PROBLEMS in Fiji
Problems in FijiFijian military leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama led a successful coup in 2006, ousting and replacing the then Prime Minister, Laisenia Qarase. The effects of this military coup are rippling through the South Pacific region even today.
When the Fiji High Court declared Commodore Bainimarama’s government illegal in April 2009, Fiji’s president, Josefa Iloilo, who was brought to power by Bainimarama in 2006, forsook the Fijian constitution, fired the judiciary and reappointed Bainimarama as Prime Minister until 2014. In July 2009, Iloilo retired from his position and on November 4, Ratu Epeli Nailatikau was sworn in as the nation’s new president. President Nailatikau, a former military commander, diplomat and UN representative who vigilantly battles to curtail the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Fiji, has brought a ray of hope and a stabilizing effect to the nation’s political arena. At his inauguration, Nailatikau spoke of the nation’s need for unity, love and hope. Nearby nations Australia and New Zealand have imposed a series of sanctions on the Republic of Fiji in order to encourage the nation to stabilize its political situation. New Zealand’s particular sanction that bans anyone in the Fiji military from traveling outside of the country was met with a sign of non-cooperation from Fiji’s interim government. In November 2009, Commodore Bainimarama, who is still the country’s prime minister, ordered top New Zealand and Australian diplomats to be evicted from Fjiian soil. |
Poverty in FijiMore than 250,000 people in the Fiji islands live in poverty and many more live on or just above the poverty line. With a population dispersed over a multiple of islands, efficient delivery of health care, education and other social services is incredibly difficult. Fijian communities, especially those in rural area suffer the most extreme consequences of this poverty.
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FloodingPolice are working throughout Fiji's commercial capital, Nadi, to help the public out of flooded areas after the town's river burst its banks.
Heavy rain has hit parts of Nadi, with the Education Ministry closing schools and the government urging people to restrict their movements in the affected areas. For safety reasons, Fijian police will restrict unnecessary travel throughout the area and the government is urging families living in flood-prone areas to head to their nearest evacuation centre while it is still light. |