Fiji and the Pacific Islands Summit

Not being Frank with us

Aug 21st 2008 | NADI, FIJI From The Economist print edition

Relief as Fijis prime minister (and armed-forces chief) stays at home

FRANK BAINIMARAMA, Fijis globe-trotting coup-leader, has just come back from visiting the Beijing Olympics, the pope in Rome and the United Nations in New York. But he missed this weeks annual summit of the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) in Niue, one of 13 island microstates which, with Papua New Guinea (PNG), Australia and New Zealand, make up the PIF. Mr Bainimarama blames his no-show on New Zealands refusal to give him more than a transit visa to pass through Auckland airport (enforcing a travel ban imposed after the coup in December 2006). More likely, Mr Bainimarama stayed at home to avoid rebukes for reneging on the commitment he made at last years PIF summit in Tonga to hold elections by March 2009. The absence of Mr Bainimarama was a relief to Australia and New Zealand. It made it easier to persuade other PIF leaders to agree to threaten Fiji with suspension from the Forum unless the election is held as scheduled. In other ways, too, the gulf between the regions minnows and its two big fish seems to be narrowing. The PIFs ambitious Pacific Plan for enhanced regional integration, announced with great gusto in 2005, no longer evokes much enthusiasm. Pressure to free merchandise trade is seen as benefiting Australia and New Zealand, which run big trade surpluses with the rest of the region, rather than the small island states that trade little with each other. For the poorer countries of Melanesia, where bulges in the populations of young people threaten social unrest, the freer movement of labour is more enticing. New Zealand began a guest-worker scheme last year, but John Howard, Australias prime minister at the time, flatly rejected opening the doors to unskilled Pacific labour. But

since taking office last December, Australias new Labor government has announced a seasonal labour scheme for the fruit-picking industry, to be open to PNG, Vanuatu, Kiribati and Tonga. Fiji, however, is to be excluded. Another reason for Mr Bainimarama to stay at home is that he has just taken over the finance ministry, after sacking the incumbent, Mahendra Chaudhry. The economy contracted by 6.6% in 2007 and still looks weak. And the departure of Mr Chaudhry, the leader of Fijis ethnic Indians, raises political questions. Until now, the army takeover has been strongly opposed by indigenous Fijians, who make up 57% of the population, but largely backed by the Indians (38%). Mr Chaudhrys departure leaves Mr Bainimarama with even fewer allies, at home and abroad.