MSG to carry Fiji voice at Cairns Forum: PNG PM Somare
Updated
When Fiji abrogated the constitution on Good Friday this year, the Pacific Islands Forum's Biketawa Declaration ceased to apply to Fiji. That is the opinion of PNG Prime Minister, Sir Michael Somare, who believes the Comonwealth is the only body which has the legal authority to suspend Fiji.
The Biketawa Declaration deals specifically with Pacific island nations in crisis. Sir Michael thinks it's an issue which the upcoming Forum in Cairns in August will have to address. Radio Australia's Geraldine Coutts broached this, and other topics from last week's Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting, in this extensive interview.
Presenter: Geraldine Coutts
Speaker: Sir Michael Somare, Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister
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COUTTS: Now Sir Michael, I note that you have referred to the Biketawa agreement when you refer to Fiji and the outcome of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) meeting in Vanuatu. What in particular are you referring to? Because there is a clause there that says it can't be enacted unless a country is in crisis. So how does that relate to Fiji as you see it?
SOMARE: Fiji now does not have a Constitution. With the constitutional governments, countries that have a constitution, if you are talking about Biketawa agreement, it's because it infringes on certain laws of that particular country. Now for Fiji case, I don't know whether the Biketawa agreement would apply, because they have abrogated their constitution. Now they are working on the basis of a decree. In any decree, there is no defined definition of a word decree and that decree does not come into the aspect of a constitution of any country. It is a decree that is applied, an understanding between the military government and the supposed constitutional head of government. But he is no longer there, but in their term, they reckon that they have a constitutional power. Say, for example, if there was a dispute between Fiji and Vanuatu or Fiji and Tonga on some of the international boundaries, what court of law would Fiji go and challenge Tonga? What court of law? There is no such law, no enactment of any legislation to take into account the sovereign right of Fiji. Fiji as it is now, a lot of people taking it that there is no sovereignty at all. It's a military government and in a military government, you don't have constitutions. In some you have constitutions being suspended. In this particular case, it has been abrogated.
COUTTS: So are you saying then it is not open to the Forum to use of the Biketawa Declaration, because Fiji has abrogated the constitution and that now, according to the courts, may be running an illegal government or an non-elected one at least?
SOMARE: Well, at least a non-elected one and my understanding of the Biketawa Declaration is dealing with an elected government. If anything is wrong with that particular elected government then we apply the provision of the Biketawa agreement. In Fiji's case, Fiji has suspended their constitution. Fiji is working on the basis of their own charter now and until such time as when they go back to democratic elections, and Bainimarama is talking about September of 2014. Once they have a constitution in place then the Biketawa Declaration will apply. There will be a lot of disputes between the Forum leaders now to say that Biketawa does not apply in this particular case. That is something for the Forum to decide. It is not for me to say to the Forum, but I believe that this is what we're likely to face in the Forum.
COUTTS: Okay, so you're suggesting then that it should be listed, because as they have abrogated the Constitution, no Constitution applies, therefore they cannot apply that section of the Biketawa Declaration to Fiji, so you support it's suspension being lifted because of that?
SOMARE: No, no, no. I'm not supporting the suspension to be lifted. I am arguing that how can we apply the Biketawa agreement in a country where there is no constitutionality to hold Fiji as a republic of Fiji under the Biketawa agreement, you see. You can say Fiji when it's a republic, when it has its own Constitution, but they have abrogated the constitution. What law can we apply in international law to argue the case for Fiji, say for example, like I gave you an example of a border between Tonga and themselves. What court of law can we apply? Tongans will come up, yes they have got a law, they have a constitution to argue the case in court of law. But, what about Fiji?
COUTTS: But equally I guess some would argue that because Fiji has abrogated the Constitution, it now steps outside the provisions of Biketawa Declaration, then they are still not entitled to take part in functions organised by the Forum?
SOMARE: That's right, yeah, well they don't. They won't take part at all, because the Forum decided that to consider at the meeting in Cairns the future of Fiji. Now, whether they would consider completely banning Fiji or give them time . . . we have given enough time to Fiji and I have tried my utmost best to try to get Bainimarama to understand that I've got a battle that I have to present this case to the Forum, and I can't now. I am being handicapped with what's going on now. So all I can do is can sit down and listen to what the Forum does and the Forum takes a decision on full suspension, complete suspension. That's the Forum's prerogative.
COUTTS: Well, at the conclusion of the Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting just concluded in Port Vila, Vanuatu. The group put out MOU say that they wanted Fiji's suspension lifted?
SOMARE: We made a suggestion, three of us, the MSG leaders, Natapei, Sikua and myself. We said we want suspension to be lifted and allow Fiji . . . let's open dialogue again with Fiji, so that we can have some understanding. At the moment, there is no law to deal with Fiji. That's a big question which hangs over our head.
COUTTS: Well, the suspension is not actually a law and I am sure international courts can find a path to deal with Fiji if there are laws broken. But I am still unclear as to whether you think the suspension should remain or not?
SOMARE: Well, that's something that the Forum has to decide. We will at least present our case on our resolution that we signed with him in Fiji. It's entirely up to the Forum to make the decision. I don't want to be in a position where . . . I'm not the chairman of the forum. It would be the Australian prime minister and Niue's premier. He would be co-chair. So the decision would have to be the Forum's, it's not mine. We are only there to help and make sure that the Fiji goes into a small transition, but it doesn't look like it will happen for a while. It will go until 2014.
COUTTS: Now Sir Michael finally this morning, as I know your time is precious and we thank you so much for joining us on Pacific Beat, you said a moment ago that you have tried to dialogue with Commodore Frank Bainimarama but it seems to be with no positive end result. What is the point then of continuing if they have just shown repeatedly that they won't listen to anybody else, that they are on a path that they are determined to stick to?
SOMARE: Well, I agree with you, but this is not an issue for MSG. MSG is a group of countries who have some ethnic similarities who get together and ours is a small group. All we can do is we can help. We can help the Forum to put our case before the Forum. The Forum at large will then take measures. If the Forum wants to suspend, it will suspend and if the Forum wants to refer to the Commonwealth group to do the full suspension, it is entirely up to Forum to do that. We try to help the situation by trying to get Bainimarama on the conference table. Now we've got him on the conference table, there is a hope that we can get him to talk to the rest of us, but he doesn't seem to. He only wants to talk to us and that's it, and probably thinking we'll take these measures, and definitely we'll take his message across to the Forum.
COUTTS: Look, I'm sorry I said last question, but this is the very last question. If the Forum decides not to lift the suspension, will the MSG abide by that or will they take another action of some kind?
SOMARE: We'll go with the majority decision, but at least we will make our points known. We'll make our standpoint known to the Forum leaders. I strongly believe that we need to understand and if there is a need for a Forum to send another committee of delegates, excluding the MSG, to go and talk to Bainimarama. It would be something that the Forum can decide and at least I have made an attempt to get him to agree with our stand in the MSG. We want them to be involved in the Pacific Forum, we want them to be within the Pacific Forum. Fiji has always been a part of our Forum from the beginning and okay, things have developed that way, they have developed and there's nothing much we can do to help. All we can do is help with the advice and with suggestions.
COUTTS: Now Sir Michael Somare, Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, thank you so much for joining this morning. You've given us a lot of time and we appreciate that, thank you.
SOMARE: Thank you very much indeed. Goodbye.
