Media reports consulted by the Research Directorate indicate that race was a prominent issue during the May 2006 general elections (AFP 24 May 2006; BBC 6 May 2006; Reuters 4 May 2006). According to reports, the majority of indigenous Fijians cast their ballots in favour of Qarase's Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua Party (SDL) [also known as the United Fiji Party], while Indo-Fijians voted for the Fiji Labour Party (FLP) (AFP 24 May 2006; IPS 20 May 2006). The elections pitted incumbent prime minister Laisenia Qarase of the SDL against the FLP's Mahendra Chaudhry, who was the country's first ethnic Indian prime minister but was deposed in a May 2000 coup (BBC 6 May 2006).

During the election campaign, Qarase was quoted as saying that Fiji was not yet ready for an Indo-Fijian prime minister (AFP 5 May 2006) and that the country should only be led by an indigenous Fijian (Reuters 4 May 2006; see also Los Angeles Times 29 July 2002). However, Qarase, who won the elections by a narrow margin, fulfilled the 1997 constitutional provision for a multi-party cabinet by appointing members of the opposition FLP to cabinet positions, including agriculture, health, commerce, labour, local government, energy and mineral resources, and environment (IPS 20 May 2006). It was the first successful attempt to negotiate a multi-party cabinet since the 1997 Constitution came into force (AFP 24 May 2006).

According to a journal article by John Davies, a professor of Economics at Acadia University who has studied the situation in Fiji, "[f]or many [indigenous] Fijians the thought of being ruled by an Indian settler, unable to speak their language, understanding little of Fijian society ... is virtually equivalent to an act of surrender" (Jan. 2005, 68). In the same article, Davies states that no Indo-Fijian political leader had ever learned the Fijian language (ibid., 62).

In early 2006, Prime Minister Qarase stated his support for a bill that would grant amnesty to those already convicted in the May 2000 coup, provided the convicted persons could successfully argue that their actions were politically rather than criminally motivated (BBC 16 Jan. 2006; see also IPS 20 May 2006). The FLP strongly opposed the legislation, which was also condemned by the commander of the Fijian armed forces, Commodore Voreque Bainimarama (ibid.; see also BBC 6 May 2006). Bainimarama reportedly called the proposed bill "too lenient" and threatened in January 2006 to topple the government if the legislation was approved (ibid. 16 Jan. 2006; AFP 5 May 2006). According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), close to 800 people have been convicted of participating in the 2000 coup, in which those supporting political power for indigenous Fijians removed then Prime Minister Chaudhry from office (16 Jan. 2006). On 5 May 2006, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported that the amnesty bill was "now on the backburner." Further information on the status of the proposed legislation could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate.

While the Dominion Post, a New Zealand newspaper, stated in May 2006 that, in the aftermath of the 2006 elections, tensions between the indigenous population and the Indo-Fijians appeared to have "eased markedly" (25 May 2006), the BBC and AFP indicated that the racial divisions that prompted the 2000 coup continued in 2006 (BBC 6 May 2006; AFP 24 May 2006). According to Davies, Fiji is among the most ethnically polarized countries in the world (Jan. 2005, 47). The BBC has remarked that "informal segregation" between indigenous Fijians and Indo-Fijians is present "at almost every level of society" (18 May 2006). The two groups have reportedly maintained largely separate cultures and spheres of economic activity and "grudgingly co-exist, interacting when necessary" (Los Angeles Times 29 July 2002). According to the Los Angeles Times, the indigenous population is scattered throughout Fiji and controls much of the farm land (29 July 2002). On the other hand, Indo-Fijians tend to reside in urban areas or in the sugar cane-producing areas and own 90 percent of businesses in the country (ibid.; US Sept. 2005). Other sources report that Indo-Fijians also tend to dominate the professions (ibid.; see also Davies Jan. 2005, 60, 67). In a 5 August 2004 article, the BBC commented that "[r]acial tensions are never far from the surface in Fiji, where indigenous Fijians resent the economic prosperity of the Indian community ...."

In his 2005 article, Davies states that the political establishment, led by indigenous Fijians, has perpetuated racism against Indo-Fijians and shown disregard for the laws of the country by, for instance, failing to prosecute in a timely manner those allegedly responsible for the 2000 coup (Jan. 2005, 59). At the same time, however, Davies suggests that indigenous Fijians perceive Indo-Fijians as perpetrators of racism, using the example of Indian businesses advertising jobs for "Indians only" (Jan. 2005, 62). In 25 July 2006 correspondence with the Research Directorate, Davies explained that indigenous Fijians "have perennially been victims of private sector discrimination at the hands of Indian business." In his 2005 article, Davies argues that Indo-Fijians' "projection of victimization, when deconstructed, while no doubt having much objective truth, is nonetheless the product of clear embellishment" (Jan. 2005, 66). The Western media, Davies explains, have "frequently and uncritically confuse[d] the embellishment with the actual substance"; however, in Fiji, this "propensity for exaggeration is well understood" (Jan. 2005, 66). For this reason, Davies cautioned in his correspondence with the Research Directorate that "one must carefully scrutinise any claims as to racism or discrimination" (25 July 2006).

