Fiji - talk of a Military coup premature ... so far.

The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office has published advice against all but essential travel to Suva. They report tensions in the relationship between the Government of Fiji and the Republic of Fiji Military Forces. The Fiji Military Commander Cmdr Bainimarama (see pic) has issued an ultimatum demanding that the Government resign during November. On 1 November, the Prime Minister made it clear he would not resign. The Fiji Military Commander has been out of the country (reveiwing peace keeping troops in Egypt) and arrived back earlier today . Military vehicles carrying at least 20 soldiers collected the commander off his flight from Los Angeles at Nadi's international airport and escorted him back to Suva. The FCO say the security situation in Suva could therefore deteriorate at short notice.

1. Visitors should also exercise caution if travelling to the rest of Fiji, particularly in urban areas avoiding all military or political rallies and large gatherings of people.

2. There are reports that the Fiji Military Commander has issued an ultimatum demanding that the Government resigns during November. On 31 October, the Government of Fiji failed to remove the Fiji Military Commander from his post and all military personnel have been called up to report to bases. On 1 November, the Prime Minister made it clear he would not resign.

3, Although the security situation in Fiji is currently calm, it could deteriorate with little notice.

Further on the Foreign Office website (http://www.fco.gov.uk) or Tel : 0845 850 2829. BBC Online report

Australia has two warships bound for waters near Fiji in case Australian citizens need to be evacuated.

Fiji TV shut down by self censorship - Rugby relationships at work

Fiji TV have started broadcasting the following message 6.pm local time

There will be no late news tonight

The Army has refused to allow any reports on or statements by Laisenia Qarase or his ministers

Fiji TV newsservice will return only when it can be independent and uncensored,

AFP pic shows Commander Frank Bainimarama and Fiji's Vice-President Joni Madraiwiwi watching a military vs police rugby match on Thursday Night. Ratu Joni Madraiwiwi (born 1957) was sworn in as VP on 10 January 2005, following his nomination by President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo (who is 84 and has ill health) and his subsequent approval by the Great Council of Chiefs on 15 December 2004. He was appointed to complete the unexpired term of , Ratu Jope Seniloli, his immediate predecessor and supporter of George Speight, who had resigned in disgrace on 29 November 2004 in the wake of his convictions for treason concerning his role in the Fiji coup of 2000 (He is now in prison). Widely respected lawyer and Judge, son of a Doctor and descended maternally from the first Fijian female MP and earlier chiefs , he trained in Australia and automatically assumes presidency if the President is incapacitated or dies. Supported by the opposition Fiji Labour Party and helped to broker a fitful truce truce on16th Jan 2005 bwteen Bainimarama and Qarase. He evidently enjoys cordial relations with Commander Frank Bainimarama. - Rugby really does matter.

Fiji had a National team in the Dubai 7's this weekend they got through to the Final against New Zealand and lost narrowly 17-12 after stuffing France 46 - 7 in the Semi Final. Madraiwiwi was a Board member of Greenpeace in the Pacific and will not have been sorry to see the bombers of Rainbow Warrior so humiliated.

An outspoken man, strongly Christian he will play a major part in whatever results from the current brouhaha. For example he has publicly endorsed freedom to choose a homosexual lifestyle of which Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase said that so long as he remained in office, homosexuality would remain illegal.

Madraiwiwi has spoken of the need to build personal relationships on the basis of trust, across ethnic lines and as recently as November 24th said , "We must begin to trust each other if this country is to progress the way we want it to. But before that we have to lay the preparatory work to engender that trust by building relationships every day." He is also a great promoter of the Fijian national language even though English is the language used on schools - also a great critic of the lack of political leadership from the Chruches, especially the Methodists and Roman Catholics.

Queen Margaret 's message to the Commonwealth concerning Fiji - amazing pictures !!

"The UK Government condemns the military coup led by Commander Bainimarama in Fiji. This is a major set back to the process of democracy in Fiji and has damaged Fiji's economy, international reputation, as well as its relations with the international community. These actions are wholly unconstitutional. The military should not have become involved in the political process."

Well, that's encouraging news as the national database builds up with fingerprints, iris images, DNA profiles and medical histories (on hold whilst they get the kit to work) and Aegis and Erinys build up their private armies of mercenaries.

"I strongly urge Commander Bainimarama to return Fiji to democracy as quickly as possible."

