FIJI INTERIM GOVERNMENT SEEKS UN, COMMONWEALTH

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 SUVA 000185

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/12/2018
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM PINR CVIS UN FJ
SUBJECT: FIJI INTERIM GOVERNMENT SEEKS UN, COMMONWEALTH
ASSISTANCE WITH ELECTORAL REFORM

REF: A. SUVA 155

B. SUVA 145 (AND PREVIOUS)

Classified By: Amb. Dinger. Sec. 1.4 (B,D).

Summary
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1. (C) Fiji's President Iloilo has asked the UN and the
Commonwealth for immediate help to create a forum to address
reform of Fiji's electoral system in anticipation of
elections in 2009. Iloilo seeks funds and expertise. He
suggests names for eminent people to oversee the effort, and
specifically rejects Sir Paul Reeves, the current
Commonwealth envoy to Fiji. We hear Commonwealth SG Sharma
is skeptical about Fiji's interim government (IG) and may be
inclined to keep Reeves on board. The UN ResRep in Suva
reportedly is interested in the idea of UN involvement. We
comment that IG efforts to reform Fiji's electoral system to
date have failed to achieve buy-in from major players, in
particular ethnic-Fijians. We recommend that the USG ask the
UN to take care in evaluating any collaboration with the IG
on its proposed forum, assessing first if all key parties are
prepared to participate and to accept the inevitable election
delay that would follow. End summary.

IG asks for UN-Commonwealth joint help on electoral reform
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2. (SBU) In late April, President Iloilo wrote to UN SYG Ban
Ki Moon and Commonwealth SecGen Kamlesh Sharma seeking a
joint UN-Commonwealth endeavor to help Fiji reform its
electoral system in light of complaints that the current
system laid out in the 1997 Constitution is fatally flawed.
We e-mailed EAP/ANP copies of the letters on May 5. (See
reftels for National Council for Building a Better Fiji
(NCBBF, People's Charter) complaints about Fiji's electoral
system.) Iloilo's letters ask Ban and Sharma to organize
assistance "with due speed" to ensure elections take place
"as early as possible in 2009." (Note: Interim PM
Bainimarama pledged to Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders
last October that the IG would hold free and fair elections
in March 2009.)


3. (SBU) The letters seek a joint UN-Commonwealth
"reconnaissance mission" as soon as possible, to be followed
by a forum "within the next month or so," backed by
appropriate expertise and resources, for all key stakeholders
in Fiji to discuss steps needed to achieve reform. The
letters propose the UN and Commonwealth appoint, and fund, a
three member panel of eminent persons to mediate/facilitate
the forum and associated political dialogue. The letters
offer three names: former Commonwealth SG Don McKinnon; Dr.
Yash Ghai (an authority on constitutions who is very familiar
with Fiji); and former PNG PM and ForMin Rabbie Namaliu. The
letter to Sharma suggests the current Commonwealth
interlocutor to Fiji, Sir Paul Reeves, is not appropriate for
such a role because he helped create the 1997 Constitution.
The letter asks the UN and Commonwealth to coordinate closely
with the PIF Secretariat and the EU, suggesting both might be
observers to the forum and might be tapped for funding and
technical support. The letters do not mention the United
States.

Commonwealth reaction
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4. (C) A Commonwealth representative, Albert Mariner, arrived
in Suva late last week to prepare for a visit by Sir Paul
Reeves this week. Mariner told us today the Commonwealth SG
had not received Iloilo's letter as of last week. In light
of the Iloilo letter and another one just received from
Bainimarama suggesting that the Reeves visit be postponed,
Reeves will not journey to Suva now. Bainimarama indicated
he would still welcome Reeves coming to Suva, just at a later
date. The Commonwealth is now contemplating next steps.
Mariner predicted that McKinnon will not wish to take on a
role with the proposed forum; and it is very possible SG
Sharma will continue to see Reeves as the Commonwealth's most
appropriate interlocutor with Fiji. Mariner foresees Reeves
possibly visiting Suva again in early June. Mariner
concluded, as have we, that the IG's forum concept appears to
be basically a "delaying tactic" intended to push elections
off farther into 2009.

The UN view?

SUVA 00000185 002 OF 002


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5. (C) We spoke briefly with UN ResRep Dictus last Friday
evening. He acknowledged that UN headquarters received
Iloilo's letter, and he said he is not at all sure how New
York would respond. He indicated a degree of sympathy for
the view that the proposed joint UN-Commonwealth effort might
be Fiji's best bet to find a peaceful way out of its current
problems. Note: Mariner met with Dictus in recent days and
came away thinking that Dictus has become aligned with John
Samy, mastermind of the NCBBF process and head of the NCBBF
secretariat. Reportedly the two have had numerous recent
conversations.

Comment
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6. (C) As noted in previous reporting, Fiji's Constitution is
imperfect, but it was unanimously agreed only eleven years
ago after a truly inclusive political process, led initially
by Reeves. The post-coup IG's current NCBBF process is not
inclusive and not transparent, at least not yet; and it is
engineered by Bainimarama and his cohort. If the various
political elements in Fiji, in particular the ethnic-Fijians,
endorse and agree to participate fully in some sort of
IG-created forum to consider electoral reforms, fair enough.
To date, though, that has not happened.


7. (C) The variety of political leaders were prepared in
March to engage in a political dialogue fostered by Reeves,
until Bainimarama and interim Finance Minister Chaudhry
declined. The U.S. was on board for that sort of dialogue.
However, in the embassy's view, the U.S. should not encourage
the new IG effort to rope in the UN and Commonwealth, at
least not yet. We propose that Washington suggest to the UN
not take the plunge without first carefully testing the
waters to ensure all key parties in Fiji are prepared to buy
into the process and accept the inevitable electoral delays.
It may well be that the IG intent is primarily to create just
such delay, realizing most Fiji citizens currently are not
happy and would vote against IG politicians. A worry is that
the UN's assisting a delay of elections could bring
ethnic-Fijian dissidents to the snapping point, spurring
violence, rather than helping Fiji find lasting peace.
DINGER