*EPF211 03/05/2002
Excerpt: State Department Says Human Rights Record in Fiji Is Poor
(Report says police and military commit abuses) (990)

The human rights record of the Fijian government "remained poor," according to the Fiji Country Report on Human Rights Practices for the Year 2001.

While acknowledging that conditions in the multiethnic nation "improved somewhat after the elections in August and September," the State Department said serious problems remain.

In the annual report on human rights released March 4 in Washington, D.C., the State Department noted that in Fiji "ethnicity remains a dominant factor."

The Fijian Constitution "maintains a partially ethnically based electoral system," the State Department said.

The ethnic divide between the ruling party, mainly composed of indigenous Fijians, and the opposition Fiji Labor Party, mainly composed of Indo-Fijians, "remains an obstacle to long term political stability," the report said.

"Ethnically based discrimination remains a serious problem," the report said, adding that Fiji's police and military forces committed human rights abuses during the reporting period.

Following is the text from the State Department's Fiji Country Report on Human Rights Practices for the Year 2001 released March 4:

(begin excerpt)

Fiji

Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2001
Released by the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
March 4, 2002

Following the armed takeover of Parliament and subsequent coup in May 2000, the country's political situation has remained unsettled. Ten days after the takeover of Parliament by armed ethnic Fijian supremacists, the country's security forces illegally seized power and claimed to have abrogated the Constitution. This action led to the issuance of an Emergency Decree by the President (as opposed to imposition of martial law) and the appointment of a military-backed, civilian interim administration by the military in July 2000. Although originally set to expire in September, the Emergency Decree expired on October 5. The Court of Appeal held on March 1 that the Constitution remained in force. After the decision, the military-backed civilian interim administration gave way to a military-backed caretaker administration with the same Prime Minister and many of the same ministers in the Cabinet. Parliamentary elections were held between August 25 and September 1, per the Constitution, and were observed by teams from the U.N., the Commonwealth, and the European Union; they generally were regarded as free and fair. Interim and caretaker Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase's Soqosoqo Duavata Ni Lewenivanua (SDL) party received the largest number of seats in Parliament, and Qarase was asked to form a government by President Iloilo. However, despite a constitutional provision requiring that any party receiving more than 10 percent of the seats in Parliament be offered inclusion in Cabinet, Qarase formed a Government which excluded the Fiji Labor Party (FLP), led by deposed Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry. Chaudhry subsequently took legal action against Qarase; the case was scheduled to be heard in February 2002. The judiciary continued to function, and court decisions during the year helped to affirm the independence of the judiciary. The leaders of the May 2000 armed takeover of Parliament have been charged with treason, but their case was postponed several times and, at year's end, was scheduled for January 2002.

The Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF), a small professional force, come under the authority of the Ministry for Home Affairs, as do the police. The Fiji Intelligence Service was dissolved by the Cabinet in 1999, but its functions were absorbed by the Police Special Branch and by an analytical unit that was established in the Ministry of Home Affairs. The police are an unarmed civilian force. Police and military forces committed human rights abuses.

Ethnicity remains a dominant factor in the country and affects the country's politics, economy, and society. The population of approximately 845,000 is a multiracial, multicultural mix, with indigenous Fijians comprising 51 percent, Indo-Fijians (descendents of immigrants from the Indian subcontinent) approximately 44 percent, and Asians, Caucasians, and other Pacific Islanders making up the rest. The ethnic division is illustrated by the contrast between the private and public sectors; Indo-Fijian families largely control most private businesses, while indigenous Fijians largely head the government ministries and the armed forces. One of the primary goals of the newly elected government is an affirmative action program, or "Blueprint," designed to aid indigenous Fijians in education and business. Sugar and tourism account for more than half of foreign exchange earnings. Investment is depressed due to continuing concerns over the resolution of land lease issues and political upheaval. While the country's major trading partner, Australia, lifted sanctions following the August elections, growth in key sectors such as sugar, tourism, and garments remains slow. Concerns over political stability continue to affect tourism negatively, although this industry is improving slowly. The gross domestic product has declined by an estimated 10 percent since 1999. Skilled workers and professionals have departed the country in large numbers. Health and education services in particular were affected.

The Government's human rights record remained poor, although it improved somewhat after the elections in August and September, and some serious problems remain. The Constitution contains provisions that reduce previous factors that abridged the right of citizens to change their government; however, it also maintains a partially ethnically based electoral system. The ethnic divide between the SDL (mainly composed of indigenous Fijians) and the FLP (mainly composed of Indo-Fijians) remains an obstacle to long term political stability. Ethnically based discrimination remains a serious problem. A number of government policies, including hiring practices, education policies, and land tenure preferences continue to provide protection for indigenous Fijian interests in accordance with the Constitution. Other human rights problems include several political and arbitrary or unlawful deprivations of life; occasional police and military abuse of detainees and suspects; informal and formal constraints on the freedom of speech and the press and self-censorship; restrictions on freedom of assembly and movement; violence and discrimination against women; instances of abuse of children; and racial discrimination and violence.

(end excerpt)

(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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