I wonder what The Commander said in reply to this "urging" always assuming that what prevailed WAS democracy when the last election was merely a Coronation of the Prime Minister who had previously seized power with his cronies.

"As a result of this action, the UK is taking steps to suspend immediately bilateral military assistance to Fiji and is considering further measures with both EU and Commonwealth partners.

As this coup has been signalled for a long while and been evident for at least 4 weeks it suggests that the Rolls Royce minds at the FO have been distracted (as everyone else has) by chasing tales of Balonyium and counting the number of dead soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"We are in close contact with the British community in Fiji and have contingency plans in place should the security situation deteriorate."
.....but far called, our navies have melted away and we are rather relying on our pals the Kiwis and the 'Roos on this one.

Lord Patel has this exclusive picture of the Foreign Secretary Her Majesty Queen Margaret, after her recent face transplant whilst holidaying in Lebanon. Evidently the teeth caused problems - otherwise quite a good job.

Fiji - The Clunking Fist of Gubment - Beckett roars

The UK Foreign Office today revised its travel advice for Fiji.

"We advise against all but essential travel to Suva. On 5 December, the Fiji Military Commander dismissed the elected Prime Minister and Government of Fiji and announced that he had assumed control of the country. A state of emergency is now in place in Fiji and curfews could be imposed without warning. Although the security situation in Fiji is currently calm, it could deteriorate at short notice. The British High Commission in Suva is monitoring events closely. If you are in Fiji, you should register with the British High Commission."

Previous posts (5) by Lord Patel on progress of military coup here

Please pray for Margaret Beckett as she faces the problems of this far flung Commonwealth outpost. Those who don't hang on her every word may be fascinated by this remark reproduced at the FO website she made to the ITV program (pic) 'THE MORAL OF THE STORY' today concerning Iraq and it's recent history.

" .....And, you know, still now from time to time these mass graves turn up but really nobody's terribly interested because the world has moved on."

Which must really comfort the widowed, fatherless, the orphaned ..... and other victims of the Terror of Tikrit. Blessed Margaret, the right word, in the right place ...at the ..er...right time.

Fiji coup goes off at half cock and in slow motion

Lord Patel presaged the coup in Fiji on November 7th as did the Australian Navy, who have 3 boats currently hanging around offshore, mainly to be ready to act to protect Australian citizens and commercial interests.

Rolling News from Fiji TV here.

Cmdr Frank Bainimarama has seized power and in a televised address has assumed all executive powers and dismissed former banker Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase who has been put under house arrest.

Fiji (Independent since 1970) splits broadly between the native Fijians (60%) a people of mixed Polynesian (partly Tongan) and Melanesian ancestry (54.3%), and Indo-Fijians (40%) who are the rapidly declining proportion of descendants of Indian contract labourers brought to the islands by the British in the 19th century who have been actively emigrating in the past few years. This racial divide follows a religious / linguistic / political divide between the Christian English speaking Fijians and the Muslim / Hindu Indian Urdu - Punjabi speaking population. The 40 plus political parties split broadly along this divide.

Politically they have had 3 successive coups (now 4) leading to the major one in 200 that saw banker Laisenia Qarase assume power - consolidated by an election a year later.

There is curently much opposition to the intention of Qarase to offer amnesty for the leaders of the 2000 coup by two Parliamantary Bills. The military leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama (injured badly in the coup) asked Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase to resign in mid October, 2006. The Prime Minister attempted to sack Bainimarama without success ,who went walkabout to examine Fijian troops on UN duties overseas.

On Bainimarama's return, Qarase dropped the controversial amnesty measures from the bill on 4 November 2006.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters organised talks in Wellington between Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase and Commodore Bainimarama on 29th November. These talks althpough calimed to be "fruitful" were unsucessful. On his return Commodore Bainimarama announced that the military were to take over most of capital Suva. Which has now happened.

Australian Prime Minister John Howard has just announced that Australia will not intervene.

An evidently impatient New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark has just announced on BBC Radio that Qarase has "taken leave of his senses" and "ripped up the Constition" and says the "International Community" must support the democratically elected Gubment and called for military officers effectively to overthrow their Commander. He claimed they have troops standing by.

A demi - tropical paradise, supported by a fairly prosperous sugar cane industry but now very much dependent on tourism has seen visitors and income decline as this coup has festered.