In its 2003 report on Fiji, Amnesty International (AI) states that the government, under the leadership of Laisenia Qarase, carried out a policy designed to create more educational and work opportunities for indigenous Fijians, a policy which was criticized for "exacerbating racial differences and creating inequalities both between and within racial groups" (26 May 2004). Similarly, the United Nations (UN) Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), in its concluding observations on a report submitted by Fiji in 2003, observed that the government's affirmative action programs for reducing poverty were mainly aimed at the indigenous population, even though poverty was an issue that affected all Fijians (2 June 2003, para. 16). According to a 2002 article in the Los Angeles Times, many indigenous land owners had chosen not to renew or issue leases to Indo-Fijian farmers, causing Indo-Fijians to abandon the land and fall into poverty (29 July 2002). On 5 May 2006, AFP reported that that many sugar-cane farmers and their families whose land leases had not been renewed were living in urban squatter settlements.

In correspondence with the Research Directorate, Davies explained that, while the affirmative action plans of the government are designed to address the gap between the two groups in income and in participation in education and the professions, it remained important to consider that Indo-Fijians have benefited from certain advantages, such as a land lease system with rates considered among the cheapest in the world, subsidized sugar cane prices and state-provided infrastructure in sugar cane plantation areas (25 July 2006).

Reports of racially motivated attacks against Indo-Fijians for the period between 2002 and 2006 are scarce among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. A 2002 report prepared by the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) observes that Fiji has been the scene of relatively minimal ethnic violence in comparison with neighbouring countries (June 2002, 35). AI reports that there was an arson attack on a Hindu temple in 2003, the 44th incident involving the desecration of a Hindu temple since the 2000 coup (26 May 2004). Citing the findings of a US-based Indian group, Davies cautioned, however, that, even the Indian community itself has admitted that attacks on Hindu temples have been exaggerated (25 July 2006).

In a 2005 journal article, Susanna Trnka, a lecturer in Anthropology at the University of Aukland who has carried out research on the Indo-Fijian community, suggests that Indo-Fijians were concerned about their safety (1 Sept. 2005). Trnka explains that the proposed amnesty bill prompted fears among the community that, if the bill were passed, perpetrators of the coup-related violence in 2000 would be freed and future actions against Indo-Fijians would be similarly pardoned (1 Sept. 2005).

Amnesty International (AI) reports that in February 2003, a Fiji court acquitted nine indigenous residents of the Muaniweni area who "had been charged in connection with some of the most violent and well-documented racist attacks against Indo-Fijian families during the [May 2000] coup" (26 May 2004). According to AI, there had been allegations of witness intimidation and the suspects were acquitted for lack of evidence (26 May 2004).

In a 2004 speech to the Senate, Senator Adi Litia Cakobau reportedly stated that the term "Indo-Fijian" should be banned because its use was evidence of the "subtle and devious means of psychological domination being systematically employed by social engineers of Indian origin to usurp the name 'Fijian'" (Fiji Times 3 July 2004). In a radio interview subsequently posted by Fijilive.com, the non-governmental organization (NGO) Citizens' Constitutional Forum (CCF) condemned the senator's comments as hate speech, arguing that according to Fijian law, it is a criminal offence to make public remarks inciting hatred of a particular race or community (Fijilive.com 6 July 2004). According to the Fiji Times, Senator Adi Litia denied that her comments were racially or politically motivated, stating that it was her "inherited duty as a direct descendent of Ratu Seru Cakobau, the principal original recipient of our legal ethnic group identifier 'Fijian'" to voice her concerns about the use of this word (3 July 2004).

According to information obtained by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), "hate speech and assertions of the supremacy of indigenous Fijians occur regularly," and Fijian legislation does not prohibit the existence of "racist organizations" (2 June 2003, para. 21-22). In its concluding observations on a report submitted by Fiji in 2003, CERD expresses appreciation of "the 2002 Agreed Statement by the Prime Minister and the Parliamentary Leader of the Fiji Labour Party urging their respective parties to refrain from making racial statements during parliamentary sessions" (2 June 2003, para. 10). No information on the implementation of the 2002 Agreed Statement could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. CCF states in a 19 May 2006 press release that it had lodged complaints with the police regarding racist statements made by Prime Minister Qarase in 2005 and 2006, as well as by two election candidates. The NGO notes, however, that the police had not been responsive to its complaints, claiming they could not verify whether the statements had been made (CCF 19 May 2006).

In its 2003 concluding remarks, CERD states that Indo-Fijians are typically under-represented in the police, military, and the public service (2 June 2003, para. 18). In 2002, AFP reported that Indo-Fijians were being allowed to join the officer ranks of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (6 Mar. 2002). However, in 2006, the Australian Financial Review remarked that there were only "a handful of Indo-Fijians" in the military (22 June 2006).

