Fiji
Country comprising 844 islands and islets in the SW Pacific Ocean,
about 100 of which are inhabited.
Government
The 1990 constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government
with a two-chamber legislature, consisting of an elected 70-member
House of Representatives, serving a five-year term, and an appointed
34- member Senate, serving a six-year term. The president, who
is head of state, is appointed by a hereditary Great Council of
Chiefs for a five- year term. The prime minister (who must be
an indigenous Fijian) is appointed by the president as head of
government, based on support in the House.
The ethnic composition of both chambers is preserved in that
indigenous Fijians have 37 guaranteed seats in the House of Representatives
and 24 (appointed by the Great Council of Chiefs) in the Senate;
citizens of Indian descent have 27 guaranteed seats in the House;
other races have five guaranteed seats in the House; and the island
of Rotuma has one guaranteed seat in each chamber. Nine seats
in the Senate are filled at the discretion of the president, who
must have particular regard for minority communities. The complicated
arrangement seeks to preserve elements of the Westminster -style
parliamentary system which preceded the 1990 constitution, while
ensuring that all ethnic communities are properly represented.
There is a provision in the constitution which prevents the military
from taking control.
History
Originally inhabited by Melanesian and Polynesian peoples, Fiji's first
European visitor was Abel Tasman in 1643. Fiji became a British
possession in 1874 and achieved full independence within the Commonwealth
in 1970. Before independence there had been racial tension between
Indians, descended from workers brought from India in the late
19th century, and Fijians, so the constitution incorporated an
electoral system that would ensure racial balance in the House
of Representatives.
Traditionally the Fijians support the Alliance Party, led by
Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara. The Indians support the National Federation
Party, led by Siddiq Koya. The main divisions between the two
have centred on land ownership, with the Fijians owning more than
80% of the land and defending their traditional rights, and the
Indians demanding greater security of land tenure. The Fijian
Labour Party was formed in 1985.
The general election in April 1987 resulted in an Indian-dominated
coalition, led by Dr Timoci Bavadra. An attempted coup in May
1987, led by Col Sitiveni Rabuka, was abandoned after intervention
by the governor general and the Great Council of Chiefs. After
a second successful coup in Sept-Oct 1987, also led by Rabuka,
Queen Elizabeth II of Britain accepted the resignation of the
governor general, thereby relinquishing her role as head of state
and making Fiji a republic. A new constitution was introduced
in 1990. Following the first elections under the new constitution
in May 1992, Sitiveni Rabuka, who had relinquished his army post,
was appointed prime minister. President Ganilau died in Dec 1993
and was succeeded by Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara. Rabuka and the FPP
were re- elected in 1994.
Fiji was readmitted to the Commonwealth in Sept 1997.
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