Repúblika | January 2013

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FIJI’S NEW CONSTITUTION

A BURNING ISSUE Should the government have bothered setting up the Ghai Commission?

Volume 1 | No 4

INSIDE

How employers can help banish poverty

2013 Budget: What’s in it for Fiji

By Kevin Barr

By Biman Prasad

December 2012/January 2013

Double whammy for region’s young women

By Catherine Wilson

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/republikamag Vol 1 | No 4 | Dec 2012/Jan 2013

COVER 13 | The people’s constitution?

After months of hearings in which people shared their view A BURNING ISSUE of what our new constitution should contain, the draft written

by Professor Yash Ghai and his team was partially rejected by the government with its own legal team virtually rewriting it before the government-appointed Constituent Assembly gets to deliberate on it.

It was initially decreed that the assembly would deliberate on the Ghai draft, but now the rules have been changed. Was the commission’s exercise worth the effort or should the government have just written its own constitution?

January 2013 | $3.95VIP

republikamagazine.com

FIJI’S NEW CONSTITUTION

Should the government have bothered setting up the Ghai Commission?

2013 Budget: What’s in it for Fiji

By Kevin Barr

By Biman Prasad

Double whammy for region’s young women

By Catherine Wilson

republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

1

FIJI CONSTITUTION COMMISSION

Volume 1 | No 4

INSIDE

How employers can help banish poverty

December 2012/January 2013

Commission controversy The Constitution Commissioners with a copy of their draft.

FEATURES

DISPATCHES 26 | Just wages Father Kevin Barr on why employers should pay fair CATHERINE WILSON

RICARDO MORRIS

28 | Trending now Danielle Cave on the Pacific’s digital revolution

34 | Tuna Talk Savenaca Waqainabete 22 | National budget Dr Biman Prasad

on what’s in store for the tuna trade

30 | Region Catherine Wilson on the plight of the Pacific’s young women

on translating policies into action

32 | Australia Nic Maclellan on decolonisation in the Pacific

REGULARS

OPINION

SALON

5 | Briefing News from Fiji worth

9 | The F-Word Roshika Deo on patriarchy and women

37 | Colour story Rajan Sami presents

noting

8 | Pasifika Post Regional current

11 | The Rising Ape Alex Elbourne on

affairs worth knowing

breaking loose from the past

42 | The Last Word Arthur

20 | Politika Aman Ravindra-Singh

McCutchan on China’s interest in Fiji 2

| Repúblika | republikamagazine.com

Sandhya Nand Dusk’s photos of Zelda Thomas’ outfits

reprises Khalil Gibran’s poem

December 2012/January 2013

editor’snote republikamagazine.com/editor

@RicardoMorris

Have our voices really been heard?

T

he past few months have been filled with political intrigue over the formulation of our new constitution, culminating in the unceremonious ending to the work of the Constitution Commission.

The ‘burning incident’ in which police officers set alight the shredded printers’ proof of the draft constitution drawn up by the commission chaired by Professor Yash Ghai drew the curtain on a process that had been fraught with acrimony towards the end.

While some would argue the burning was inconsequential, the symbolism it portrays of the attitude of the powers that was unmistakeable We had been assured by the government that the process would be inclusive and free and Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama himself had stated that “[f]or the first time, everyone will have a voice” in the new constitution.

But now that the process is over and a draft made public, was it really worth all that effort and expense seeing that the military-led regime was intent on having its own – largely admirable – vision for a new Fiji written into the constitution. It is clear that however commendable the government’s intentions are in “building a better Fiji”, it will not countenance anything other than its own ideas of how to achieve a modern, democratic country.

During the constitution hearings, the commissioners heard from thou-

sands of people, from children and women, from marginalised groups and business people, from political parties, urban dwellers and villagers and travelled as much as they could in the limited time they had.

In total, some 7000 submissions were made covering a large proportion of the population. The provisions in the Ghai draft of the constitution were drawn up on the basis of the analysis of all these submissions.

Of all the themes that emerged, a recurring one was that citizens wanted an end to Fiji’s coup culture. But Ghai pointed out that a constitution in itself would not put an end to this damaging phenomenon – it was the people themselves who had to determine that they would not allow an overthrow of a democratic government again by taking the constitution’s principles to heart and defending it should the need arise.

In the Ghai draft, members of the security forces are specifically directed not to obey illegal orders to overthrow a democraticall- elected government or to abrogate the constitution.

Of course, some who welcomed the Ghai draft also saw areas that could potentially be problematic or areas that could be approved. But without the public first reading the draft and discussing it for themselves, how are we to know if that draft was as objectionable as the government has made it out to be?

It is easy to see the areas the government finds disagreeable. For instance,

the draft clearly defines a role within the government structure for the military – less than it has always envisaged for itself. And the draft would bring back the Bose Levu Vakaturaga (the Great Council of Chiefs) which was dismantled by Bainimarama as an archaic and undemocratic institution. But the fact that the Ghai draft revives the institution would have meant that a significant proportion of the citizenry had called for its reinstatement.

Despite the problems, the constitutional exercise has been enlightening. It has brought into stark relief questions surrounding nationhood and nationbuilding. For example, can genuine and sustainable reconciliation and acceptance be forced without all parties first acknowledging their faults and engaging in genuine dialogue to thrash out their fears and hopes?

To be sure, there have been great strides in modernising Fiji and attempting to instil a sense of national identity among all ethnic groups. But for how long can such a course continue – and how sustainable will it be – if these positive changes are to be achieved at the expense of the views and wishes of the silent majority.

Sometimes I wonder if Fiji is not heading down the path to a “democracy” that Alan Corenk describes as one that “consists of choosing your dictators after they’ve told you what you think it is you want to hear.” Then again, perhaps all democracies are exactly like that. R

Vol 1 | No 4 Publisher & Editor Ricardo Morris ricardo@republikamagazine.com

ADMIN MANAGER Asena Camaivuna asena@republikamagazine.com

DEPUTY PUBLISHER Aman Ravindra-Singh aman@republikamagazine.com

EDITORIAL INTERNS Gregory Ravoi Shivneel Narayan

Biman Prasad Laisiasa Naulumatua Roshika Deo Save Waqainabete

We welcome your comments, contributions, corrections, letters or suggestions. Send them to ricardo@republikamagazine.com or leave a comment on our social media pages.

Australia The opinions expressed in Repúblika are the authors’ Arthur McCutchan own and do not necessarily reflect those of the CONTRIBUTORS SALON EDITOR Catherine Wilson publishers. The editor takes responsibility for all nonFiji Rajan Sami rajan@republikamagazine.com Alex Elbourne Nic Maclellan attributed editorial content.

Published by Repúblika Publishing | 8 Mitchell Street, Peace Embassy Suite A107, Suva | PO Box 11927, Suva, Fiji | Phone: +679 3561467 | Mobile: ++679 7748815 / 9041215 | Email: info@republikamagazine.com | Printed by Bluebird Printery, Suva, Fiji | ISSN: 2227-5738 December 2012/January 2013

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Your letters, feedback and viewpoints

The cost of being safe at sea A tragedy at sea is always a painful experience and the memory sticks with you for life.

Everyone is quick to blame the authorities for not checking, the captain of the boat for not having any safety equipment.

A 23-foot fibre glass boat (most common among the islands) can legally take seven people - captain plus six passengers.

One good quality life jacket costs $85 multiplied by seven totals $595. One rocket flare costs $157, a hand-held flare costs $96, one smoke signal costs $113.

These are pyrotechnics required for a vessel that size, totalling $366.

In addition to that, the boat requires communication, either a radio or mobile phone, first aid kit, oars or secondary propulsion etc. Total safety cost of owning a 23-foot fibre glass boat anywhere in Fiji is say anywhere around $1500.

The question is, can a villager on an

island afford to spend $1500 on safety equipment?

One remedy would be if government removed duty on imported safety equipment for boats and make it affordable for the villagers on the islands.

Then the Navy wouldn’t have to spend all that money searching for four days. Search and rescue will take only hours if the right safety equipment was affordable.

Captain Johnathan Smith Lami

NEW ARCHBISHOP OF SUVA 20 DECEMBER | More than four years after Archbishop Petero Mataca tendered his resignation as Archbishop of Suva in conformity with Catholic canon law on reaching 75, the Vatican has finally named a successor. Pope Benedict XVI named Father Peter Loy Chong as the new Archibishop of Suva. Loy Chong was born in 1961 in Fiji and completed his priestly formation

So where’s the head?

12 DECEMBER | New currency designs with the British monarch’s bust finally removed were unveiled by the Reserve Bank of Fiji. The design on existing banknotes were upgraded featuring significant flora and fauna of Fiji and for the first time a plastic $5 note has been introduced. A new $2 coin has also been minted. Both sides of the coins and notes now feature Fijian icons. For non-numismatic experts, the first question that springs to mind with the new coin design is which side should be considered the ‘head’.

Those at the Reserve Bank can perhaps answer that question explaining which side is ‘recto’ and which ‘verso’.

TALK BACK TO US 4

studies at Pacific Regional Seminary. He was ordained in 1992 where he was incardinated into the Archdiocese of Suva. The Archbishop-elect completed his studies at the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University with a Doctorate in Theology. Loy Chong was one of three priests suggested as frontrunners for the post in an article by Netani Rika in Repúblika’s inaugural issue in September 2012.

We tried to decide which side should be considered ‘head’ but it is not easy feat.

Drunk men on LOST boat

6 DECEMBER | One of the three survivors from a fibreglass boat which capsized in the Koro Sea on the way from Levuka to Batiki with seven men on board alleged a drunken fight had broken out before the vessel capsized.

Four passengers remain missing.

Diplomatic thaw begins

15 DECEMBER | Australia announced it would be sending back a high commissioner to Suva three years after that country’s last senior diplomat was expelled. Foreign Minister Senator Bob

TAWAKILAGI.COM

TRENDING | What was being discussed on social media pages we follow

Carr said the decision to announce Margaret Twomey as Australian high commissioner to Fiji was an agreed outcome of trilateral talks with Fiji and New Zealand in Sydney last July.

Twomey was expected to take up her post in February.

registration hits record 11 DECEMBER | Voter registration records for the September 2014 passed the half a million mark. The 504,588 registered Fijian voters represent more than 80 per cent of the estimated number of eligible voters, and registration will continue in 2013, notably for Fijians living overseas, according to the Ministry of Information.

4Join us on facebook.com/republikamag4Email to inbox@republikamagazine.com 4Follow us on twitter.com/republikamag4Write to PO Box 11927, Suva, Fiji

| Repúblika | republikamagazine.com

December 2012/January 2013

briefing News worth noting

republikamagazine.com/briefing

LAISIASA NAULUMATUA

LIFE THROUGH LAI’S EYES

Strike against violence planned for Valentine’s Day

F

iji and the Pacific will join an international initiative to focus the spotlight on violence against women on Valentine’s Day. One Billion Rising Pacific was launched at the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre’s sixth quadrennial Pacific regional meeting on violence against women and girls on 14 November 2012 in Nadi.

The campaign takes its name from the fact that globally one in three women is raped or beaten in her lifetime and 14 February is a significant date because it is traditionally a day to express love.

Local organiser Roshika Deo says the event is a “revolution and refusal to accept violence against women”.

“We are inviting one billion women and those who love them to walk out, dance, rise up and demand an end to this violence,” said Deo. Deo says people can do many things December 2012/January 2013

Eve Ensler’s famous Vagina Monologues at the AusAID performance space at the USP’s Laucala Campus.

to show their support for this “revolution” against violence against women, including a march through the streets, flash mob style dancing (for which dance practises are being held at YMCA in Suva from 12-2pm every Saturday).

On the day, there will be a production of

One Billion Rising is: n A global strike n An invitation to dance n A call to men and women to refuse to participate in the status quo until rape and rape culture ends n An act of solidarity, demonstrating to women the commonality of their struggles and their power in numbers n A refusal to accept violence against women and girls as a given n A new time and a new way of being. n For more information visit www.facebook. com/OneBillionRisingPacific or email roshikadeo@hotmail.com republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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briefing

AFTER three years of not being granted a permit to march through Suva to mark World Human Rights Day, the NGO Coalition on Human Rights finally succeeded in December.

Led by the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre, the coalition applied for a permit more than a month before the 10 December march. Initially their application was turned down but after insisting that police provide reasons for declining the march request, a permit was finally granted.

More than 100 people turned for the march from the Suva Flea Market to Suva Civic Centre. They called for the restoration of democracy and human rights. The march also marked the end of the 16 Days of Activism Against Violence Against Women campaign which began on 25 November.

RICARDO MORRIS

Three years later rights march ban lifted

After a three-year ban, authorities allowed a march through Suva to mark World Human Rights Day on 10 December 2012.

NASA GOES Project

Evan Almighty spares Fijian lives

A US satellite captured this image of newborn Tropical Cyclone Evan near Samoa on 12 December 12, 2012 at 1500 UTC (13 December, 4am Fiji Daylight Time). Four days later Evan hit Fiji as a category four hurricane.

Despite its monstronsity and the sheer devastation Cyclone Evan wreaked on Fiji, no lives were lost in what authorities attribute to people taking seriously their warnings to prepare well ahead of time.

After battering Samoa, Evan turned around and headed for Fiji, and began affecting the group from 16 December. However, the public had received ample warning as government officials begun issuing alerts at least four days before the category four cyclone hit.

Commissioner Central Lt Col Laisenia Tuitubou thanked the public for heeding the warnings. He said his office had put in place a contingency plan

a year before and officers are rostered to be on alert in the event of a tropical cyclone developing. The Western Division was the worst affected followed by the Northern Division and a state of natural disaster was declared in affected areas. Initial damage assessments put the bill at $75 million.

At the beginning of the emergency, there were about 10,000 people in more than 150 evacuation centres. The initial damage assessment indicates that 150 schools (118 primary and 32 secondary) were damaged. The Fiji Red Cross with French Red Cross assistance provided drinking water to several villages reaching a total of 15,076 people.

ON THE RECORD “Another man was attacked with a gun and was in fact anally raped and that caused severe internal injuries.” ~ Amnesty International’s Andrew Beswick in an interview on ABC’s PM programme about the torture of five escaped prisoners in September.

(ABC, 12 December 2012) “The destruction this cyclone has caused is beyond words.