Susanna Trnka reports that, by 2005, about 24,000 Indo-Fijians had left Fiji since the 2000 coup, heading for Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada (1 Sept. 2005). According to information from the Fiji Statistics Bureau cited by the Dominion Post, 38 percent of the Fijian population was ethnic Indian in December 2004, down from 41 percent in 2000 (11 Feb. 2006).

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim for refugee protection. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

Agence France-Presse (AFP). 24 May 2006. "Fiji Launches Historic Power-Sharing Deal." (Factiva)

_____. 5 May 2006. "Fiji Faces Aftermath of Coups and Racial Division in Election." (Factiva)

_____. 6 March 2002. Michael Field. "Fiji Military Recruits Indians, Ending 60 Years of Loyalty Questions." (NEXIS)

Amnesty International (AI). 26 May 2004. "Fiji." Amnesty International Report 2004. http://web.amnesty.org/report2004/fji-summary-eng [Accessed 4 July 2006]

Australian Financial Review [Melbourne]. 22 June 2006. Michael Field. "Fiji's Military Is an Economic and Political Force." (Factiva)

British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). 18 May 2006. "Country Profile: Fiji." (Factiva)

_____. 6 May 2006. "Race Issue Central to Fiji Poll." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4977514.stm [Accessed 6 July 2006]

_____. 16 January 2006. "Fiji Meeting Eases Coup Fears." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/4617132.stm [Accessed 6 July 2006]

_____. 5 August 2004. "Fiji Leaders Convicted over Coup." http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/3537428.stm [Accessed 6 July 2006]

Citizens' Constitutional Forum (CCF). 19 May 2006. Rev. Akuila Yabaki. "Police Inept in Dealing with Racist Public Statements." http://www.ccf.org.fj/artman/publish/article_431.shtml [Accessed 6 July 2006]

Davies, John E. 25 July 2006. Correspondence from a professor of Economics, Acadia University sent to the Research Directorate.

_____. January 2005. Vol. 94, No. 1. "Ethnic Competition and the Forging of the Nation State in Fiji." The Round Table. http://taylorandfrancis.metapress.com/(m3xcys3sjrxe4q451wbzxeiw)/app/home/contribution.asp?referrer=parent&backto=issue,3,9;journal,34,36;linkingpublicationresults,1:102235,1 [Accessed 6 July 2006]

Dominion Post [Wellington]. 25 May 2006. Michael Field. "Fiji's Future Suddenly Looking Brighter." (Factiva)

_____. 11 February 2006. Michael Field. "Exodus from Fiji." (Factiva)

Fijilive.com. 6 July 2004. "NGO Accuses Fijian Senator of 'Hate Speech'." (Factiva/BBC Monitoring Asia Pacific)

Fiji Times [Suva]. 3 July 2004. Unaisi Ratubalavu. "Indo-Fijian Usage 'a Crime'." (Factiva)

Inter Press Service (IPS). 20 May 2006. Kalinga Seneviratne. "Elections Fiji: Political Fence-Mending Crosses Racial Divide." (Factiva)

Los Angeles Times. 29 July 2002. Richard C. Paddock. "Fighting for a Slice of Heaven: In the Pacific Island Paradise of Fiji, Land Rights Are a Powder-Keg Issue Between the Indigenous and Ethnic Indian Populations." (NEXIS)

Reuters. 4 May 2006. Paul Tait. "Election Puts Fiji Back on Racial Tightrope." (Factiva)

Trnka, Susanna. 1 September 2005. Vol. 75, Issue 4. "Land, Life and Labour: Indo-Fijian Claims to Citizenship in a Changing Fiji." Oceania. (Factiva)

United Nations (UN). 2 June 2003. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD). "Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination: Fiji 02/06/2003." (CERD/C/62/CO/3) http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/(Symbol)CERD.C.62.CO.3.En?Opendocument [Accessed 5 July 2006]

_____. June 2002. Alain Retiere and Heinz Schurmann-Zeggel. UN Office for Project Services. Conflict Prevention and Peace Consolidation in the South Pacific: Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji Islands. (European Centre on Pacific Issues Web site). http://www.ecsiep.org/documents/conflict/sp02.pdf [Accessed 25 July 2006]

United States (US). September 2005. Department of State, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs. "Background Note: Fiji." http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/1834.htm [Accessed 26 July 2006]

Additional Sources Consulted

Oral sources: Four oral sources did not provide information within the time constraints of this Response.

Internet sites, including: The Economist, Fiji Government Online Portal, Human Rights Watch, Secretariat of the Pacific Community, South Asia Analysis Group.

Publication: Enclyclopedia of Diasporas: Immigrant and Refugee Cultures Around the World. Volume 2. (2004)