Executive Director Jale Baba
had earlier said that the deal between the FLP and the UPP had been expected, and that the SDL did not see it as a threat. He also said that it was possible that the SDL might form partnerships with parties not involved with the Grand Coalition.
Consultations have also taken place between both parties and the NAPF, with Ganilau announcing on 17 October that a decision on whether or not to forge an electoral pact with the FLP and UPP would be announced after a meeting of party executives. On 29 November, however, he said that the NAPF wanted to keep its options open and would hold negotiations with all political parties, including the SDL, before reaching a final decision.
The Party of National Unity
(PANU), which was re-registered in January 2006 following its dissolution a few months earlier, announced on 27 January that it would be giving its first preference to the FLP, and would also cooperate with the NAPF and the UPP. PANU, a multi-racial party based in Ba Province
, had previously aligned itself with the FLP-dominated People's Coalition
in the 1999 election
.
saying that the party is "confident" of winning most of them. The FLP, for its part, is hoping to win some of the 23 communal seats reserved for indigenous Fijians for the first time. Although founded in the mid-1980s by Timoci Bavadra
, an indigenous Fijian, it lost most of its indigenous support in the 1990s and attracted barely two percent of the indigenous vote in 2001, which saw only two indigenous candidates elected on the FLP ticket, neither from a Fijian communal constituency.
Both parties have expressed optimism about their gambits, with Prime Minister Qarase saying on Radio Sargam (affiliated to Fiji Village) on 5 October that the SDL expected to win an absolute majority in the 71-member House of Representatives, and regarded as many as 50 seats as a real possibility.
Andrew Hughes
spoke out on 30 September to call on politicians to avoid using hate speech
in the run-up to the election. He said the police would prosecute anyone who appealed for votes on the basis of hate or fear.
United Peoples Party
leader Mick Beddoes
similarly called on party leaders to exert better control over members making public statements, while SDL General Secretary Jale Baba
said that the making of hate speeches by any member of the party would never be tolerated.
On 26 November 2005, Electoral Commission Chairman Graeme Leung
proposed a Code of Conduct
prohibiting political parties from using inflammatory language, and from appealing to racial, religious, regional, or gender divisions. False and defamatory allegations would be banned, as would calls inciting violence or hatred. Disruption of meetings and political rallies would also be proscribed. Leung called on all political parties to adopt the code of conduct and said that ideally, it should be enshrined in legislation. Many politicians welcomed the proposed code, with FLP Deputy Leader Poseci Bune
calling it long over due. Mick Beddoes supported it also, but cautioned that it would work only if persons breaching it were disciplined for doing do. Cabinet Minister
Simione Kaitani
, while endorsing the proposal in general, said the prohibition against appealing to racial divisions was "unrealistic," as politics was based to such a great extent on race. National Alliance Party
President Ratu Epeli Ganilau
also welcomed the code of conduct and called for legislation to effect it, but said it would be hard to enforce it.
Calls for restrained language have not always been heeded. Closer to the election, the main political leaders traded accusations of "terrorism." Prime Minister Qarase called Opposition Leader Mahendra Chaudhry a "terrorist" on 15 February 2006, for allegedly using his travels abroad to discredit the government and discourage investment. According to the Fiji Sun
, he was responding to claims made by Chaudhry at the FLP campaign launch in Ba Town on the 11th that the government itself was full of terrorists, but said that he would not be suing Chaudhry because he did not want to "waste time" on him. Chaudhry then reacted by saying that the Qarase government was full of terrorists. "There are people in his Government, ministers, who have been convicted of offences relating to the May 2000 coup," he said. He claimed that Qarase had won the 2001 elections by vote-buying and by hiding from the voters the role that many of his candidates had allegedly played in the 2000 coup.
Also on the 15th, Fiji Television
quoted the Prime Minister as saying that Chaudhry was "unstable" and unfit to lead the country.
Speaking to Fiji Live
on 16 February, the Prime Minister challenged Chaudhry to produce the evidence for his allegations that there are terrorists serving in the government; if such proof existed, he should refer it to the police. He reiterated that he did not want to waste time pursuing the matter legally.
Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase
announced on 2006-03-01 that the 2006 general elections would be held in the second week of May from the 6th to the 13th. (Radio New Zealand)
reported on 26 January 2006 that electoral registration of Indo-Fijians was down by more than twelve percent on 2001 figures, reflecting the high rate of emigration from that community. Although guaranteed 19 communal constituencies, the latest statistics would make it more difficult for Indo-Fijian-dominated parties to win many of the 25 open constituencies, which are elected by universal suffrage, the report said.
Vice-President
Ratu
Joni Madraiwiwi
expressed concern about this trend on 8 February, saying that it would lead to electoral disparity, and Robbie Robertson
, Professor
and Director of Development Studies at the University of the South Pacific
, said that the Indo-Fijian share of the electorate this year would be only 40 percent of the total voting population, an all-time low.
Military
spokesman Captain Neumi Leweni
said on 19 February that the election should be postponed until a national census could be conducted. He reiterated earlier concerns about redrawing electoral boundaries when no census had been conduced, saying that compromised the fairness of the election. Boundaries Commission Chairman Barry Sweetman, however, said that the Military should have raised the matter while the Committee was taking submissions. There has been no census since 1996; the one due in 2006 has been postponed till 2007 because of the elections.
United Peoples Party
leader Mick Beddoes
alleged in September 2005 that persons of multiracial
ancestry were being encouraged by electoral officials to register on the indigenous communal roll, rather than the General Electors' roll. While the Constitution
empowers persons of multiple ethnic origins to decide for themselves what roll to choose, Beddoes said that officials were providing prospective voters with registration forms only for the indigenous and Indo-Fijian rolls, not the General Electors' one. He repeated the allegation in March 2006, according to a Fiji Times
report on 9 March. General electors and even Indo-Fijians with some distant indigenous ancestry were being asked to register as indigenous voters, on the bases of false claims that doing so would entitle them to membership of the Native Land Register
, he alleged. Elections Supervisor Semesa Karavaki rejected Beddoes's allegations, saying that people with any indigenous ancestry were constitutionally entitled to register as such, and at any rate, many of Beddoes's examples were spurious. He said that some that Beddoes had identified as "General Electors" mis-enrolled as indigenous Fijians were, in fact, full-blooded Fijians married to General Electors and using their husbands' names.
Fiji Labour Party
(FLP) leader Mahendra Chaudhry
has alleged that multiple irregularities have arisen in the enrollment of Indo-Fijians. In some areas, he said, none had been able to register, elderly and disabled members of the community had been told they did not need to register; some had been registered for the wrong constituencies, while others had been wrongly recorded with their given name
s and surname
s reversed, rendering the registration invalid. On 6 October, he called for the registration process to be halted and begun again from scratch. He wondered aloud whether the irregularities were a deliberate ploy to reduce the numbers of Indo-Fijians enrolled for the 2006 election. This would not affect the number of communal seats held by Indo-Fijians, which is constitutionally fixed at 19, but could have an effect on the results in the 25 open constituencies elected by universal suffrage.
FLP parliamentarian
Vijay Singh
threatened on 28 January 2006 that if alleged errors in voter registration were not put right, his party would take legal action to prevent elections from taking place in particular constituencies. The threat of legal action was reiterated by Mahendra Chaudhry on 2 February. Singh alleged that in his own Vuda
Open Constituency
, numerous voters had been wrongly registered in other constituencies. Registration was down on 2001 figures, but the population of the electorate had increased, he maintained.
SDL Campaign Director Jale Baba
alleged on 30 January that the FLP had deliberately urged its supporters to delay registering, in order to manipulate the Boundaries Commission, an assertion rejected as false by FLP Parliamentarian Lekh Ram Vayeshnoi
. To the contrary, the FLP had been urging its supporters to register, he said. He complained, however, that registration was being carried out before constituency boundaries had been finalized, which he said was illegal under the Electoral Act.
The Elections Office revealed on 1 February that a total of 1628 duplicate registrations had been detected. No less than 317 of these were of persons aged under 21 and therefore disqualified from voting. The Fiji Labour Party
said that the discovery of such irregularities came as no surprise, while United Peoples Party
President Mick Beddoes
said it called the electoral enrollment process into question, and called for independent organizers to be brought in to ensure that the process was fair.