Not one house has been spared here,” ~ Lautoka resident Melaia Waisele on the devastation caused by Cyclone Evan. (AFP news agency, 18 December 2012) 6

| Repúblika | republikamagazine.com

“A lot of people give and take bribes and these individuals do not understand the difference between right and wrong.” ~ Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum speaking to students of Jai Narayan College in Suva. (MINFO, 27 November 2012) “You will see that the people are receiving good value when they entrust their hard-earned tax dollars to the g0vernment.” ~ Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama previewing his 2013 national budget at the launch of the taxpayer gold card programme. (MINFO, 20 November 2012) December 2012/January 2013

briefing COURT WATCH

FIJI SUN/COUPFOURANDAHALF.COM

Human trafficking

Epeli Qaraniqio

ALMOST seven weeks after the recapture of escaped prisoner Epeli Qaraniqio on 21 September, prosecutors admitted they had not been able to produce him in court because he had suffered from an infected injury to his leg which required amputation.

Qaraniqio was finally brought to court minus his right leg on November 7. He and three other prisoners involved in a break-out 17 September were severely assaulted during their arrest after their four-day long escapade which terrorised the country. A fifth prisoner, Isoa Waqa was recaptured on 25 September.

The five allegedly went on a robbery spree, including alleged involvement in the robbery of Bank South Pacific’s Samabula branch in Suva. Seven people have been charged with harbouring or providing assistance to the five during their time on the run.

In the country’s second successful prosecution for human trafficking under the Crimes Decree, four foreign nationals were convicted on 13 December for their role in forcing two Thai women into prostitution in Fiji.

Businessmen Phanat Laojindamanee, Lum Bing, Zhang Yong and Jason Zon were found guilty by assessors in the High Court and Justice Paul Madigan convicted them accordingly.

Phanat and Lum Bing were jointly charged with two counts of aggravated trafficking in persons, Zhang Yong with two counts of domestic trafficking in persons and Jason Zong with two counts of sexual servitude.

The four were involved in bringing the two Thai women to Fiji in September 2012 tricking them into believing they would be coming to carry out shortterm, high paying work as masseurs.

Instead they were made to have sex with clients of the businessmen in hotels and other properties in Suva and were told they would have to pay $1900 if they wanted to go back home.

Immigration officers were tipped off and made arrests six days after they arrived after one of the women told her story to a local lawyer she met at McDonald’s.

The four men will be sentenced in January.

Sainiana Radrodro

THE Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption lay fresh charges in Decemeber against Sainiana Waqainabete Radrodro, the former media liaison officer at the Ministry of Works.

She is charged with 11 counts of obtaining a financial advantage by deception.

The offences are alleged to have taken place between May 2010 and June 2011.

In all 11 counts, Radrodro is alleged to have falsely used the Minister for Work’s name in requesting money totalling $8260 on 11 separate occassions for various reasons. The matter was adjourned to 10 January.

Conviction overturned

THE Fiji Court of Appeal set free a man jailed for life for the murder of a Lautoka jeweller. Jack Anthony Fraser was set free on 30 November 2012 after the Court of Appeal ruled his conviction in April 2010 for murder was unsafe. Fraser was convicted over the stabbing death in September 2006 of jeweller Kamlesh Nanda in Lautoka and sentenced to a minimum of 16 years in prison. Fraser’s lawyer Iqbal Khan had argued on appeal that the trial judge had erred in relying on Fraser’s caution interview despite evidence that it had not been made voluntarily and was extracted through violence.

Earlier in 2012, Fraser was granted leave to appeal against his conviction by a sceptical single Court of Appeal justice.

But the three appellate justices hearing Fraser’s appeal found there was insufficient evidence to arrive at a verdict of guilty beyond reasonable doubt and threw out his conviction.

Grandfather rapist

A 74-YEAR-OLD man was jailed for 11 years for the rape of his seven-year-old granddaughter. The man was jailed by the High Court in Lautoka on 19 November.

Justice Sitambarampillai Thurairaja concurred with the three assessors’ opinion and convicted the man.

‘

First they came for the communists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a communist.

Then they came for the socialists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a socialist.

Then they came for the trade unionists, and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a trade unionist.

Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.

Pastor Martin Niemöller (1892–1984), victim of the Nazis

’

Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre | 88 Gordon St, Suva | Phone: 3313 300 / 9209 470 (24hrs) | www.fijiwomen.com December 2012/January 2013

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pasifikapost Regional current affairs worth noting

republikamagazine.com/pasifikapost

COURTESY SETI AFOA

Samoa counts the cost of Evan

A church in Mulivai, Safata in Samoa had its roof ripped off during Cyclone Evan.

Just 12 days away from Christmas, Tropical Cyclone Evan devastated Samoa in its biggest disaster since the 2009 tsunami.

Evan made landfall on 13 December and Upolu including the capital Apia experienced widespread destruction.

By the time Cyclone Evan had curved back on itself and started heading toward Fiji, five people were dead and another 11 were reported missing (including nine missing at sea).

The National Emergency Operations Centre (NEOC) said damage was as severe as the tsunami that devastated the country in September 2009. And residents said flooding in Apia was the worst in living memory.

On 17 December a state of emergency was declared for 30 days as the 8

| Repúblika | republikamagazine.com

country picked up the pieces. More the 12,000 people were affected.

The NEOC said 693 houses were completely destroyed, leaving more than 5000 people homeless. Another 546 dwellings were majorly damaged, affecting more than 4000 people.

In the immediate aftermath an estimated 7700 people were in 10 evacuation centres and the Samoa Red Cross Society was out in force supporting the national disaster office despite its own headquarters being significantly affected.

The New Zealand Red Cross provided support sending four personnel, a generator and communications equipment to boost the local society’s efforts.

The damage bill has been estimated at around US$300 million. Seven

schools were destroyed and 44 other schools and dozens of other buildings left damaged.

Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi told Radio Australia the highly-technical language used in official forecasts might explain Samoa’s unpreparedness.

“There was one word, called afa, which means in English ‘storm’,” Tuilaepa said. “All you need to say is that one word and everybody understood. But the technicians confined themselves to the actual words used by the technicians when describing the strength of the winds and also the below-cyclone stage. I think that was the main problem – the problem of language.” n IFRC/RADIO AUSTRALIA

December 2012/January 2013

OPINION

Patriarchy is our worst enemy The F-Word with ROSHIKA DEO republikamagazine.com/opinion/fword

“Blind belief in authority is the greatest enemy of truth.” ~ Albert Einstein

W

ith another year gone and so much to write about, perhaps we can generally reflect on how we can make the New Year and all our lives more enriching and stimulating in 2013.

The enemy In the past few months, I heard several times various people saying things along the lines that “women are women’s worst enemies.”

When a woman in power denies a group of women access to public space and then labels their seeking accountability as grandstanding; when a sister tells another sister to dress “decently”; when a woman calls another woman “sl*t” or “b****” or “wh*re” for having sex or a boyfriend; when a mother tells her daughter to “adjust” herself in an abusive relationship; when the motherin-law expects her “good” daughter-inlaw to cook, clean, have children, talk, act, and dress up in a manner approved by society and family; when the mother continues to have the “umbilical cord” attached to her adult son, and the list goes on.

We are quick to blame the women who are superficially visible in perpetrating myths, sexism and violations against other women.

But women are not women’s worst enemy – patriarchy is. And ironically enough it is the deeply entrenched patriarchal values in us that lead us to believe that women are women’s worst enemies.

Women just like men are also subjected to and socialised within the same patriarchal structures. As a result women are directly and/or indirectly coerced to accept cultural norms or promote social values/behaviours that may violate other women’s rights or perpetuate a misogynistic or sexist culture.

Women do this for several reasons.

It gives them social acceptance and December 2012/January 2013

status in our patriarchal cultures. There is a general lack of support by men and other women, including lack of structures that can enable women to “rebel” against these norms, attitudes and behaviours – for instance, prevalence of social stigma and availability of halfway homes. In our patriarchal society, we are socialised into a form of mentality where the male and his needs are always superior to the female, thus women tend to behave in ways that promote this mentality.

Women are taught from the time we are girls that marriage is our ultimate goal, to the extent that when most women go for higher education it is always with the notion that she will attract a husband of a higher or similar status if she is educated.

And women go some lengths to preserve institutions of marriage to the extent of encouraging other women to stay in abusive relationships because that is, after all, the ultimate goal of a woman’s life.

Then there is the whole power dynamics in our society in which most women usually gain power from men, be it their husbands or their sons who then become someone else’s husband. As a result, women’s power in the household is always within structures in which women are trying to gain power against other women however this is so because of the patriarchal structures in which women have been positioned.

Patriarchy is our worst enemy!

Rational beings As a society we mostly tend to look at others only from our own perspectives and positions of privilege. As a result we have become so quick to condemn, judge and undermine others’ realities.

So if one is not a drug addict but someone else is we are quick to blame them for their addiction, and refuse any kind of social or welfare assistance. Not once do we rein ourselves in and ask how our own actions or the structures we have created or perpetuated in our society may have contributed or led to that person becoming an addict. Did they have access to education? Did they grow up and live in poverty? Were they

bullied in school or was socially outcast?

How is their mental health affected as a result of growing up in the circumstances one would have grown up in? And of course many more questions need to be asked before we can come to a rational opinion or decision.

In another scenario, a group of young women have been refused time to make a public submission however other women or men may not have been refused time or chose not to make a submission. Just because people cannot relate to someone else’s experiences of discrimination does that mean it did not happen? Does this mean that we can undermine/judge others’ experiences and realities because we did not experience a similar discrimination or bias?

Or does it mean we will accept what a person with more power, hence authority, has to say even if it means disregarding others’ experiences?

Most contexts or people require a realistic analysis in order for us to be able to form better and informed decisions or opinions. This simply means moving away from our place of privilege to a place of others’ reality and asking ouselves questions: Whether one has had access to the same kind of childhood; did we go to schools with the same standard of education; were we born to educated parents; were we exposed to the same kind of peer groups; did we grow up in a non-violent family; were we all taught the same values in life; have we been subjected to bullying; were we made fun of for the way we looked; is all our mental and emotional health of the same capacity and development.

We need to not only be empathic, considerate, compassionate and understanding but also to become rational beings.

Here’s hoping that in 2013 we are more rational beings with resolutions to value and give regard to everyone’s experiences and realities; to be less judgemental in our behaviour and words; to recognise and acknowledge structural inequalities and injustice; and to continue socially and culturally transformR ing ourselves. n Roshika Deo is a feminist and human rights defender. republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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December 2012/January 2013

OPINION

Breaking these shackles The Rising Ape with ALEX ELBOURNE republikamagazine.com/opinion/risingape

M

oce Lizzie. Apparently God did NOT save the queen. I cannot believe that more than 40 years after we became independent from Britain, someone finally said, “Okay, enough! Time to get the British monarch off our money.”

What I really love though are the reactions from those who seem to think that taking the queen off our currency is tantamount to some sort of violation of the natural order. Really, guys? Really? Someone actually said to me that it was “kinda blasphemous “. Woo hoo!

Look, the Brits did do a lot for this country. Yay! Now that those times are gone, it’s also time for them to be gone. We are a republic and I reckon it’s about time we started finding our own symbols and to be honest, I’m struggling to see what relevance some old British woman has to us.

And then there’s the flag…

Well, if you think the whole money thing was bad, I have a feeling the revamp of our flag is going to unleash and even bigger s**tstorm. It’s already started and I’m thinking it is going to be epic.

Unsurprisingly, I’m glad we’re revamping our flag. I hope the very first thing to go is the Union Jack. Just like with the currency, I fail to see why we should have the Union Jack on the flag of an independent republic.

A friend of mine asked me why I was being so quick to dismiss our past.

Well, taking the Union Jack off our flag is not dismissing our past. It is an acknowledgement that as a country, we have reached the stage where we want to stand on our own and make our own destiny. Tied up in that is the desire to make our own national symbols. Not a relic like the Union Jack.

I bet you anything, if asked, QE II would be happy we’re taking this step.

I’d be happy if everything else was left and just the Union Jack is removed.

And on the subject of being proud of December 2012/January 2013

our past, it’s funny how everyone goes on about being proud of their past but I’m yet to see one person say, “Hey, why don’t we do more to acknowledge the role of the Girmityas in Fiji’s development?” Why is that I wonder? Anyway, the Brits did a sh**load for this country but it’s time to move on guys.

The doggy rule This is something I’ve come up with when it comes to movies. Ever noticed how a movie that will gladly kill of hundreds of people will hesitate to kill a dog. Especially if it’s the hero’s kid’s dog.

Think Independence Day and all those people killed in the tunnel. Which was apparently less important than the dog making it to safety.

I sometimes get the feeling that we expend so much time caring about other species we forget to look out for our own. I was reading one of our newspapers and the front page story was about the dead sharks found on Nukulau Island. On page two was a story about a dead foetus and that horrible gang rape in the Northern Division.

Now I don’t know about you guys but I can’t bring myself to care about dead sharks when there are young girls being gang raped in our country. Or when dead babies are being found in piles of garbage. People first, animals come a distant second.

We have a problem.

Obviously that rape case in Delhi has been on the news for quite some time now. One thing I find interesting about the entire tragedy is people’s reactions here. Now, I’m not talking about the disgust and the anger and the sadness all of us expressed. That’s a normal human reaction to such a heinous crime.

What I found interesting were those who were shocked that something similar could happen here in Fiji when the case I mentioned above was brought to light. Time to take your heads out of the sand; Fiji has a huge problem with this issue. We always have.

In my opinion, it just seems more prevalent now because finally the victims are starting to come forward. And

on that note, we need to stop having the same old knee-jerk reaction every time something like this happens.

I think it’s obvious by now that the current methods of dealing with rapists are not really changing anything.

Harsher prison terms do not seem to change anything. The death penalty does not change anything. Castration will do sweet eff all.

The problem is a societal one and unless and until we change that, things can only get worse. The fact of the matter is these cases almost always involve men on women. So where have we gone wrong?

People are calling these criminals animals like these crimes are some sort of aberration, some sort of anomaly.

Hell no. The truth is, these things happen way too often. Something has gone very wrong somewhere.

If rape is about power maybe we need to consider the fact that a lot of young men have lost their way due to all sorts of sh*t around them. That “lostness” has to begin somewhere and the only place I can think of is the home.

