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Commodore Josaia V. Bainimarama Co-Chair, Your Grace, Archbishop Petero Mataca When this Council first met in January this year, we made a solemn commitment to each other, to work together, to map the way forward for building a better Fiji for all. I want to start today by acknowledging and applauding the work that you have been doing through the National Task Teams and the Working Groups. Co-Chair, His Grace Archbishop Mataca and I have been meeting regularly to monitor progress. For my part, I think that we have made good progress so far. But I also feel that, if not for the many obstacles and constraints, we could be making even greater progress. Those within Fiji, and also outside, who have turned a deaf ear, and who have so far resisted the case for change in Fiji, they have taken every opportunity to find fault; to stir up controversy; and to disrupt our efforts. It has not helped that some detractors have been concocting phony criticisms, lighting up little bushfires here and there, so that we spend more of our time and effort in responding to these. I submit that over the past few months there have been some mistakes made and we have taken actions to correct them. What is much more important to recognize is that we have not deviated from our fundamental purpose: - to move Fiji forward; To all our opponents and detractors, I say this: your persisting efforts to block change will be in vain. Let me emphasize that while the Peoples Charter will continue to need careful stewardship and effective leadership, this journey of change must not and will not stop until it is complete. We have never been more committed to rescuing Fiji from the downhill slide towards growing economic hardship; worsening social and racial divisions, and ever deepening failures of governance. As interim Prime Minister, I remain committed to ensuring that Fiji will not be returning to an era where government saw its role as protecting the position of privileged elites; where corruption was tolerated; and where coups were the recognized way to address intractable problems. We do not want our nation to be characterized, forever, as part of some dreaded arc of Pacific instability. We understand the concerns that the Pacific community has on that issue. We, too, want to establish a better national security environment. We, too, are trying to tackle the entrenched causes of underdevelopment. We, too, want to see economic growth that reinforces political stability. Therefore, we welcome the reports recently released by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute as helping to contribute to the debate about the best solutions that may be available. We also welcome the effort by the international community to move away from the lecturing habits of the past. Opportunities for cheap shots should be resisted as they only harden attitudes. As we know, emotional reactions have in the past accentuated difficulties. But encouragement helps. There needs to be more to the international relationship than just discussions about forthcoming elections. It is a risk for all of us in the Pacific for the international community to seem to ignore, until after any election, the many pressing issues that our country faces. Allowing issues to fester, can make them worse. It would be helpful, therefore, if there were early opportunities to open up dialogue, however informal, on other fronts. Meanwhile, through the Peoples Charter process, the people of Fiji are to collectively take the drivers seat to resolve Fiji’s deep-rooted problems, in Fiji’s own unique way. Fiji’s people seek a better life, they seek social and economic progress in an environment of sustainable democratic governance. As Fiji people, we want to see Fiji embrace a new dream in which we all make real, practical and lasting commitments to each other about peace, change and progress. This, essentially, is what the Peoples Charter is all about. But, our harsh reality is that proportionately, more people in Fiji are poor today than they were at the time of Independence. We have to act on this, and act we must with the utmost of urgency. We cannot condemn a generation of our young people to grow up without work, without educational opportunity and without the hope of having a better life than the struggles that their parents had. This is why it is important for us to put in place, this year, through the Peoples Charter, a series of commitments to overcome the underlying serious, deep-rooted and fundamental problems that have persistently afflicted our nation. The solutions to the deep seated problems of this country are not entirely in the hands of the familiar politicians who have failed us in the last twenty years. They failed us, with their narrow-mindness, their racially divisive politics, lack of vision and irresponsible social and economic management. The Peoples Charter process takes the national problems and the challenge of proposing solutions to those problems back to the people of Fiji. Without committing ourselves to fundamental change we are doomed to a repeat of the past: economic decline and stagnation; greater social distress; deteriorating law and order situation; and perhaps more coups. There are some who argue that we should ignore these fundamental issues and instead, all we need is a general election. This comes from the so called leaders who favour a return to the status quo.
How can an election, on its own, solve the deep differences that our Constitution has perpetuated between the different races in our country?