An easy going population who agree with Bainimarama that all politicians are corrupt, plainly have little stomach for a fight - in this their 4th coup since independence and they see the tourists and their money melt away. Some of them are fourth generation residents.

Emperor Gold Mines who have operated for 75 years and employ 1,700 is closing down it has just been announced - next years sugar crop is threatened due to late deliveries of fertiliser.

Some of them are fourth generation residents.

A thorny problem for the ex-colonialists. Lord Patel remembers the enthusiasm of the Fijian rugby team (80,000 play Rugby Union of the 1 Mn population) who visited the UK in the winter of 1969 /70 (They trhashed the Ba-Bas at Gosforth) , one of whose centres espoused boots and ran in his bare feet. Senitiki Nasave who was 20 at the time of that tour was a wonderful centre who shone regularly at the Hong Kong sevens and died of a heart attack on 3 April 2003 at the tender age of 53.

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Pic. Platymantis vitiensis The Fijian Tree Frog - From Paddy Ryan, Fiji's foremost naturalist and nature photographer. www.ryanphotographic.com superbly illustrated site.

You Tube has a fascinating video from Fiji Meats which gives an insight into modern Fijian life

Earthquake/Tsunami hits Solomon Islands

The excellent US Geological Survey have produced a report on the undersea earthquake and series of al least 5 after shocks which hit the Solomon Islands just after midnight GMT. They give the strength of most shocks in the range 5.5 - 6.0 on the Richter Scale, the BBC reports 8.0.

A tsunami was generated which has aused a great deal of damage to sea shore buildings and has hit Gizo 25 miles from the epicentre. Queensland beaches some 1,400 kms away have been warned of potential strong waves and Sydney beaches have been closed as a precaution.

The highly efficient Pacific Tsunami Warning Center (see Video) initially issued a warning for all countries in the South Pacific region.

It was down-scaled later , but authorities in the Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, north-eastern Australia, Tuvalu, Kiribati, and Fiji were being advised to stay on alert.

Obama - rising without trace - but with some well known and surprising friends for a "liberal progressive" ....

Here is a fascinating insight by Victor Thorn at War on You Obama rising without trace from obscure Chicago Senator to President in 4 years ....

US voters have been told that Obama is for change ... but nothing much actually seems to ...er ... change. In the picks for his cabinet we’re seeing a cadre of more deeply entrenched insiders than any administration that has preceded it.

In regard to key foreign policy advisors, all three of Obama’s selections either initially supported the Iraq war, or still do. On the economic front, each appointee maintains a close relationship with the Jewish triad of Ben Bernanke, Robert Rubin and Alan Greenspan—as well as bailout engineer Henry Paulson. Barack Obama himself is a Council on Foreign Relations member, has strong ties to Zbigniew Brzezinski, and participated in a clandestine meeting with Hillary Clinton at Bilderberg member Diane Feinstein’s house at the time when 2008 Bilderberg members were congregating only a few miles away.

Below is an overview of Obama’s top 14 selections to date. When considering their collective histories, a trend becomes clear, proving that the more things change under Obama, the more they stay the same.

1. TIMOTHY GEITHNER – TREASURY SECRETARY

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, president and CEO of Federal Reserve Bank of New York, director of policy development for IMF, member Group of Thirty (G30), employed at Kissinger & Associates, architect of the recent 2008 financial bailouts, mentored by Lawrence Summers and Robert Rubin.

2. PAUL VOLCKER – ECONOMIC RECOVERY ADVISORY BOARD

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, North American chairman of Trilateral Commission, Federal Reserve chairman during Carter and Reagan administrations, president of Federal Reserve Bank of New York, G30 member, chairman Rothschild Wolfensohn Company, key figure in the collapse of the gold standard during the Nixon administration, longtime associate of the Rockefeller family.

3. RAHM EMANUEL – CHIEF OF STAFF

Member of Israeli Defense Force, staunch Zionist, senator, Board of Directors for Freddie Mac, member of Bill Clinton’s finance campaign committee, made $16.2 million during 2.5 years as an investment banker for Wasserstein Perella. His father was a member of the Israeli Irgun terrorist group.

4. LAWRENCE SUMMERS – NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, treasury secretary during Clinton administration, chief economist at World Bank, former president of Harvard University, Brookings Institute board member, huge proponent of globalization while working for the IMF, prot�g� of David Rockefeller, mentored by Robert Rubin.