By the way I am in no way excusing what these guys did; they need to face the full brunt of the law. What I am saying is that, it’s bigger than this one case and we need to stop being so fecking emotional about these things and make a collective decision as a society that it has to stop.

Calling for the death penalty and for castration ain’t gonna work. Teach our sons empathy, protect our daughters from the jackals – that’s how we have to do it. It’ll take a long time but that’s a real solution, not just a band aid. In my opinion.

“I’m not convinced that women have the education or the sense of their own history enough or that they understand the cruelty of which men are capable and the delight that many men will take in seeing you choose to chain yourself – then they get to say ‘See, you did it yourR self’.” ~ Alice Walker n Alex Elbourne is the Breakfast Show host on Legend FM. The views expressed are his own. republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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FIJI CONSTITUTION COMMISSION

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December 2012/January 2013

COVER

What now for the people’s constitution?

By RICARDO MORRIS

I

n the few short months during which the Constitution Commission travelled around Fiji hearing from people and their communities on what they want in a new constitution, there was an outpouring of ideas, viewpoints, complaints, frustrations but also a kind of hopefulness.

It was the first time in years since the military coup of December 2006 that people felt able to freely articulate their feelings and thoughts publicly and on a mass scale on an issue that deeply affects us all – the recreation of the foundations of our statehood through a new constitution.

The year began on a seemingly positive note with the lifting of the Public Emergency Regulations although a week later this was replaced by the Public Order Act Amendment Decree. But with the realisation that a constitutional process was about to begin there was a sense of optimism that things were heading in the right direction.

The appointment of the distinguished Kenyan constitutional scholar Professor Yash Ghai to chair the commission

that would draft the constitution lent tremendous credibility to the process.

Even those traditionally opposed to the military-led government and doubted its sincerity in returning Fiji to democratic rule could not disregard the opportunity to have their say.

And indeed for many of the so-called “anti-government” personalities it was one of the rare times they had emerged into the limited political space that has prevailed since Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama launched his “clean up” of the country.

Ghai, working with Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, drafted the decrees that established the Constitution Commission and its procedures and set out how the Constituent Assembly would work. (Sayed-Khaiyum was of the view that the process did not require decrees, Ghai later stated). Ghai insisted on the commission’s independence to protect the integrity of the process, assuring the nation they would listen to everybody, notwithstanding the non-negotiable principles the government required to be embedded in the draft of the new constitution.

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All smiles Chairman of the Fiji Constitution Commission Professor Yash Ghai with the copy of the Draft Constitution that was presented to the President in December with his fellow commissioners, from left, Professor Christine Murray, Professor Satendra Nandan, Peni Moore and Taufa Vakatale. This photo was taken the day before the burning incident.

December 2012/January 2013

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coupfourandahalf .com

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The burning These images were taken at Bluebird Printery in Vatuwaqa, Suva on 22 December 2012 after the printing of the draft constitu-

tion. Police officers were present during the printing of the 600 copies which began on 19 December but a day after a copy of the draft was presented to President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, the police officers shredded and burned the printers’ proof outside the factory. The chairman of the Constitution Commission, Professor Yash Ghai was called by the printers to witness the seizing of the draft copies and was distraught at this drastic turn of events. The rest of the 599 copies were taken by officers with officials saying the copies are being kept in the prime minister’s office, only to be released to the yet-to-be-appointed Constituent Assembly for their perusal. However, Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama has said the Constituent Assembly they will not be allowed to deliberate on Ghai’s draft but on a re-drafted version from the Attorney-General’s office.

The non-negotiables included widely accepted international principles such as common and equal citizenry, nonethnic equal value voting and a secular state, but also immunity for the military and officials for their participation in the previous coups.

In March, Bainimarama announced details of the constitutional process which he said would be historic for Fiji.

In a speech to the nation Bainimarama said: “Every Fijian who wants to contribute and be forward-looking in the creation of an enlightened constitution will have the opportunity to do so.

“For the first time, everyone will have a voice. This is a fundamental part of the constitutional formulation process that cannot be and must not be compromised.

“The constitution must be premised on the fundamental values and principles set out in the People’s Charter for Change, which my Government has been advocating and implementing.”

Apart from Ghai, two other local members of the commission were named: Professor Satendra Nandan and Taufa Vakatale. By 1 May the final two members were announced as South African Professor Christine Murray and local activist Penelope ‘Peni’ Moore.

The Constitution Commission had 14

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a relatively limited timeframe within which to conduct hearings, listen to feedback and write a draft that incorporated the non-negotiable principles as well as a distillation of the views of citizens. It was an enormous task.

The process started a month later than initially expected, with hearings getting underway in early August and ending in mid-October.

During those two-and-a-half months, members of the commission travelled far and wide across Fiji, covering rural areas, squatter settlements, and some of the furthest islands in the Lau group reaching to Rotuma. Specific interest groups were also consulted, with the commission at pains to include previously marginalised sections of Fijian soceity.

Compared to all of Fiji’s other constitutional processes, including the one that led to the landmark 1997 Constitution, this one was far more inclusive, although there were some complaints that some groups were not given adequate time to make their submissions.

Overall, the commission received about 7000 submissions from individuals and groups. The sheer task of analysing all of these submissions in the time remaining to draft a constitution was not lost on those keenly following the commission’s work.

At the end of the hearings, the major themes emerging were already obvious.

In October Ghai said there was overwhelming consensus that every effort must be made to prevent future coups.

He indicated the difficult task the commission had reconciling what the people want with a decree which embedded immunity in the new constitution.

“The constitution will have to give immunity. But there are many ways, I guess, of providing immunities for different acts for different parties for different periods of time and we will keep in mind the general feeling in the country that immunity should be as restrictive as possible so that we move on to a culture where coups will never be tolerated again,” he told Radio New Zealand International.

The hearings itself were not without attendant drama. Despite assurances from the government that people would be free to speak their mind, the military, through its spokesman Land Force Commander Colonel Mosese Tikoitoga frequently condemned submissions that did not accord with the non-negotiable principles or the military’s view of a “better Fiji.”

The military had indicated earlier on that it would make a submission. However by the time the deadline for submisDecember 2012/January 2013

COVER

WHAT THE GHAI DRAFT CONTAINS Chapter 1 Founding Provisions Chapter 2 Our Natural Heritage Chapter 3 Our Human Rights

Part A Bill of Rights

Part B Elaboration of Rights

Part C Applying the Bill of Rights Chapter 4 Civic and Political Life

Part A Community and Civil society

Part B The Public Media

Part C Political Parties Chapter 5 Good Governance and Leadership Chapter 6 The National People’s Assembly Chapter 7 The President Chapter 8 Representation of the People Chapter 9 Parliament Chapter 10 The National Executive Chapter 11 Justice and the Rule of Law Chapter 12 Local Government Chapter 13 Independent Commissions and

Offices

Chapter 14 Public Finance Chapter 15 Public Administration Chapter 16 National Security Chapter 17 Amendment of the

Constitution Chapter 18 Interpretation and

Commencement The 18 chapters consist of 188 sections Schedule 1 Citizenship Schedule 2 Protected Laws Respecting

Land and Land Rights Schedule 3 Oaths or Affirmations Schedule 4 Code of Conduct for Officers

of the State Schedule 5 Removal of Officers of the

State Schedule 6 Transitional Arrangements Schedule 7 Repeal of Laws and Decrees

READ GHAI DRAFT CONSTITUTION sions had passed the military had not done so. They eventually made it well past the deadline.

The submission, authored by the military’s Chief of Staff Brigadier-General Aziz Mohammed, covered many of the widely known ideas and pronouncements of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF), including the shape of our rebuilt nation and government structures and the non-negotiable principles.

Mohammed, who was the prosecuting officer during the courts martial of Counter Revolutionary Warfare unit soldiers who participated in the 2000 coup and mutiny, began the military’s submission with an overview of the RFMF’s recent history and its involvement in national matters.

Tellingly, the RFMF submission makes clear that it could have avoided the whole constitution consultations and just written a constitution itself that the military thought was best for Fiji.

“One must understand that the RFMF could have averted the process now adopted of seeking the submission of the people of Fiji in the formulation of a new constitution,” said Mohammed in the 100-page submission. “We could have gone directly to the [Constituent] Assembly and the drafting of the new constitution. This was not done.

December 2012/January 2013

“The RFMF believed that for true democracy and for the future of Fiji, the adoption of this process is vital. We understand that this whole process and opportunity has never been provided in the formulation of the last three constitutions. This time around, we want the expressions and opinions of the people captured in our new constitution. It is not our intention to undermine any individual, group or institution to the contrary. We are here to ensure that through this process we are able to formulate a constitution that is representative of all the people of Fiji.”

But further down in the submission appeared that familiar binary refrain of the military accusing those who did not agree with its views as being opposed to it: “It is simple, either you support the RFMF in its reforms and effort to bring about peace and stability within Fiji or support the contrary, which is corruption, racial and ethnic division, racial hatred, undermining of the under privileged, social injustice etc.”

Aziz also had something to say about those who were once supporters of the military’s “clean up” and had accepted appointments to statutory boards or positions within government but were now

After the burning incident became public and various versions of the draft constitution began circulating on the internet, Professor Yash Ghai decided to release the final copy himself. Ghai also released the explanatory notes and an appendage that accompanied the draft. All documents can be downloaded from the FijiLeaks.com website to which Ghai sent it.

Download the Ghai draft using this 8 link: http://tinyurl.com/GhaiDraft

Download the explantory report 8 using this link:

http://tinyurl.com/ExplanatoryReport

Download the appendage to the 8 draft constitution using this link: http://tinyurl.com/FijiAppendage

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3Continued from page 15

speaking out against it because they had been removed. And he had a point: “As soon as the money went, so did their loyalty and support!”

Towards the end of the four months in which the commission had to work, the relationship between the government and the very commission it had set up began to take a downward spiral.

In October, the government realised that former Vice President, Bau chief and laywer Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi had been engaged as a consultant by the commission. Bainimarama was irked that Ratu Joni had been an advisor to a delegation of villagers from Ratu Joni’s district of Bau which had called for a Christian state, contrary to the non-negotiable principles.

In response the government immediately amended the decrees governing the constitutional process to compel the commission to publish the names and salaries of all staff and consultants. The commission was also required to publish its source funding and expenditure.

An amendment was also made to the decree removing the requirement to take the draft constitution back to the people of Fiji for feedback before it was handed to the President.

Ghai issued a statement defending the appointment of Ratu Joni for his expertise on local law and iTaukei matters and said he was only paid for days on which he worked for the commission and not on the day his delegation made its submission.

The situation became even more sensitive when international media began reporting in November the supposed leak of a draft of the constitution forcing Ghai to clarify the documents that were in circulation. These were consultation documents provided to what Ghai described as “leading local experts and public servants on some preliminary proposals for the constitution.”

By this point it was clear both the government and the commission realised things were not going the way either of them had hoped. The government felt “outside influence” was at play within 16

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the commission and Ghai complained of the interference from Bainimarama in trying to assert the commission’s independence.

Things finally came to head when Ghai ordered the printing of 600 copies of the draft constitution that was unanimously endorsed by the other four commissioners.

One of the 600 copies was presented to President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau on 20 December, while the others were still being printed and bound. The next day, 21 December, not long after having morning tea with the President at Government House, Ghai received a call from the printers that police officers were intending to take the printed booklets away after they had been bound.

Ghai arrived and the now infamous “burning scene” transpired. Policemen had shredded the printers’ proof – sheets of a document used a reference while printing is underway – poured kerosene on it in the driveway of the factory and set it alight.

In the grand scheme of things, the fire was insignificant and to be clear no actual bound copies were burned. But it was the powerful symbolism behind the shredding and setting alight of remnants of the commission’s work that overwhelmed Ghai, who can be seen in despair in the photos that have emerged of the event.

It was an ignominious end to a process that had begun on such a hopeful note for Fiji.

Why had the government which put in motion the formulation of the “people’s constitution” felt the need to keep the Ghai draft out of the public view until the Constituent Assembly was convened?

The government has objected to portions of the draft constitution which included a re-emergent role for the banished Bose Levu Vakaturaga (Great Council of Chiefs), the creation of a People’s Assembly that would elect the President, the removal of the office of the Attorney-General, and a more strictly defined role for the military contrary to its view of itself as “guardians” of the nation who should be deeply involved

in “nation-builidng”. The government said Ghai had no business printing the draft, but Ghai responded that had always been the plan but the government had changed the rules late in the game to remove this requirement.

In a statement released on 1 January, Ghai said: “If the overall objective of the process: participation of the people and the responsiveness of the Commission and the Assembly to their views, is to be respected, it is imperative that the Draft Constitution and the Explanatory Report should be available to the public immediately after they have been presented to His Excellency the President. It is on this assumption that we ordered the printing of a sizeable number of copies and were about to publish other material to assist the public when the Commission was told that it was not to publish any material relating to the Draft Constitution.” [An overview of the draft constitution was to have been printed in newspapers.]

Ghai continued: “The position of the Attorney-General is extraordinary, and hard to understand. The Decrees make clear that the Draft Constitution that the Assembly has to consider is that produced by the Commission – none other.

It therefore makes no sense to say that that Draft cannot be released to the public.

“In none of the nearly 20 constitution making process in which I have been involved, or others that I have studied, has the commission been told not to publish the draft constitution. What happens to the Government’s objective of a ‘true and sustainable democracy’ if the people are not allowed to read and discuss the Draft Constitution?”

Bainimarama has announced that the government legal team led by AttorneyGeneral Sayed-Khaiyum would rewrite the draft before it is presented to his hand-picked Constituent Assembly for consideration.

It seems that Brigadier-General Mohammed’s statement about the military writing its own constitution has come to R pass after all.

December 2012/January 2013

COVER

Finding positives in the trashing of the Ghai draft

By WADAN NARSEY

H

ow can there be positives in the trashing of the Ghai Commission draft of the Constitution, you might ask? But first note, even diehard supporters of the Bainimarama regime must be worried that the regime is going to write its “own”.

After all, the regime itself appointed Professor Yash Ghai (Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum’s teacher at Hong Kong University) as Chairman, and the Commission had three regime supporters (Satendra Nandan, Taufa Vakatale and Peni Moore), none of whom have ever disagreed with the review process with its country-wide consultations, or the final product.