Electoral Commission Chairman Graeme Leung
had announced in late November 2005 that identity cards for voters were being prepared, to discourage voter impersonation. The card will record the voter's name and date of birth. The decision was not universally welcomed. People's National Party
leader Meli Bogileka
said that the whole purpose of identity cards would be defeated if electors without them were allowed to vote, and considered their introduction a waste of money. SDL executive member Navitalai Naisoro said that Fijian people were not used to identity cards, and that the system would not be readily accepted. Leung agreed that acceptance of the changes would take time.
The FLP and the National Alliance Party
(NAPF) both claimed on 27 February 2006 that numerous irregularities persisted, including the registration of voters in wrong constituencies. FLP leader Mahendra Chaudhry
said he believed this was deliberate.
's government in December 2006, the "interim government" led by coup leader Frank Bainimarama
received unexpected support from the Fiji Human Rights Commission
(FHRC) and its chairwoman Dr. Shaista Shameem
. The latter agreed with Commodore Bainimarama's expressed views regarding Prime Minister Qarase's allegedly racist
and divisive policies. In 2007, the FHRC commissioned an inquiry into the 2006 general election, intended to reveal whether it had truly been "free and fair".
The Commission of Inquiry delivered a report which "identifie[d] deficiencies and anomalies at every stage of the election process". More specifically, the report stated that Indo-Fijian voters were provided with incorrect information regarding the voting process, that they were mis-registered in their constituencies to a far greater extent than other voters, and that, as an ethnic group, they faced specific impediments to voting (such as an absence of voting slips required for Indo-Fijian voters) in key marginal constituencies. There was also evidence of ballot boxes having been tampered with. Dr. David Neilson, a member of the Commission of Inquiry, wrote:
This prompted the Labour Party to state that the SDL had "cheated its way into power through electoral fraud and massive vote buying schemes".
, the Commonwealth of Nations
, and possibly other organizations, to monitor the forthcoming elections.
requiring the 25 open constituencies and 29 of the 46 communal constituencies to be substantially equal in population, the Boundaries Commission, chaired by Barrie Sweetman, has been exploring possible changes. Time constraints made the matter an urgent one, he said on 21 November. The elections office has also revealed that any changes to electoral boundaries will require a reregistration of all voters affected, further complicating the exercise. A final decision was expected by the end of November 2005, but this was delayed.
Sweetman announced on 6 February 2006 that with the elections so close, boundaries might not be changed at all. Unless there was pressure from political parties, the Commission would meet in the next week to decide the matter, he said.
The Commission ruled on 24 February that there would be no changes to electoral boundaries, citing lack of time before the forthcoming elections. Changes could be made only following a census
, the last of which was held in 1996; current population data was too old, Sweetman said. The commission called for a review of census
laws, suggesting an interval of five years rather than the current ten.
(COIN), which applied for reregistration on 13 March.
told Fiji Live
that the charity was not bribery and that the party had, in fact, been raising money for the poor since 2002. On 8 March, Director of Public Prosecutions
Josaia Naigulevu and Commissioner of Police
Andrew Hughes
confirmed to the Fiji Times
that the Fiji Labour Party
(FLP) had lodged a complaint about the scheme, and that police were looking into it.
Prime Minister Qarase was reported by Fiji Television
on 6 March 2006 as saying that the economy had performed well under his government's stewardship, and that citizens could expect further strong economic growth and increased wages if his government was returned to office.
On 7 March, University of the South Pacific
(USP) Vice-Chancellor Anthony Tarr found himself fending off criticism from Fiji Labour Party
(FLP) President Jokapeci Koroi
for accepting an invitation to address the public launch of the Grand Coalition Initiative Group on 10 March. He rejected Koroi's claims that it was inappropriate for him to be seen to be siding with a coalition promoting racial politics and that if he had thought there were any such connotations to the invitation, he would not have accepted it.
Commander, Commodore
Frank Bainimarama
initially opposed the early election date, saying that the registration and enrollment process was not complete and that no election should be held without a census preceding it. He conceded, however, that it was too late to hold a census now; it should have been held two years ago, he said. On another issue, his spokesman Lieutenant Colonel
Orisi Rabukawaqa
said that the Military was still opposed to the controversial Reconciliation, Tolerance, and Unity Bill
, and warned the government against trying to reintroduce it should it win the elections.
SDL campaign coordinator spoke out on 3 March to condemn Bainimarama's stated intention to discourage soldiers and their relatives and friends from voting for political parties and candidates that he termed "racist" and "discriminatory." He challenged Bainimarama to contest the election himself if he wanted to participate in politics. "If the good commander is passionate and is a man of integrity, he should resign and contest the next elections. That is the proper and legal form for leaders with a vision to articulate their vision for or against them," Baba told Fiji Television
. Australia
n Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
also criticized the Commander. In an interview with ABC Television
reported by Fiji Live
on 3 March, Downer reiterated earlier opposition to Military interference in politics.
Bainimarama said on 9 March that the Military would support any government that was elected, but would not necessarily support its program. He condemned claims that a vote for the FLP would be a vote for instability, saying that such "lies" came from the same "opportunists" who had attempted the 2000 coup. He urged Fijian citizens to vote for candidates on the basis of their policies, rather than their ethnicities. "Don't choose a party just because it's a Fijian party. Choose an Indian or Chinese if his policies are for your benefit," Fiji Live
quoted him as saying.
news service quoted Bainimarama as saying that the Military was about to launch a campaign to inform the population about how certain SDL policies allegedly contravened the Constitution
. "My senior officers and I agreed in a meeting last week that the army should inform the people of Fiji of what happened in 2000," he said. "We will use the media, we will go into villages and tell them the real truth of what happened and what is being done. There is no strong leadership in the Government to say ‘do the right thing’. By not having programmes to educate people that what happened in 2000 was wrong, we will continue to live in an area of instability like that of 2000," he declared. He accused the government of deliberately misleading the population: "By not educating the people about doing what is right, it is willfully lying and misleading them," he alleged. Ropate Sivo, General Secretary of the Conservative Alliance
(who is resisting the decision of the party to dissolve) condemned the Commander's comments, saying that he was "only hungry for power."
Military spokesman Captain Neumi Leweni
reacted angrily on 13 March to the dismissal on the 9th of talk show
host Sitiveni Raturala from the state-owned Fiji Broadcasting Corporation
(FBCL). An interview Raturala had conducted with Bainimarama had breached his contract, FBCL Chief Executive Officer Francis Herman said. Leweni charged that the government had had a hand in the dismissal, and warned against any attempts to muzzle the media in the leadup to the election. Leweni was supported by Ema Druavesi
, General Secretary of the Fijian Political Party (SVT), which ruled Fiji throughout most of the 1990s.
The same day, another Military spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel
Orisi Rabukawaqa
, said that the campaign was not anti-government or anti-any particular party. It was all about persuading the electorate to vote on the basis of conscience rather than race, the Fiji Times
quoted him as saying.
The Fiji Times
quoted Bainimarama on 13 March as saying that the SDL government had betrayed the mandate given to it by the Military in 2000. In appointing the Qarase government, Bainimarama said, the Military had taken it for granted that it would uphold the rule of law. Such expectations had been misplaced, he considered.
SDL campaign organizer Jale Baba
said on 13 March that he had written to the Elections Office, the Commissioner of Police
, and the Director of Public Prosecutions
to call for an investigation into what he called the unconstitutional campaign of the military, and what he alleged to be its illegal use of public money. The next day, the Fiji Sun
quoted Baba as saying that legal action against the Military was being considered, and that he had written to the Chairman of the Electoral Commission to call for them to investigate the Military's political activities. The President of Fiji
had also been written to and asked to discipline the Commander, he said.
Prime Minister Qarase called a meeting of Fiji's National Security Council
on 14 March to discuss the behaviour of the Military. He said that the actions of the Commander were unwarranted and undemocratic. He also raised the issue of illegal spending of public money for the Military's political campaign. Meanwhile, Radio Australia
reported that the Auditor General had been asked to investigate this alleged misuse of public funds.
Fiji Village
quoted the Prime Minister as saying that the real reason for the breakdown in his fortnightly meetings with Bainimarama was that the latter had expected him to implement orders from the Military and had shown no respect for the elected government. "On my meetings with the military commander, what really went wrong was that he expected me and my Government to follow orders. In other words, to do everything he wanted," Qarase said. He accused Commodore Bainimarama of "conveniently forgetting" that the Fiji Labour Party
(FLP), which he accused the Commander of supporting, had itself attempted to form a coalition with the Conservative Alliance
(CAMV), which included numbers of coup-sympathizers, some of whom were subsequently convicted of involvement, after the 2001 election
, and had offered amnesty to coup-convicts in exchange for CAMV support for an FLP government.
