Human Rights at threat in Fiji
In the NZ blogosphere there has been a diversity of opinion on Fiji. Most have been highly critical of Bainimarama, but several (mainly on the right) have supported him, as they admired him standing up for the minority Indians and wanting to abolish the race based constitution.
To be honest over the last year I had been creeping more towards the camp that if he does get rid of the race based constitution, and hands over power to a truly democratic Government, then he may be seen one day on the side of the good guys.
But no-one should be defending his regime’s attack on media freedom. Supressing criticism at he point of a gun is what the Stalinist bloc used to do, and what Castro and Kim do.
The Dom Post report:
Fiji’s military have been given permission to shoot civilians without fear of being prosecuted.
Terrified Fijians say they are too frightened to speak out after the latest political upheaval, which has seen the nation’s media gagged by sweeping state censorship restrictions in a crackdown on dissenting free speech.
So the military are now totally above the law.
Reports emerged yesterday of people being detained without charge in the absence of a judiciary. Public Emergency Regulations imposed by the military regime have given military personnel permission to use arms to break up processions, meetings or assemblies. If anyone is injured or killed, the decree grants soldiers immunity from prosecution.
Hardly likely to encourage soldiesr to use restraint!
Yesterday’s Fiji Times had blank pages after police censors forced the paper to erase international reaction to latest developments.
The first action of a tyrant is to stop people being able to hear the truth.
Privately owned Fiji TV pulled its 6pm news bulletin yesterday, refusing to allow the military regime to censor its broadcast.
Good on them. And a useful reminder why the media should not be owned by the state.
“We must all be loyal to Fiji, we must be patriotic,” Commodore Bainimarama said. “The necessary regulations are in force. I’m sure we will all including the media co-operate with the relevant agencies.”
And if not, we’ll shoot you.
A Fijian citizen, too afraid to be named, spoke from Suva yesterday about his fear of being arrested, beaten or killed for speaking out. “There’s no constitution, there’s no law. They are the law.”
Many Fijians had struggled since sanctions against the regime crippled the economy, the man said. “People cannot afford to send their children to school or put food on the table. People are just struggling to find ways and means to live. You can’t fight the military because they’re the ones with the guns.
“Everybody’s praying and hoping that things will change soon that will return the government back to democratic elections … where people are free to speak [and] you’re not always looking back and worried about what will happen to you and your family.”
The promise to have elections by 2014 should only be believed by those of terminal stupidity. It does not take eight years to run a census, draft a new constitution and run an election.
One can debate the pros and cons of what Bainimarama claims he wants to achieve. But there should be no debate at all in condemning his attacks of freedom of speech and freedom of the press.
April 13th, 2009 at 11:06 am
Benign strategic environment.
April 13th, 2009 at 11:10 am
None of this is too different to what goes on in China. But we’ve congratulated ourselves on signing a free trade agreement with China, while you, the NZ government, and others condemn Fiji.
China is a huge trade partner, we have a lot of interests in China, and it makes pragmatic good sense to deal with the country the way it is, rather than the way we want it to be. But we do very little trade with Fiji and have almost no interests in the country. So why does the government even bother commenting about the situation there? You don’t see the NZ government, or Kiwiblog, commenting about constitutional or media freedom issues in Djibouti or Uruguay or Bhutan. So why single Fiji out?
Vague geographical proximity does not equal national interest. And NZ being bigger than Fiji doesn’t give NZ the right to talk down to the Fiji government, any more than Australia being bigger than NZ gives the Australian government the right to comment about NZ’s constitutional affairs.
[The difference is they were a democracy. Just because some countries restrict media freedom, is no reason not to oppose it when it happens to a country that was previously free, and is our neighbour]
April 13th, 2009 at 11:20 am
“You don’t see the NZ government, or Kiwiblog, commenting about constitutional or media freedom issues in Djibouti or Uruguay or Bhutan. So why single Fiji out”
Suspended Commonwealth member which we don’t want to lose. Possible that situation is arising from/aggravated by geopolitical power plays by proxy between China and the West. Regional relationships are important to every nation – they’re in our ‘hood.’