Penny Moore, to her great credit, has defended their Draft Constitution, while Vakatale has maintained a discrete silence. Nandan merely complained that Professor Yash Ghai, the Chairman of the Constitution Commission had released the “people’s constitution” to the “people” without a collective decision by the Commission – an “illegal” act, roared the military regime.

The international community will note that the Draft Constitution abided by all the rigid requirements of the regime’s Decrees 57 and 58 of 2012: immunity for those supporting unlawful governments from 2000 to 2014 (which many opposed), a fair electoral system for Parliament where each person’s vote was of equal value, and a clear enunciation of human rights.

Trashing this Ghai Draft ConstituDecember 2012/January 2013

tion may seem a negative to many, but it is ironically, taking Fiji forward.

The dubious grounds for rejection While one could easily find a few faults with the Ghai Draft, the arguments put forward by the President in rejecting the Ghai Draft, simply do not have substance.

Nailatikau’s most serious allegation was that “it is an anathema to democratic representation that the Ghai Draft allows for, at the very least, a 144 member body of unelected people [the People’s Assembly] deciding on key issues pertaining to the people of Fiji”.

This allegation is without substance.

Ghai’s “People’s Assembly” would not have any real legislative or governmental powers, which would all still reside with the democratically elected Parliament.

The only real “power” the People’s Assembly might have had would be the election of the largely symbolic President. This aspect could easily have been changed by the Constituent Assembly, should they see fit.

While the President seems concerned to have decisions made by elected persons, the reality for the last six years has been that the current President, the Prime Minister, the Attorney-General, and their ever-changing military spokesmen are all unelected people who have obtained their positions though a military coup.

All know that the regime’s Decree 57 had stated that the final decision on the Draft Constitution would be made by a

“Constituent Assembly” which would be completely appointed by Commodore Bainimarama, with nowhere near the broad democratic element that the People’s Assembly is being given in the Draft Constitution.

Who could believe the President’s allegation that the regime’s own Constitution Commission was over-influenced by foreign donors and local vested-interest political groups?

The regime which professes a belief in genuine people’s democracy, felt desperate enough to pass a Decree stopping the Yash Ghai Commission from discussing their Draft Constitution with the people of Fiji, as had been set out originally in their Decrees, while their “legal team” will now do the job.

The regime itself does not show any great respect for genuine democracy and the people of Fiji.

The regime’s real worries The real worries for the military regime are likely to have been that: the Draft Constitution did not grant immunity for abuse of human rights; it granted immunity only to those who took an oath renouncing their support of illegal regimes (what a litmus test for the guilty!); the regime would have to give way to a caretaker government six months before the 2014 elections; and there would be an end to the tenure of the current President.

The Bainimarama regime may have been far more worried that the Draft 4Continued on page 18 republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

17

CITIZENS’ CONSTITUTIONAL FORUM

Having their say These school children in Vanua Levu made a submission to the Constitution Commission during its hearings.

Constitution states clearly that all members of the security forces (army, police and prisons) are explicitly required to not obey unlawful orders from their superiors. This requirement would have come into effect from the day that the President gave his “assent” to the Draft Constitution.

Another revealing positive is that mid-way through the Commission’s work, the regime promulgated yet another decree that stopped the Commission’s exercise to establish which of the regime decrees must be modified in order to be consistent with the new constitution.

Such an exercise was absolutely necessary if there was to be full respect for the fundamental human right of access to the courts, and legal continuity in the fair administration of justice in Fiji, with total adherence to constitutionality and the law. The Draft Constitution even went so far as to outline which decrees needed to be changed, fully or partly (Schedule 7).

It would have worried the regime that Schedule 6 for the Transition Arrangements states in Clause 24 (Judicial 18

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proceedings and other pending matters) that “(1) Any proceedings before any court, tribunal or commission that had arisen under any law and that had been terminated by order at any time before the General Effective Date, are revived and may be proceeded with under this Constitution”.

This would have restored the basic rights to go to court with just grievances, of relevance to FNPF pensioners whose Burness/Shameem case already before the courts was purportedly terminated by a Decree and also international owners of investments at Natadola and Momi, challenging the appropriation of their assets by a Decree (and several other cases).

While this would have reassured the international investing community, it was surely a great exaggeration for the President, with reference to the investments at Natadola and Momi, to allege that “The Ghai Draft can lead to financial and economic catastrophe and ruin”.

Judiciary not prepared to ‘do the dirty’?

There’s another positive puzzle: the

regime’s Decree 57 had insisted that after the Constituent Assembly approved the Draft Constitution, it would go to a five-person Tribunal appointed by the Chief Justice, which would assess it in relation to the Decree requirements, and if necessary, refer it back to the Constituent Assembly for the required changes. Already fool-proof for the Bainimarama government, you might have thought.

For the regime to circumvent this whole process suggests that the regime’s legal advisers must have concluded that they would be on totally tenuous grounds, visible to all, if they made any changes to the Draft Constitution via the Chief Justice’s Tribunal.

It would seem that Professors Ghai and Murray, and their group of legal advisers, were so thorough in ensuring that their final product was legally “water-tight”, that the Regime’s Chief Justice (and the five-person Tribunal) were intimidated out of their “vetting” role, the full details of which would have been completely clear to the public.

Whatever the facts of the matter, it is indeed a positive commentary on December 2012/January 2013

‘While the President seems concerned to have decisions made by elected persons, the reality for the last six years has been that the current President, the Prime Minister, the AttorneyGeneral, and their ever-changing military spokesmen are all unelected people who have obtained their positions though a military coup.’ the Ghai Draft Constitution that the regime found it necessary to short-circuit the process, and pass the Ghai Draft to Sayed-Khaiyum and the Solicitor-General’s office, to change the Ghai Draft Constitution, before it is sent to the “people’s Constituent Assembly”, yet to be appointed by Commodore Bainimarama.

Once more, passing the buck to the President It is worth noting the beginning of Commodore Bainimarama’s speech in rejecting the Ghai Draft: “I firstly wish to thank and acknowledge the leadership and wisdom shown by His Excellency our President. Our vision to create a truly democratic nation under an elected parliamentary system will be etched in history, thanks to His Excellency our President. As requested by His Excellency, the Government’s legal team will amend the Ghai Draft”.

Sayed-Khaiyum is now also repeating the same message: please respect the “President’s wishes” in ordering the revision of the Ghai Draft.

Fiji will remember previous activities conducted under the “mandate” and “powers” of a previous President, the late Ratu Josefa Iloilo, all proven to be without substance eventually: n the National Council for Building a Better Fiji and Charter exercise

by John Samy and Archbishop Petero Mataca; n the President’s Political Dialogue Forum by the “interlocutors” Robin Nair and Sitiveni Halapua; n the justification of the 2006 coup by Gates, Pathik and Byrne; December 2012/January 2013

n the 2009 purported abrogation of the 1997 Constitution by Iloilo himself.

The “President” seems to again acquire autonomous authority at the whim of the Bainimarama Government.

More positives While many have been skeptical of the military’s objectives in carrying out the coup, the regime has had enough supporters (a few well-intentioned), to be able to hang on to the reins of government for the past six years.

But the regime’s ruthless treatment and rejection of its own choice of internationally renowned and respected law professor (who six years ago seemed to be sympathetic to the “Bainimarama cause”) will alienate even more supporters – individuals and business interests alike.

It is a positive sign that many of the former Bainimarama supporters from the unions and Catholic, Hindu and Muslim religions have become vociferous opponents of the regime or have silently disappeared from view, and note that both lists are getting longer.

Of course, some regime supporters (individuals and business people), will continue regardless of any negative consequences for Fiji, but this list will also shrink if decent Fiji people ever give them the message that their support of continued rule by the unelected Banimarama government is not acceptable.

The international donor community (Australia, NZ, EU and US), who reluctantly accepted the regime’s “roadmap” of democratic constitutional reform and free and fair elections by 2014, will

have had their hopes dashed (and their financial support seemingly wasted), but they will grit their teeth and continue for the sake of political engagement, as disengagement and sanctions have proved futile.

Current supporters like India and China will know that their own reputations and their wider interests in the South Pacific are being hurt by their continued support of the Bainimarama/ Sayed-Khaiyum regime, which future democratically elected governments will keep in mind.

Over the next six months, meticulous comparisons between the regime’s Constitution and the Ghai Draft Constitution – what exactly is changed, added and left out – will reveal more facts to Fiji and the world, about the regime’s “real roadmap”.

All the political parties in Fiji are now likely to be united in their opposition to the regime, and will probably adopt a common strategy to the Constituent Assembly.

They will either (a) all participate and insist on supporting the unamended Ghai Draft Constitution; or (b) all boycott and watch with deep interest (and remember) who exactly are the “people’s representatives” who will turn up to rubber-stamp the military regime’s constitution.

There is a definitely a new ball game R in town. n Dr Wadan Narsey is an adjunct professor at The Cairns Institute and a former professor of economics at the University of the South Pacific.

He blogs at narseyonfiji.wordpress.com where a version of this article was first published. republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

19

OPINION

A cry for my country

By AMAN RAVINDRA-SINGH aman@republikamagazine.com

I

n recent months there have been many developments regarding Fiji’s return to democracy. The latest episode has involved the Constitution Commission and the draft constitution. I have chosen to share a poem which I hold dear to myself. This poem is appropriately titled ‘My Countrymen’ since in my view and it is a fact of history that it is men who have ruined this nation since the first coup on 14 May 1987.

My Countrymen

By Gibran Khalil Gibran

What do you seek, my countrymen?

Do you desire that I build for you gorgeous palaces, decorated with words of empty meaning or temples roofed with dreams?

Do you command me to destroy what the liars and tyrants have built?

Shall I uproot with my fingers what the hypocrites and the wicked have implanted?

Speak your insane wish!

What is it you would have me do my countrymen?

Shall I purr like the kitten to satisfy you, or roar like the lion to please myself?

I have sung for you, but you did not dance; I have wept before you, but you did not cry.

Shall I sing and weep at the same time?

Your souls are suffering the pangs of hunger, and yet the fruit of knowledge is more plentiful than the stones of the valleys.

Your hearts are withering from thirst, and yet the springs of life are streaming about your homes.

Why do you not drink?

The sea has its ebb and flow, The moon has its fullness and crescents, And the ages have their winter and summer, And all things vary like the shadow of an unborn god moving between earth and sun, But truth cannot be changed, nor will it pass away; Why, then, do you endeavour to disfigure its countenance?

I have called you in the silence of the night to point out the glory of the moon and the dignity of the stars, But you startled from your slumber and clutched your swords in fear, Crying “Where is the enemy? We must kill Him first!”

At morning-tide when the enemy came, I called to you again, 20

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But now you did not wake from your slumber, For you were locked in fear, wrestling with the processions of spectres in your dreams.

And I said unto you, “Let us climb to the mountain top and view the beauty of the world.”

And you answered me, saying, “In the depths of this valley our fathers lived, And in its shadows they died, and in its caves they were buried.

How can we depart this place for one which they failed to honour?”

And I said unto you, “Let us go to the plain that gives its bounty to the sea.”

And you spoke timidly to me, saying, “The uproar of the abyss will frighten our spirits, And the terror of the depths will deaden our bodies.”

I have loved you, my countrymen, but my love for you is painful to me and useless to you; And today I hate you, and hatred is a flood that sweeps away the dry branches and quavering houses.

I have pitied your weakness, my countrymen, But my pity has but increased your feebleness, Exalting and nourishing slothfulness which is vain to life.

And today I see your infirmity which my soul loathes and fears.

I have cried over your humiliation and submission, and my tears streamed like crystalline, But could not sear away your stagnant weakness; Yet they removed the veil from my eyes.

My tears have never reached your petrified hearts, but they cleansed the darkness from my inner self.

Today I am mocking at your suffering, for laughter is a raging thunder that precedes the tempest and never comes after it.

What do you desire, my countrymen?

Do you wish for me to show you the ghost of your countenance on the face of still water?

Come, now, and see how ugly you are!

Look and meditate!

Fear has turned your hair grey as the ashes, And dissipation has grown over your eyes and made them into obscured hollows, And cowardice has touched your cheeks that now appear as dismal pits in the valley, And death has kissed your lips and left them yellow as the autumn leaves.

What is it that you seek, my countrymen?

What ask you from life, who does not any longer count you among her children?

Your souls are freezing in the clutches of the

priests and sorcerers, And your bodies tremble between the paws of the despots and the shedders of blood, And your country quakes under the marching feet of the conquering enemy; What may you expect even though you stand proudly before the face of the sun?

Your swords are sheathed with rust, and your spears are broken, and your shields are laden with gaps, Why, then, do you stand in the field of battle?

Hypocrisy is your religion, and falsehood is your life, and nothingness is your ending; Why, then, are you living?

Is not death the sole comfort of the miserable?

Life is a resolution that accompanies youth, and a diligence that follows maturity, and a wisdom that pursues senility; But you, my countrymen, were born old and weak.

And your skins withered and your heads shrank, Whereupon you become as children, running into the mire and casting stones upon each other.

Knowledge is a light, enriching the warmth of life, And all may partake who seek it out; But you, my countrymen, seek out darkness and flee the light, Awaiting the coming of water from the rock, And your nation’s misery is your crime.

I do not forgive you your sins, for you know what you are doing.

Humanity is a brilliant river singing its way and carrying with it the mountains’ secrets into the heart of the sea; But you, my countrymen, are stagnant marshes infested with insects and vipers.

The spirit is a sacred blue torch, burning and devouring the dry plants, And growing with the storm and illuminating the faces of the goddesses; But you, my countrymen, your souls are like ashes which the winds scatter upon the snow, And which the tempests disperse forever in the valleys.

Fear not the phantom of death, my countrymen, For his greatness and mercy will refuse to approach your smallness; And dread not the dagger, for it will decline to be lodged in your shallow hearts.

I hate you, my countrymen, because you hate glory and greatness.

I despise you because you despise yourselves.

I am your enemy, for you refuse to realize that you are the enemies of the goddesses. R December 2012/January 2013

December 2012/January 2013

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21

BUDGET

2013 BUDGET

A snapshot

n Increase of 30% to capital infrastructure works to $722 million. n Focus on investment in roads and bridges through grants to the restructured Fiji Roads Authority (FRA) with an allocation of $422 million, representing an increase of $182 million. n Increasing the tax threshold to $16,000 and removal of all personal taxable allowances.

