Timeline Fiji
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The main island is Viti Levu where the Nadi
Int'l.
Airport is located. Other islands include Taveuni and Vanua Levu. Bouma
National Park on Taveuni is 6,177 acres owned and operated by local
villages.
(SFEC, 6/13/99, p.T5)
Taukei: the Fijian devotion to land ownership and the spirits of
ancestors.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.)
c1260BCE A pottery fragment from
this time was found in 2004 near Natadola in western Fiji. It was
believed to have been made by the Lapita people, who populated
Polynesia.
(Arch, 1/05, p.11)
1867 In Fiji Rev. Thomas Baker was
murdered and eaten by cannibals at Nubutautau, a remote community high
in the hills of the South Pacific island of Viti Levu. Residents later
complained of bad luck and called in descendants to lift a curse.
(AP, 11/11/03)
1870s Ethnic Indians were first
brought to Fiji as indentured laborers.
(SFC, 7/27/00, p.A10)
1878 Apr, A Fijian minister and
three teachers were killed and eaten by Tolai tribespeople on the
Gazelle Peninsula of Papua New Guinea. In 2007 descendants of the Tolai
apologized for their forefathers' actions. Englishman George Brown
directed and took part in a punitive expedition that resulted in a
number of Tolais being killed and several villages burnt down. Official
investigations by British colonial authorities in the Pacific cleared
him of criminal charges.
(AFP, 8/16/07)
1900s The British government
shipped mahogany seedlings from British Honduras in the early 1900s in
an experimental effort to create a new source for British furniture
makers. The seedlings flourished and the Fiji government started
regular plantings in the 1960s to ensure a steady crop.
(WSJ, 9/13/00, p.A1)
1963 The Fijian Alliance won
elections by appealing to Indians as well as Fijians.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1968 The Fijian Alliance won
elections again by appealing to Indians as well as Fijians.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1970 Oct 10, The South Pacific
island of Fiji became independent after nearly a century of British
rule. Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara (d.2004) became Fiji's first prime
minister. Fiji’s military at this time numbered about 200.
(SFC, 7/1/97, p.A9)(AP, 10/10/97)(AP, 4/19/04)(WSJ,
9/29/07, p.A6)
1971 Australia joined with New
Zealand and 14 independent of self-governing island nations to form the
South Pacific Forum. The name was changed in 2000 to Pacific Islands
Forum. Member states include: Australia, the Cook Islands, the
Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands,
Nauru, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon
Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. Since 2006, associate members
territories are New Caledonia and French Polynesia.
(Econ, 10/20/07,
p.61)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_Islands_Forum)
1972 The Fijian Alliance won
elections by appealing to Indians as well as Fijians.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1977 The largely Indian National
Federation Party won elections. It failed to form a government and Ratu
Mara was recalled to power.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1980 The 1949 film “The Blue
Lagoon” was remade with Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins. It was
about a boy and girl shipwrecked on an island for several years. It was
filmed on the Yasawa Islands of Fiji.
(SFC, 9/1/96, Par. p.10)
1987 Apr, In Fiji the largely
Indian National Federation Party won elections.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1987 May 13, The Fijian army under
Col. Sitiveni Rabuka staged the 1st of two coups this and overthrew the
country’s first Indian-dominated government. A 2nd coup followed on Sep
28. Sitiveni Rabuka later served as the prime minister (1992-1999). UN
peacekeeping operations had caused a 10-ford increase in military size
since independence in 1970.
(SFC, 5/18/99, p.C12)(Econ, 4/24/04,
p.88)(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sitiveni_Rabuka)(WSJ, 9/29/07, p.A6)
1990 A racist constitution was
drawn up that gave ethnic Fijians a permanent majority of seats in
Parliament.
(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
1994 Nov 16, The UN Law of the
Sea, ratified in 1993, took effect. Arvid Pardo (d.1999 at 85), Maltese
delegate to the UN, proposed in 1967 that the bounty of the sea should
be considered "the common heritage of mankind" and asked that some of
the sea's wealth be used to bankroll a fund to help close the gap
between rich and poor nations. The International Seabed Authority came
into existence as the law took effect. The first Secretary-General of
the Authority, Satya Nandan (Fiji) was elected in March 1996, and the
Authority became fully operational as an autonomous international
organization in June 1996, when it took over the premises and
facilities in Kingston, Jamaica. The UN Law of the Sea treaty, which
extended internationally recognized territorial waters to 200 miles
offshore, came into force one year after the sixtieth state, Guyana,
signed it.
(http://tinyurl.com/2wsq9p)(SFC, 7/19/99, p.A22)
1994 Jim Hormel, scion of the
Hormel Meat Co., was proposed by the US State Dept. as ambassador to
Fiji until it was learned that Fiji had incorporated sodomy statutes
into its penal code.
