Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

Julie Bishop, Australia's foreign minister, will tell you that Fiji is a critical economic, transport and political hub in the Pacific, and that it plays a natural leadership role in the region. A thriving and prosperous Pacific will not be complete without a thriving and prosperous Fiji. In short, it was important to all of the nations in the Pacific, including Australia, that this election was a success.

Australia was invited to co-lead the multinational observer group, MOG, with Indonesia and India. Being part of this election was one of the most gratifying things I have done as a member of parliament. We were part of an accredited group of observers from the host nations, along with Canada, the European Union, Israel, Japan, the Melanesian Spearhead Group—which included Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands—New Zealand, Korea, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the USA. In all, there were 92 of us and we attended just over one-third of the booths in operation on the day of the election—all across the many islands of the country.

This is a country which had not had an election in eight years. Eight years ago, the voting age was 21. This time around, the voting age was 18. Still, many people, just under the age of 30 would be having the first democratic vote of their lives.

The enthusiasm shown by the voting public was overwhelming. As we travelled around Nadi, both in town and way up in the hills in the very small villages, the feeling was the same. They all wanted this and they were proud to be taking part in their own history.

Many people were ready early and stood quietly, in the sun, dressed formally to exercise their vote. The booth workers were incredible with their diligence to the task at hand and their attention to detail. When we finished, at around 11.30 pm, some of these booth workers had put in days of over 18 hours and still had smiles on their faces.

The work in creating the new voting system was no mean feat. The pressure on the Fijian Electoral Commission was huge. The targeted assistance by the brave and hardy band of Australian public servants who went over to help must never be underestimated. We did not take over; nor did we perform some form of big brother role. Our public servants worked side by side with one goal in mind: the return of full democracy to this great Pacific nation, so that this would be the first of many elections and Fiji would prosper because of that.

Many people were worried that it might be cancelled at the last moment, and many were worried that the result could be fixed. From what I saw—obviously, the election was not cancelled—the work of the booth attendants was absolutely first-class. They knew that if they did their job very well their nation would benefit. Not one booth worker I saw during that very long day was slacking off. They did not want a failure of this to be sheeted home to them personally.

John Howard would always say that the electorate always gets it right. To all involved I say: thank you and congratulations. To the hardworking staff of the Australian High Commission and the MOG I say a tremendous thank you and congratulations. The work they did in the lead-up to this over months and months was no mean feat. We had to make sure that this thing was going to be a success. The MOG was based in Suva and we travelled across the country. Some of us went to islands. Some of us went to other parts of the main island. But, to a person, we came back and, whilst you could nitpick on certain things and you could always pick holes in someone's arguments, there was a general consensus that this was hugely successful. And, for a first election, it was tremendously successful. The people involved should be very proud. Even more proud should be the people of Fiji—the way they turned up; the way they had their voter cards; the way, as they travelled about the next day coming back to Suva, everyone would show their finger where it was inked to show that they had in fact voted—that they had participated in it.

There was only one error in the entire time, and that really was not the fault of the Australian High Commission; it was actually ex-Senator Russell Trood who threw out the mathematics, leaving one particular member stranded at the hotel instead of getting to the airport on time. The member for Greenway will go down in history as the one they left behind! But it was very comfortable in Fiji—very comfortable indeed. So, to everyone in Fiji: we hope we will be back, and I say, 'Sola tale nima taha.'

Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Matt Thistlethwaite (Kingsford Smith, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Foreign Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am pleased to add a contribution to this important motion congratulating the Fijian people on the elections that were held on 17 September this year. A number of us were fortunate to be part of an observer mission to view those elections and to play a role in this vital step that Fiji has taken on the path back to democracy. The successful and well-run elections on 17 September were an important first step on that path back to democracy.

The relationship between Australia and Fiji—and, indeed, other nations within the Pacific—is a very important one, and many of the Pacific nations have been willing Fiji back to democracy through a democratic election process. Fiji is of course the headquarters of the Pacific Islands Forum and a key economy in the Pacific. Historically, it is a nation that Australia has had very proud and long-lasting ties with. So it was pleasing to see that Australia played one of the leading roles as part of the Multinational Observer Group. That group was made up of representatives of 15 nations who did their best to cover most of Fiji and observe the process of the elections and ensure that they ran smoothly.

