History of Fiji

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Not a good sign to begin with
Fiji attained independence on October 10, 1970 from the British empire. In October 1987, Brig. Gen. Sitiveni Rabuka masterminded a coup to thwart the possibility of an Indian-dominated coalition party from taking power. This military action drew many Indian origin Fijians out of the country due to ethnic excesses at the hands of the government. A new constitution, sprang up in July 1998, was a multiracial cabinet, raising specter of a coalition government. In 1999, Fiji's first ethnic Indian, Mahendra Chaudhry, took office as the prime minister.

Ethnic clashes
Ethnic clashes continued unabated, triggered partly by economic woes, pushing

Fiji further into a whirlpool of chaos in 2000. An untoward incident happened on May 19, when a group of armed soldiers entered the parliament and took three dozen people hostage, including President Chaudhry. George Speight, a part-Fijian businessman, led the insurrection, and he demanded that the 1998 constitution be rewritten to allow dominance of ethnic Fijians. The standoff followed for some months and in July 2000, Speight and other coup leaders were detained and charged with treason. In Feb. 2002, Speight was sentenced to death, but his sentence was commuted.

Coup and chaos
Despite the prevention of the coup, deposed Prime Minister Chaudhry and his democratically elected government were not restored to power. Instead, the military and the Great Council of Chiefs, a group of 50 traditional Fijian leaders, appointed an interim government dominated by ethnic Fijians. Elections were held in 2001, but no party achieved a majority. Interim prime minister Laisenia Qarase's Fijian United Party won 31 of 71 seats, and Qarase was sworn in as prime minister in September. His cabinet consisted entirely of ethnic Fijians, but the supreme court declared Qarase's government unconstitutional in 2003.

Multi-ethnic cabinet

In 2004, political clashes stalled the implementation of a new multi-ethnic cabinet. Much to Prime Minister Qarase's chagrin, Vice President Ratu Jope Seniloli and four other prominent figures were convicted for their part in the 2000 coup and imprisoned in August 2004. In 2005, Qarase backed a highly controversial bill that included an amnesty clause for the 2000 coup leaders. The bill was supported by the Great Council of Chiefs and the ethnic Fijian establishment but vehemently rejected by the opposition (led by former prime minister Chaudhry, who was deposed in the coup) as well as the military. Qarase was narrowly reelected in May 2006 for another five-year term.

Hope lingers...
In December Fiji's military commander, Commodore Frank Bainimarama, announced he has assumed executive power, deposed Prime Minister Qarase, and appointed Jona Senilagakali, a medical doctor, as interim prime minister. It was the country's fourth coup since 1987. Tensions had built up over several years between the military and Qarase over a corruption scandal and issues regarding the 2000 coup-the military accused the prime minister of excessive leniency toward those who had orchestrated that coup. In January 2007, Bainimarama reinstated Iloilo as president. Senilagakali resigned as interim prime minister, and Bainimarama succeeded him.

By: Jaidev
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