(SFEM, 6/16/96, BR p.32)
1996 Apr 18, A base at Qana,
Lebanon, manned by Fijian UNIFIL troops was shelled by Israel and led
to 75 (revised to 106) civilian deaths. A later UN investigation found
the remains of 15 Israeli shells that indicated a targeted assault.
Israel called the attack an "unfortunate mistake."
(WSJ, 4/19/96, p.A-1)(SFC, 5/7/96, p.A-8)(AP,
4/18/97)(AP, 7/26/06)
1996 Apr 18, A base manned by
Fijian UN troops in Lebanon was shelled by Israel and led to 75
(revised to 91) civilian deaths. A later UN investigation found the
remains of 15 Israeli shells that indicated a targeted assault. Israel
called the attack an "unfortunate mistake."
(WSJ, 4/19/96, p.A-1)(SFC, 5/7/96, p.A-8)(AP,
4/18/97)
1997 Fiji drew up a new
multi-racial constitution. It took effect in 1998.
(Econ, 8/14/04, p.40)
1998 Jul 27, A new constitution
took effect with a bill of rights that replaced a document that barred
non-native people from top posts. Indians made up about 46% of the
population.
(SFC, 7/28/98, p.A10)
1999 May 8, Balloting began for a
new government.
(SFC, 5/18/99, p.C12)
1999 May 17, Early ballot results
showed the Labor Party, led by Mahendra Chaudhry, leading with 11 seats
in the 71 member parliament. The Fijian Political Party of Prime
Minister Rabuka had only 6 seats.
(SFC, 5/18/99, p.C12)
1999 May 18, Mahendra Chaudry was
appointed as the first Indian prime minister. His coalition held 52
seats.
(SFC, 5/19/99, p.A12)
2000 Apr 9, Vijay Singh of Fiji
won the US Masters Golf Tournament.
(WSJ, 4/10/00, p.A24)
2000 May 18, In Fiji 7 men led by
George Speight, a Fijian businessman, staged a coup. They stormed the
parliament and seized prime minister Chaudhry and 7 cabinet ministers.
At the same time a march in Suva by supporters of the nationalist
Taukei Movement erupted into rioting. Pres. Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara
declared a state of emergency and took command of the military.
(SFC, 5/19/00, p.A20)(SFC, 5/20/00, p.A8)
2000 May 19, Masked gunmen
launched a coup in Fiji that toppled Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry,
the country’s first ethnic Indian premier.
(AP, 5/19/01)
2000 May 21, In Fiji 10 junior MPs
were released after they signed resignation letters. Prime Minister
Chaudhry also agreed to sign a letter of resignation.
(SFEC, 5/21/00, p.B11)
2000 May 26, In Fiji Pres. Mara
fired the elected government and said he would probably grant immunity
to coup leaders.
(SFC, 5/27/00, p.A12)
2000 May 28, Some 200 rebel
supporters stormed through Suva and one police officer was killed. The
Fiji Television building was rampaged and knocked off the air. George
Speight called for the resignation of Pres. Mara and for the
constitution to be scrapped.
(SFC, 5/29/00, p.A11)
2000 May 29, In Fiji Commodore
Frank Bainimarama seized power to restore order following the coup.
Pres. Mara stepped down from power and retired to Lau.
(SFC, 5/30/00, p.A12)(Econ, 4/24/04, p.88)
2000 Jun 11, The political crises
reduced tourism to 10% and threatened the leading sugar processing and
garment manufacturing industries.
(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.A26)
2000 Jul 4, In Fiji Laisenia
Qarase was sworn in as prime minister along with a 19-member all-Fijian
temporary government.
(SFC, 7/4/00, p.A9)
2000 Jul 7, In Fiji supporters of
George Speight seized up to 30 hostages at Korovou.
(SFC, 7/8/00, p.A11)
2000 Jul 9, Rebels signed a deal
to return their captives in exchange for an end to the country’s
multiracial democracy.
(SFC, 7/10/00, p.A8)
2000 Jul 12, Coup leaders released
the last 18 hostages and ended a standoff that began May 18.
(SFC, 7/13/00, p.A12)
2000 Jul 13, In Fiji the Great
Council of Chiefs elected Ratu Josefa Iloilo as the new president.
(SFC, 7/14/00, p.A13)
2000 Nov 2, Some 40 soldiers of
the Counter Revolutionary Warfare unit attempted to take over the main
military base at Suva. 8 people were killed. Most of the renegade
soldiers were soon captured.
