Folks the people in usurped power that are running our illegal military led government and more specifically our illegal Chief Justice, Anthony Harold Cumberland Thomas Gates are celebrating this weekend.

The irony is that they are celebrating the exact same event that the majority of all advocates of freedom are celebrating, from our perspective here at Real Fiji News that the persecution of Imrana Jalal Tuisolia has ostensibly come to an end and from their perspective that the majority of International Human Rights Institutions have eaten the apple and fallen for the TRAP as reflected in their press statements on this matter, which has a direct impact on the broader and more pertinent issue, namely the independence of the Judiciary.

By acknowledging and giving credit to an unlawful judiciary some Institutions in their haste to churn out a press release have actually shot themselves in the foot. The illegal government of Fiji will now hold them to their words and their acceptance of their illegal judiciary. The question is this, if those frivolous and vexatious charges were not stayed due to a procedural irregularity that the prosecutors where well aware of, what would the press statements have said? Therein is the catch 22, the double edged sword so to speak.     

The point is this, we at Real Fiji News DO NOT recognize ANY appointments made to the Judiciary nor the broader criminal justice system including the Commissioner of Police, the Office of the DPP nor the AG in the Fiji Islands since the December 2006 coup and the April 2009 purported abrogation of the 1997 Constitution. 

All appointments in effect are illegal and therefore the decision to investigate, prosecute and determine any criminal charge against ANYONE in Fiji is in our view void ab initio.

The Constitution MUST be restored, and unless it is, there is no rule of law in the Fiji Islands and unless elections are held and a civilian government appoints the members of our entire justice system, then the police the office of the DPP and the AG are NOT independent.

Free peoples can work together freely and voluntarily to address our severe economic development problems in a spirit of cooperation and solidarity.

As President Regan once said when political control takes precedence over free economic growth to stifle individual excellence and personal freedom that seeks subversion to further the barbarous assault on the human spirit, then what we have is a political structure that no longer corresponds to its economic base, a society where productive forces are hampered by political ones. 

We must be staunch in our conviction that freedom is not the sole prerogative of a lucky few but the inalienable and universal right of all human beings.

We have said it before many times and we will say it again, if the evil minds behind Frank Bainimarama, beginning with Aiyaz Kayum are removed from the equation, then Bainimarama will be freed of the shackles that corupt his brain with evil.

This is and has always been the key to our freedom.

The actions of the Dictator are a reflection of his advisors. Rubbish in Rubbish Out.

We know that, given strong leadership, time and a little bit of hope, the forces of good ultimately rally and triumph over evil.

The day that Frank Bainimarama removes Aiyaz Kayum from office that will be the day that Fiji, the roadmap and everything else promised will come to fruition.

A free peoples can move Fiji Forward, without selling native land to foreigners. 

26 July 2010

New Zealand Press Association

NZPA

English

(c) 2010 New Zealand Press Association  

Wellington, July 26 NZPA - This year's Pacific Islands Forum leaders' meeting will be a chance to talk about development, Prime Minister John Key says.

Mr Key issued a statement today about his plans to attend the forum in Vanuatu from August 3 to 6 without mentioning Fiji -- the coup-stricken country which has dominated recent forum meetings.

Deepening and strengthening New Zealand's relations with its Pacific neighbours was a high priority, he said. "The annual forum leaders' meeting is the main event in the Pacific calendar. It's a valuable opportunity for regional counterparts to discuss how we can work together to address the issues and challenges facing our region," he said. "Delegates at this year's forum are expected to discuss improved development assistance through the implementation of the Cairns Compact on Strengthening Development Coordination in the Pacific."

The compact was agreed to at the forum in Australia last year.

Mr Key said other topics would be the Pacific's response to the global financial crisis, and social and economic issues.

Progress in reaching United Nations set goals on poverty reduction, fostering growth, and addressing maternal and child mortality, would be considered. "As a key donor as well as member of the region, New Zealand is strongly supportive of efforts to ensure our development assistance makes a real difference to the people of the Pacific."

Following the leaders' meeting a "post-forum dialogue" meeting would allow forum countries to engage with non-member nations on topics ranging from security to development.

This is the moment of great victory for Frank Bainimarama. He has consolidated his power base.

Just a week ago Mahen Chaudary was gloating over how his political party, the FLP was the only party that had survived this coup whilst celebrating their 25 year anniversary.

He went at great length to run down and blame everyone else and every other previous lawful government for Fiji's woes, at a moment when unity of opposition to the illegal military regime was crucial, but the poor bugger could not help himself, he had to express himself in his usual arrogant condescending selfish tone to claim victory as the sole surviving political party under a military junta.    

This weekend we at Real Fiji News wish to Announce the Death of the Fiji Labor Party and the people it served.

Welcome to the new dawn and radically changed Fiji that you have supported.

You well and truly deserve everything that you will get.

Some unsolicited advice, don't look at the "iTaukei" prosecuting you and think it will be a walk in the park, the power is always invisible, and to date undefeated.  