RICARDO MORRIS

n PAYE as a final tax removing certain taxpayers on PAYE from the need to file a tax return. n Renaming the Social Responsibility Levy (SRL) as the Social Responsibility Tax

From numbers to reality The challenge now is translating potentially good policies into action on the ground

By BIMAN PRASAD

F

iji government budgets since 1987 have been prepared in the shadows of political instability and suspicion, coups, and uncertainty of the future. Even general elections held under the 1997 Constitution, which was based on power-sharing, failed to fully allay the concerns.

The People’s Coalition’s 2000 budget was implemented against the backdrop of rumours about another coup and continued protests by the ethno nationalist. There is no doubt that the last seven budgets since 2006, includ22

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ing the revised 2007 budget, have been prepared against an environment dominated by fear, mistrust and uncertainty of the future.

In delivering the 2008 budget, the then Interim Finance Minister, Mahendra Pal Chaudhry, blamed the SDL government of mismanaging the economy and claimed that the country was on the verge of bankruptcy. This may have been an exaggeration, even though the situation wasn’t rosy.

Since the 2000 coup political instability continued to be an issue. Even after the 2001 general election, investment levels did not increase.

Economic growth in the past six years Between 2006 and 2010 the Fiji economy grew by a mere 0.1 per cent. In 2011, the growth rate improved to 1.9%.

The projection for 2012 has already been revised two times: first, it was revised upward to 2.7% and then revised downward to 2.5%. The initial forecast to 2.7% was misplaced as it was done soon after the devastating floods in the early part of 2012.

The forecasts for 2013 and 2014 make sense but the big unknown is how the political climate will change in 2013 and 2014. The just completed constitutional consultations and the preparation of the December 2012/January 2013

BUDGET

(SRT). The revised SRT has been restructured on a better progressive basis. n Reduction in corporate taxes for all companies listed on the South Pacific Stock Exchange to 18.5%. n A new corporate tax rate of 17% for foreign companies establishing or relocating its headquarters to Fiji. n Companies will be responsible for shareholders’ tax liabilities. n Extension of the Employment Taxation Scheme.Export income deduction remains at 40% for 2013 as opposed to the previously legislated 30%.

new constitution, if followed through, would be positive, especially if plans for 2014 elections are fully transparent and on-track. This will boost confidence and we may be able to achieve growth rates of more than 2% in 2013 and 2014. What is clear from GDP figures in the last six years is that almost all productive sector contributions to GDP have declined.

The 2012 budget has had some radical measures and this involved reductions in corporate tax and income tax.

In many ways it was a bold budget. It tried to radically change the fiscal policy environment by providing incentives for consumers to spend more and investors to invest more.

In my previous comments on the 2012 budget I had stated that while it was a bold budget, its effectiveness would depend on the level of confidence that would be generated in the economy through steps taken towards democratic elections. The formation of the Constitutional Commission did help but the skirmishes between the Commission and the government because of decrees restricting transparency of the work of the commission may have discredited the process somewhat. The uncertainty in 2012 as a result of the differing views of the Commission and the government may have dampened the spirit of consumers and investors.

December 2012/January 2013

n Removal of minimum investment requirement of $250,000 for foreign investors. n Increase in fiscal duty for dairy products to 32%; n Reduction in FEA tariffs by 5 cents a unit. n The areas from Tavua to Korovou have been declared a Tax Free Region enjoying a 13-year tax holiday for the agricultural sector and 20-year tax holiday for the dairy industry. This will apply to new entities with a minimum investment of $1 million.

2013 BUDGET F$(000) Total estimated revenue Total estimated expenditure Estimated net deficit Debt repayments Gross deficit

2,108,408.9 2,327,385.3 218,976.4 179,997.0 398,973.4

Nominal GDP Net Deficit as a percentage of GDP

7,744,976.0 2.8%

n The estimated net deficit as a percentage of GDP represents an increase from 1.6% for 2012. n The growth for 2013 is projected at 2.7% of GDP. n Inflation is forecasted to be 3.5% by end of 2012 and forecasted at 3% for 2013. n Exports are projected to grow by 3.1% in 2013 compared to 5% for 2012.

n Increases to the rates of stamp duties.

n Summary by PricewaterhouseCoopers

It is therefore not surprising that growth rate for 2012 has been revised downwards to 2.5%; however, given the poor performance of the productive sectors such as agriculture, sugar and forestry we could end up with a growth rate for 2012 at less than 2%.

and incentives have created uncertainty. While the work of the Commerce Commission is important for addressing prices issues for the vulnerable and poor, it is not necessarily the best way to deal with the impact on the poor.

The lack of transparency and the unpredictability of the price control system have created more uncertainty and confusion and have probably increased the cost of doing business in Fiji.

In fact, in 2011, the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business Survey shows that Fiji’s ranking had gone down and is lower than Samoa’s and Tonga’s. Government needs to further concentrate on improving the business environment by applying rules and policies in a transparent and predictable manner.

The 2013 budget is again bold and has built on the direction set by the 2012 budget. I am particularly encouraged by the emphasis of the budget on capital expenditure and a focus on roads.

The deterioration in the infrastructure in the past 25 years has been phenomenal and it has become one of the binding constraints for investment in Fiji apart from the sustained political uncertainty. The infrastructure deficit has to be addressed and the increase in the deficit to 2.8% in the 2013 budget

Key focus of the 2013 Budget One of the key thrusts of the 2013 budget is the continuation of incentives for investment. However, it must be noted that despite the significant incentives, the overall level of investment remains below 20% of GDP. More disconcerting is the persistent low levels of private sector investment.

From as high as 14% of GDP in the early 1980s, it has now declined to only 4%.

The media hype about investment approvals and to some extent selected government propaganda about investment does not reveal the true state of investment levels in Fiji.

The registration and approval of investment proposals does not necessarily imply its implementation. Figures show that over the past few years registered investments have not translated into actual investments.

The reason for poor private sector investment is that it remains mired in poor institutional process. Too much control and inconsistency of policies

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23

BUDGET

3Continued from page 23

to address infrastructure bottlenecks is not necessarily worrisome immediately.

If the spending on roads and other infrastructure is managed well and improved in the next two years, then we would be setting up a very good foundation for growth beyond 2014, especially if promised elections are held.

However, the total debt level has to be scrutinised carefully so that it does not become unsustainable. The present debt level will have to be gradually brought down in the next few years so that there is enough fiscal space to counter any risks emanating from the global economic slowdown.

There are other positive aspects of the budget where expenditure on health, education, social welfare, pension for those over 70 years etc. is going to have a positive impact on improving the quality of life of people.

The health sector particularly needs urgent attention and we hope that the increase in the budget is used to improve the conditions of the hospitals around Fiji and the services it provides.

The condition at the CWM hospital, for example, is depressing. It has filthy toilets and dirty floors, and services at the hospitals are getting worse by the day. A 70-year-old woman who suffered a stroke was left in the corridors of the CWM hospital in Suva without any care for almost a day.

Expenditure allocation alone therefore does not mean that services to the poor are going to improve. It depends on how the respective ministers, their permanent secretaries and senior civil servants are able to implement and spend funds wisely to improve the services.

In my view the biggest hurdle for the government to achieve better delivery of public services is hampered by ineffective ministers and senior civil servants.

Addressing unemployment and poverty The biggest cause for concern is the low level of employment generation in Fiji over the last several years. Close to 40% of those employed are in the informal sector, where wages are very low.

While the 2013 budget has increased the tax threshold, it is not going to address the concerns of those employed in the informal sector and in some of the lower paid private sectors.

The failure of the wages council to address the appropriate wage rise for 24

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Vital signs Fiji’s health sector needs urgent attention with conditions in hospitals critical. those workers in those sectors will continue to keep many families in the poverty trap.

The immediate prospect for employment looks bleak. The National Employment Centre (NEC) data shows that since 2010 a total number of 25,801 unemployed persons have registered but only a small number of close to 1,400 have been able to secure full-time employment.

One area where government has concentrated recently is to ensure that our unemployed and especially those with skills would be able to find employment in other countries and this is commendable.

The recent Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) agreement on labour mobility relating to skilled workers may provide some cushion. Remittances contribute close to about $300 million dollars to the Fijian economy and this is only second to tourism. Fiji has lost out on the seasonal workers scheme in New Zealand as a result of the 2006 coup. One hopes that after the general election, Fijian unskilled workers would be able to get employment in New Zealand.

To make matters worse for these unemployed and low income categories of families, inflation has been hitting them hard. Between 2006 and 2010 the average inflation rate has been around 5%.

In 2008, 2009 and 2010, mainly due

to high fuel and food prices and devaluation of the Fiji dollar in 2009, inflation rate was close to 8%.

In 2010 and 2011, the inflation rate remained high while it is predicted to be lower in 2012. Government may not be able to keep inflation down through price control as the causes of inflation are either imported or driven by domestic supply and demand conditions and import duties.

For example, the increase in duties on milk products appears to be inconsistent with the overall thrust of the government export-oriented strategy for growth.

The high import duty imposed on imports could lead to significant costs to consumers of milk products as more than 80% of milk products are imported. While, it is laudable that government is supporting dairy development in Fiji, it should not do so through high import duties. This is only going to help increase private profits at the expense of the consumers.

The tax-free incentive for dairy investment and direct support to farmers should be the approach adopted to develop the industry instead of high import duties on milk products. It is worrisome that imported milk products for infants will become very expensive and unaffordable to poor families. Government should re-look at the high import duties on milk products.

December 2012/January 2013

BUDGET

Support to productive sectors The support to the rural agricultural sector makes sense as poverty levels are now higher in the rural areas. The allocations for export promotion in the agriculture sector, new crop extension programme, livestock extension programme, allocations for research programme and drainage programme are welcomed and should be increased in future budgets.

The allocation to the sugar industry of $13 million is welcome but it is not clear how much of that will go directly to the farmers apart from the $0.5 million for the cane replanting programme. The sugar industry will need additional injection and direct support to farmers to bring back the confidence in the industry and keep productive and experienced farmers on the land.

Future prospects As indicated earlier, the economic growth rates have been less than 1% in the last five years. While the projections for 2012-2014 show a growth rate of more than 2%, they would not be achieved if the enabling environment for investment through building political certainty and credibility are not improved.

We know that despite the significant financial incentives, private sector investment has remained very poor.

This has resulted in high levels of unemployment in the economy. The 2013 budget has some very positive elements like the focus on improving physical infrastructure and supporting productive sectors to improve production and exports.

However, there remain several challenges like reducing the cost of doing business in Fiji through institutional transparency, accountability and good governance.

The government should seriously consider removing some of the decrees and limiting the development of new decrees as these do not promote confidence in the economy.

Government should continue with other important structural reforms. These reforms should continue to ensure that the civil service is productive and effective, introduce further competition in the telecommunications sector and continue to reform the sugar industry.

Confidence in the country will continue to grow if the constitutional process is seen to its logical conclusion through an inclusive and transparent process. This will improve the prospects for further private sector investment and the 2013 budget will lay the foundation for betR ter growth in 2013 and beyond. n Biman Prasad is Professor Economics at the University of the South Pacific and the views expressed here are not those of his employer.

December 2012/January 2013

2013 BUDGET

Who got what

EDUCATION $268m - increase of $12m HEALTH $167m - increase of $15m SPORTS AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT n $1m for a National Sports Commission n $4.2 m for Fiji Sports Council (National Stadium upgrade) n $2.7m for rural integrated sporting facilities in Vunidawa, Seaqaqa and Rakiraki in 2013 and in Gau, Kadavu and Korovou in 2014 (with Chinese assistance) MARITIME AND EMERGENCY SERVICES n $6.6m - Maritime Safety Authority of Fiji n $3m - Government shipping services n $1.5m - Shipping Franchise Scheme n $400,000 - Incorporating ambulance response services in National Fire Authority SECURITY SERVICES & FICAC n $92m - Fiji Police Force - increase of $8m n $21m - Fiji Prisons and Corrections Services - increase of $3m n $106.8m - Fiji Military Forces - a decrease of $5.7m n $8m - Fiji Independent Commission Against Corruption LEGAL SERVICES n $2m - Legal Aid Commission n $4.5m - Extension to the Lautoka High Court n $1m - Refurbishment of Suva court complex and upgrade of courts around the country n $350,000 - Relocation of Ba Magistrates Court to higher ground n $300,000 - Allocation for court sittings in outer island including Rotuma, Koro, Rabi and the Lau Group. n $400,000 - Improvement of frequency of court sittings in rural parts of the country - Nabouwalu, Vunidawa, Taveuni, Rakiraki and Tavua.

WATER n $110m - Water Authority of Fiji increase of $3m n $250,000 - Water testing equipment POVERTY ALLEVIATION AND SOCIAL PROTECTION n $22.7m - Food voucher and social welfare payments programme n $3.2m - Pension for persons over

70 years who do not have an income, pension or superannuation. n $500,000 - Welfare Graduation Scheme HOUSING n $1m - Housing Authority loans write-off for 200 families n $1m - Public Rental Board rental subsidy for low-income tenants n $1m - Squatter upgrading and resettlement project n $400,000 - Sustainable Rural Housing/Income Generating Project WOMEN n $550,000 - Implementation of Women’s Plan of Action n $150,000 - Construction of Women’s Resource centres in Serua, Namosi, Ra and Macuata PUBLIC SECTOR REFORMS n $1.5m in 2013 and $1.5m in 2014 to relocated and construct the Nausori market.

TOURISM n $23.5m - Tourism Fiji SUGAR INDUSTRY n $15m - Ministry of Sugar $600,000 - upgrade of Kavanagasau bridge in Nadroga n $4.4m - Cane quality payment system n $600,000 - Assistance for farmers to farming implements n $250,000 - Hosting of the International Sugar Organisation conference AGRICULTURE, FISHERIES AND FORESTS n $94m - Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries & Forests and Lands and Mineral Resources n $2.7m - Livestock development n $1m - Dairy industry development n $1.8m - Development of fisheries resources such as aqua-culture n $600,000 - Establishment of a multi-species hatchery in Ra n $500,000 - Biodiversity Enhancement and REDD Plus programms n $5m - Land Reform Program SUPPORTING MICRO AND SMALL BUSINESSES n $1.5m - Additional allocation for the Credit Guarantee Scheme under the Reserve Bank of Fiji for loans to the SME sector n $2m - Northern Development Programme and the Integrated Human Resource Development Programme n $290,000 - Fiji Development Bank to subsidise interest on small business loans republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

25

VIEWPOINTS

In defence of wages justice Why employers owe it to their workforce to pay fairly

By Father KEVIN BARR

I

n his article “The price of labour” in The Fiji Times on 10 November a Boladavui* Uluitavuki condescendingly dismissed me as a “well intentioned social worker” and implied that I was ignorant of economics. He promoted his ideas on low wages as being based on sound economic theory.