(SFC, 11/4/00, p.A14)
2000 Jul 26, George Speight was
arrested by the military, which then stormed a stronghold of his
followers.
(SFC, 7/27/00, p.A10)
2000 The population if Fiji this
year was about 813,000.
(SFEC, 6/11/00, p.A26)
2001 Mar 1, The Fiji high court
ruled that the military-backed government was illegal and that the 1997
multi-racial constitution remained in effect.
(SFC, 3/2/01, p.D5)(Econ, 8/14/04, p.40)
2001 Mar 13, Traditional chiefs
selected Ratu Josefa Iloilo as president for a 5-year term.
(SFC, 3/14/01, p.12)
2001 Sep 10, Pres. Iloilo swore in
banker Laisenia Qarase as prime minister.
(SFC, 9/10/01, p.B1)
2002 Jul 3, An oil tanker was
reported to have run aground in stormy seas on a reef near Fiji's
popular tourist islands, threatening an ecological disaster if the
cargo leaks.
(Reuters, 7/3/02)
2002 Nov 6, In Fiji a military
panel convicted 15 elite army soldiers of mutiny for their roles in a
deadly shootout at the country's main barracks two years ago.
(AP, 11/6/02)
2002 The Seacology environmental
group agreed to build a community center in the Yasawa Islands of Fiji
in exchange for leaving an isle undeveloped for 20 years and a fishing
reserve for 10 years.
(SSFC, 8/4/02, p.A3)
2003 Jan 13, Cyclone Ami as it
roared over Fiji and 9 people were killed.
(AP, 1/15/03)
2003 Oct 11, It was reported that
a worsening drought in Fiji has caused thousands of people to lose
water supplies, with large parts of Suva receiving water by truck.
(SSFC, 10/11/03, p.C10)
2004 Apr 18, Ratu Sir Kamisese
Mara (83), Fiji's first prime minister and a key U.S. ally in the South
Pacific during the Cold War, died. The paramount chief of the Lau
Islands of eastern Fiji, he was revered for holding together bickering
tribes as he welded Fiji into a stable, multiracial nation after 96
years of colonial British rule.
(AP, 4/19/04)
2006 Apr 4, Wen Jiabao arrived in
Fiji as the first Chinese premier to visit the Pacific islands, seeking
to deepen China's influence in the region and contain Taiwan's
diplomatic clout.
(AP, 4/4/06)
2006 May 16, Fiji's
indigenous-dominated governing party led the Indian-dominated
opposition after a second day of general election vote-counting, with
voters polarized along racial lines.
(AP, 5/16/06)
2006 May 17, Fiji's caretaker PM
Laisenia Qarase claimed victory in parliamentary elections and said he
was committed to improving the South Pacific country's relations
between indigenous Fijians and the ethnic Indian minority.
(AP, 5/17/06)
2006 Oct 27, In Fiji the
dysfunctional parliament was dissolved.
(Econ, 12/9/06, p.50)
2006 Nov 1, Fiji's prime minister
insisted that his government would not step down despite pressure from
the country's military commander, whose relentless criticism of the
administration has raised fears of a possible coup.
(AP, 11/1/06)
2006 Nov 2, Commonwealth Secretary
General Don McKinnon warned Fiji's military commander against a coup
after the commander said that the Pacific island nation could be
sliding towards "bloodshed."
(AFP, 11/2/06)
2006 Nov 5, Fiji's military,
locked in a standoff with the government, accused Australia on of
breaching its sovereignty by sending an unspecified number of police it
described as mercenaries into the country.
(AP, 11/5/06)
2006 Nov 30, Talks to avert a coup
in Fiji were deemed "a failure" by the country's military commander,
who issued a fresh threat that he will quickly move to replace the
government if it doesn't meet his demands. Commodore Frank Bainimarama
said that the government had not gone far enough and he set a next day
deadline for its capitulation. Bainimarama wants the government to kill
legislation that would grant pardons to conspirators in a 2000 coup,
and quash two other bills that he says unfairly favor majority
indigenous Fijians over the ethnic Indian minority.
(AP, 11/30/06)
2006 Dec 3, Commodore Frank
Bainimarama told Fiji One television that he wants PM Laisenia Qarase
to resign so the military can name a new government for the South
Pacific island nation.
(AP, 12/3/06)
2006 Dec 4, In Fiji soldiers moved
against at least two police compounds, seizing weapons in the apparent
first step toward taking over the South Pacific island nation.
