In an unconventional move, the New Zealand government hosted
Wednesday crisis talks for Fiji's Government and army leaders
trying to avert a coup, but so far with little progress.
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Talks started at around 10:10 AM in the morning at the Government
House, the Wellington office of New Zealand's Governor-General
Anand Satyanand.
All parties were trying to take the meeting more exclusive. New
Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters and Fiji's Prime Minister
Laisenia Qarase went into the Government House in separate cars,
and Fiji's army commander Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama had arrived
through a back entrance.
About half an hour, the media waiting outside was told the three
had left via the back entrance.
The meeting was the first direct talks between Qarase and
Bainimarama in 10 months.
Earlier, Bainimarama, who is here for christening of a
granddaughter, and has delayed his return for this talks, told
Auckland-based Indian radio station Radio Tarana that the meeting
will be "very simple."
"He (Qarase) comes with a yes or a no to our demands, full
stop."
"He's going to be wasting his time debating issues with me. The
meeting's going to be the shortest meeting he's ever attended in
his life," said Bainimarama.
The outspoken army commander also warned Fiji's prime minister
to be prepared to answer to the consequences of foreign
intervention.
"The army's not going to stand for any foreign intervention,
full stop," said Bainimarama.
Tensions in Fiji have been high since Bainimarama threatened last
month to remove Prime Minister Qarase from office.
Bainimarama ever backed down from those threats after Qarase met
his demand to amend controversial legislation, removing amnesties
for people convicted over Fiji's 2000 coup.
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He issued last week demands to the government and a two-week
deadline to comply, and has recalled army reservists in readiness
for what he described as a "clean-up" of the Qarase government.
Qarase, who was sent to Wellington Tuesday night by a New
Zealand military flight, said before the meeting that there was
fear and anxiety in Fiji as the country faced the possibility of a
fourth military coup in two decades.
"The future of Fiji really depends on him and I today," he
said.
Qarase repeatedly said that he is ready to meet with Bainimarama
for discussions about a list of concerns submitted to the
Government by the Army.
Qarase said he has an open mind about the discussions and would
like to hear directly from the commander.
The military, he said, had been given the opportunity to make
its views known to the Parliamentary Sector Committees which took
submissions from the public on these items of draft
legislation.
The crisis talks were arranged rather abruptly prior to a
regional meeting to be held in Sydney this Friday.
With the invitation from the Fijian Government, foreign
ministers from 16 Pacific nations will then discuss the situation
in Fiji.
NZ media reports said New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark won
the Fiji Government's agreement after a telephone conversation with
Qarase and confirmation from the Fiji national security
council.
Clark said Tuesday that New Zealand has been concerned for
sometime at the escalating tensions between the Fijian Government
and military.
"Our efforts over the last few days have been directed towards
encouraging direct dialogue between the Fijian Government and
military," said Clark.
James Funnell, senior press secretary of the New Zealand foreign
minister, told Xinhua that Qarase and Bainimarama have now both
left from Wellington airport for Fiji, and the New Zealand foreign
minister might hold a news briefing late in the afternoon.
(Xinhua News Agency November 29, 2006 )