As for the election system, it is evident that the current race-based communal election system has failed to deliver social cohesion and inter-ethnic cooperation. There is a compelling need to review this. Thus, what we are first trying to do, within this year and through the NCBBF, is to prepare an acceptable basis for restoring democratic governance next year. I want to reassure you that the Interim Government remains committed to the timetable for elections that has been previously announced. The necessary preparatory work is proceeding. From now on, I will be asking the Election Commission each month to report to the Interim Government on the progress being made on that preparatory work. Those reports will be made public. It is the duty of the news media in a democracy to assist the people who support their businesses to make informed decisions about their government. We may not be an elected government but we are committed to creating conditions for a better democracy. Some of you members have been proactive in publishing your views in support of the NCBBF and I thank you for your efforts. I urge other members of the NCBBF to also help the Secretariat give the correct information about our work to the news media to improve news media standards. Further, I want to make this point clear to the people of Fiji and interested parties outside this country, that the NCBBF is truly autonomous of the Interim Government. Although only ten Ministers including myself represent the Interim Government in the NCBBF, you know as a fact by now that we the Interim Government do not direct your discussions or manipulate your discussions, nor the work being done by the Task Teams, the Working Groups and the Technical Secretariat. In fact, we look to the NCBBF to help guide, not just the people of Fiji, but the Interim Government as well, in the way forward towards a better Fiji for all. That is why I obtained the support of the first Interim Cabinet and the Military Council for the NCBBF to define the long term vision, and undertake the task of getting us back to a revived economy, sustainable democracy and good governance. Another point I want to stress is that the work on the Peoples Charter is an absolutely vital part of the preparation for the General Election that we are committed to hold by March, 2009. It is important because we want to achieve national agreement, reconciliation and unity before the General Election on the way forward for our country after the Election. For this reason, we have left the door open for the SDL Party and those other Parties and organisations that have so far rejected this initiative, to change their mind and join us. There is no reason why we cannot, as a nation, together develop now an agreed agenda for changes to make our country better. The Peoples Charter process has also attracted many stories in the print media; quite a number of discussions on talk back radio; and many news items on TV. Many journalists have taken some interest in the Peoples Charter work. Thus, it is timely that today, we will have an opportunity to talk about our own media strategy. What is frustrating is that many journalists in the mainstream media have not read any of the materials released to explain the purposes of the Peoples Charter. This is both unprofessional and irresponsible. The questions the media people often ask are essentially naïve and overly negative. This poses a challenge to the Peoples Charter process as we are relying on the media to promote a national debate about the major governance, economic and social issues that Fiji faces. Thus, we have a long way to go to build a better understanding of the Peoples Charter process. Our consultation on developing the Peoples Charter across the nation is now underway at the community, village, and local levels. Through these consultations, the people of Fiji are to obtain a better and fuller awareness of the major problems and issues that our nation faces. We recognize there are substantial and difficult issues to be considered by us all. They include the communal based electoral system; ending a coup based culture; enhancing the operation and effectiveness of the indigenous Fijian institutions; opening up access to the use of more land for productive purposes while ensuring equitable benefits to the landowners; ensuring provision of more housing to meet the needs of squatters as well as others; improving the health and education systems; and addressing the issue of national identity. bviously, as sensitive as it is, in thinking about national identity we need to think less about race and more about nationality. If we continue to be divided against each other how do we live and work together as one people and one nation? A major difficult issue relates to the media’s role on promoting good governance and free speech in Fiji. If you were to believe all that you hear and read on Fiji in the media, local and international, you would be inclined to think that there is clear and present threat to free speech in Fiji. In truth, there is no such threat; it is only a figment of the imagination of those who remain persistently opposed to the Interim Government. What the Interim Government and others in the community have been increasingly concerned about is the lack of professionalism and responsibility in some of the media reporting. The media plays a major role in influencing the mood of the nation but that needs to be done fairly, objectively and with close regard to how best to help Fiji to move forward. While the media has the right to be sceptical, and where necessary critical, it would help us all if there were less wild allegations made on sensitive subjects, based on poor or no checking of the facts, as that can lead to incitement and civil disorder. That has happened in the past. It should not be left to the Government to have to tell the media what it thinks. We expect and accept the media will often disagree with us. However, we believe the media is best regulated by itself- there is a Media Council that should be playing a more effective role in calling to account the more persistent irresponsible reporting that goes on. The Media Council should be the best judge of what is media professionalism and what is responsible reporting. But it seems strangely ineffective. I await a clear sign that the Media Council is really interested in building more effective self regulation. But if the media fails to report truthfully and responsibly; and if it also fails to self-regulate, that will make it more difficult for the government to give sensible consideration to promoting greater transparency in government through the introduction of freedom of information laws in Fiji. Today, in this second meeting of the National Council, we will take stock of what we have achieved so far. There is much still to be done. I have dwelt in my remarks at some length on the opponents, the detractors and on the largely negative reporting by the media on the Peoples Charter. This resistance to change must be over overcome. In this context, as Council members, we need to specifically discuss:
It is the people of Fiji, who must make it happen : for each and every citizen of Fiji; and for a better Fiji for all. In this context, let me conclude by quoting the words of a 19th Century preacher, William Morley Punshon: “On some positions, Cowardice asks the question, “Is it safe?” Expediency asks the question, “Is it politic?” And Vanity comes along and asks the question, “ Is it popular?” But Conscience asks the question, “Is it right?” And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must do it because Conscience tells him it is right. Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” The Peoples Charter for Change, Peace and Progress is a national undertaking that matters: to each citizen of Fiji. It is the right thing to do, for the people of Fiji, and for Fiji as a whole. It is a matter on which Fiji’s people must not be silent, or blindly follow what others say. Vinaka Vakalevu, Dhanyabad, Thank You. |
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