However I too have studied economics but fortunately have also studied other disciplines such as sociology, philosophy and ethics which help me keep economic theories and policies in a more balanced perspective.

His reprimand from Murray Rothbard needs to be seen against that of Kenneth Galbraith. In Galbraith’s book A History of Economics (1989), the celebrated economist attacked those economists who claimed no responsibility for the social consequences of their theories. They justified themselves by claiming that their principles and theories had independent “scientific” validity and had nothing to do with moral principles or ethical questions.

Galbraith writes: “The detachment and the justifying commitment to scientific validity as opposed to social concern are especially influential in our own time. When acting in his professional role, the economist does not contend with the justice or the benignity of classical or neo-classical economics.

To proclaim economic injustice or failure is, scientifically speaking, off limits. ... The pretension of economics that it is a science is rooted in the need for an 26

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escape from blame for the inadequacies and injustices of the system.”

A low wage economy could make sense as long as those wages are pegged above the basic needs poverty line for that society. Otherwise it would contribute to increasing poverty. As a number of studies have pointed out, just wages are a key issue in the alleviation of poverty.

Unfortunately, the neo-liberal freemarket capitalist economic system we are currently following is creating more poverty and inequality around the world and is the root cause of a lot of the exploitation of workers (including unjust wages). This current economic system has a fanatical fundamentalism about it.

It encourages not just legitimate profit but excessive greed and individualism.

It seeks to produce ever more money for those with the most wealth – with no limits or regulations.

Powerful and wealthy elites are able to use their power and wealth to structure the economic system for their own narrow self-interest. Individual greed and corporate profit rules the world of business. Governments (often for their own political advantage) bow to the powerful lobbies of big corporations and rich elites.

In such a society the poor get left behind unless governments deliberately recognise the demands for social justice and set in place policies which will moderate extreme capitalism and make sure that wealth is redistributed so that all benefit – not just a few.

After the recent economic recession,

a number of renowned economists from Joseph Stiglitz to Alan Greenspan admitted publicly the failures of free-market capitalist thinking. All neo-liberal free-market economists would do well to remember the words of Alan Greenspan – the great US economic guru of neo-liberalism. When questioned before the US House Government Oversight and Reform Committee on the 23 October 2008 he admitted a “flaw” in his ideology of “market forces”. He confessed that his faith in deregulation was shaken and said he was in “a state of shocked disbelief”.

In effect Greenspan admitted that the “market” sees only the need for continual increased profits for individual businessmen or corporations but does not respond to the needs of the people, social justice and the common good.

At Davos in 2009 David Cameron, the British Prime Minister, called for “moral capitalism”. He said that neoliberal capitalism needed to be overhauled and given a conscience – a moral framework to repair the damage done by decades of reckless greed. He contrasted the super-rich with the marginalised poor and said that markets need to be bound by clearer rules and wealth needs to be redistributed more fairly.

Neo-liberal economics tells us that the benefits of economic growth will “trickle down” to the people. But this has proved to be a myth. The normal means of redistribution are through decent wages (whereby workers can meet the current cost of living) and progressive taxation (whereby those with wealth are made to contribute to the needs of a nation).

Yet we are seeing workers paid wages below the basic-needs poverty line and being required to pay indirect tax such as VAT while those with wealth receive huge tax deductions and millions of dollars in “incentives”.

Years ago Ian Robertson (1977:254) expressed in very clear terms why there is so much opposition to reducing inequality in Fiji and elsewhere: “Poverty exists because our society is an unequal one, and there are overwhelming political pressures to keep it that way. Any attempts to redistribute wealth and income will inevitably be opposed by powerful middle and upper class interests. People can be relatively rich only if others are relatively poor, and since power is concentrated in the hands of the rich, public policies will continue to December 2012/January 2013

VIEWPOINTS

Why minimum wage is not the way to go

By BOLADAU ULUITAVUKI

RICARDO MORRIS

I

On message A T-shirt during the campaign for just wages held in September.

reflect their interests rather than those of the poor.”

Neo-liberalism supports the profits of employers over the basic needs of workers. This is very short-sighted even in economic terms because: n The poverty which is created becomes a financial burden on the nation in terms of health-care, education, courts, prisons, police and security; n A poorly fed, poorly housed, and poorly educated and unhealthy population cannot be expected to be productive when they come to work. If you want to improve productivity a just living wage needs to be provided. You don’t plant seeds and tell them that, if they grow you will water them. You water them and then you can expect them to grow; n In a low wage economy the more qualified and experienced workers will migrate overseas in search of better wages and conditions of work. Thus the quality and expertise of the workforce deteriorates.

Strangely, Mr Uluitavuki suggests that wages (and increases thereof) are a form of taxation on an employer. But wages are a matter of justice and are part of the cost of doing business. Of course the payment of just wages will December 2012/January 2013

limit company profits but just wages are the right of workers.

Business may be the engine of growth but workers are the ones who keep the engine working.

The author also suggests that an increase in wages will prevent some unskilled workers gaining employment; consequently the demand for just wages is counterproductive in terms of increased employment. This is an old argument and has some merit only if wages are well above the basic-needs poverty line. Wages are a matter of justice, not charity.

Unfortunately many of our economists in Fiji have been trained by the Asian Development Bank, the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund – all of whom have been termed “the Poverty Brokers” despite their nice words about poverty alleviation. They think only in terms of neo-liberal freemarket economics which is the root cause of so much poverty and inequalR ity worldwide. n This article was first published in the 23 November edition of The Fiji Times. Father Kevin Barr is a longtime social justice activist. The Australian-born Catholic priest and is a consultant with Peoples Community Network Fiji.

basically wrote the article out of interest and concern over the manner in which Father Barr and others (like the unions) are publicly lobbying for higher increases in the minimum wage, which I think is completely irresponsible given the incentives that this action will inevitably create.

This has real implications on job creation in the future and the employment prospects for low-skilled workers – who comprise the majority of the labour force in this country. In the article, I attempted to explain how these effects materialise over the long run and also quoted real-life documented evidence from American Samoa and the United States.

I had hoped for Father Barr to at least acknowledge that minimumwage laws have harmful implications but instead he chose to criticise the basis of our market-driven economic system, which he misleadingly blames for what he sees as increasing inequality between the rich and the poor. I find these claims to be completely baseless and his proposal that socialism is the way forward as outrageous. He doesn’t seem to understand or is ignoring the fact that socialism means granting greater power to the government to arbitrarily confiscate privately owned property in the name of “social justice”.

This is an extremely dangerous path because it ultimately results in greater concentration of power in government or, more specifically, in politicians and bureaucrats. The history of Europe in the 20th century can be summarised in one word, and it is socialism.

There are numerous books that talk about the disastrous consequences of socialism and why this system will inevitably give birth to tyranny - The road to serfdom by the Nobel Laureate Friedrich von Hayek is the most famous. It offers a compelling insight into why socialism and central planning by government cannot be practical and why it leads to dictatorship, as the case in Communist Russia, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany in the early R 20th century. n Boladau Uluitavuki is an economist at the Reserve Bank of Fiji. *The Fiji Times article had misspelt his name. republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

27

TRENDS

The Pacific’s digital future ... is here

By Danielle Cave

T

he Pacific Islands are experiencing a digital transformation that could have major implications, particularly for democratic governance and potentially for the region’s development. Some of the fastest-growing rates of mobile phone uptake in the world are changing the way Pacific Islanders communicate, learn, engage in political debate, coordinate activities and access services.

A number of factors are driving this revolution.

In particular, since 2003 the Pacific’s telecommunications sectors have undergone deregulation and reform, driving down prices and fuelling a boom in mobile phone use. By comparison, many developing countries undertook such reforms in the 1990s. Telecommunications reform occurred in most Asian countries in the 1980s and 1990s.

The Pacific’s ICT revolution is also being sustained and accelerated by the region’s youth bulge. One fifth of the region’s population, approximately two million people, is aged 15 to 24, and in Melanesia the proportion of youth is even greater. As in other parts of the world, the youth of the region are the fastest adopters of the new digital technologies.

This influx of mobile phones in the Pacific Islands has occurred at the same time as another global phenomenon sweeping the world, the rise of social media, and the Pacific’s growing mobile phone penetration has helped fuel social media uptake. Access to social media communities is enabling Pacific Islanders to connect with one another, form online networks, share content, project opinion, promote debate and coordinate activities in ways that were unimaginable just a few years ago. This has resulted in the emergence of a Pacific ‘digital generation’ of activists, thinkers, informers and influencers.

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What makes the ICT revolution in the Pacific particularly transformative is its potential to address the region’s demographic, geographic and economic challenges. The Pacific Islands are sparsely populated, comprising 22 culturally diverse, small developing countries and territories with a combined population of just over ten million. This population is dispersed across hundreds of small islands and atolls, spanning an area one third of the globe’s surface. The region’s distance from global economic centres makes for some of the most remote countries and territories in the world.

Many countries within the region, particularly those in Melanesia (Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and New Caledonia), suffer high unemployment and a lack of basic education and health services.

For an increasing number of Pacific Islanders, mobile phones are helping to overcome these challenges. Geographic remoteness is not as profound when eservices and mobile applications can be used to connect with health services, transfer money, access learning materials and organise events, all through a basic mobile handset. As mobile-phone facilitated Internet access continues to spread outside urban hubs and smart phones become more accessible and affordable, e-services hold great promise for more inclusive economic development in the region.

This revolution is mobile The region’s ICT revolution has largely been the result of a massive increase in mobile phone use. Officially, the Pacific Islands have some of the lowest Internet penetration rates in the world. Only two per cent of Papua New Guinea’s population had access to the Internet in 2011 and in Solomon Islands, Samoa and Vanuatu, Internet penetration rates remain under ten per cent.

As the Pacific’s mobile networks

continue to upgrade to 3G and 4G, the spread of mobile Internet has enabled the region to leapfrog computer-enabled Internet connections. Fixed or wireless computer broadband Internet connections are expensive, not widely accessible, require hardware (a computer, a modem etc.) and are not as convenient as mobile connections, especially for Pacific Islanders living outside of urban centres. Web-enabled mobile phones are now sold in most Pacific Island markets. These range from the more expensive Blackberry, iPhones and high-end Nokia smart phone varieties down to the more affordable handsets made by the Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei and Digicel’s ‘Facebook phone’.

It is estimated that 60 per cent of Pacific Islanders now have access to a mobile phone. This is an enormous increase from 2006 when the region’s mobile phone penetration was under 10 per cent. According to one report, there are now more Pacific Islanders with mobile phones than bank accounts.

This growth in mobile phone access is extraordinary given that in 2008, six countries had penetration rates of less than 16 per cent, including Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Tuvalu and the Marshall Islands. In Tonga, mobile penetration rates have risen from three per cent in 2002 to 53 per cent in 2011. Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu and New Caledonia now enjoy mobile penetration rates of over 80 per cent. In PNG, mobile penetration has increased from two per cent in 2006 to 34 per cent in 2011.

Mobile phones are being used to access the Internet, listen to radio, receive SMS text information services, take and send photos and video, access social networking sites, download music and even watch television. A June 2012 study, undertaken by ABC International and Intermedia, shows that more Papua New Guinean households now have access to a mobile phone than to a radio.

December 2012/January 2013

TRENDS

PACIFIC INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY

What’s more, the same study reveals that 53 per cent of Papua New Guineans who access radio do so by listening via their mobile phones.

Another major use has been in so-called ‘mobile money’. The mobile money market is relatively developed in the Pacific Islands and both major mobile phone providers and banking institutions offer mobile banking options.

Digicel’s ‘Mobile Money’ service offers customers a range of mobile financial services, including the ability to transfer money to friends and family nationwide and pay utility bills through mobile phones. Mobile Money, first launched in Fiji in July 2010, has now expanded to Tonga, Samoa, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu. In Samoa, Fiji and Tonga, an international service has been added, which Digicel claims has slashed the cost of inter-country remittances.

In 2011, the Bank of South Pacific implemented a new rural banking initiative which aims to deliver banking services to the large number of ‘unbanked’ in PNG through a combination of wireless-enabled branches and phone banking.

This new network will be extended by a range of phone banking services and is one example of how rural and remote communities can benefit from advances in ICT. One major driver of this massive increase in mobile phone usage has been telecommunications deregulation and reform.

This began in 2003 in Tonga and over subsequent years occurred across most countries in the region. Some of these reforms were supported by development partners including the International Finance Corporation and the Australian Government (through AusAID). Despite this push to open up telecommunications markets, monopolies can still be found in Kiribati, Marshall Islands, New Caledonia, French Polynesia, the Cook Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia.

The main impact of these reforms has been to make mobile phone ownership much more affordable and accessible. Before Fiji ended its telecommunications monopoly it had some of the highest mobile phone prices in the world.

Within months of the onset of competition, mobile phone call rates had dropped by 44 per cent and SMS text message prices had fallen by half.

Irish-owned Digicel, which launched in the Pacific Islands region in 2006, is now the leading and fastest-growing mobile operator in the Pacific Islands. It operates in Papua New Guinea, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, Tonga and Nauru. R n Danielle Cave is a former research associate, Myer Foundation Melanesia program at the Lowy Institute for International Policy. This article is an extract of Cave’s report Digital Islands: How the Pacific’s ICT Revolution is Transforming the Region. To download the full report go to www.tinyurl.com/PacificDigitalFuture December 2012/January 2013

republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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DISPATCH

Pacific’s young women face double whammy

By CATHERINE WILSON in Brisbane

W

ith youth populations growing faster than jobs in the Pacific Islands, young women, who are also confronting social pressures to conform to traditional gender roles, account for the highest rates of unemployment in most countries.