The military campaign was criticized even by other opponents of the government. Rev. Akuila Yabaki
of the Citizens Constitutional Forum said on 14 March that while he sympathized with the Military's reasons for opposing government policies, it was unacceptable in a democracy for the Military to intervene in the electoral process and that such interference must be stopped. Fiji Village
revealed the same day that Home Affairs Minister Vosanibola had filed another complaint with police about the Commander's public statements against the government.
on 7 March that the church supported the Qarase government and the SDL, but would not attempt to influence its members to vote accordingly. He emphasized, however, that the church supported what he considered to be the strongly Christian moral stance of the SDL, adding, "It is our right and responsibility and we will choose someone who will ensure peace since Fiji was a paradise before."
Constitution of Fiji
The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama....
requires general elections
Elections in Fiji
Fiji has held nine general elections for the House of Representatives since becoming independent of the United Kingdom in 1970; there had been numerous elections under colonial rule, but only one with universal suffrage . In this period, Fiji has had three constitutions, and the voting system has...
for the House of Representatives
House of Representatives (Fiji)
The House of Representatives is the lower chamber of Fiji's Parliament. It is the more powerful of the two chambers; it alone has the power to initiate legislation...
to be held at least once every five years. The latest election was held on 6-13 May 2006. Acting
Vice-President of Fiji
The Fijian vice-presidency is a mostly ceremonial office. The position was created in 1990, to provide a constitutional successor to the President, in the event of the latter's death or resignation, or of his otherwise being unable to carry out his duties...
President
President of Fiji
The President of the Republic of Fiji is the head of state of Fiji. The President was appointed by the Great Council of Chiefs for a five-year term under the terms of the now-suspended 1997 constitution. The Great Council of Chiefs is constitutionally required to consult the Prime Minister, but...
Ratu
Ratu
Ratu is a title used by Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, Adi is used by females of chiefly rank.-Etymology:Ra is a prefix in many titles and Tu is simply "chief"...
Joni Madraiwiwi
Joni Madraiwiwi
Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi is a Fijian lawyer, politician and was the Vice-President of Fiji from 2004 to 2006. He was sworn in on 10 January 2005, following his nomination by President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo and his subsequent approval by the Great Council of Chiefs on 15 December 2004...
issued a proclamation on 2 March, effective from 27 March, dissolving Parliament. The previous parliamentary term had been due to expire on 1 October 2006.
The Writ of Elections was issued on 28 March; candidates filed their nominations on 11 April and published their preference lists
Electoral system of Fiji
- Historical overview :Fiji's electoral system is the result of complex negotiations, compromises, and experiments conducted over the years leading up to and following independence from British colonial rule in 1970. A number of devices have been tried at various times to accommodate the reality...
on the 13th, while voter registration closed on 4 April.
Vote counting began on 15 May, with the results, a narrow victory for the ruling Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua
Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua
The Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua is a political party in Fiji...
(SDL) Party, announced on the 18th. Following the election, the President is required to summon the new House of Representatives not later than 12 June.
Election characterized by ethnic politics
Elections in Fiji are characterized by two fundamental realities.- Firstly, for the past generation, the basic faultline of Fijian politicsPolitics of FijiPolitics of Fiji takes place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic. Fiji has a multi-party system with the Prime Minister of Fiji as head of government. The executive power is exercised by the government...
is not ideological, but ethnicDemographics of FijiThis article is about the demographic features of the population of Fiji, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population....
, with most political parties appealing mainly to a single ethnic group, although many parties would say that is not their intention. This election proved to be no exception, with over 80 percent of the popular vote and all 23 seats reserved for indigenous Fijians going to the SDL, and a similar percentage and all 19 seats reserved for Indo-Fijians going to the FLP.
- Secondly, the electoral systemElectoral system of Fiji- Historical overview :Fiji's electoral system is the result of complex negotiations, compromises, and experiments conducted over the years leading up to and following independence from British colonial rule in 1970. A number of devices have been tried at various times to accommodate the reality...
is based on transferable voting. Known locally as the "Alternative Vote," this system incorporates elements of both instant run-off voting and group voting ticketGroup voting ticketGroup voting tickets are a way to simplify preferential voting, usually in an election held under the single transferable vote or the alternative vote system....
. Votes cast for low-polling candidates are transferred to higher-polling candidates according to a ranking of "preferences" specified by the candidates, though voters who so wish may customize the preferences. This makes it necessary, in many cases, for political parties to seek alliances to win constituencies.
Depending on ideological, demographic, and electoral factors, parties may seek to consolidate their position in communal constituencies
Communal constituencies (Fiji)
Communal constituencies have been the most durable feature of the Fijian electoral system. In communal constituencies, electors enrolled as ethnic Fijians, Indo-Fijians, Rotuman Islanders, or General Electors vote for a candidate of their own respective ethnic groups, in constituencies that have...
(reserved by ethnicity) by forging alliances with other parties appealing to the same ethnic group, or improve their position in open constituencies
Open constituencies (Fiji)
Open constituencies represent one of several electoral models employed in the past and present in the Fijian electoral system. They derive their name from the fact that they are "open": unlike the communal constituencies, the 25 members of the House of Representatives who represent open...
(elected by universal suffrage
Universal suffrage
Universal suffrage consists of the extension of the right to vote to adult citizens as a whole, though it may also mean extending said right to minors and non-citizens...
) by entering into alliances with parties that appeal to different ethnic groups. There are 46 communal constituencies (23 reserved for indigenous Fijians
Fijian people
Fijian people are the major indigenous people of the Fiji Islands, and live in an area informally called Melanesia. The Fijian people are believed to have arrived in Fiji from western Melanesia approximately 3,500 years ago, though the exact origins of the Fijian people are unknown...
, 19 for Indo-Fijians, 1 for Rotuman Islanders
Rotuma
Rotuma is a Fijian dependency, consisting of Rotuma Island and nearby islets. The island group is home to a small but unique indigenous ethnic group which constitutes a recognizable minority within the population of Fiji, known as "Rotumans"...
, and 3 for minorities
General Electors (Fiji)
"General Electors" is the term used in Fiji to identify citizens of voting age who belong, in most cases, to ethnic minorities. The Constitution defines General Electors as all Fiji citizens who are not registered as being of Fijian, Indian, or Rotuman descent. Also included are citizens who do...
such as Caucasians, Chinese, and Banaban Islanders), and 25 open constituencies.
Coalition politics
A record of 25 parties had registered for the 2006 election, as of early March. Most of the major parties led by indigenous Fijians have formed a coalition, tentatively known as the Grand Coalition Initiative Group, in an attempt to consolidate the indigenous vote; the coalition appears certain to be dominated by the Soqosoqo Duavata ni LewenivanuaSoqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua
The Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua is a political party in Fiji...
(SDL), which the nucleus of the present ruling coalition of Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase
Laisenia Qarase
Laisenia Qarase is a Fijian political figure. He served as the sixth Prime Minister of Fiji from 2000 to 2006. After the military quashed the coup that led to the removal of Mahendra Chaudhry, Qarase joined the Interim Military Government as a financial adviser on 9 June 2000, until his appointment...
. (A smaller party, the Conservative Alliance
Conservative Alliance (Fiji)
The Conservative Alliance was a far-right political party in Fiji, and a member of the ruling coalition government. It was commonly known as the CAMV, a combination of the initials of its English and Fijian names...
(CAMV) was part of the ruling coalition and of the Grand Coalition, but was dissolved and merged into the SDL in early March).
On the other hand, intense rivalry between the Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
(FLP) of former Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Pal Chaudhry is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party...
and the National Federation Party
National Federation Party (Fiji)
The National Federation Party is a Fijian political party founded by A.D. Patel in November 1968, as a merger of the Federation Party and the National Democratic Party...
, the two main parties with significant Indo-Fijian support, appears to make any alliance between them problematic. Both have expressed interest in forming a multi-racial alliance with the National Alliance Party
National Alliance Party of Fiji
The National Alliance Party of Fiji is a Fijian political party. It was formally registered on 18 January 2005 by Ratu Epeli Ganilau, as the claimed successor to the defunct Alliance Party, which ruled Fiji from 1967 to 1987 under the leadership of the late Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, Ganilau's...
