IS THE METHODIST CHURCH INITIATIVE FOR A DIFFERENT NATIONAL RECONCILIATION PROCESS CREDIBLE

by  Peni  Moore

The recent report in the news media of Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi’s address to the Think Tank of the Methodist Church in Fiji and the decision to “promote reconciliation outside but paralleling the Charter process amongst various churches and social groups” raises questions of public interest.  It is interesting that Ratu Joni had advised the Methodist Church Leadership and Think Tank not to come on board the People’s Charter initiative, but to devote themselves to praying, fasting and prayer for divine guidance for the peaceful resolution of the problems of the nation.

The reason given by Rev. Tuikilakila Waqairatu for non participation in the National Council for Building a Better Fiji (NCBBF) led dialogue and reconciliation process is  because it will be based on what he calls “bullying under the barrel of a gun”, and also because “it is illegal, unethical and against democratic principles”.

No member of the NCBBF has said they feel bullied by guns to join.  They merely accepted invitations and agreed on their own free will, just like the President of the Methodist Church declined his invitation on the advice of Rev. Waqairatu without any bullying from anybody.  The People’s Charter as well, is not going to be put to people for their approval with guns pointed to their heads.  The People’s Charter will be the outcome of wide public consultation.  The people might also finally decide on it through their votes.  The people of Fiji will be free to approve or reject the People’s Charter.

On the issue of the illegality or otherwise of the Interim government, this is a matter before the Courts and I will not comment further on that.  Then, there are the other issues of being unethical and against democratic principles as Rev. Waqairatu said.

Firstly,  I need to point out also that the Methodist Church leadership never used such condemnatory language when it decided to participate in the initiatives of the Interim governments after the 1987 and 2000 coups.  The Methodist Church leadership in fact supported those coups and the abrogation of the 1970 and 1997 Constitutions.  It was only after December 2006, that the current Methodist Church leadership decided to be a supporter of the 1997 Constitution and democracy.  Why?

When the Methodist Church joined the Council for National Reconciliation of the Qarase government, did it ever suggest to government that one of the main victims of the 2000 coup, that is the Fiji Labour Party, its coalition partners and supporters needed to be part of the Council?  I understand that the representatives of the Assembly of Christian Churches (ACCF) of which Rev. Waqairatu is the current President, dominated the discourse and work of the Council for National Reconciliation of the Qarase Government.  What were the ACCF’s theological reasoning for reconciliation and priorities in terms of work in that Council?

That Council can be contrasted with the present Interim Government’s NCBBF initiative.   His Excellency the President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo, invited all “victim” organizations of the December 2006 event, including in particular the SDL and the Methodist Church, to join the NCBBF.  It is a genuine attempt to make reconciliation an inclusive national undertaking so we, as a nation, can move forward, working together to heal the wounds of our divisions.  The current Methodist leadership, because of its loyalty to Laisenia Qarase,   refused to join this national undertaking and advised its members likewise.  That I believe  was the actual reason for some Church leaders’ refusal, not loyalty to the Constitution and democratic principles or ethical considerations.

The NCBBF is building towards a credible, free and fair General Election and return to Constitutional democracy by March, 2009.  The Methodist Church leaderships’ refusal to be part of the NCBBF national consultative and reconciliation process seems motivated basically by politically partisan reason.

It is clear from the list of members of the Methodist Church “Think Tank” that most of them are either former SDL MPs and Ministers, or leading supporters.    Although the Church leadership might claim that its reconciliation initiative is independent and of long standing, the domination of its Think Tank by aggrieved politicians motivated by a collective desire for  revenge, (if returned to power after the Election), casts doubt on the credibility of the Methodist and the ACCF so called “reconciliation” process.  Rev. Waqairatu’s reconciliation initiative is therefore purely political grandstanding.  I will be happy to be shown to be wrong in this view.

Nevertheless, we must ask where is the credibility when the church leadership refuses  a genuine reconciliation offer and then promises another one that appears  to  exclude those parties that offered to reconcile in the first place, well before the Church initiative?  Furthermore, the current Methodist Church leadership had never before on its own extended a hand of dialogue and reconciliation to the non-Christian religions and other ethnic groups.  Given its record of disagreement with inter-faith dialogue and worship, how is its reconciliation initiative going to be different this time?

For example, will Rev. Waqairatu invite Commodore Bainimarama and his colleagues in the Interim Cabinet and the Military Council to his Reconciliation meetings?  Will he invite leaders of the Hindu, Muslim and other faiths?  Does he believe that his reconciliation initiative is more independent, inclusive, broad-based, participatory and also morally superior to the PCCPP process?

Rev. Waqairatu needs to know that within the NCBBF there are members who are part of the congregation of the Methodist Church.  Some NCBBF members have already made it known they are also members of the SDL Party.   Some have even told the NCBBF they should be regarded as either representatives of the SDL or the Fiji Council of Churches in the NCBBF in the current situation when SDL and the Methodist Church leaders are adamant in refusing to come on board the NCBBF. 

 In the many visits of the NCBBF outreach teams to Fijian villages and urban squatter settlements around the country in the last 6 months, expressions of support for the idea of a People’s Charter have come mainly from people who are Methodists and supporters of SDL.

Given the Methodist Church’s publicly stated opposition to the Interim government and the People’s Charter initiative, are the Methodist Church and members of the ACCF going to campaign publicly against the People’s Charter before and during the forthcoming General Election?

The presentation of the position of the Methodist Church leadership’s opposition to the NCBBF initiative at the Methodist Conference last year, as some of us learnt was hardly democratic.  Conference participants were first told what the leadership in Suva had decided and there was no vote.  No wonder the flock is not blindly following the leadership on this directions.  However, Rev. Waqairatu has recently said that the NCBBF should not waste its time asking the Methodist Church leadership to reconsider their refusal to join the NCBBF and the Charter process.  What I would urge Rev. Waqairatu and his Think Tank to do now is to really consult the ordinary members of the Church about their attitude to the NCBBF because the message our outreach teams are receiving from the grassroots Methodist Church members is contrary to their leadership position.