Croz Walsh's Blog -- New Zealand and Fiji: How Much Fairer They Could Be

Democracy and the Fijian Chiefly System:  Pragmatism, Compatibility and Contradictions*
By Subhash Appanna** Abstract.
Fiji, once held as a shining example of multi-cultural democracy, is now considered a pariah by most of its traditional “partners” because of what is considered to be “continuing political instability” emanating from coups that have plagued the Pacific island state since 1987 when the gun was first accepted as the instrument of choice to change government within a democratic framework. At the centre of all major political decisions, from 1874 (when Fiji was ceded to Britain) to 2006 (when Commodore Bainimarama took control of government), lay the Fijian chiefly system. This paper critically examines the changing role(s) the Fijian chiefly system has played historically right from the time the chiefs were engaged by beachcombers to establish some sort of a centrally-organized authority in a fragmented Pacific Island (pre-1874), to the signing of the Deed of Cession (1874)…

Fiji's stand against threats of 'Hardship"*
'I love Fiji - as does the president of the Fiji Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Fijian unions, and business houses, all of whom stand united against individuals and organisations that openly and selfishly seek to disrupt our economy and create 'hardships' for all Fijians.

By Thakur Ranjit Singh
On 15th December 2011, I graduated with Masters in Communication Studies (MCS) with Honours from Auckland University of Technology (AUT). My thesis was based on Speight’s coup of 2000 on Chaudhry government.
My choice of thesis was not very difficult, because as a former Publisher of the Daily Post newspaper, I was aware that sections of Fiji media were not fair to Chaudhry’s government. I wanted that to be substantiated by a comprehensive and in-depth content analyses of the Fiji Times (hereafter referred to as FT) during one-year rule of Chaudhry government. 
The analysis showed that FT projected Chaudhry as an “Indian” government which could not be trusted to safeguard the interests of the Fijians. It failed to inform the common people about the safeguards enshrined in the 1997 Constitution which stipulates that no Prime Minister, at his own whim, could implement any changes affecting native land and laws protecting the rights of the indigenous people. FT also …

(Monday 19th December 2011, No:2263/MOI) AMA FINDS OVERSEAS AND LOCAL MARKET FOR LOCAL PRODUCTS In the 2012 National Budget, Government allocated the following to address food security and non-reliance on overseas producers :
·     Export promotion programme $1m
·     Food Security Programme $1m
·     Rural and Outer Island Development Programme (ROI) $1.75m
·     Cocoa Revitalisation $200,000
·     Rice Revitalisation $600,000
·     Cottage Industry $100,000
·     Livestock Rehabilitation $1.5m
·     Dairy Development Programme $2m Government’s import substitution and export finance facility initiative is “bearing fruit” and allowing local farmers to find a local market for produce that once could only be imported from overseas.  Many imported products have seen an increase in fiscal duty either to give local products an edge and allow local producers to develop their businesses. Through the Agriculture Marketing Authority (AMA), local farmers are venturing into other p…

19.12.11    Expert says original Fiji pension scheme unsustainable
An expert who has been brought in to assist Fiji with controversial pension scheme reform says change is long overdue. Changes to Fiji National Provident Fund being made by the interim government include refunds on original sums invested, cuts in payouts and top-ups for pensioners on lower rates. Geoff Rashbrooke, a New Zealand actuary, who specialises in superannuation systems says the current scheme is not sustainable.

He says as far back as 1992 the International Labour organisation warned the dividends were set too high. “If they’d acutally made the changes 10 years ago maybe even 8 years ago they wouldn’t have needed to cut the pension, but it’s now gone on for so long that the adjustment had to be made. They’ve finally addressed something that previous boards and previous governments elected or military regimes have not been prepared to look at.”

Geoff Rashbrooke says the way the system had been operating was a t…

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "John Samy Reflects on the Charter Progress and Whe...":

We can hear a sense of sadness and disappointment in John in this interview. One can understand thisafter his sterling efforts to resurrect Fiji into a modern State for all, only to see his Charter being used as facade of decency to hide behind, and behind it to revert to abuse of power, greed,corruption and plunder even surpassing the deeds of of old. When Frank met John first to genuinely ask for advice and assistance to build a "Better Fiji, apparently his first remarks to Frank was, "But you don't have the mandate to Change". His advice was that mandate can only come from the People. While Frank was never going to return to the much abused Parliaments of old to consult, his advice was to call together an Assembly of the People represented through their political leaders, leaders from the communities, members of his Government who would im…

Friday.
Subhash Appanna : From Democratic Dictatorship to Democracy in Fiji 
Jioji Kotobalavu : An Argument for Elections, Power Sharing and a Government of National Unity


Saturday
Fr David Arms : An Accountable Electoral System
                                                     Allen Lockington's usual column
John Samy :  Reflections on the People's Charter and What Could Still Go Wrong (video)

SCROLL DOWN TO ACCESS THE READINGS.