(NAPF) of Ratu Epeli Ganilau
Epeli Ganilau
Brigadier-General Ratu Epeli Ganilau, MC, MSD, is a Fijian soldier and statesman, who currently heads the National Alliance Party of Fiji. His career has previously encompassed such roles as Commander of the Fiji Military Forces and Chairman of the Bose Levu Vakaturaga...
(an avowedly multiracial party) and the United Peoples Party
United Peoples Party (Fiji)
The United Peoples Party is a political party in Fiji, whose support base lies chiefly among General Electors - Fiji Islanders who belong to ethnic minorities, such as Europeans, Chinese, Banaban Islanders, as well as multiracial people...
(UPP) of Mick Beddoes
Mick Beddoes
Mick Malcolm Millis Beddoes, widely known as Mick Beddoes, is a Fijian politician and businessman from Nadi, who has led the United Peoples Party since 2000, and was the Leader of the Opposition at the time of the military coup of 5 December 2006...
, which appeals mostly to minority groups. On 16 October, the UPP announced that negotiations to form an electoral pact with the FLP had been concluded, and the decision to go ahead had been endorsed by the UPP executive the day before. On 2 December, the two parties signed a memorandum of understanding
Memorandum of understanding
A memorandum of understanding is a document describing a bilateral or multilateral agreement between parties. It expresses a convergence of will between the parties, indicating an intended common line of action. It is often used in cases where parties either do not imply a legal commitment or in...
, agreeing to draw up a joint manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
and to exchange preferences, but leaving both parties free to contest any or all of the 71 seats separately, or to field joint candidates by mutual agreement. The memorandum also left open the possibility of other parties joining the coalition.
SDL Executive Director Jale Baba
Jale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
had earlier said that the deal between the FLP and the UPP had been expected, and that the SDL did not see it as a threat. He also said that it was possible that the SDL might form partnerships with parties not involved with the Grand Coalition.
Consultations have also taken place between both parties and the NAPF, with Ganilau announcing on 17 October that a decision on whether or not to forge an electoral pact with the FLP and UPP would be announced after a meeting of party executives. On 29 November, however, he said that the NAPF wanted to keep its options open and would hold negotiations with all political parties, including the SDL, before reaching a final decision.
The Party of National Unity
Party of National Unity (Fiji)
The Party of National Unity is a Fijian political party founded by Ratu Sairusi Nagagavoka in 1998; as of 2006, Nagagavoka is the President of the party. A well-known member of the party was Apisai Tora...
(PANU), which was re-registered in January 2006 following its dissolution a few months earlier, announced on 27 January that it would be giving its first preference to the FLP, and would also cooperate with the NAPF and the UPP. PANU, a multi-racial party based in Ba Province
Local government of Fiji
Fiji is divided administratively into four divisions, which are further subdivided into fourteen provinces; the self-governing island of Rotuma and its dependencies lie outside any of the four divisions. Each division is headed by a Commissioner, appointed by the Fijian government...
, had previously aligned itself with the FLP-dominated People's Coalition
People's Coalition (Fiji)
The People's Coalition was an alliance of three political parties in Fiji, formed in March 1999 to contest the parliamentary election to be held in May that year...
in the 1999 election
Fiji election of 1999
General elections were held in Fiji between 8 and 15 May 1999. They were the first election held under the revised Constitution of 1997, which instituted a new electoral system and resulted in Mahendra Chaudhry taking office as Fiji's first Indo-Fijian Prime Minister.-Electoral system:Previously,...
.
Crossing the faultline
The two major political parties, the SDL and the FLP, are both attempting to break out of their ethnic cocoons. The SDL, which presently has only one Indo-Fijian in its Parliamentary caucus and attracted less than one percent of the Indo-Fijian vote in 2001, has announced that it will contest all 19 communal constituencies reserved for Indo-Fijians, with General Secretary Jale BabaJale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
saying that the party is "confident" of winning most of them. The FLP, for its part, is hoping to win some of the 23 communal seats reserved for indigenous Fijians for the first time. Although founded in the mid-1980s by Timoci Bavadra
Timoci Bavadra
Timoci Uluivuda Bavadra was a medical doctor who served for one month as the second Prime Minister of Fiji in 1987 and who founded the Fiji Labour Party....
, an indigenous Fijian, it lost most of its indigenous support in the 1990s and attracted barely two percent of the indigenous vote in 2001, which saw only two indigenous candidates elected on the FLP ticket, neither from a Fijian communal constituency.
Both parties have expressed optimism about their gambits, with Prime Minister Qarase saying on Radio Sargam (affiliated to Fiji Village) on 5 October that the SDL expected to win an absolute majority in the 71-member House of Representatives, and regarded as many as 50 seats as a real possibility.
Calls for restraint in rhetoric
Police CommissionerCommissioner of Police (Fiji)
Fiji has a unified national police force, the Fiji Police, whose motto is Salus Populi.The Fijian Commissioner of Police title had been held by Australian police officer Andrew Hughes since 2003 but after the 2006 takeover of the Government the post has been reserved for a local.The Commissioner is...
Andrew Hughes
Andrew Hughes (police)
Andrew 'Andy' Hughes is a senior officer of the Australian Federal Police who, until recently, served as the Chief Police Officer for the Australian Capital Territory . The CPO position is similar to the role of Australian Commissioners of Police, that is, the chief executive of the ACT Policing...
spoke out on 30 September to call on politicians to avoid using hate speech
Hate speech
Hate speech is, outside the law, any communication that disparages a person or a group on the basis of some characteristic such as race, color, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, religion, or other characteristic....
in the run-up to the election. He said the police would prosecute anyone who appealed for votes on the basis of hate or fear.
United Peoples Party
United Peoples Party (Fiji)
The United Peoples Party is a political party in Fiji, whose support base lies chiefly among General Electors - Fiji Islanders who belong to ethnic minorities, such as Europeans, Chinese, Banaban Islanders, as well as multiracial people...
leader Mick Beddoes
Mick Beddoes
Mick Malcolm Millis Beddoes, widely known as Mick Beddoes, is a Fijian politician and businessman from Nadi, who has led the United Peoples Party since 2000, and was the Leader of the Opposition at the time of the military coup of 5 December 2006...
similarly called on party leaders to exert better control over members making public statements, while SDL General Secretary Jale Baba
Jale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
said that the making of hate speeches by any member of the party would never be tolerated.
On 26 November 2005, Electoral Commission Chairman Graeme Leung
Graeme Leung
Graham Everett Leung is a Fijian lawyer and former President of the Fiji Law Society. He was also Chairman of the Electoral Commission, and was named as Judge Advocate of a Court Martial panel to retry 20 soldiers convicted mutiny in relation to the Fiji coup of 2000, but a number of complications...
proposed a Code of Conduct
Code of Conduct
A code of conduct is a set of rules outlining the responsibilities of or proper practices for an individual, party or organization. Related concepts include ethical codes and honor codes....
prohibiting political parties from using inflammatory language, and from appealing to racial, religious, regional, or gender divisions. False and defamatory allegations would be banned, as would calls inciting violence or hatred. Disruption of meetings and political rallies would also be proscribed. Leung called on all political parties to adopt the code of conduct and said that ideally, it should be enshrined in legislation. Many politicians welcomed the proposed code, with FLP Deputy Leader Poseci Bune
Poseci Bune
Poseci Waqalevu Bune is a Fijian politician, who has served as Deputy Leader of the Fiji Labour Party . From June to December 2006, he served as Minister for the Environment, one of nine FLP ministers, in the multiparty Cabinet of Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase...
calling it long over due. Mick Beddoes supported it also, but cautioned that it would work only if persons breaching it were disciplined for doing do. Cabinet Minister
Cabinet (Fiji)
Fiji has the Westminster system - executive authority is vested nominally in a President, but exercised in practice by a Cabinet of Ministers, presided over by the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister is formally appointed, but not chosen, by the President: the President must appoint as Prime...
Simione Kaitani
Simione Kaitani
Simione Kaitani is a Fijian politician, who currently serves as Leader of the House, and as such is responsible for the conduct of government business in the House of Representatives. He was previously a Cabinet Minister from 2001 to 2006, serving initially as Minister for Transport and Civil...