Whereas the Governments of the Pacific attending the “Engaging Fiji Meet” and the Fiji Islands have long shared a strong bilateral working relationship;

Whereas the people and former lawful Government of Fiji played an important role in global and regional politics;

Whereas Fiji had been an intellectual and cultural center of the Pacific Islands;

Whereas respect for democracy, human rights, and civil liberties are fundamental principles of the Pacific Islands Nations and critical to Fiji’s previous lawful governments national security objectives;

Whereas, in his June 4, 2009, speech in Cairo, President Barack Obama noted, "[G]overnments that protect [human] rights are ultimately more stable, successful and secure. Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away";

Whereas the authorities in Fiji continue to harass, intimidate, arbitrarily detain, and engage in violence against peaceful demonstrators, journalists, human rights activists, and bloggers;

Whereas, despite Frank Bainimarama’s pledge to the contrary in 2009 Fiji 's controversial emergency law which has been in place continuously since, give police broad powers of arrest allowing indefinite detention without charge;

Whereas human rights violations in Fiji  are widespread and routine, including arbitrary detention, torture, and unfair trials before state security and military appointed judiciary, polices the political sphere and considers any exercise of freedom of assembly a security threat, frequently beating and arresting peaceful dissenters;

Whereas the independence of the judiciary in Fiji  continues to be undermined through politically motivated appointments to the bench, that swear unlawful allegiance to an illegal military government, executive administrative orders overriding judicial decisions, and politically motivated lawsuits;

Whereas excessive use of force by security forces in Fiji  is occurring in violation of Fiji 's obligations to protect fundamental human rights and has undermined the country's long-term stability;

Resolved, That, the Democratically Elected Pacific Island Governments in attendence have "Engaged Fiji" —

(1) reaffirms that respect for basic human rights is a fundamental value of the Pacific Islands and that providing unconditional support for governments that do not respect those basic human rights undermines the credibility of the Pacific Islands and creates tensions, including in the Melanesian bloc, that can be exploited;

(2) encourages the illegal military led Government of Fiji  to promptly restore the Constitution of Fiji and honor its commitment to permanently repeal the state of emergency, which is a significant obstacle to consolidation of the rule of law in Fiji ;

(3) calls on the illegal military Government of Fiji —

(A) to take all steps necessary to call for election immediately and to ensure that same is free, fair, transparent, and credible, including granting independent international and domestic electoral observers unrestricted access to polling and counting stations and instructing its Fiji military forces not to engage in violence;

(B) to end all arbitrary detention, torture, and other forms of harassment against media professionals, human rights defenders and activists, and opposition figures, fully respect freedom of expression and association, and release all individuals detained for peaceful expression as well as those detained and/or indicted under the emergency law; and

(C) to lift legislative restrictions on freedoms of assembly, association, and expression immediately as guaranteed by the 1997 Constitution of Fiji.

The above statement is a Real Fiji News draft of what other Pacific Island leaders ought to resolve at the conclusion of their holiday in Fiji.  

Sarah McDowall  

20 July 2010

IHS Global Insight Daily Analysis

WDAN

English

Copyright 2010, IHS Global Insight Limited. All Rights Reserved.  

Five magistrates in Fiji have been sacked without notice after they rejected prosecutions by the interim regime. The magistrates join 40 other judicial officers dismissed over the past 15 months in Fiji, including 30 magistrates and 15 High Court judges.

The New Zealand Law Society has condemned the dismissals and expressed serious concern over their wider implications for the independence of the country's judiciary. President of the Law Society, Jonathon Temm, said the group had been notified of the dismissals, which included one magistrate who had questioned the rationale behind a prosecution by the government-run Independent Commission Against Corruption against a Fijian human rights lawyer and her husband.

Temm's comments come after concerns were reportedly raised at the UN Human Rights Council about the credibility of the Pacific Island's judiciary.

Significance: There has been a major erosion of Fiji's judicial system since the country was plunged into a political crisis in April 2009, when former President Ratu Josefa Iloilo abrogated the 1997 constitution and dismissed the judiciary following a Court of Appeal ruling that the previous interim government was illegal (see Fiji: 17 April 2009: ).

Although the majority of those dismissed have since been replaced by judicial officials from Sri Lanka, the integrity and independence of the body has been seriously compromised. Under the current state of emergency, where the rule of law has been severely weakened, there is a high degree of legal confusion and volatility—although government interference has generally not extended into the foreign investment sphere.

US condemns expulsion of Australian envoy to Fiji

By KIRSTY NEEDHAM  

16 July 2010

The Age

AGEE

First

8

English

© 2010 Copyright John Fairfax Holdings Limited.  

THE United States has condemned Fiji's expulsion of Australia's top diplomat as "deplorable", saying the timing, shortly before the next Pacific Islands Forum meeting, had undermined an opportunity to re-engage with its neighbours.

"Fiji's pattern of expelling diplomats runs contrary to accepted diplomatic practice. This act is unwarranted and harmful to potential dialogue in the Pacific region regarding Fiji's eventual return to democracy," a US State Department spokesman said yesterday.

But as the United States joined the diplomatic pressure on Fiji's interim Prime Minister, Frank Bainimarama, to hold free elections, the military leader sought to again bypass meaningful regional dialogue.

A decision by Vanuatu to cancel a meeting of Melanesian leaders in Fiji, designed to rival the Pacific Islands Forum, but exclude Australia and New Zealand, had triggered the expulsion of Australian diplomat Sarah Roberts on Wednesday. Fiji had blamed Australian lobbying.

The Fiji interim government announced yesterday that a new meeting, called Engaging Fiji, would be held in the same place on the same day.

Fiji Radio reported eight countries would attend the meeting, but the Fiji government would not identify which ones. Solomon Islands Prime Minister Derek Sikua was the only leader to publicly confirm he would attend and said the Solomon Islands had an "open-door policy to Fiji".

An Australian foreign affairs department spokesman said attendance at the Engaging Fiji meeting was a matter for individual countries to decide, but added that Australia looked to all Pacific Islands Forum leaders to support the forum's position on Fiji.

"These meetings are unrelated to the Pacific Islands Forum, which is the pre-eminent body in the region," the spokesman said. The US State Department spokesman said the US government had supported the decision by the Melanesia Spearhead Group to defer its summit.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said Commodore Bainimarama would need to answer to the people of Fiji if he did not honour election commitments.