April 13th, 2009 at 11:42 am
Is this just another tactic, or major strategy shift to enable Fiji to dominate the Sevens, and climb up the pecking order or seeding for the World Cup?
Speaking of which, not sure there is enough activity being undertaken to make that event notable.
I predict a chronic shortage of accomodation, and campervans, and hire cars, and piss.
60,000 visitors for the Lions tour, and that was about manageable.
There will be as many British Isles visitors as for the Lions.
Then add in
France- reasonable numbers
Italy – much smaller numbers
Australia – positively massive demand and numbers
South Africa – more than France IMHO
Argentina – more than Italy/
and so on and so forth.
The PI will certainly attract their expats.
So are Fiji just trying to help us out of an embarrasing problem?
Is Frank Commodore a true supporter?
Tell you what, Fiji’s internal strife around Suva is just not on the radar in Nadi. Yet all this turmoil, and real uncertainty on timeline, and end result on the route map will cost its population dearly in lost Tourist Dollars.
NZ should get involved. We could send our Navy to sort them out!!
And at least we haven’t sold those skyhawks!!
April 13th, 2009 at 11:59 am
What Fiji needs is a Super Mayor to run the whole place.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
I believe Emergency Regs have been in place before – immediately after 5 December for example. Certainly cuts street crime.
I would note that the article relies on “unnamed” sources although does at least carry a government denial re. the shoot to kill policy.
It’s going to be a long hard road in Fiji unfortunately.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:08 pm
Reid… The Commonwealth is a grouping of countries that have nothing in common except for a colonial history. I can’t figure out why we’d want to belong to it ourselves, let alone worry about Fiji’s membership. As for China, they’re sensibly trying to win influence in countries with the natural resources they require for their economy, and in countries that are close to the shipping routes that bring those resources to China and deliver manufactured goods to their markets. Fiji has no natural resources, and isn’t close to any Chinese shipping route. Or any other shipping route for that matter. Even Australia to North America can avoid Fiji… it isn’t as if it sits astride a choke point. So I can’t see why anyone, Chinese or Western, would bother trying to buy influence in Fiji… it is a nowhere place with nothing to sell, and without the income to buy anything.
Just ignore them. As we ignore events in, say, Paraguay or Botswana or Madagascar.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:19 pm
“Reid… The Commonwealth is a grouping of countries that have nothing in common except for a colonial history.”
Well apparently, member nations of such organisations regard them with importance despite what you may think, david. The Commonwealth grouping is every bit as important to its members as ASEAN, SEATO, NATO, BRIC, the EU etc is to its members.
As for China, there’s been a proxy war for dominance in the Pacific waged for many years now, so far limited to chequebook diplomacy. This is not my opinion but a matter of record.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Davidp you are quite mistaken, look up EEZ and see who are in the top 10.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
Well hell, there’s many facets to Fiji problems, but with nine out of ten of today’s media being leftist liars, how does that effect the principle of press freedom??
It was a principle that was well applied when the media were true to their craft.
Nowadays, with ‘advocacy’ journalism being the norm, and with the industry over flowing with partisan propagandists, liars, traitors and globalists of the leftist persuasion, I’m not so sure.
There’s many a journalist writing in NZ who, if their bodies were swinging from Wellington lamp posts at the end of hemp rope, would be doing a lot more good for freedom.
Who is to know what is really going down in Fiji?
April 13th, 2009 at 12:29 pm
“Who is to know what is really going down in Fiji?”
Pablo’s got a good post on it at KiwiPolitico.
April 13th, 2009 at 12:57 pm
All those quotes and stories “emerging” from a heavily censored country with no freedom.
How?
[DPF: The Internet]
April 13th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Before anyone decides to go to Fiji for a winter break, remember that there is a 12.5% VAT on everything you buy, plus an additional 5% Hotel Bed tax for accomodation and meals/drinks purchased at hotels.
All that money props up the military junta, so stay away.
April 13th, 2009 at 1:09 pm
“Pablo’s got a good post on it at KiwiPolitico.”
Kiwipolitico??
Oh yeah, we’ll get objective reports there for sure.
For fuck’s sake. Are you serious????
I give up on you Reid.
