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The politics of Fiji take place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democratic republic. Fiji has a multiparty system with the Prime Minister of Fiji as head of government. The executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Parliament of Fiji. The judiciary is mostly independent of the executive and the legislature.
Mahendra Pal Chaudhry is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party. Following a historic election in which he defeated the long-time former leader,Sitiveni Rabuka,the former trade union leader became Fiji's first Indo-Fijian Prime Minister on 19 May 1999,but exactly one year later,on 19 May 2000 he and most of his Cabinet were taken hostage by coup leader George Speight,in the Fiji coup of 2000. Unable to exercise his duties,he and his ministers were sacked by President Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara on 27 May;Mara intended to assume emergency powers himself but was himself deposed by the military leader,Commodore Frank Bainimarama.
The Fiji Labour Party,also known as Fiji Labour,is a political party in Fiji. Most of its support is from the Indo-Fijian community,although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian,Dr. Timoci Bavadra. The party has been elected to power twice,with Timoci Bavadra and Mahendra Chaudhry becoming prime minister in 1987 and 1999 respectively. On both occasions,the resulting government was rapidly overthrown by a coup.
Irene Jai Narayan was an Indian-born teacher and politician,who had a significant influence on politics in Fiji. She came to Fiji in 1959 after marrying Jai Narayan,a well known school Principal in Suva,and began her career as a teacher. She taught in DAV Girls School and MGM High School in Suva before entering politics.
Siddiq Muhy'Ddin Kwaja, officially known as Siddiq Moidin Khoya was a Fijian politician,Statesman and Opposition leader. He succeeded to the leadership of the mostly Indo-Fijian National Federation Party (NFP) on the death of the party's founder,A. D. Patel,in October 1969,remaining in this post until 1977. He later served a second term as leader of the NFP,from 1984 to 1987.
Tupeni Lebaivalu Baba was a Fijian academic,politician,and Cabinet Minister. A founding member of the Fiji Labour Party,he served as a Cabinet Minister in the government of Timoci Bavadra until removed from office by the 1987 Fijian coups d'état,and then one of the two Deputy Prime Ministers in the government of Mahendra Chaudhry until removed from office by the 2000 Fijian coup d'état. After splitting with Choudhry in the wake of the coup,he founded the New Labour Unity Party to contest the 2001 election,but failed to win a seat in Parliament. He unsuccessfully attempting to re-enter politics at the 2006 election under the banner of the Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua,and again at the 2014 election as part of the Social Democratic Liberal Party.
The National Federation Party is a Fijian political party founded by A. D. Patel in November 1968,as a merger of the Federation Party and the National Democratic Party. Though it claims to represent all Fiji Islanders,it is supported,in practice,almost exclusively by Indo-Fijians whose ancestors had come to Fiji between 1879 and 1916,mostly as indentured labourers. However,in the 2018 general election,the party recorded a considerable change in its support base due to the inclusion of more indigenous Fijian candidates.
Sir Vijay Raghubar Singh,KBE was an Indo-Fijian lawyer and politician who held Cabinet office in the 1960s and 1970s. Vijay Singh served in Prime Minister Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara's government in a variety of positions,including Attorney-General,and was president of the Indian Alliance,a division of the ruling Alliance Party. He quit the party in 1979 following disagreement with Alliance leadership and later joined the opposition National Federation Party. Vijay Singh was involved in the restructure of the Fiji sugar industry and was a leading member of the Jaycees movement in Fiji.
Ambalal Dahyabhai Patel, better known as A.D. Patel,was an Indo-Fijian politician,farmers' leader and founder and leader of the National Federation Party. Patel was uncompromisingly committed to a vision of an independent Fiji,with full racial integration. He was one of the first to advocate a republic,an ideal not realized in his lifetime. He also advocated a common voters' roll and opposed the communal franchise that characterized Fijian politics.
The National Farmers Union' (NFU) is one of Fiji's largest trade unions. It was launched in Labasa in July 1978 under the auspices of the Fiji Trades Union Congress,with Mahendra Pal Chaudhry as its first General Secretary. The union was initially based in Vanua Levu but gradually extended its operations to Viti Levu.
James Shankar Singh,MBE was a Fiji Indian farmer,businessman,social worker and politician who served as a Minister in the Alliance Government of Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara. Like many Fiji Indian politicians of the era,he joined the Alliance Party with a belief in mutiracialism,but was disappointed with the Alliance Party's appeal to Fijian nationalism after 1977 and left the Alliance to join the National Federation Party.
Sugar Cane Growers Council represents the sugar cane farmers in Fiji. It is made up of 38 members elected by the farmers and eight members nominated by the government. The Sugar Cane Growers Council election is held every three years. The Council has a chief executive,the first one being Vijay R. Singh,and a chairman.
Uday Singh Commissioner of Oaths,OBE,JP was an Indo-Fijian landowner,social worker and politician. Hon. Mr Singh was a staunch supporter of former Prime Minister Ratu Mara and the former Alliance Party. The Singh family is the single largest private landowner in Fiji.
Charan Jeath Singh is an Indo-Fijian businessman,politician,and Cabinet Minister. From 1992 to 2005 he was Mayor of Labasa. He is the founder of the CJS Group of companies.
Harilal Manilal Patel is a Fiji Indian lawyer who has also been a member of the House of Representatives of Fiji.
Samresan Pillay is a former Fiji Indian soldier and teacher who has also been a member of the House of Representatives of Fiji.
Balwant Singh Rakkha was a Fiji Indian medical doctor and a member of the House of Representatives of Fiji representing the National Federation Party (NFP),but he is best known for his strong support for the former leader of the NFP,Sidiq Koya and the split caused within the NFP when he was rewarded by Koya for his loyalty by being given a seat in a constituency where he was a virtual unknown.
Shiromaniam Madhavan,son of a founding member of the National Federation Party (NFP),was a Fiji Indian politician who served in the Labasa Town Council and the House of Representatives. He contested numerous elections for different political parties.
This is a synopsis of organisations formed by Indians in Fiji. When they became free from the bondage of indenture and were able to organise themselves,they founded numerous organizations to seek social and political justice. These organisations promoted the teaching of Indian languages and religious practices and also to help others in time of need. Some of the successful organisations are listed below in the order in which they were established. Some,such as the National Federation Party,are no longer exclusively Indian,but are still predominantly so.
Indo-Fijians,also known as Indian Fijians,are Fijian citizens of South Asian descent,and include people who trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent. Although Indo-Fijians constituted a majority of Fiji's population from 1956 through the late 1980s,discrimination and the resulting brain drain resulted in them numbering 313,798 (37.6%) out of a total of 827,900 people living in Fiji as of 2007.
References
- ↑ Howard, Michael (1991). Fiji: Race and politics in an island state . Vancouver: UBC Press. pp. 380. ISBN 0-7748-0368-1.