The Prime Minister of the largest democracy in the world and the most secular state- India in his address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Saturday 24th October said the western nations should not use force to force regime change ( Times Of India 25th October 2011)- this statement can be read in more ways than one.
What has transpired in Libya and may also happen in Syria is one way.
The western countries forcing a model of democracy in countries where regimes have been toppled by military intervention such as Fiji is another way.
If not using military power than the use of smart sanctions against them such as those applied against Fiji citizens is the same thing.
Western nations must appreciate that one size does not fit all- and in the same way not one model of democracy fits all the countries. What is good in Australia, the UK, USA and other European countries does not suit others where cultural settings, the political make up and the demographic is different from their own.
The political setting in Fiji was completely different from those in many other countries-here the population was divided the basis of race-the constitution was based on race and the population was required to vote on the basis of race- this was of the legacy left behind by Fiji’s former colonial masters –the Brits.
The underlying causes of all the military, as well civilian, coups in Fiji had been the race card.
Either the indigenous Fijians were worried about losing their rights or it was politically driven by some disgruntled politician who felt it their birth right to in control of the country politically.-the race card had been the issue identified as the pretext of carrying the coups.
Whenever there was a coup in Fiji it was the military which was asked to solve the problems and bring about law and order back into the country.
Therefore the question to ask is then –why not remove the race issue and treat everyone as “Human Race” in Fiji rather than as Indians, Fijians or others meaning Fruits salads- which included Chinese, Part Europeans and others of mixed races”.
In Australian any one of any ethnicity once he or she or even it becomes an Australian citizen is called Australian -but in Fiji people of Indian ethnicity born in Fiji could not call themselves Fijian until recently.
Can’t the Australian and New Zealand politicians, our immediate neighbours see this racial divide or is it they cannot go against their former colonial masters’ wishes as well.
Yet when the current military regime is trying hard to reform the laws of Fiji to create an inclusive society where everyone is treated as human beings and not on the basis of their ethnicity they are putting what they call smart sanctions-placing travel bans on people taking up jobs in the government or quasi government institutions, cancelling people permanent residencies of Australia.
Most pathetic case is that of a Public servant who was employed as permanent secretary in government ministry and as public servant was transferred sideways to the prime minister’s office –he has been banned from travelling to Australia and New Zealand-worst even when his wife who is a New Zealand citizen got seriously sick in New Zealand- he had to literally beg and plead to the New Zealand High Commission in Suva to be his wife’s bedside in hospital-after much frustrations he was given a visa for only about five days to go to New Zealand and that too was restricted to be only in the radius of 10 kilometres of his wife and not do any other business while in Auckland.
How stupid, silly, inhuman and narrow minded can these New Zealanders and the Australians be?
Yet they have the audacity to encourage their own citizens to go and work in Fiji and continue to push their exports into Fiji. Is this hypocrisy or interference?
So Australia and New Zealand- pay attention to what the Prime Minister of India has said. He is worth giving ear to. If what the IMF and the World Bank are predicting another or recession is on its way then the worst to suffer will be the western countries followed by China which is dependent for its trade on the western countries and if China collapses, Australia will collapse as Australia’s resources are exported to China-India will then emerge as the leading nation in the world. It will then be a force to reckon with.
Pay heed to India and stop interfering with the political and internal affairs of another sovereign state-let them find a solution themselves to their problems. They will get there and remove those silly smart sanctions which are no longer smart and effective either.