5. DAVID AXELROD – SENIOR ADVISOR

Political consultant whose past clients include Sens. Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and Christopher Dodd; main Obama fixer in the William Ayers and Reverend Wright scandals.

6. HILLARY CLINTON – SECRETARY OF STATE

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, Trilateral Commission, clandestine CIA asset used to infiltrate the anti-war movement at Yale University and the Watergate hearings, senior partner at the Rose Law Firm, key figure in the Mena drug trafficking affair, architect of the Waco disaster, implicated in the murder/ cover-up of Vince Foster, and many other deaths.

7. JOSEPH BIDEN – VICE PRESIDENT

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senator since 1972, member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, current chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, strong Zionist sympathizer who recently told Rabbi Mark S. Golub of Shalom TV, “I am a Zionist. You don’t have to be a Jew to be a Zionist.”

8. BILL RICHARDSON – COMMERCE SECRETARY (Now retired due to impending legal problems on graft, corruption etc.,) see Monday, January 05, 2009 Governor Richardson resigns from Obama cabinet after exposure by Lord Patel over new factory deal

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, former U.S. congressman, chairman of the Democratic National Convention in 2004, employee of Kissinger Associates, UN ambassador, governor of New Mexico, energy secretary, major player in the Monica Lewinsky cover-up with Bilderberg luminary Vernon Jordan.

9. ROBERT GATES – DEFENSE SECRETARY

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, former CIA Director, defense secretary under President Bush, co-chaired CFR task force with Zbigniew Brzezinski, knee-deep in the Iran-Contra scandal, named in a 1999 class action lawsuit pertaining to the Mena drug trafficking affair.

10. TOM DASCHLE – HEALTH SECRETARY

Bilderberg, Council on Foreign Relations, former Senate majority leader, Citibank lackey, mentored by Robert Rubin.

11. ERIC HOLDER – ATTORNEY GENERAL

Key person in the pardon of racketeer Marc Rich, deputy attorney general under Janet Reno, facilitated the pardon of 16 Puerto Rican FALN terrorists under Bill Clinton.

12. JANET NAPOLITANO – HOMELAND SECURITY DIRECTOR

Council on Foreign Relations, Arizona governor, attorney for Anita Hill during the Clarence Thomas hearings, U.S. attorney during the Clinton administration, instrumental in the OKC cover-up, where she declared, “We’ll pursue every bit of evidence and every lead,” described as another Janet Reno, soft on illegal immigration (i.e. pro-amnesty and drivers licenses to illegals).

13. GEN. JAMES L. JONES – NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR

Bilderberg, Trilateral Commission, European supreme allied commander, special envoy for Middle-East Security during Bush administration, board of directors for Chevron and Boeing, NATO commander, member of Brent Scowcroft’s Institute for International Affairs along with Zbigniew Brzezinski, Bobby Ray Inman, Bilderberg luminary Henry Kissinger and former CIA Director John Deutch.

14. SUSAN RICE – U.N. AMBASSADOR

Council on Foreign Relations, Rhodes scholar, campaign foreign policy advisor to presidential candidates John Kerry and Michael Dukakis, member of Bill Clinton’s National Security Council and assistant secretary of state for Africa, member of the Brookings Institute (funded by the Ford Foundation and the Rockefellers), and member of the Aspen Strategy Group (teeming with Bilderberg insiders such as Richard Armitage, Brent Scowcroft, and Madeleine Albright).

Another fascinating insight into the President elect is afforded by THE STRANGE RISE OF OBAMA @ Undernews

In his autobiography, "Dreams From My Fathers", Barack Obama writes of taking a job at some point after graduating from Columbia University in 1983. He describes his employer as "a consulting house to multinational corporations" in New York City, and his functions as a "research assistant" and "financial writer." The odd part of Obama's story is that he doesn't mention the name of his employer.

However, a New York Times story of 2007 identifies the company as Business International Corporation. Equally odd is that the Times did not remind its readers that the newspaper itself had disclosed in 1977 that Business International had provided cover for four CIA employees in various countries between 1955 and 1960. The British journal, Lobster Magazine -- which, despite its incongruous name, is a venerable international publication on intelligence matters -- has reported that Business International was active in the 1980s promoting the candidacy of Washington-favored candidates in Australia and Fiji.

read on ....