Female youth unemployment in South East Asia and the Pacific region is 14.2 per cent, compared to 12.9 per cent for males, while less than 35 per cent of women aged 20-29 years in the Solomon Islands, Marshall Islands and Samoa are officially employed.

In Vanuatu, with a population of roughly 260,000, the greatest gender-labour disparities are in urban areas, such as the capital, Port Vila, where only 43 per cent of women are employed.

Men dominate jobs in both the private and government sectors. Sixtyone percent of government employees, numbering 6,500 people, are male, while only 39 per cent are female.

Though the majority of residents, known as Ni-Vanuatu, live in rural areas and practice subsistence agriculture, rapid urbanisation has contributed to a youth unemployment rate of 9.2 per cent compared to the national figure of 4.6 per cent.

The number rises to 27 per cent in towns, where Ni-Vanuatu women are over-represented in jobs like cleaning, sales and service work.

Kathy Solomon, director of the Vanuatu Rural Development Training Centre Association, which trains young people in vocational and life skills and promotes gender equality, told IPS that young women face multiple challenges 30

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in securing employment, especially in the formal sector.

“There is still a cultural barrier set by the expectation that women will fill traditional gender roles,” Solomon explained. “Also, not many women are really qualified to get high positions in the government or private sector and they are not very confident amongst male colleagues.”

The impact of unemployment is “evident in the high (rates) of domestic violence and abuse against women”, she claimed.

“Men believe that because they are the breadwinners they can do anything to women. Young women who can’t find work often become depressed and are more likely to get involved in prostitution and become heavy kava drinkers.”

The Pacific youth bulge Worldwide, and especially in the Pacific Islands region, young people are three times more likely to be out of work than adults. Amidst the fallout of the global economic crisis, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) – which predicts youth unemployment will continue to rise in South East Asia and the Pacific – has warned governments to prevent against the emergence of a ‘lost generation’ who may never reap the benefits of productive, remunerated work.

The region’s ‘youth bulge’ is a consequence of rapid population growth.

Twenty per cent of the Pacific Islands’ population of 10 million falls between the ages of 20 and 24 years. Regional youth unemployment is estimated at 6.6 per cent, although this figure omits those in casual, low-paid or subsistence occupations.

The struggle to find jobs is exacerbated by inequitable economic growth, especially in Melanesia; geographic isolation and limited land resources in Micronesia; and narrow economies in Polynesia.

Educational curricula in many Pacific Island states have also given priority to office-based skills, resulting in many young people being unequipped for vocational trades or local industries, such as tourism.

In the competition for local jobs, young women frequently come up against the mindset that their ‘rightful place’ is in the home, even when statistics show that female participation in education – particularly in places like Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Samoa and Tuvalu – is higher than for males.

“It might be said that female unemployment has more to do with cultural attitudes that do not value female participation in politics and decision-making in the community, institutions and at the national level,” Mereia Carling, youth advisor for the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Fiji, commented to IPS. “Other aspects of gender inequality in the education system – such as the fact that girls are often steered toward home economics and boys toward technology – may contribute to low female employment rates,” Carling added.

“So while girls are being sent to school, it appears that overall traditional attitudes still determine futures for young women.”

Tarusila Bradburgh, coordinator of the Pacific Youth Council, predicts that changes in cultural attitudes will take a long time, even though in countries December 2012/January 2013

DISPATCH

http://50.usaid.gov/

like Fiji a large number of girls are completing school, receiving scholarships and attending tertiary institutions.

“Young women are slowly breaking boundaries particularly in male-dominated fields like engineering and civil aviation, but it is slow progress,” she said to IPS. “Until mindsets and attitudes towards women change, progress and change will be very slow.”

Other consequences of female youth unemployment in the region include poverty, crime, alcohol and drug addiction, prostitution and adolescent pregnancies.

The birth rate amongst 15-19 year-old girls is 138 births per 1000 females in the Marshall Islands, 67 per 1000 females in the Solomon Islands and 64 for every 1000 young women in Vanuatu. In these circumstances, women often drop out of school and become financially dependent on their extended families if they are unable to find jobs.

According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), lost productivity in the region due to low labour participation by women is somewhere between the range of 42 and 47 billion dollars every year.

The SPC believes that sectors with the potential to boost youth employment include agriculture, forestry, fisheries, the environment, tourism and culture.

The Pacific Youth Charter, drafted in 2006 by regional youth delegates, identifies the need to advance entrepreneurial skills in young people and increase access to diverse job opportunities across the Pacific.

Bradburgh added that young women, in particular, need “to be provided with life skills training which will help build their self-confidence and decision-making (abilities)”.

Matching education and skills training with employment growth areas will be crucial for the next generation to reach its full potential and contribute to development across the region.

Currently the Cook Islands and Niue are the only Pacific Island states likely to achieve full and producR tive employment by 2015. n Catherine Wilson is a correspondent for IPS News Service.

This article is used by permission.

December 2012/January 2013

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The diplomacy of decolonisation Decolonisation might not look like a hot-button issue but after Australia’s Security Council win it’s time to start taking it seriously in the Pacific.

By Nic Maclellan

T

he successful bid in October for a rotating seat on the UN Security Council places Australia in an interesting place. Over the next few years, we’ll be in the spotlight as the United Nations addresses hot-button international issues: maritime disputes between China and its Asia-Pacific neighbours; the prospects for Palestinian statehood; negotiations for a global climate treaty and a new compact to replace the Millennium Development Goals after 2015.

But closer engagement with the United Nations will also create a few thorny dilemmas on issues that receive less international attention.

One often ignored issue is the future of the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation and the lack of international action to complete the UN agenda on self-determination and political independence. Decolonisation was a major achievement for the UN in the twentieth century, but international attention on the issue faded after the independence of most African colonies on the UN list of non-self-governing territories (with the remaining exception of Western Sahara).

Even as international debates on statehood are reviving, from South Su32

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dan to Scotland and Catalonia, the UN lacks the capacity to support the remaining territories seeking full sovereign independence or free association with their administering power. The United States and other administering powers regularly intervene at UN budgetary committees in favour of reducing resources for work on decolonisation.

The Special Committee and UN Decolonisation Unit have been shunted aside in the UN bureaucracy, lacking the staff and finances to complete their mandate.

We’re into the third International Decade for the Eradication of Colonialism, with limited results from two previous decades since 1990.

For Australia, however, the issue is not going away. Just as East Timor’s political transition has engaged Canberra for decades, so the issue of self-determination in neighbouring island territories remains on the regional agenda.

This is made more complex by the varying status of self-determination struggles in our region under international law. Firstly, there are cases of nineteenth century “blue-water” colonialism by Western powers, such as France (New Caledonia, French Polynesia and Wallis and Futuna), the United States (Guam and American Samoa), Britain (Pitcairn) and New Zealand (Tokelau).

There are also independence struggles inside post-colonial nations which fall outside the existing UN mandate, such as the long-running campaign by West Papuan nationalists in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua, or Bougainville’s movement for independence from Papua New Guinea.

The issue of nationalism and statehood across Melanesia will soon be bumped up the regional agenda by a coincidence of events. New Caledonia is scheduled to hold a referendum on its political status between 2014-18 and Bougainville is coming to the end of its 10-year autonomy transition in 2015.

New Caledonia, Fiji and Indonesia are all scheduled to hold elections in 2014.

Indonesian human rights abuses will keep the pot boiling in Jayapura, and there are plenty of flashpoints that could cause heartburn for relations between Canberra, Jakarta and Port Moresby. For example, what would happen if a boatload of West Papuan asylum seekers arrived in Australian waters in the midst of the 2014 Indonesian election campaign? Will they be towed back to Indonesia or end up in Nauru or Manus?

There are a number of arguments against Canberra allocating resources to the decolonisation agenda: small island December 2012/January 2013

DISPATCH

Flashpoint New Caledonia is one of the caledosphere.com via France24.com

last territories in the Pacific yet to achieve self-government. The territory’s indigenous people - the Kanaks - have been agitating for independence from France. This image shows a general strike in August 2009 after an airline worker was sacked. The violent protest was used as a rallying cry for selfdetermination. New Caledonia is scheduled to hold a referendum on its political status between 2014-18.

developing states have little chance of independence in a globalised, interdependent world; decolonisation would create lots of “fragile states” on Australia’s “doorstep”; talking self-determination would alienate key regional partners like Indonesia, France and the United States. Beyond this, territories like Pitcairn and Tokelau are too small to be functioning sovereign states.

But these arguments carry little weight for Melanesian nationalist movements, which argue that, given their population, minerals and maritime wealth, they could become significant states in the islands region. The rise of Asia has broadened the playing field beyond reliance on former colonial powers, with China and other Asian powers searching for energy, timber and minerals. Massive nickel reserves in New Caledonia, the Freeport mine in West Papua and the Panguna mine in Bougainville would all give post-colonial governments something to bargain with (a reality reflected in the battle currently being played out between China, Australia and independent East Timor over its Timor Gap oil reserves).

The leverage provided by natural resources has been shown in New Caledonia’s Northern Province, where independence leader Paul Neaoutyine and businessman Andre Dang have already December 2012/January 2013

negotiated contracts with South Korea and China while building a massive nickel smelter, industrial zone and port complex at Koniambo and Vavouto. The transformation of the north of New Caledonia’s main island suggests that there are options for economic development beyond ongoing French subsidies.

A key diplomatic dilemma for Australia is that Fiji and Papua New Guinea are both active members of the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation.

At odds with Canberra over democratic and civil rights, the Bainimarama regime has a range of diplomatic platforms to put Australia on the spot, especially as New Caledonia’s FLNKS independence movement (a fellow member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group) raises the stakes in the lead up to elections in 2014. Fiji has joined the Non-Aligned Movement, has just been appointed as chair of the “Group of 77 plus China”, and is revitalising regional diplomacy through the newly formed Group of Asia and Pacific Small Island Developing States within the UN system (A legacy of our colonial heritage, we’ve just won the UNSC seat as a member of the Western Europe and Others Group, not this Asia-Pacific bloc).

Now that Australia will join France, the United States and the United King-

dom on the UN high table in 2013, will our government address this issue?

There are a number of ways that the UN decolonisation agenda could be advanced, giving some substance to the process beyond current rituals of pious debate and token resolutions. International experts like Carlyle Corbin have flagged a number of practical measures, including a case-by-case work program for each territory, analysis of the ownership of natural resources, visiting missions, better collaboration with UN agencies (WHO, UNDP etc) and support to political education processes.

Corbin has advocated the use of an independent expert to undertake research and analysis on the work program, which had been mandated in the first and second international decades for decolonisation but not undertaken.

A systematic assessment of the (lack of) implementation of past decolonisation resolutions would establish a baseline R for work to follow.

n Nic Maclellan is an Australian journalist and aid consultant. This article was first published on www.newmatilda.com. This is the first of his two-part series on decolonisation, Australia and the UN. republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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INDUSTRY

What’s in store for the tuna trade?

Tuna Talk with SAVE WAQAINABETE swaqainabete@gmail.com

W

ith shocking tuna export earnings in 2011 and 2012, what is in store for 2013? One of the biggest questions we should ask is where is the tuna industry heading?

Will there be a significant change engineered by the revised Tuna Management and Development Plan? Will Fiji see more local involvement in the industry? Will the initial ‘phase-out’ scheme of foreigners on tuna long line licenses allocated to foreigners ever happen? Or should we ask whether there are foreign license holders in our tuna industry?

The fishery waterfront at Muaiwalu is flooded with fishing vessels unloading catches, loading of provisions and other vessel-related activities. Berthing at and alongside, the vessels attract scores of people from crew, seamen and officers to onshore service workers and compliance officers who crowd the wharf to fulfill the respective roles.

For a keen tuna industrialist, the macro impact of beneficiaries of the industry to hosts comes to mind and to what extent key issues of the tuna industry will be adequately addressed come the new fishing season.

With less than three months to the 2013 season, what make will the stakeholders be able to put together to facilitate the needs of the new fishing season.

Domestication of the tuna industry is one of the key adventures of coastal and island states in the past decades. In a recent tuna forum, I was criticised by 34

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some stakeholders in my campaign for domestication. The failure of domestication throughout the region in the past years was thrown back at me to justify the irrelevancy of the issue. For a while I thought they were right.

Then I asked myself who would be the next appeasing islander to confront the issue and call for the domestication of the industry. The domestication of the tuna industry both national and regional level is part of my agenda.

Let us face the facts.

The Western and Central Pacific Ocean (WCPO) is home to the largest tuna fishery stock in the world. However, Pacific Island members of the Western and Central Pacific Tuna Commission (WCPTC) argue that their share of the economic rent from the tuna catches taken out of the Pacific region is very small, being on average only about 6 per cent of the total net benefit, when compared to the share earned by Distant Water Fishing Nations (DWFNs).

Pacific Island nations’ tuna industry is still at the mercy of foreign states which exploit and extract tuna species within our waters.

Certainly the lack of appropriate fishing technology has displaced our island states from excelling in the industry and the provisions in Article 62(2) of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea has opened doors to foreign states to fish in our waters, allowing states unable to fully exploit their marine resources to make agreements with other states that can.

But the question still remains as to what extent Pacific Island States are able to fully realise its dreams to maximise the benefits of sea resources. Does the

definition of maximisation rest wholly on the present arrangement where island states live on the balance of benefits redeemed by foreign fishers? Will the increase of the fishery contribution to the Pacific Islands’ GDP depend on the performance of the foreign fishers?

The chief executive of the Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA), Dr Transform Aqorau’s renowned statement that “we are donors in our own right” with regards to the volume of tuna fished out of our waters to benefit developed nations, challenges our ability to engaged in the extraction and exploitation process rather than living on mercies of foreigners through licenses and handouts.

The answer to our success is through a constructive framework to domesticate the tuna industry.

In the past decades, the region has stood by and watched as foreign states send armadas of high-tech, sophisticated fishing vessels as they extend their muscles from navigational controls to exploitation and extraction of our resources. For Fiji, we have witnessed to the transition from the simple pole and line fisheries in the late 1970s to long line fisheries in the 90s.

The transition saw the introduction of more sophisticated fishing efforts with the use of hooks which threaten other species. While the practice questions the administrators’ commitment to Article 61(4) of the Convention about being mindful of other species, the states’ vulnerability because of the need for high seed capital investment and and Asian-oriented marketing models has somehow quieted its voice.