(AP, 12/4/06)
2006 Dec 5, The military seized
control of Fiji after weeks of threats, locking down the capital with
armed troops and isolating at home the elected leader whose last-minute
pleas for help from foreign forces were rejected. Commodore Frank
Bainimarama named Dr. Jona Senilagakali, a military medic with no
political experience, as caretaker prime minister and said a full
interim government would be appointed next week to see the country
through to elections that would restore democracy sometime in the
future. PM Laisenia Qarase, who had caved in to all demands, was
deposed anyway. Pres. Ratu Josefa Iloilo, refused to rubber-stamp
Bainimarama’s “doctrine of necessity.”
(AP, 12/5/06)(Econ, 12/9/06, p.49)
2006 Dec 6, Commodore Frank
Bainimarama, the military ruler who led a coup against Fiji's elected
government, forcibly dissolved the South Pacific island's parliament,
installed a new prime minister and warned that he could use force
against dissenters.
(AP, 12/6/06)
2006 Dec 7, Fiji's newly-imposed
premier, Jona Senilagakali (77), admitted the army ouster of the
elected government was illegal and that elections could be two years
away, but said the nation did not need Western-style democracy.
(AFP, 12/7/06)
2006 Dec 8, The Commonwealth
Ministerial Action Group announced Fiji is to be immediately suspended
from the Commonwealth following a military coup there earlier this
week. The Commonwealth of Nations is a successor to the British Empire
and brings together some 53 nations, around a third of the world's
countries and a quarter of the world's population.
(AP, 12/8/06)
2006 Dec 10, The military regime
announced a crackdown on critics of Fiji's coup, just hours after a
house that had become a rallying point for those wanting a return to
democracy was ransacked by unknown assailants.
(AP, 12/10/06)
2006 Dec 11, Fiji's military
regime banished ousted Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase from the capital
and warned that open opposition to the takeover would be met with force.
(AP, 12/11/06)
2007 Jun 14, Fiji's military ruler
said he was expelling New Zealand's top diplomat, sending already
strained relations between the South Pacific nation and one of its
biggest neighbors spiraling even lower. Commodore Bainimarama said he
had told New Zealand High Commissioner Michael Green to leave because
the diplomat would not "stop interfering in Fiji's domestic affairs."
(AP, 6/14/07)
2007 Sep 6, Fiji's military-led
government imposed a monthlong state of emergency, accusing the prime
minister who was ousted in a coup last year of seeking to "destabilize"
the South Pacific nation.
(AP, 9/7/07)(Econ, 9/29/07, p.46)
2007 Oct 17,
Fiji's coup leader Voreqe Bainimarama pledged to hold elections
in early 2009 as Pacific countries welcomed the move and vowed to
continue pressing for progress at a regional summit.
(AP, 10/17/07)
2008 Jun 18, A European Union
delegation met Fiji's coup leader Voreqe Bainimarama, seeking
assurances that he will stick to a pledge to hold elections to restore
democracy by March 2009.
(AP, 6/18/08)
2008 Aug 19, The 39th annual
Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) opened in Niue. Members at the 2-day forum
agreed to threaten Fiji with suspension unless elections are held as
scheduled by March 2009.
(Econ, 8/23/08,
p.34)(www.forumsec.org/event.cfm?cmd=list&sd=200808)
2009 Jan 12, Fiji authorities
rushed to deliver clean drinking water and other supplies to thousands
of villagers who fled flooding from tropical storms. The storms left 11
people dead.
(AP, 1/12/09)(SSFC, 1/25/09, p.E2)
2009 Jan 27, Pacific Island
leaders gathered in Port Moresby and threatened to expel Fiji from
their forum if coup leader Frank Bainimarama fails to announce credible
plans for elections.
(Econ, 1/31/09,
p.48)(www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2008/s2475598.htm)
2009 Apr 9, A court in
coup-plagued Fiji declared the military government illegal and said the
president should immediately appoint an interim leader to oversee a
return to democracy.
(AP, 4/9/09)
2009 Apr 10, Fiji's Pres. Ratu
Josefa Iloilo (88) suspended the constitution of his troubled South
Pacific country and fired the judges who had declared its military
government illegal.
(AP, 4/10/09)(Econ, 4/18/09, p.44)
2009 Apr 15, Fiji's military
government tightened controls on the media, devalued the currency by
20% and said it would not tolerate opposition to plans for a sweeping
overhaul of the country's politics.
(AP, 4/15/09)(Econ, 4/18/09, p.44)
2009 May 2, South Pacific nations
announced that military-ruled Fiji has been suspended from the
16-nation bloc for its rejection of democracy, freedom and human rights.
(SFC, 5/2/09, p.A2)
2009 Jul 28, Fiji’s self-appointed
PM Commodore Frank Bainimarama, who took power in a bloodless 2006
coup, said aged and ailing President Ratu Josefa Iloilo will retire on
July 30.
(AP, 7/28/09)
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