By Wadan Narsey

[Also appeared in The Interpreter, Lowy Institute, 16 January 2013, as "China and India in the Fiji equation"].

When it comes to Fiji affairs, the international media usually focus on what Australia and NZ think.

Thus when the Fiji Regime recently created a political crisis by rejected the Draft Constitution devised by its own Yash Ghai Commission, Jenny Hayward-Jones, in her article (The Interpreter, 11 January 2013) noted "despite this setback, international actors including Australia should continue to press for progress in re-establishing democracy in Fiji and engage where they can to maintain momentum in the process".

But the dialogue needs to also include the two "elephants in the room"- China and India- whose critical support for Fiji's Military Regime has arguably undermined the diplomatic stances and sanctions imposed by Australia, NZ and the EU.

For an analysis of the Regime's rejection of the Ghai Draft Constitution:

http://narseyonfiji.wordpress.com/2013/01/14/trashing-the-ghai-constitution-the-positives-14-january-2013/

India's support for Fiji Regime

While observers were surprised that India, the world's largest democracy, so readily supported the 2006 military coup in Fiji, perhaps relevant was the Regime's claim that it wished to protect the people of Indian descent from unfair domination by the indigenous Fijian majority.

This was reinforced when the largely Indo-Fijian Fiji Labour Party (led by Mahendra Chaudhry) quickly joined the Regime in 2007.  Chaudhry was however ejected after a year.

However, India's major contribution to the Regime, the large ExIm Bank of India loan to upgrade the milling efficiency of the Fiji Sugar Corporation, has backfired.

The loan proceeds did not lead to any increase in milling efficiency, partly because of inept sub-contracting at the Indian end and technical inefficiencies at the Fiji end.

The sugar industry continues its slump for other reasons as well, and India is under pressure from Fiji to convert that loan into a grant.

Perhaps as a face-saving device, India also recently supported Fiji's Chairmanship of the International Sugar Organization for 2013, a symbolic role used as great propaganda by the Bainimarama Regime.

India is aware of the Regime's media censorship, denial of basic human rights, and its reneging on its promise to hold elections in 2009. Now they see the Regime back-tracking on its own constitution review.

India has to worry that its continued support of the Regime may bring negative consequences from a future elected Fiji government.

China's support for Fiji Military Regime

China's support for the Fiji Regime does not pose any great dilemma for political analysts:  China does not share the West's belief in full democratic rights for its own people, or a free media, or other basic human rights being denied in Fiji.

With China becoming an economic Super-Power which "saved" the west from the Global Financial Crisis and continues to save it from outright recession,  it can afford to disregard international opinion, as it does over devastated Syria.

But, like the US, as Chinese imperialism matures, China's foreign policy will eventually have to pay greater heed to good governance, human rights, and environmental issues.

Note that Chinese investments in Fiji are relatively minor compared to their economic interests in Australia, NZ, PNG, Timor and West Papua.

China's aid/loan program to Fiji has resulted in many infrastructure developments which will be of significant economic value, when the economy grows.

But Fiji's economy  has totally stagnated under the Military Regime for six years, with declining real incomes, increasing poverty, and rising public debt – while other Pacific economies have prospered.

China's unqualified support of the Fiji Regime arguably undermines the diplomatic stance of Australia and NZ, who have a legitimate interest in discouraging unlawful regimes and political instability in the Pacific Island countries.

A Fiji Regime that keeps breaking its commitments, and tries to hang on to power, regardless of the economic and social costs to its own people, is not in China's long term interests in Fiji.

Super Power Roundtable on Fiji?

One of the weaknesses of international diplomacy in the Pacific is that the traditional powers (Australia, NZ, US, Britain, EU and Japan) have tended to exclude China and India as equal multilateral dialogue partners, as they did at a 2011 meeting called at PIDP in Honolulu, Hawaii. http://narseyonfiji.wordpress.com/2012/04/02/political-instability-and-poor-pacific-economic-performance-the-need-for-dialogue-spaces-presentation-to-state-of-the-pacific-dialogue-organised-by-pidp-east-west-centre-honolulu/

This may partly be due to historical and cultural reasons, and partly because the emerging super-power rivalry sees it as a Zero-Sum game in the Pacific. This does not help countries like Fiji.

Fiji's people would benefit if Australia, NZ, US, EU, and Japan were to engage in a diplomatic Round Table dialogue with China and India for a more "pacific" solution to the ongoing crisis.

"The FTUC is disappointed and remains unconvinced at the excuses given to the people of Fiji by the President, Ratu Epeli Nailaikau and the Prime Minister, Voreqe Bainimarama on the Constitution Review Process. The Prime Minister is on record giving his assurance to the people of Fiji and the International Community that the Constitution Review Process will be inclusive, transparent and any report must reflect the will of the people. The people have spoken and the report reflects exactly the will of the people, except for the immunity issue. The outcome is clearly not palatable to the Regime. The President’s excuses on some issues such as the People’s Assembly are contradictions of huge proportion. He has stated that unelected people should not be in a position to make decisions that affect all the people while conveniently forgetting that neither he nor the current government are elected and have no mandate of the people. He has omitted to tell the people that the Constituent Assembly that he is to refer the Draft Constitution for debate and adoption will also be unelected. The Civil Society plays a critical role in nation building particularly in the current circumstances that we find ourselves. His reference to the endurance of the Australian Constitution over a hundred years with only eight amendments is totally irrelevant. Australia is a democracy and does not have a coup culture like Fiji. They amend their Constitution in a civil and Democratic fashion without a need to thrash the entire Constitution and overthrow an elected Government. Fiji's Constitution has been thrashed by the Military every time we have had a coup. The Constitution in each case was not the weakness but the military's respect for it and failure to uphold it in every instance.
The rejection of an interim government prior to elections is another indication of the regime’s unwillingness to cede power and have free and fair elections. The President cannot be serious when he tells the nation that we have no honest senior civil servants in Fiji and therefore we cannot have an interim government. The people deserve better from the President of Fiji, precisely the reason why
people and organisations overwhelmingly told the Ghai Commission that the President ought to be
elected and held accountable for his actions.
The President’s claim that 60% of Fiji's population approved the People’s Charter is untrue. The Charter
was never put to a referendum and people were not allowed to freely, without intimidation air their
views on the Charter nor was there any public debate on the issue. The principles of good governance,
accountability and transparency have not been embraced by the regime nor practiced over the last six
years. This gives no credence to the President’s claim to instill these principles in future governments.
The Prime Minister has simply told the Nation that the regime dislikes key parts of the Ghai Report and
will re-draft the report to reflect the regimes view. The redrafted report will be put to the Constituent
Assembly. This is a retrograde step and a breach of the undertaking given to the people and the
International Community to ensure the process of Constitution making is transparent and that the will
of the people will be respected. The purpose of Decrees 57 and 58 states:
“The purpose of this Decree is to adopt a Constitution for Fiji that-
(a) Results from full, inclusive and fair participation of all Fijians;
(b) Meets the needs of Fiji and the aspirations of its people;
(c) Unites the people of Fiji
(d) Includes provisions appropriately designed to achieve, among others-
(i) True democracy; and
(ii) Respect for, and protection and promotion of human rights and….”
We clearly understand that no one can create a truly democratic society through undemocratic means.
This now explains why the copies of the Ghai report were confiscated and not distributed to the public.
The FTUC calls upon the Regime to honor its commitment to respect the will and aspirations of the
people. It is time that the Regime allows a free and open debate on the Ghai report. No doubt there
may be areas of concern that people may have and the report acknowledges this. The people of Fiji have
the capacity to create a just society without force."