Ethnic Accommodation in the Republic of the Fiji Islands by Alison Quentin-Baxter Barrister of the High Court of New Zealand Wellington September 1999 Prepared for the School of Law, Waikato University Ethnic accommodation in the Republic of the Fiji Islands TABLE OF CONTENTS ETHNIC ACCOMMODATION IN THE REPUBLIC OF THE FIJI ISLANDS.........................................4 PURPOSE OF THIS PAPER ....................................................................................................................................4 BACKGROUND...................................................................................................................................................5 The three communities ................................................................................................................................5 The make-up of the population....................................................................................................................6 Systemic political problems.........................................................................................................................6 The 1987 coups and the abrogation of the 1970 Constitution ....................................................................7 The 1990 Constitution .................................................................................................................................8 The setting for constitutional reform ...........................................................................................................9 THE COMMITMENT TO CONSTITUTIONALISM ......................................................................................................9 Express provision for the review of the 1990 Constitution........................................................................10 THE CONSTITUTIONAL REVIEW AND AMENDMENT PROCESS .............................................................................11 A Commission of Inquiry...........................................................................................................................11 The Commission’s processes.....................................................................................................................11 The Commission’s report...........................................................................................................................12 Consideration of the FCRC Report by the Joint Parliamentary Select Committee...................................13 The enactment of the 1997 Constitution....................................................................................................14 The first general election under the 1997 Constitution .............................................................................14 THE VALUES TO BE EMBODIED IN THE CONSTITUTION......................................................................................15 Racial harmony and national unity ...........................................................................................................15 The economic and social advancement of all communities.......................................................................16 Internationally recognised standards of individual and group rights.......................................................16 The rights, interests and concerns of the indigenous Fijian and Rotuman people....................................17 The rights, interests and concerns of all other ethnic communities ..........................................................18 Reconciling the interests of all communities .............................................................................................19 THE CONSTITUTION AS A COMPACT AMONG FIJI’S ETHNIC COMMUNITIES .......................................................20 The principles recognised in the Compact ................................................................................................20 The application of the Compact ................................................................................................................22 THE GOAL OF MULTI-ETHNIC GOVERNMENT.....................................................................................................23 The formation of a government .................................................................................................................24 Sector standing committees .......................................................................................................................26 Other incentives.........................................................................................................................................26 THE COMPOSITION OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ................................................................................27 The effect of communal representation .....................................................................................................27 The international standards ......................................................................................................................28 The allocation of reserved seats ................................................................................................................29 Open, as well as reserved, seats................................................................................................................30 The balance between communal and open seats.......................................................................................30 THE ROLE OF THE VOTING SYSTEM IN ENCOURAGING MULTI-ETHNIC POLITICS .................................................31 Relevance of the voting system in ethnically divided societies..................................................................32 The ability of AV to provide incentives for moderation and cooperation .................................................32 AV in multi-member or single member constituencies? ............................................................................34 The 1999 general election .........................................................................................................................34 The prospects for multi-ethnic government ...............................................................................................35 CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION OF DIFFERENT LANGUAGES AND CULTURES, A COMMON IDENTITY, AND THE ROLE OF AN INDIGENOUS INSTITUTION .............................................................................................................35 A common name ........................................................................................................................................36 Languages .................................................................................................................................................36 Religion and the State................................................................................................................................37 The right to education ...............................................................................................................................38 The constitutional role of the Bose Levu Vakaturaga ...............................................................................38 (a) Approval of the Constitution .......................................................................................................................39 ii THE RIGHT TO EQUALITY BEFORE THE LAW AND FREEDOM FROM UNFAIR DISCRIMINATION .............................41 THE APPLICATION OF THE PERSONAL LAW OF A COMMUNITY ...........................................................................44 SOCIAL JUSTICE AND AFFIRMATIVE ACTION .....................................................................................................44 The perceptions of injustice among communities and groups...................................................................45 The need for social justice and affirmative action programmes................................................................46 Duty to put in place social justice and affirmative action programmes....................................................46 Determining the need for, and the efficacy of, social justice and affirmative action programmes ...........49 Reconciling social justice and affirmative action programmes with equality before the law and freedom from unfair discrimination ........................................................................................................................50 Support from civil society..........................................................................................................................52 THE CONSTITUTIONAL RECOGNITION OF THE DISTINCT RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OF PARTICULAR COMMUNITIES AND GROUPS....................................................................................................................................................52 Rights to land and chiefly titles .................................................................................................................53 Leases of agricultural land........................................................................................................................54 Fishing rights ............................................................................................................................................55 Minerals.....................................................................................................................................................56