|  February,17th 2014 The Editor Fiji Sun SUVA Dear Sir Embracing the Usurpers Of our democracy I note with much sadness that Australia and New Zealand, the once unwavering ANZAC team, have finally bowed to the usurpers of our democracy and have opted to ‘Embrace’ rather than ‘Engage’ with the Bainimarama Regime. In doing so they are sending a very clear and dangerous signal to all Pacific Island nations that military coups can eventually win the support of the ANZAC team as a viable alternative means of changing a government then via the ballot box. In the end, what Foreign Ministers Bishop and McCully have signaled to Fiji citizens is that the national interests of Australia and New Zealand come ahead of the plight of the oppressed and disenfranchised people of Fiji. A keen and clearly excited Mrs Bishop announced that Commodore Bainimarama was laughing in the meeting she had with him. Well of course he would be laughing. Mrs Bishop had been to see him personally and had then presented him with a signed Rugby jersey! This was shortly after Commodore Bainimarama's Attorney General, Mr Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, had described Australia's policy towards Fiji as an abomination. There can be no doubt that the Commodore would have regarded Mrs Bishop's visit to him as an act of appeasement, on Australia’s part and a diplomatic victory for him. The signed Rugby jersey being the icing on his cake. It appears to me that both Australia and New Zealand are making all the concessions, with nothing in return. They know full well that many of the required steps for transparent, free and fair elections are still unfulfilled. We still live in a dictatorship, repressive decrees are still in place and the Attorney-General remains in effective control of the election process and there is no way he will concede power to the Electoral Commission. So on face of it, Australia and New Zealand unlike some of the smaller but principally stronger Pacific Island nations have thrown the towel in and surrendered to coups and illegal take over’s in the Pacific. They appear to be nervously unwilling to firmly hold the regime accountable to the norms of democratic principles and values that Australians and New Zealanders expect of their governments. The decisions of Foreign Ministers Bishop and McCully over the weekend make the words of Gordon Livingston MD seem appropriate - ’Ignorance can be remedied, but stupidity has no cure' Mick Beddoes Sabeto |