The new millennium extends the challenges to a newer platform where December 2012/January 2013

INDUSTRY

Arrested The crew of the Coast Guard

US Coast Guard

Cutter Rush escorts the suspected high seas drift net fishing vessel Da Cheng in the North Pacific Ocean on 14 August 2012.

the traditional Asian rivalry between Taiwan and China is reflected in the squadron of fishing vessels that are being engaged in our fishing industry. As much as we want to stay away from their politics, it is the level of investment and commitment to the industry that has allowed us to assess their standing.

In the 90s, the Taiwanese fishing vessels dominated the industry with fleets packing the Drainibota jetty. The commitment of a handful of locals in partnership with these Taiwanese pushed a thriving industry to new heights as long line fishing stormed the local scene with what had become a resounding response to our island economies.

Although several Chinese vessels were practicing long lining in the 90s, the involvement of Chinese fishing company CNFC with a local provincial council was the first step to what has become a Chinese campaign in tuna long line fishery in Fiji. The joint venture was hosted by a local-fish processing establishment where operations began to establish its mark.

Individual and group fishing vessel operators permeated the industry 2012/January 2013 December 2012

through the representation of locals and in particular through those Chinese nationals who were already in Fiji doing other business activities such as bêche-de-mer trading. With open arms, the Fisheries Department tailored procedures and requirements to meet the offers of these foreign fishers which was a stepping stone to their growth and control of the industry today.

A local company entered in a proposed F$10m fishery infrastructure development with the group and their agreement concluded in the execution of a memorandum of understanding during the visit of the Chinese Premier in 2004. The project became one of the remarkable achievements in the industry even though the local company had no clear knowledge of the finer issues of the deal. In a follow up on the proposed development, it was learnt the proposed project failed owing to some technical issues and all that was heard was that the same group had gone on to construct a similar fishery project in Vanuatu later.

Almost 10 years later, Chinese fishing vessels have increased more than

twice. In fact, Chinese fishing vessels have increased some 125 per cent, according to Fairfax Media, and many of them have just newly been built. And to reflect the Asian rivalry, the Forum Fisheries Agency says that there are 241 China-flagged vessels approved to fish ahead of Taiwan’s 221.

Successful local fishery executive Russell Dunham of Fiji’s tuna fishery pioneer, Fiji Fish Limited said there is no desire of our Pacific fleets to compete because of lack of capital resources and it was clear that the Chinese have an agenda – and that is to control the long line industry in the Pacific.* State-sponsored phenomenon The collapse of the short-lived SCARF, under the tuna fishery programme in Fiji’s mid-2000s attempt to encourage locals to own fishing vessels, shelved any further attempts to domesticate the tuna industry.

Although the concept appeared to be a semi-state sponsored scheme, and it was a noble attempt by Fiji to reduce the gap between foreign-owned vessels and locally-owned vessels, the preengagement consultations between the administrators of the scheme and the industry was not made.

This led to loose ends in the mechanics of the scheme which appeared to be unsupportive of a sustainable framework, ultimately leading to its failure.

The failure inevitably branded locals 4Continued on page 36 republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

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INDUSTRY

3Continued from page 35

– in particular iTaukei – as incompetent in managing a tuna long line business and hindered any potential progress thereafter. Prejudicial as it may be, the fact remains that it is a widely accepted notion in the industry.

And post-2004 saw foreigners take advantage of the drivers of industry as a way to grow.

In the international circle, the invasion in the local tuna industry displayed their strength through state-sponsored schemes where subsidies were being given out to the value of US$300,000 to US$400,000 per vessel per year irrespective of whether they ended up in a loss.

This meant that every Chinese vessel owner accessed this provision in their fishing expeditions. The practice supports the claim of Dunham of a clear agenda to control the local tuna industry and the biggest question that can be asked as a coastal state, is what is our response to the making of our tuna industry. Certainly we cannot match their dollar, but is there another way for coastal states?

In comparison to our local fishers, every fishing vessel owner works those hard yards to raise the appropriate funding for their vessel. Some fishers adventure to the extent of having their real property mortgaged. Others explore syndicate funding or paying collateral fees to property owners who throw in their assets to qualify the security requirements of the mortgagee.

This background sets the fishers on thinner ice with almost no options in terms of debt servicing. This is the reality for our fishers that discourage potential local investments thus opening opportunities to foreigners, and in particular Chinese, to exploit such prospects. Yes, it is not an equal playing field and that definitely limits the scope of growth.

Tuna stock assessment The ongoing stand-off on striking the right number for the annual license cap for the 2013 season is an issue that will require a comprehensive assessment of stocks and the level of extraction in our waters. The duties of the coastal state upon its sovereign rights is being implemented by the Fisheries Department and led to the increase of ALC with claims of inadequate scientific data at hand to maintain or lower the 36

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number. Commander Sanaila Naqali, Fiji’s Director of Fisheries has correctly responded to such shortfall and perhaps challenged the competent watchdog, the SPC, to come up with accepted and up-to-date data on stock levels to assist the coastal States, as required under Article 62 of the Convention. Apparently data supplied by SPC is quite obsolete, with the earliest estimate from three years ago.

The accuracy of the SPC stock assessments will be the issue to consider given the current statistics that is available to the Commission. Prominent tuna fishery stalwarts, personnel and Fiji’s tuna industry pioneer Graham Southwick, during the 2012 KOSOPFF symposium at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, constructively criticised data used by SPC as obsolete as it reflects the stock levels from three years back. And perhaps that is the reason why the Director of Fisheries, Commander Naqali sanctioned an increase of ALC to an additional 10 licenses.

It is believed that the Commission uses stock assessments that are closely related to the quality of the output of the MULTIFAN-CL model, a computer modelling tool for assessing tuna stocks, which most scientists have gained confidence in. The MULTIFAN-CL model is best described as a way, to validate attempts to ensure credibility of data supplied by SPC is maintained, that a substantial amount of scrutiny occurs at the meeting of the Scientific Committee of the WCPFC. This is a forum for scientists and others with an interest in tuna and billfish stocks of the WCPO to discuss scientific issues related to data, research, and stock assessment. The principal role of the committee is reviewing the SPC tuna assessments.

And furthermore, the SPC itself periodically commissions independent specialists to review various aspects of its tuna work. To indicate the seriousness of this assessment, one of the recent reviews carried out by three experts supported the SPC approach to modelling and tuna assessment. SPC results are periodically published in a variety of ways, including refereed scientific journals, where they can be critically reviewed by peers and other interested people. Such reviews of the SPC tuna stock assessment have generally supported the results. Where there has been valid criticism, efforts have been taken to correct the deficiencies.

However not all fishery scientists agree with the SPC assessments. In a well-publicised paper by Ransom A. Myers and Boris Worm published in 2003 in Nature titled Rapid Worldwide Depletion of Predatory Fish Communities, the two scientists analysed Japanese tuna long line data and asserted that large predatory fish biomass today is only about 10 percent of pre-industrial levels. The SPC analysis suggests a depletion of about 40 per cent. Who is correct?

The SPC scientists feel that the catch data used in the alternative analysis should have been scrutinised more carefully and that it was wrongly assumed that uncorrected catch rates are a good indicator of tuna population abundance. Although there will always be dissent on tuna stock assessment – a subject so important yet so complex – most knowledgeable outside scientific observers feel that the SPC assessments have the greatest credibility.

On a general level, it is unlikely that it will ever be possible to “prove” the accuracy of the SPC tuna assessments. It is more of a situation in which various types of information can support or refute the results. Feedback to date from various sources has been quite supportive of the SPC assessments. In another sense, it is possible to think of the situation in terms of risk. There will always be some risk that the tuna assessments are inaccurate, but we can try to reduce the level of risk and/or determine an acceptable level of risk.

Presently, the level of risk could probably best be reduced by improving the quality of model input information, especially data on catch and fishing effort. Because tuna resources are extremely important to the Pacific Islands, it may be wise to be conservative with the level of risk accepted and, should there be a range of results, to shy away from the more optimistic views of stock condition.

Will Fiji accept the SPC scientific data as an adequate source to determine its annual license cap? This is the prerogative of the government of the day and whatever the choice, the livelihood of around 2000 locals will continue to R rely on the tuna industry. n Save Waqainabete is senior partner with Wenna Economic Development Opportunities Consultants Fiji. *See Last Word, page 42, on what could be driving China’s interest in Fiji.

December 2012/January 2013

Editor | Rajan Sami

salon Cultural stimulus for the curious mind

Photos by Sandhya Dusk Nand for Dusk Devi Vision

Colour Story Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, it’s 90s-era model-turned-photographer Sandhya (Dusk) Nand in a series of high-octane selfportraits featuring colourful caftans by Zelda Thomas, her one-time catwalk partner in crime. Shot on Denarau post Style Fiji (the charity fashion benefit for Nadi Hospital) in early December. | Page 38

December 2012/January 2013

republikamagazine.com | RepĂşblika |

37

Seeing Double Zelda Thomas never met a sari she didn’t like. “I love colour,” she professes, when talking about Exotica, her easy-going line of caftans and loungewear in saturated hues, made from traditional Indian and other outré fabrics. “If it looks ethnic, exotic and unusual, then I like it,” says the one-time model turned designer, adding: “But I wear mostly black myself.” n RS

38

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December 2012/January 2013

“One size fits a few.” Thomas first started (then shelved) Exotica some 10 years ago with sarongs and scarves made from saris for the tourism market. “I wanted to show we have other cultures here in Fiji,” she says, returning to the idea after working on the inaugural Style Fiji event in 2011. “I was interested in covering the tourist.

They fiddle and fumble with the sulu and it’s always falling down; with the caftan it’s easy.” And unlike many of the current generation of Fiji designers, she sews the limited-edition line herself. “All the women in my family sew – my grandmother, my mother, my aunts,” she says. “I come from a family where we sewed our own stuff.”

Up next, Thomas is looking at textile design, drawing inspiration from under the sea, saying: “It will make the line more original.” n RS n Pieces range from $25 to $300. Available at Aladdin’s Cave in Suva. www.cavefiji.com December 2012/January 2013

republikamagazine.com | Repúblika |

39

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thelastword Comment is free*

Could it be as simple as tuna?

By ARTHUR McCUTCHAN

T

here was an interesting piece published on November 6 on The Australian newspaper’s website which briefly called attention to Asia’s growing interest in Pacific resources, especially tuna.

The article was co-written by honorary associate at the University of Tasmania’s School of Government Richard Herr and the director of research programs at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute Dr Anthony Bergin.

At the heart of their piece was a criticism of the narrow-minded view of the Australian Government’s recentlyreleased white paper on Australia in the Asian Century.

“There’s not a single substantive reference to our critical security interests in our near neighbourhood, not even in passing,” they said.

“At a minimum, the Pacific islands might have rated a mention as a sensitive outlet for some of the excess energy from Asia’s economic and geopolitical dynamism.”

It was the paragraph after that which briefly left me questioning my own conclusions about China’s interest in Fiji.

“Certainly the key Asian players have not shared the white paper’s myopia in overlooking the importance of Australia’s small island neighbours. Asia is increasingly interested in Pacific resources, particularly the region’s tuna stocks, the richest in the world.”

Granted, Herr and Bergin were talking about Asia’s broad interest in the Pacific as a whole, but could this also account for China’s exceptional interest in Fiji?

Could it all just be about tuna rather than the deeper strategic goals I’d imagined?

In writing my previous opinion piece “Fiji’s position on China’s strategic map” 42

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(published in the November issue of Repúblika), I had considered tuna as a motivation for China’s disproportionate focus on Fiji. [Please also read the comments at the end of that post to see a rough list of names of Chinese officials who have visited Fiji since 2009. See post online: www.tinyurl.com/Fiji-China] I use the word “disproportionate” because the number and specialities of key Chinese officials visiting Fiji in the last four years suggested to me that there was more than tuna or UN votes being discussed.

It also seemed unusual that a great power like China would be sending such high-level officials to talk about fish with a (from an international standpoint) virtually powerless state like Fiji.

I’d quickly discarded tuna because as influential as Fiji was in the Pacific, it wasn’t the leading voice on the issue in the region.

If it was a case of seeking support from Pacific islands, it was a comparatively poor effort on China’s part because it wasn’t sending the same ranks of diplomats with matching regularity to other Pacific island capitals. Not even to an important nation like Papua New Guinea.

Neither tuna nor a campaign for votes could justify this inconsistency.

Lending credence to my interpretation was the attempt by China to send the man who will likely be China’s new President, Xi Jinping, on a clandestine visit to Fiji on 8-9 February 2009.

According to a WikiLeaks cable from the US embassy in Beijing, the Chinese sought to “obscure” plans for this stop in Fiji. Their application to pass through New Zealand airspace failed to mention that Fiji was a destination for the aircraft.

Australia was alerted to Xi’s plans shortly before the visit when Chinese officials applied for visas to transit Australia on their way to Suva.

China downplayed the visit as a mere stopover for Xi on his way to Latin America, but could they have been trying to send Australia and New Zealand a message that they would not go along with efforts to isolate Fiji? Why the attempt to conceal the trip then?

Was it a simple oversight while Xi’s itinerary was being prepared? It’s unlikely because Xi was Vice-President and such an omission in the schedule of someone occupying such a high office would not be accidental.

In any event, incompetence in organising a simple travel timetable is not the type of reputation a great power desires to have.

An additional WikiLeaks cable offers one more clue for China’s interest in Fiji, one I failed to mention in my previous post because it had simply escaped my mind. The Southern Cross Cable has a landing station in Suva and is deemed by the US to be critical infrastructure; so vital that if it was attacked or destroyed would have a grave impact on the US. The very fact that it is deemed to be crucial to US interests makes it an inviting objective for China. The landing station’s location so far from the US mainland on the sovereign territory of one of China’s steadfast supporters also makes it vulnerable to, shall we say, possible interference.

While tuna provides a sufficient partial explanation for the Pacific region’s collective appeal to Asian nations, it does not offer a compelling enough reason for China’s diplomatic endeavours R in Fiji.

n Arthur McCutchan is a Fiji-born journalist who resides in Brisbane. He works as a sub-editor for News Limited, which publishes The Australian. This article reflects his personal views and not that of his employer. It was first published on his blog, An ocean, A part, at www. niuviews.wordpress.com December 2012/January 2013

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