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Free but fearful: deposed Fijian Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry, who
met Australian Prime Minister John Howard in Sydney yesterday.
Fiji's deposed prime minister, Mahendra Chaudhry, is a smaller,
physically weaker man than he was eight weeks ago. If the way he
grimaces between sentences is a guide, he is also in considerable pain.
Chaudhry's ribs were cracked during a beating at the hands of supporters
of coup leader George Speight, suffered the day after he was taken
hostage. He is physically weak because, for the best part of eight
weeks, he received just one meal a day.
And yet, at a small meeting with journalists in Sydney yesterday,
Chaudhry allows himself a smile when reminded that Speight is now
sleeping on the bare mattress that Chaudhry had been forced to occupy.
Asked to describe his treatment at the hands of Speight's supporters
during the eight-week hostage drama, Chaudhry says: "We were treated as
hostages. We were intimidated. I was beaten up, once. I was threatened a
number of times. I had racist remarks flung at me. We went through a lot
in that time.
"There were some quite anxious moments, especially with the shooting
outside. At those times, we all feared for our lives because it had been
made clear by the rebels that if they were attacked, they would use us
as human shields."
Asked if he was therefore pleased to see Speight (who was arrested by
the military last week) now getting a "little of the same" Chaudhry
says: "I have never been a vindictive person. I certainly didn't like
what he did to me. But yes, he's getting a bit of his own medicine
back right now. I'll leave it at that."
While detained, Chaudhry met Speight twice. He, like many international
observers, regards him as dangerously unstable.
"He seemed to be a very, very confused man," Chaudhry says. "He
seemed
quite unstable. He hadn't worked out anything. He had a lot of theories
but no practical details about anything. He seemed completely a man in a
world of his own."
He says Speight could be believed when he says he was motivated by
racism.
"He came out of the blue. He hadn't featured in the political life of
the country and suddenly he was there. Nobody expected him to launch a
coup, but in my two meetings, he was very forthright. He believes that
the government of Fiji should be based on the supremacy of ethnic
Fijians."
While refusing to express outrage at the way he, personally, was treated
by the coup leaders, Chaudhry says he is angry about the pain that
Fijians of Indian origin suffered when Speight's forces seized power,
adding that the extent of the violence was "quite unnecessary, quite
unbelievable".
"We were completely in the dark for eight weeks, we had no access to
newspapers, we had no idea what was happening outside and it was only
when we came out that we came to terms with what had actually happened,"
Chaudhry says.
"There was lawlessness, basically. In Suva, shops were burnt, looted. In
the rural communities, there was violence, people were assaulted, they
were robbed, their homes were set alight. People acted with impunity
because it was not until later that the military decided that they
should do something. Of course, the military was somewhat constrained
because we were held captive and they feared for our safety. Once we
were
released, they decided to do more."
Asked if the military might have taken action earlier, Chaudhry says he
concurs with a "body of opinion" that suggests that "if they
had moved
swiftly on the day of the coup, things might have been different. They
were not seen for a number of days, which allowed Speight and his
supporters to consolidate their position."
Chaudhry says he feels sure that the coup has devastated the Fijian
economy, and that this will take decades to rectify. He expects tourists
to stay away because their safety cannot be guaranteed.
"It took us a long time to rebuild the economy after (the earlier coup
in) 1987, and in 1999, we inherited an economy with two successive years
of negative growth, widespread poverty, deteriorating infrastructure.
Our health services were in bad shape. These were the
issues on which we campaigned and what we did in the 12 months was
exactly in our manifesto.
"Our priority was the poverty issues, because there was widespread
poverty. We moved quickly to reduce the cost of basic food items, reduce
the interest rates on loans for the poor, and bought about measures to
make the cost of education lower, and in the process, we managed the
economy prudently.
"By the end of 1999, we had economic growth of around 7 per cent and it
was anticipated that this year's growth would be around 5 per cent. We
had great prospects, but all that is now completely shattered and I
don't know when it will come right. Not for a long, long time. In a
country where you have three coups in 13 years, the international
community
and the business community loses faith. There are a lot of other places
where people can
invest."
Of Fiji's political future, Chaudhry says democracy is "the best thing
for Fiji, as it is for any country". He is encouraged by the support of
the international community, but still believes that a United
Nations-sponsored referendum is the best way to find out what Fijians
want. At the same time, he concedes that violence would almost certainly
accompany the vote. Such action has been ruled out on the grounds that
it would create more instability.
If democracy is not restored, Chaudhry fears an exodus of Fijians of
Indian background, a situation that depresses him, but which he
nonetheless accepts and understands.
"People of Indian origin are feeling very insecure," he says. "We
were a
multiracial government and I would like to pin my hopes on our return
but if this does not happen, then, yes, something like 300,000 people
are talking about leaving. I don't blame them for having those feelings,
seeing what they had gone through. If you have a group of thugs come up
to your house, rob you, and set your house alight, what do you expect?
It will be very
difficult for me to convince them to stay if they have experienced this
kind of ethnic cleansing. That is the nature of any human being. You and
I would do the same."
Despite fearing for his own safety, Chaudhry says he will continue to
campaign to be recognised as the legitimate prime minister of Fiji.
"We cannot just close shop and leave it to the new regime," he says.
He
and his supporters will continue to maintain their opposition to the new
government from the west of Fiji, where there is more stability.
Conversely, there has also been more damage, for it is the west
that has wealth: the gold is there, as is the timber, sugar and most of
the tourism.
"Of course, if we continue with our campaign to be recognised as the
legitimate government of Fiji, we have been warned that we'll be dealt
with in accordance with law, but we have to continue the struggle,"
Chaudhry says.
"We risk our own safety, our lives because, this time around, there are
a lot of guns out there. Nobody is sure that all the guns that went
missing have been returned. That adds a new dimension to the situation."
He feels confident of support from the west, "where the economic
devastation means that jobs have been lost in the thousands". His
supporters have, however, ruled out an offshore, "government in exile"
until it has been proven that they are completely unable to operate in
Fiji.
He is confident that the deposed government retains popular support,
"and that's why I've suggested a UN-supervised referendum".
Of the international community, Chaudhry says he is satisfied for the
"time being" by the actions being taken, but hopes tougher measures
will
be implemented if "the new regime decides to be stubborn, and the
situation did not improve".
He is likewise satisfied with the stand taken by Australia, but anxious
that so-called "smart sanctions" not be the end of the matter.
"Maybe in the future, more could be done, if the situation does not
improve," he says.
Chaudhry says the Australian Prime Minister John Howard seems to be
waiting to see whether Fiji's new Review Commission, which will oversee
the construction of a new constitution, was "independent and
transparent, and all that stuff".
"But I have pointed out, how many times are we going to have a review of
the constitution? Every time somebody loses an election, we end up
having an armed takeover of government, and a review process. It is not
a very satisfactory way of dealing with the situation."
Copyright © The Age Company Ltd 2000.
+++niuswire
Title -- 2881 FIJI: The defiant Mr Chaudhry
Date -- 2 August 2000
Byline -- Unnamed
Origin -- Pasifik Nius
Source -- The Age (Melbourne), via samanand@netspace.net.au 1/8/00
Copyright -- The Age
Status -- Unabridged
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