Press Release

United States Views on Democracy and Fiji
 

On June 4, in a speech broadcast to the world from Cairo, President Barack Obama said:

"No system of government can or should be imposed upon one nation by any other...each nation gives life to this principle in its own way, grounded in the traditions of its own people. America does not presume to know what is best for everyone, just as we would not presume to pick the outcome of a peaceful election...all people yearn for certain things: the ability to speak your mind and have a say in how you are governed; confidence in the rule of law and the equal administration of justice; government that is transparent and doesn’t steal from the people; the freedom to live as you choose. Those are not just American ideas, they are human rights, and that is why we will support them everywhere...

Governments that protect these rights are ultimately more stable, successful and secure.  Suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away.  America respects the right of all peaceful and law-abiding voices to be heard around the world, even if we disagree with them.  And we will welcome all elected, peaceful governments –- provided they govern with respect for all their people, and participate with a spirit of tolerance and compromise..."

Since November 2008, Ambassador McGann and senior Embassy officials have expressed these views to Fijian officials and members of Fiji’s civil society, both through public statements and in private discussions.

June 10 marked two months since the collapse of Fiji's political dialogue process and the abrogation of Fiji's constitution.  The United States is disappointed by the extensions of the Public Emergency Regulations and the movement away from the goal of rapidly returning Fiji to democratic governance and its formerly leading role in the Pacific.  We are deeply concerned for the future of judicial independence, media freedom, and democracy itself in Fiji.

The United States has repeatedly stated that if Fiji takes credible steps toward elections, consistent with the principles articulated by the Pacific Islands Forum, the United States Government will help with that process.  Once a free and fairly elected government is restored in Suva, sanctions can be lifted and foreign assistance resumed.

The United States reiterates its call for Fiji to expeditiously return to democracy and to reinstate without conditions such basic human rights as freedom of speech and assembly.