, while endorsing the proposal in general, said the prohibition against appealing to racial divisions was "unrealistic," as politics was based to such a great extent on race. National Alliance Party
National Alliance Party of Fiji
The National Alliance Party of Fiji is a Fijian political party. It was formally registered on 18 January 2005 by Ratu Epeli Ganilau, as the claimed successor to the defunct Alliance Party, which ruled Fiji from 1967 to 1987 under the leadership of the late Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, Ganilau's...
President Ratu Epeli Ganilau
Epeli Ganilau
Brigadier-General Ratu Epeli Ganilau, MC, MSD, is a Fijian soldier and statesman, who currently heads the National Alliance Party of Fiji. His career has previously encompassed such roles as Commander of the Fiji Military Forces and Chairman of the Bose Levu Vakaturaga...
also welcomed the code of conduct and called for legislation to effect it, but said it would be hard to enforce it.
Calls for restrained language have not always been heeded. Closer to the election, the main political leaders traded accusations of "terrorism." Prime Minister Qarase called Opposition Leader Mahendra Chaudhry a "terrorist" on 15 February 2006, for allegedly using his travels abroad to discredit the government and discourage investment. According to the Fiji Sun
Fiji Sun
The Fiji Sun is a daily newspaper published in Fiji. Owned by Sun News Limited, it was first published in September 1999. An internet edition is also published....
, he was responding to claims made by Chaudhry at the FLP campaign launch in Ba Town on the 11th that the government itself was full of terrorists, but said that he would not be suing Chaudhry because he did not want to "waste time" on him. Chaudhry then reacted by saying that the Qarase government was full of terrorists. "There are people in his Government, ministers, who have been convicted of offences relating to the May 2000 coup," he said. He claimed that Qarase had won the 2001 elections by vote-buying and by hiding from the voters the role that many of his candidates had allegedly played in the 2000 coup.
Also on the 15th, Fiji Television
Fiji Television
Fiji Television Limited is Fiji's television network. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily in October 1991 to broadcast the Rugby World Cup as well as Cricket World Cup....
quoted the Prime Minister as saying that Chaudhry was "unstable" and unfit to lead the country.
Speaking to Fiji Live
Fiji Live
Fijilive is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder....
on 16 February, the Prime Minister challenged Chaudhry to produce the evidence for his allegations that there are terrorists serving in the government; if such proof existed, he should refer it to the police. He reiterated that he did not want to waste time pursuing the matter legally.
Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase
Laisenia Qarase
Laisenia Qarase is a Fijian political figure. He served as the sixth Prime Minister of Fiji from 2000 to 2006. After the military quashed the coup that led to the removal of Mahendra Chaudhry, Qarase joined the Interim Military Government as a financial adviser on 9 June 2000, until his appointment...
announced on 2006-03-01 that the 2006 general elections would be held in the second week of May from the 6th to the 13th. (Radio New Zealand)
Demographic changes
Fiji TelevisionFiji Television
Fiji Television Limited is Fiji's television network. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily in October 1991 to broadcast the Rugby World Cup as well as Cricket World Cup....
reported on 26 January 2006 that electoral registration of Indo-Fijians was down by more than twelve percent on 2001 figures, reflecting the high rate of emigration from that community. Although guaranteed 19 communal constituencies, the latest statistics would make it more difficult for Indo-Fijian-dominated parties to win many of the 25 open constituencies, which are elected by universal suffrage, the report said.
Vice-President
Vice-President of Fiji
The Fijian vice-presidency is a mostly ceremonial office. The position was created in 1990, to provide a constitutional successor to the President, in the event of the latter's death or resignation, or of his otherwise being unable to carry out his duties...
Ratu
Ratu
Ratu is a title used by Fijians of chiefly rank. An equivalent title, Adi is used by females of chiefly rank.-Etymology:Ra is a prefix in many titles and Tu is simply "chief"...
Joni Madraiwiwi
Joni Madraiwiwi
Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi is a Fijian lawyer, politician and was the Vice-President of Fiji from 2004 to 2006. He was sworn in on 10 January 2005, following his nomination by President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo and his subsequent approval by the Great Council of Chiefs on 15 December 2004...
expressed concern about this trend on 8 February, saying that it would lead to electoral disparity, and Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson
Robbie Robertson, OC; is a Canadian singer-songwriter, and guitarist. He is best known for his membership as the guitarist and primary songwriter within The Band. He was ranked 59th in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time...
, Professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
and Director of Development Studies at the University of the South Pacific
University of the South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific is a public university with a number of locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. It is an international centre for teaching and research on Pacific culture and environment. USP's academic programmes are recognised worldwide, attracting students...
, said that the Indo-Fijian share of the electorate this year would be only 40 percent of the total voting population, an all-time low.
Military
Military of Fiji
The Republic of Fiji Military Forces are the military of the Pacific island nation of Fiji. With a total manpower of 3,500 active soldiers and 6,000 reservists, it is one of the smallest militaries in the world. However, most of its surrounding island nations have no militaries at all...
spokesman Captain Neumi Leweni
Neumi Leweni
Neumi Leweni is a Fijian Army officer and diplomat, who holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He hails from the Lau Islands. He joined the Military in 1974 and by 2006 was one of two official spokesmen for the Military, the other being Lieutenant Colonel Orisi Rabukawaqa. In August 2007, he...
said on 19 February that the election should be postponed until a national census could be conducted. He reiterated earlier concerns about redrawing electoral boundaries when no census had been conduced, saying that compromised the fairness of the election. Boundaries Commission Chairman Barry Sweetman, however, said that the Military should have raised the matter while the Committee was taking submissions. There has been no census since 1996; the one due in 2006 has been postponed till 2007 because of the elections.
Enrollment and electoral irregularities
Some politicians have alleged that there have been irregularities in the process of the registration of voters in the leadup to the election.United Peoples Party
United Peoples Party (Fiji)
The United Peoples Party is a political party in Fiji, whose support base lies chiefly among General Electors - Fiji Islanders who belong to ethnic minorities, such as Europeans, Chinese, Banaban Islanders, as well as multiracial people...
leader Mick Beddoes
Mick Beddoes
Mick Malcolm Millis Beddoes, widely known as Mick Beddoes, is a Fijian politician and businessman from Nadi, who has led the United Peoples Party since 2000, and was the Leader of the Opposition at the time of the military coup of 5 December 2006...
alleged in September 2005 that persons of multiracial
Multiracial
The terms multiracial and mixed-race describe people whose ancestries come from multiple races. Unlike the term biracial, which often is only used to refer to having parents or grandparents of two different races, the term multiracial may encompass biracial people but can also include people with...
ancestry were being encouraged by electoral officials to register on the indigenous communal roll, rather than the General Electors' roll. While the Constitution
Constitution of Fiji
The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama....
empowers persons of multiple ethnic origins to decide for themselves what roll to choose, Beddoes said that officials were providing prospective voters with registration forms only for the indigenous and Indo-Fijian rolls, not the General Electors' one. He repeated the allegation in March 2006, according to a Fiji Times
Fiji Times
The Fiji Times is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating....
report on 9 March. General electors and even Indo-Fijians with some distant indigenous ancestry were being asked to register as indigenous voters, on the bases of false claims that doing so would entitle them to membership of the Native Land Register
Native Land Register (Fiji)
The Vola ni Kawa Bula, commonly known as the VKB, is the official Fijian register of native landowners. It is known in English as the Native Land Register. By law, all indigenous Fijians are entitled to be enrolled as members of the VKB, which is in the charge of the Native Lands Commission...
, he alleged. Elections Supervisor Semesa Karavaki rejected Beddoes's allegations, saying that people with any indigenous ancestry were constitutionally entitled to register as such, and at any rate, many of Beddoes's examples were spurious. He said that some that Beddoes had identified as "General Electors" mis-enrolled as indigenous Fijians were, in fact, full-blooded Fijians married to General Electors and using their husbands' names.
Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
(FLP) leader Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Pal Chaudhry is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party...
has alleged that multiple irregularities have arisen in the enrollment of Indo-Fijians. In some areas, he said, none had been able to register, elderly and disabled members of the community had been told they did not need to register; some had been registered for the wrong constituencies, while others had been wrongly recorded with their given name
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
s and surname
Surname
A surname is a name added to a given name and is part of a personal name. In many cases, a surname is a family name. Many dictionaries define "surname" as a synonym of "family name"...
s reversed, rendering the registration invalid. On 6 October, he called for the registration process to be halted and begun again from scratch. He wondered aloud whether the irregularities were a deliberate ploy to reduce the numbers of Indo-Fijians enrolled for the 2006 election. This would not affect the number of communal seats held by Indo-Fijians, which is constitutionally fixed at 19, but could have an effect on the results in the 25 open constituencies elected by universal suffrage.
