Hon, Laisenia Qarase

Prime Minister and Minister for Sugar and Investment

Address to the Nation
Tuesday 5
th
December, 2006
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Fellow citizens, bula vinaka and greetings to you all. ! am still here, your Prime
Ninister.

As you will have heard from the news media and seen on television, serious
developments are taking place in Suva. The Fiji Nilitary Forces have seized
control of all Government vehicles assigned to Ninisters. These include my own
official vehicle. They have mounted road checkpoints throughout the city. They
have taken the keys to the Office of the Prime Ninister in Government Buildings.
!t is clear that their intention is to bring to a standstill the functioning of my
elected Government.

This morning, ! had intended to convene a special meeting of our country's
Nulti-party Cabinet. This was to specifically consider the new demands of the
Nilitary Commander, as conveyed through the President and the vice President.

These new demands included the extension of the Commander's contract of
appointment to the year 2012, even though his current five year contract has
another two years to run.

Another development this morning was the meeting by our President with the
Nilitary Commander. ! understand the President will publicly announce the
outcome of that meeting.

However, in earlier contacts with me, the President had wanted me either to
totally accept the demands of the Nilitary, or to resign as Prime Ninister.

! want to inform you all, the people of Fiji, that as your elected Prime Ninister, !
have absolutely refused to bend to these demands. Both courses of actions
would be contrary to the supreme law of our country, and that is Fiji's
Constitution.

As your Prime Ninister, ! stand firmly in support and defence of our Constitution,
and of the rule of law and parliamentary democracy in Fiji.

Any Nilitary takeover of the elected Government would be unlawful, and those
responsible would bear the consequences, as no one is above the law.

Worse still, the consequences to Fiji's economy would be catastrophic. Already,
we are seeing innocent people being laid off their jobs. !nvestments are being
put on hold.

A development that should be of concern to us all is the decision by the Emperor
Gold Nining Company at vatukoula to close its operations. This means that 1750
innocent workers would lose their jobs, and just imagine the suffering this would
bring to their families.

! appeal to the Nilitary and to all those soldiers who are loyal and who remain
faithful to their oath of office. !t is not too late to draw back from the brink of
disaster with which our country is now faced.

Already, the New Zealand has announced several sanctions against Fiji. The
stoppage of all Nilitary assistance to Fiji. A ban on travel to NZ by senior Nilitary
staff and their families. New Zealand will also call on the Commonwealth to
place Fiji on its Commonwealth Action Group agenda. This could mean the
expulsion of Fiji from the Commonwealth of Nations. Other countries are
expected to follow what New Zealand has done.

To you, the citizens of Fiji, let me assure you, categorically, that under no
circumstances will ! resign as Prime Ninister, or give advice to His Excellency to
dissolve Parliament. There is no reason whatsoever, for me to do so.

! am the democratically-elected Prime Ninister, appointed in accordance with the
Constitution, and the General Elections in Nay gave my party a clear majority in
Parliament.


The functions of law and order, as exercised by the Police, are intact. There is
no outbreak of civil disorder. The public are coming out openly expressing their
support for the maintenance of the rule of law and parliamentary democracy.

! am much heartened by the expressions of support the Government is receiving
from right across the community. ! make particular mention of the
overwhelming backing from the vanua which is standing against any threat to
our democratically-elected Government. The vanua does not want an unlawful
seizure of power. The emphatic message ! am receiving is in favour of the rule
of law, parliamentary democracy, and the preservation of order by the Police.

As ! have said, any forcible takeover of Government and Parliament would be a
breach of our Constitution.

Anyone who is a party to the illegal overthrow of the Government would be
guilty of an act of treason. This is the most serious offence against the State,
punishably by life imprisonment.

! ask those considering such a course to think very, very carefully about what
they would be doing.

! issue the same warning to anyone contemplating accepting an appointment in
an illegal administration.

The Constitution would remain in place, as would all the laws of our country.
People who might try to usurp power would, therefore, be answerable to the
Constitution and to criminal laws.

The law has a long reach. There is no escape from it, especially when evidence
is readily available.

The Nilitary leadership has been citing the Doctrine of Necessity to justify
intervention by His Excellency the President. They claim it is necessary for His
Excellency to dismiss the Government, dissolve Parliament and appoint an
!nterim Administration.

The Doctrine of Necessity is totally irrelevant to the present circumstances. !t
simply does not apply.

What we are witnessing instead is an orchestrated attempt to try to destabilize
the country and justify a Nilitary takeover of Government and our country.

! ask members of the Nilitary to consider the consequences not only for
themselves, but also for their families and relatives.

Are you prepared to break the law, sacrifice your freedom, and condemn your
families to suffer, only so that the Commander can get his contract extended to
2012?

Are your prepared to put our country at the risk of sanctions and boycotts, and
withdrawal of vital aid? ! ask every soldier to think very carefully about the legal
consequences of taking part in an illegal takeover of Government. !n the
ultimate, it will be their own families who will suffer from any unlawful action
they take now.

Ladies and gentlemen, it is still not too late to save our country. There is still
time for every section of our society to make their voices known. ! appeal to you
to come out and express your support for the rule of law and democracy in Fiji,
and say no to an unlawful takeover of our country by the Nilitary.

!n this late hour, it is never too late to speak out with one voice, to save our
country from economic calamity and ruin.

Nay God bless you all.

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