I want to congratulate and thank all of the nations that made a contribution to the process of the multilateral observer group. In particular, I think Australia can be very proud of the role that our bureaucrats played behind the scenes in working with the people of Fiji and providing advice to Fijian officials on how to conduct successful elections. That process was led by Andrew Goledzinowski from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, who did an excellent job in the lead-up to the elections and in working with the Fijian government and officials on the process and the multilateral observer group. We also pay tribute to Glen Miles, the Acting Australian High Commissioner in Fiji, who has done a very good job under difficult circumstances over recent years. Glen has been acting in that role because the Fijian government has not granted agrimont to our proposed High Commissioner, Margaret Twomey, and hopefully that issue will now be resolved given that Fiji has held successful elections.

I was fortunate to visit Labassa, a rural city on the northern island of Venua Levu. It is sugar cane territory in the grips of a severe drought. On election day, my colleagues and I observed the people of PNG come out in force. They were very excited and proud to have a say in their future once again. Despite the very complicated electoral process, we observed that the process ran quite smoothly. I must say that the result was broadly representative of the will of the Fijian people. But, as we all know, there is more to democracy than simply holding elections. In the wake of the 2006 coup, there was a military crackdown on dissent within Fiji. The media was heavily censored. I recall reading newspapers in Fiji where whole pages just had the word 'Censored' across the otherwise blank pages, because of the operation of the media decree. Freedom of speech was restricted and political campaigning was very much restricted.

Thankfully I observed on my second visit to Fiji in the last 12 months that things had improved. That is good, but there is still a way to go. The next period for Fiji is crucial. The parliament must be convened and the government must grant priority to establishing orders of the parliament that are transparent, accountable and provide faith for the Fijian people in the process of decision-making and law-making. That includes such things as freedom of information laws, abolishing the very restrictive media decree and removing restrictions on candidature for people to run in elections. Despite all of that, I think Fiji is on the right path. I am very proud to have played a role in the Fijian elections, and certainly the Labor Party looks forward to working with the people of Fiji in restoring democracy once and for all.

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to speak in support of this motion by the member for Herbert. Australia played an important role in the Fiji election as co-lead of the Multinational Observer Group, known as the MOG, together with Indonesia and India. The MOG comprised 92 observers from 15 countries and organisations: Australia, Canada, the European Union, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Melanesian Spearhead Group, New Zealand, the Republic of Korea, Russia, South Africa, Turkey, the UK and the USA. Having served in the Australian delegation to the MOG, led by former minister Peter Reith, it was indeed a very rare and personal privilege to bear witness to a nation returning to democracy after a period of military government.

Australia has such a long and proud history of stable democracy. We sometimes take for granted our electoral rights and responsibilities. To see the Fijian people embrace this opportunity was extremely heartening and a reminder of the duty we all bear as elected representatives. The MOG did not run the election, nor were we there to be political commentators, but our observations were extensive, involving a lot of consultation with all sectors of the community in the lead-up to the election and particularly on election day. On election day, 17 September, members of the MOG visited 455 polling stations, which was around 31 per cent of the total number of polling stations. We took our responsibility seriously and we even had our own discrete tally room to ensure that the results posted matched what had been observed.

While a full report is due next month, the provisional statement made on 18 September found that the Fijian elections had been credible and that the conditions were in place for Fijians to exercise their right to vote freely and the outcome was on track to broadly represent the will of Fijian voters. It is worth noting that Australia, as well as co-leading the MOG, was also an important practical supporter of Fiji's election preparations, including providing six Australian election experts to work in the Fijian elections office.

Since coming to office, our government has taken a leadership role in normalising relations with Fiji within the region. As far back as late last year, the incoming government announced a new policy of enhanced engagement with Fiji, centred on increased cooperation in political and economic relations. Australia's conciliatory role earlier this year included working constructively towards democracy through the Pacific Islands Forum Ministerial Contact Group. I congratulate the foreign minister on her leadership and her understanding of the way to achieve democracy in Fiji through respectful negotiation and discussion.

I also want to take this opportunity to congratulate Prime Minister Bainimarama on both his election win and his decision to entrust the people of Fiji with the right to determine their destiny. Without raking over the history of the military coup, it is sufficient to say that few people in such positions of power relinquish control willingly. It is a measure of his regard within Fiji that his Fiji First Party received a resounding majority of the vote—around 59 per cent.

Of course, there are still many challenges to be faced when it comes to building a new parliamentary culture. Early judicial decisions taken on constitutional issues will help determine the success of the new system, and the degree of confidence the Fijian community has in it. As Peter Reith, our delegation leader, put it recently: 'Needless to say, democracy is not a one-day wonder. Fiji will need to continue and improve the practice of democracy.'