FLP parliamentarian
House of Representatives (Fiji)
The House of Representatives is the lower chamber of Fiji's Parliament. It is the more powerful of the two chambers; it alone has the power to initiate legislation...
Vijay Singh
Vijay Singh (politician)
Vijay Singh is a Fijian politician of Indian descent, who represented the Vuda Open Constituency in the House of Representatives for the Fiji Labour Party from 2001 to 2006, having retained the seat at the 2001 parliamentary election with more than 57 percent of the votes cast.In 2003, Singh was...
threatened on 28 January 2006 that if alleged errors in voter registration were not put right, his party would take legal action to prevent elections from taking place in particular constituencies. The threat of legal action was reiterated by Mahendra Chaudhry on 2 February. Singh alleged that in his own Vuda
Vuda (Open Constituency, Fiji)
Vuda Open is an electoral division of Fiji, one of 25 open constituencies elected by universal suffrage . Like the other open electorates, it came into being in 1999 and was used for the parliamentary elections of 1999, 2001, and 2006...
Open Constituency
Open constituencies (Fiji)
Open constituencies represent one of several electoral models employed in the past and present in the Fijian electoral system. They derive their name from the fact that they are "open": unlike the communal constituencies, the 25 members of the House of Representatives who represent open...
, numerous voters had been wrongly registered in other constituencies. Registration was down on 2001 figures, but the population of the electorate had increased, he maintained.
SDL Campaign Director Jale Baba
Jale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
alleged on 30 January that the FLP had deliberately urged its supporters to delay registering, in order to manipulate the Boundaries Commission, an assertion rejected as false by FLP Parliamentarian Lekh Ram Vayeshnoi
Lekh Ram Vayeshnoi
Lekh Ram Vayeshnoi, is a Fijian politician of Indian descent. He was one of the youngest members to be elected into Parliament in 1992. He has represented the Nadroga Indian Communal Constituency, which he won for the Fiji Labour Party in the parliamentary elections of 1992, 1994, 1999, 2001, and...
. To the contrary, the FLP had been urging its supporters to register, he said. He complained, however, that registration was being carried out before constituency boundaries had been finalized, which he said was illegal under the Electoral Act.
The Elections Office revealed on 1 February that a total of 1628 duplicate registrations had been detected. No less than 317 of these were of persons aged under 21 and therefore disqualified from voting. The Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
said that the discovery of such irregularities came as no surprise, while United Peoples Party
United Peoples Party (Fiji)
The United Peoples Party is a political party in Fiji, whose support base lies chiefly among General Electors - Fiji Islanders who belong to ethnic minorities, such as Europeans, Chinese, Banaban Islanders, as well as multiracial people...
President Mick Beddoes
Mick Beddoes
Mick Malcolm Millis Beddoes, widely known as Mick Beddoes, is a Fijian politician and businessman from Nadi, who has led the United Peoples Party since 2000, and was the Leader of the Opposition at the time of the military coup of 5 December 2006...
said it called the electoral enrollment process into question, and called for independent organizers to be brought in to ensure that the process was fair.
Electoral Commission Chairman Graeme Leung
Graeme Leung
Graham Everett Leung is a Fijian lawyer and former President of the Fiji Law Society. He was also Chairman of the Electoral Commission, and was named as Judge Advocate of a Court Martial panel to retry 20 soldiers convicted mutiny in relation to the Fiji coup of 2000, but a number of complications...
had announced in late November 2005 that identity cards for voters were being prepared, to discourage voter impersonation. The card will record the voter's name and date of birth. The decision was not universally welcomed. People's National Party
People's National Party (Fiji)
The People's National Party is a former Fijian political party.-Party history:The history of the PNP is representative of the many complex about-turns of Fijian politics: it was formed by a merger of the Party of National Unity and the Protector of Fiji , which were both formally deregistered on...
leader Meli Bogileka
Meli Bogileka
Meli Bogileka is a Fijian politician. He was the Secretary of the People's National Party up to its decision to merge into the Party of National Unity on 5 March 2006. This merger, an affair complicated by several about-turns, saw Bogileka appointed Secretary of the new PANU...
said that the whole purpose of identity cards would be defeated if electors without them were allowed to vote, and considered their introduction a waste of money. SDL executive member Navitalai Naisoro said that Fijian people were not used to identity cards, and that the system would not be readily accepted. Leung agreed that acceptance of the changes would take time.
The FLP and the National Alliance Party
National Alliance Party of Fiji
The National Alliance Party of Fiji is a Fijian political party. It was formally registered on 18 January 2005 by Ratu Epeli Ganilau, as the claimed successor to the defunct Alliance Party, which ruled Fiji from 1967 to 1987 under the leadership of the late Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, Ganilau's...
(NAPF) both claimed on 27 February 2006 that numerous irregularities persisted, including the registration of voters in wrong constituencies. FLP leader Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Chaudhry
Mahendra Pal Chaudhry is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party...
said he believed this was deliberate.
Commission of Inquiry in 2007
Following the military coup which ousted Laisenia QaraseLaisenia Qarase
Laisenia Qarase is a Fijian political figure. He served as the sixth Prime Minister of Fiji from 2000 to 2006. After the military quashed the coup that led to the removal of Mahendra Chaudhry, Qarase joined the Interim Military Government as a financial adviser on 9 June 2000, until his appointment...
's government in December 2006, the "interim government" led by coup leader Frank Bainimarama
Frank Bainimarama
Commodore Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama, CF, MSD, OStJ, Fijian Navy, known commonly as Frank Bainimarama and sometimes by the chiefly title Ratu , is a Fijian naval officer and politician. He is the Commander of the Fijian Military Forces and, as of April 2009, Prime Minister...
received unexpected support from the Fiji Human Rights Commission
Fiji Human Rights Commission
The Fiji Human Rights Commission was created by presidential decree in 2009, succeeding the entity of the same name established as an independent statutory body under the 1997 Constitution of the Republic of the Fiji Islands.- The 1997 Commission :...
(FHRC) and its chairwoman Dr. Shaista Shameem
Shaista Shameem
Shaista Shameem, a Fijian lawyer of Pakistani and Indian descent, was director of the Fiji Human Rights Commission from 2002 to 2007, and its director and chairperson from 2007 to 2009...
. The latter agreed with Commodore Bainimarama's expressed views regarding Prime Minister Qarase's allegedly racist
Racism
Racism is the belief that inherent different traits in human racial groups justify discrimination. In the modern English language, the term "racism" is used predominantly as a pejorative epithet. It is applied especially to the practice or advocacy of racial discrimination of a pernicious nature...
and divisive policies. In 2007, the FHRC commissioned an inquiry into the 2006 general election, intended to reveal whether it had truly been "free and fair".
The Commission of Inquiry delivered a report which "identifie[d] deficiencies and anomalies at every stage of the election process". More specifically, the report stated that Indo-Fijian voters were provided with incorrect information regarding the voting process, that they were mis-registered in their constituencies to a far greater extent than other voters, and that, as an ethnic group, they faced specific impediments to voting (such as an absence of voting slips required for Indo-Fijian voters) in key marginal constituencies. There was also evidence of ballot boxes having been tampered with. Dr. David Neilson, a member of the Commission of Inquiry, wrote:
- "The registration process was both inadequate and biased and submissions strongly indicate campaigning involved deliberate and explicit vote-buying near polling day by the SDL party in league with the broader state. [...] The evidence does not provide systematic quantitative proof regarding the extent to which bias and vote-rigging altered the election outcome. But it provides a strong prima facie case that the elections clearly fell short of "free and fair"."
This prompted the Labour Party to state that the SDL had "cheated its way into power through electoral fraud and massive vote buying schemes".
International observers
Prime Minister Qarase revealed on 2 February 2006 that he would be inviting observers from the United NationsUnited Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
, the Commonwealth of Nations
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
, and possibly other organizations, to monitor the forthcoming elections.