April 13th, 2009 at 1:21 pm
Going on the reports our media have shown, the big story in Fiji is that you can’t get a story in Fiji. But then our media doesn’t get stories in NZ either – they’re mainly public relations releases. It’s difficult to wound up about that.
April 13th, 2009 at 1:33 pm
We do not have the rule of law in Fiji when Judges can be removed, at will, presumably backed up by the barrel of a gun – so everyone falls into line even the judges. So everything is just on free flow, with the ones prepared to use force calling the shots. It is not a safe country to visit and anyone booking a holiday there is plain stupid.
April 13th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
Judges do not have the market cornered on objectivity. Many are partisan political activists.
April 13th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Reid>The Commonwealth grouping is every bit as important to its members as ASEAN, SEATO, NATO, BRIC, the EU etc is to its members.
I assume that you’re taking the piss here. The EU is a supernational government organisation with courts, a constitution, a parliament, a set of laws that are binding on member countries, a set of leaders, and treaties. Whereas the Commonwealth is a chatfest and some games every four years. BRIC isn’t even that… it is an informal term for “developing countries” and a single summit of developing country leaders. And SEATO was dissolved back in the 1970s.
I’d be quite happy for NZ to pull out of the Commonwealth. It costs us money, if only for our PM or Foreign Minister to fly to regular meetings. And the benefits to NZ of regular meetings with Cameroon, Antigua, St Lucia, and Gambia are nil. I don’t see the point of an international games that selects its competitors from a subset of countries. Why compete against the Seychelles, Namibia, Jamaica, and and Kiribati but exclude the US, Germany, and Russia?… It is just an odd idea. If the point is just to have a fun time playing sport, then why not open it up to anyone who cares to attend, regardless of country of origin, like the Arafura Games does?
April 13th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Banana Llama>Davidp you are quite mistaken, look up EEZ and see who are in the top 10.
So NZ’s interest in Fiji is in seeing that it doesn’t sell its fish to China? I’m scratching my head, but can’t for the life of me see how Fijian fishery policy would be a foreign affairs issue for NZ. But if it is, then should the fishery policy of every other country on the planet also be reason to involve ourselves in their affairs?
April 13th, 2009 at 2:27 pm
DAVID P::::::::::::I agree with you the Commonwealth is a useless relic of a bygone and saner age……..As for the article on Fiji it is useless, and could have been written by an arch opponent of Commodore Frank, perhaps by the last guy to carry out a coup.Whenever the issue is discussed by Fijian citizens or NZ business men dealing with Fiji on Talkback the support runs about 90 per cent in favour of the coup. During the duration of this coup thousands of NZ holidaymakers have visited the place and enjoyed the quiet peaceful environs, I doubt that will change. NZ should either offer to help or leave Fiji to find their own solutions. Perhaps the United Nations Development Fund could assist the progress to democracy with some financial backing.
April 13th, 2009 at 3:11 pm
What would a military intervention take?
I’m not suggesting we’re there yet, but am interested in where we might be heading.
April 13th, 2009 at 3:17 pm
lmao there is a bit more than fish stock out there Davidp and it is in New Zealands interest to have stable governments in the south pacific when that gold rush begins.
April 13th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
Is the Commodore’s unofficial Fijian ambassador to the NZ blogosphere – Adolf Fiikenstein – still operating? Can he give us the low down on the necessity of the Fijian police telling editors what they can and can’t run in their papers?
April 14th, 2009 at 12:40 pm
One man unilaterally “cancelling” a constitution is an affront to all free men (I include women in the collective noun) and a state of terrorism should be declared in Fiji. That way there would be recognisable cause for a coalition of the free to arrest the terrorists and bring them before the international court at The Hague. This, to my mind, is the only way to show
- the Fijian citizens that their freedom is important to those of us who enjoy freedom,
- the terrorists, led by Commodore Bainimarama, that they will not be allowed to live off the plight of others, and
- any other would be terrorists that they will not prevail.
IN the same way that the Irish Republican Army (IRA) was a terrorist group, and Liberatore Quebec was a terrorist group and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE or Tamil Tigers) ARE a terrorist group, each in their own country, so too is Bainimarama and his military junta terrorists in theirs. It is time we led the free world to do something about it.