It is early days, but Australia certainly stands ready to work with the Fijian government to meet any challenges and to build on the very strong relationship between our two nations. It is worth noting that 300,000 Australians visit Fiji every year. In fact, Australia is the largest source country for Fiji's successful tourism industry. Further, Australian trade with Fiji is worth $2 billion every year and Australia is the largest foreign investor in Fiji. There are also around 50,000 Fijian nationals living in Australia. So the ties between our two nations are undeniably strong. We both play a vital role in the region and a harmonious and constructive relationship is in both our interests.

I want to take a moment to thank Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade staff, led by observer coordinator Andrew Goledzinowski, who supported not only the Australian participants in the MOG, but all 92 observers. I also acknowledge the staff at the Australian high commission, led by Acting High Commissioner Glenn Miles. Finally, it is the Fijian people themselves who deserve our congratulations, respect and admiration for the way they conducted themselves and for the enthusiasm they displayed.

Michelle Rowland (Greenway, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Communications) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Fiji is my ancestral home. My mother was a descendant from the island of Bau, the royal island. It was quite momentous for me to visit Fiji for the first time, to watch in great anticipation as a member of the Multinational Observer Group for Fiji's election day and to see the sun rise over the bay in Levuka on the morning of polling day, Wednesday, 17 September. I was deployed to the island of Ovalau as part of the MOG 42 team, which included Wyatt Creech, former deputy prime minister of New Zealand, Sandra Kraushaar, the Australian liaison officer, and Aisake Rasalala, our driver.

I am sure it could be said for any number of beautiful places in Fiji, but I think that, if you had only 24 hours in that country, circumnavigating Ovalau would give you a fantastic insight into Fiji and its people. Even on Natovi jetty, waiting for the ferry on the afternoon before, which was running on island time, we had the opportunity to speak to lots of locals. There was great enthusiasm. Many were in their late 20s and had never voted before and were relishing the opportunity.

As we were briefed on before our departure, however, there was an air of distrust in society. The night before the election, in Levuka, we were talking to some Fiji nationals originally from the United Kingdom. A man named David, who had made Fiji his home, said, 'Sure, we will queue up tomorrow morning, but what happens in between my vote going into the ballot box and that box making its way to the counting station in Suva?' We explained that, unlike in previous elections, this voting was occurring on one day only. The count would be conducted at the venue and the results posted outside. And there David was, queued up at 7 am the next day at Levuka town hall. We covered around 12 polling booths—just about all of them, I believe, on the island. Many of these, as I am sure my colleagues in the MOG would attest, were small villages, such as the village of the Lovoni, which was in the centre of Ovalau. In order to get to this polling place we literally had to climb a mountain, and one side of the mountain was on fire! It was no mean feat that we managed to not only make it to that booth but to also observe the absolute professionalism of the Fijian officials who were conducting and overseeing that booth.

Our day started well before 7 am at the Levuka town hall, and the day ran so smoothly from that point onwards. As I said, it was an absolute tribute to the Fijian people. Most people voted early. It was a public holiday, so from about lunchtime some of those booths had very few or no voters at all; however, those officials held their posts. They did not leave; they did everything in accordance with exactly how they had been trained. I want to place on record how professional the local polling staff were at each booth we visited. They were dedicated; they found workarounds. They found a way for everything, from bringing their own chairs to the care they took of voters, especially older voters, many of whom had eyesight issues—unfortunately, this is very common in some parts of Fiji. They would bring them a table; they would bring them a booth. Even if they needed to assist them in saying what number they wanted to cross, they would take such time and care with them. That is a tribute to not only the polling officials but also to the patience of the Fijian voters. Many of them had been queueing, often in the sun, for a long time but there were no complaints when elderly or frail people were brought to the head of the queue to vote.

We had a debrief the following day, and as my colleagues there will attest I think there was a point when the Australian delegation said, virtually with one voice: 'Look, this needs to be judged by Pacific standards, not by a European or any other standard. Sure there may have been some glitches, sure maybe even some of the processes were over-engineered in part, but this process was a credit to its people.' The fact that our own scrutineering matched almost exactly the official tally results gave us a good sense of the veracity of the early results.

I also want to place on record my thanks to all the MOG team, the high commission and the department, and all the locals and the NGO staff who were engaged in the process. We will be having a debrief next week, but following the preliminary statement I think it is right that we should reiterate that preliminary statement here today. In the view of the MOG:

There is so much potential for Fiji to grow and take its place as a leading nation and economy in the Pacific. There is significant foreign direct investment going into many sectors, including construction; there are opportunities for long-term industry given industry is a common language; and, above all, its beautiful people are its best resource. I proudly wear the Fijian and Australian flags today. I say, 'Bula vinaka,' to the people of Fiji. Thank you very much; I look forward to us having long-term relationships as parliamentarians.

Debate adjourned.