Electoral boundary adjustments
A major issue to be resolved ahead of the election is that of constituency boundaries. With the constitutionConstitution of Fiji
The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama....
requiring the 25 open constituencies and 29 of the 46 communal constituencies to be substantially equal in population, the Boundaries Commission, chaired by Barrie Sweetman, has been exploring possible changes. Time constraints made the matter an urgent one, he said on 21 November. The elections office has also revealed that any changes to electoral boundaries will require a reregistration of all voters affected, further complicating the exercise. A final decision was expected by the end of November 2005, but this was delayed.
Sweetman announced on 6 February 2006 that with the elections so close, boundaries might not be changed at all. Unless there was pressure from political parties, the Commission would meet in the next week to decide the matter, he said.
The Commission ruled on 24 February that there would be no changes to electoral boundaries, citing lack of time before the forthcoming elections. Changes could be made only following a census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the last of which was held in 1996; current population data was too old, Sweetman said. The commission called for a review of census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
laws, suggesting an interval of five years rather than the current ten.
Parties contesting the election
By 13 March 2006, a total of 24 parties had registered to contest the election. This list included some newcomers, as well as some parties that had been deregistered and subsequently reregistered. These included the Coalition of Independent NationalsCoalition of Independent Nationals (Fiji)
The Coalition of Independent Nationals is a political party in Fiji without parliamentary representation. The party won less than 0.1 % of the popular vote. It was originally a grouping of six candidates styling themselves as independents, in the 1999 election and was led by Prince Vyas Muni...
(COIN), which applied for reregistration on 13 March.
The campaign
Controversy erupted early in March 2006, with the ruling SDL being criticized by some for distributing funds, through the Duavata Initiative Trust, to needy people, allegedly in an attempt to buy votes. Campaign coordinator Jale BabaJale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
told Fiji Live
Fiji Live
Fijilive is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder....
that the charity was not bribery and that the party had, in fact, been raising money for the poor since 2002. On 8 March, Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions (Fiji)
The Director of Public Prosecutions was created under the Fiji Independence Act of 1970 and came into being that year. In 1990 and subsequently in 1997, the powers of the Office of the DPP were provided for in the Fiji Constitution, an entrenched document and the supreme law of the nation...
Josaia Naigulevu and Commissioner of Police
Commissioner of Police (Fiji)
Fiji has a unified national police force, the Fiji Police, whose motto is Salus Populi.The Fijian Commissioner of Police title had been held by Australian police officer Andrew Hughes since 2003 but after the 2006 takeover of the Government the post has been reserved for a local.The Commissioner is...
Andrew Hughes
Andrew Hughes (police)
Andrew 'Andy' Hughes is a senior officer of the Australian Federal Police who, until recently, served as the Chief Police Officer for the Australian Capital Territory . The CPO position is similar to the role of Australian Commissioners of Police, that is, the chief executive of the ACT Policing...
confirmed to the Fiji Times
Fiji Times
The Fiji Times is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating....
that the Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
(FLP) had lodged a complaint about the scheme, and that police were looking into it.
Prime Minister Qarase was reported by Fiji Television
Fiji Television
Fiji Television Limited is Fiji's television network. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily in October 1991 to broadcast the Rugby World Cup as well as Cricket World Cup....
on 6 March 2006 as saying that the economy had performed well under his government's stewardship, and that citizens could expect further strong economic growth and increased wages if his government was returned to office.
On 7 March, University of the South Pacific
University of the South Pacific
The University of the South Pacific is a public university with a number of locations spread throughout a dozen countries in Oceania. It is an international centre for teaching and research on Pacific culture and environment. USP's academic programmes are recognised worldwide, attracting students...
(USP) Vice-Chancellor Anthony Tarr found himself fending off criticism from Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
(FLP) President Jokapeci Koroi
Jokapeci Koroi
Jokapeci Talei Koroi was a Fijian politician. She was currently the President of the Fiji Labour Party and a Senator. She was appointed to the Senate in 2002 as one of 8 nominees of the Leader of the Opposition, Mahendra Chaudhry....
for accepting an invitation to address the public launch of the Grand Coalition Initiative Group on 10 March. He rejected Koroi's claims that it was inappropriate for him to be seen to be siding with a coalition promoting racial politics and that if he had thought there were any such connotations to the invitation, he would not have accepted it.
Interested organizations
In addition to the political parties contesting the election, a number of organizations have expressed an intense interest in its conduct and outcome.The Military in the background
The outspoken MilitaryMilitary of Fiji
The Republic of Fiji Military Forces are the military of the Pacific island nation of Fiji. With a total manpower of 3,500 active soldiers and 6,000 reservists, it is one of the smallest militaries in the world. However, most of its surrounding island nations have no militaries at all...
Commander, Commodore
Commodore (rank)
Commodore is a military rank used in many navies that is superior to a navy captain, but below a rear admiral. Non-English-speaking nations often use the rank of flotilla admiral or counter admiral as an equivalent .It is often regarded as a one-star rank with a NATO code of OF-6, but is not always...
Frank Bainimarama
Frank Bainimarama
Commodore Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama, CF, MSD, OStJ, Fijian Navy, known commonly as Frank Bainimarama and sometimes by the chiefly title Ratu , is a Fijian naval officer and politician. He is the Commander of the Fijian Military Forces and, as of April 2009, Prime Minister...
initially opposed the early election date, saying that the registration and enrollment process was not complete and that no election should be held without a census preceding it. He conceded, however, that it was too late to hold a census now; it should have been held two years ago, he said. On another issue, his spokesman Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Orisi Rabukawaqa
Orisi Rabukawaqa
Orisi Rabukawaqa is a Fijian career soldier. As of early 2006, he holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and is one of two official spokesmen for the Military, the other being Major Neumi Leweni....
said that the Military was still opposed to the controversial Reconciliation, Tolerance, and Unity Bill
Reconciliation and Unity Commission (Fiji)
The Reconciliation and Unity Commission is a proposed government body to be set up if the Reconciliation, Tolerance, and Unity Bill, which was introduced into the Fijian Parliament on 4 May 2005 is passed...
, and warned the government against trying to reintroduce it should it win the elections.
SDL campaign coordinator spoke out on 3 March to condemn Bainimarama's stated intention to discourage soldiers and their relatives and friends from voting for political parties and candidates that he termed "racist" and "discriminatory." He challenged Bainimarama to contest the election himself if he wanted to participate in politics. "If the good commander is passionate and is a man of integrity, he should resign and contest the next elections. That is the proper and legal form for leaders with a vision to articulate their vision for or against them," Baba told Fiji Television
Fiji Television
Fiji Television Limited is Fiji's television network. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily in October 1991 to broadcast the Rugby World Cup as well as Cricket World Cup....
. Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Foreign Minister Alexander Downer
Alexander Downer
Alexander John Gosse Downer is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was Foreign Minister of Australia from March 1996 to December 2007, the longest-serving in Australian history...
also criticized the Commander. In an interview with ABC Television
ABC Television
ABC Television is a service of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation launched in 1956. As a public broadcasting broadcaster, the ABC provides four non-commercial channels within Australia, and a partially advertising-funded satellite channel overseas....
reported by Fiji Live
Fiji Live
Fijilive is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder....
on 3 March, Downer reiterated earlier opposition to Military interference in politics.
Bainimarama said on 9 March that the Military would support any government that was elected, but would not necessarily support its program. He condemned claims that a vote for the FLP would be a vote for instability, saying that such "lies" came from the same "opportunists" who had attempted the 2000 coup. He urged Fijian citizens to vote for candidates on the basis of their policies, rather than their ethnicities. "Don't choose a party just because it's a Fijian party. Choose an Indian or Chinese if his policies are for your benefit," Fiji Live
Fiji Live
Fijilive is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder....
quoted him as saying.
Justice and Truth Campaign
On 10 March, the Fiji VillageFiji Village
The Fiji Village is an online news service in Fiji. Published daily, it covers political, business, sporting, cultural, and other news items, and also includes the Yellow Bucket commentary, an editorial which does not necessarily reflect the views of the Fiji Village owners or staff, according to...
news service quoted Bainimarama as saying that the Military was about to launch a campaign to inform the population about how certain SDL policies allegedly contravened the Constitution
Constitution of Fiji
The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama....
. "My senior officers and I agreed in a meeting last week that the army should inform the people of Fiji of what happened in 2000," he said. "We will use the media, we will go into villages and tell them the real truth of what happened and what is being done. There is no strong leadership in the Government to say ‘do the right thing’. By not having programmes to educate people that what happened in 2000 was wrong, we will continue to live in an area of instability like that of 2000," he declared. He accused the government of deliberately misleading the population: "By not educating the people about doing what is right, it is willfully lying and misleading them," he alleged. Ropate Sivo, General Secretary of the Conservative Alliance
Conservative Alliance (Fiji)
The Conservative Alliance was a far-right political party in Fiji, and a member of the ruling coalition government. It was commonly known as the CAMV, a combination of the initials of its English and Fijian names...
(who is resisting the decision of the party to dissolve) condemned the Commander's comments, saying that he was "only hungry for power."
Military spokesman Captain Neumi Leweni
Neumi Leweni
Neumi Leweni is a Fijian Army officer and diplomat, who holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He hails from the Lau Islands. He joined the Military in 1974 and by 2006 was one of two official spokesmen for the Military, the other being Lieutenant Colonel Orisi Rabukawaqa. In August 2007, he...
reacted angrily on 13 March to the dismissal on the 9th of talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
host Sitiveni Raturala from the state-owned Fiji Broadcasting Corporation
Fiji Broadcasting Corporation
The Fiji Broadcasting Corporation is one of the two radio broadcasters in Fiji. It was known as Fiji Broadcasting Commission when it began. It traces its history back to 1935 when it first began operating under licence from the Posts and Telegraphs Department with the call sign ZJV. At the end of...
(FBCL). An interview Raturala had conducted with Bainimarama had breached his contract, FBCL Chief Executive Officer Francis Herman said. Leweni charged that the government had had a hand in the dismissal, and warned against any attempts to muzzle the media in the leadup to the election. Leweni was supported by Ema Druavesi
Ema Druavesi
Ema Druavesi is a Fijian political organizer, who currently serves as General Secretary of the Fijian Political Party, officially known by its Fijian name, Soqosoqo ni Vakavulewa ni Taukei, or SVT.-References:...
, General Secretary of the Fijian Political Party (SVT), which ruled Fiji throughout most of the 1990s.
The same day, another Military spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Orisi Rabukawaqa
Orisi Rabukawaqa
Orisi Rabukawaqa is a Fijian career soldier. As of early 2006, he holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and is one of two official spokesmen for the Military, the other being Major Neumi Leweni....
, said that the campaign was not anti-government or anti-any particular party. It was all about persuading the electorate to vote on the basis of conscience rather than race, the Fiji Times
Fiji Times
The Fiji Times is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating....
quoted him as saying.
The Fiji Times
Fiji Times
The Fiji Times is a daily English-language newspaper published in Suva, Fiji. Established in Levuka on 4 September 1869, it is Fiji's oldest newspaper still operating....
quoted Bainimarama on 13 March as saying that the SDL government had betrayed the mandate given to it by the Military in 2000. In appointing the Qarase government, Bainimarama said, the Military had taken it for granted that it would uphold the rule of law. Such expectations had been misplaced, he considered.
SDL campaign organizer Jale Baba
Jale Baba
Jale Baba is a Fijian businessman and political organizer. A forestry graduate of the Australian National University, he worked for Fiji Pine Limited for more than 20 years, before leaving in 1999 to start his own company- Baba Forests. He also serves as the campaign director of the ruling...
said on 13 March that he had written to the Elections Office, the Commissioner of Police
Commissioner of Police (Fiji)
Fiji has a unified national police force, the Fiji Police, whose motto is Salus Populi.The Fijian Commissioner of Police title had been held by Australian police officer Andrew Hughes since 2003 but after the 2006 takeover of the Government the post has been reserved for a local.The Commissioner is...
, and the Director of Public Prosecutions
Director of Public Prosecutions (Fiji)
The Director of Public Prosecutions was created under the Fiji Independence Act of 1970 and came into being that year. In 1990 and subsequently in 1997, the powers of the Office of the DPP were provided for in the Fiji Constitution, an entrenched document and the supreme law of the nation...
to call for an investigation into what he called the unconstitutional campaign of the military, and what he alleged to be its illegal use of public money. The next day, the Fiji Sun
Fiji Sun
The Fiji Sun is a daily newspaper published in Fiji. Owned by Sun News Limited, it was first published in September 1999. An internet edition is also published....
quoted Baba as saying that legal action against the Military was being considered, and that he had written to the Chairman of the Electoral Commission to call for them to investigate the Military's political activities. The President of Fiji
President of Fiji
The President of the Republic of Fiji is the head of state of Fiji. The President was appointed by the Great Council of Chiefs for a five-year term under the terms of the now-suspended 1997 constitution. The Great Council of Chiefs is constitutionally required to consult the Prime Minister, but...
had also been written to and asked to discipline the Commander, he said.
Prime Minister Qarase called a meeting of Fiji's National Security Council
National Security Council (Fiji)
The National Security Council is, as its name indicates, the Republic of Fiji's National Security Council.It was established in 1990, through the Fiji Intelligence Service Decree, by the interim government which followed the 1987 coups d'état...
on 14 March to discuss the behaviour of the Military. He said that the actions of the Commander were unwarranted and undemocratic. He also raised the issue of illegal spending of public money for the Military's political campaign. Meanwhile, Radio Australia
Radio Australia
Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , Australia's public broadcaster.- History :...
reported that the Auditor General had been asked to investigate this alleged misuse of public funds.
Fiji Village
Fiji Village
The Fiji Village is an online news service in Fiji. Published daily, it covers political, business, sporting, cultural, and other news items, and also includes the Yellow Bucket commentary, an editorial which does not necessarily reflect the views of the Fiji Village owners or staff, according to...
quoted the Prime Minister as saying that the real reason for the breakdown in his fortnightly meetings with Bainimarama was that the latter had expected him to implement orders from the Military and had shown no respect for the elected government. "On my meetings with the military commander, what really went wrong was that he expected me and my Government to follow orders. In other words, to do everything he wanted," Qarase said. He accused Commodore Bainimarama of "conveniently forgetting" that the Fiji Labour Party
Fiji Labour Party
The Fiji Labour Party is a political party in Fiji, which holds observer status with the Socialist International. Most of its support at present comes from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoci Bavadra. It is...
(FLP), which he accused the Commander of supporting, had itself attempted to form a coalition with the Conservative Alliance
Conservative Alliance (Fiji)
The Conservative Alliance was a far-right political party in Fiji, and a member of the ruling coalition government. It was commonly known as the CAMV, a combination of the initials of its English and Fijian names...
(CAMV), which included numbers of coup-sympathizers, some of whom were subsequently convicted of involvement, after the 2001 election
Fiji election of 2001
The Constitution of Fiji was restored by a High Court decision on 15 November 2000, following the failure of the political upheaval in which the government had been deposed and the constitution suspended in May that year. On 1 March 2001, the Appeal Court upheld the decision. An election to...
, and had offered amnesty to coup-convicts in exchange for CAMV support for an FLP government.
The military campaign was criticized even by other opponents of the government. Rev. Akuila Yabaki
Akuila Yabaki
Akuila Yabaki is a Fijian human rights activist and Methodist clergyman. He is currently the Executive Director of the Citizens Constitutional Forum, a pro-democracy organization....
of the Citizens Constitutional Forum said on 14 March that while he sympathized with the Military's reasons for opposing government policies, it was unacceptable in a democracy for the Military to intervene in the electoral process and that such interference must be stopped. Fiji Village
Fiji Village
The Fiji Village is an online news service in Fiji. Published daily, it covers political, business, sporting, cultural, and other news items, and also includes the Yellow Bucket commentary, an editorial which does not necessarily reflect the views of the Fiji Village owners or staff, according to...
revealed the same day that Home Affairs Minister Vosanibola had filed another complaint with police about the Commander's public statements against the government.
The Methodist Church
Reverend Ame Tugaue, General Secretary of the Methodist Church (to which some two-thirds of indigenous Fijians are affiliated) told Fiji LiveFiji Live
Fijilive is an online newspaper and business and cultural directory in Fiji. The site is owned by the Future Group of Companies owned by Fiji entrepreneur Yashwant Gaunder....
on 7 March that the church supported the Qarase government and the SDL, but would not attempt to influence its members to vote accordingly. He emphasized, however, that the church supported what he considered to be the strongly Christian moral stance of the SDL, adding, "It is our right and responsibility and we will choose someone who will ensure peace since Fiji was a paradise before."