Conman backs coup leader

Convicted conman Peter Foster has written an "insider's account" of Fiji's coup that holds self-imposed leader Frank Bainimarama up as the last bastion of hope for the troubled nation.

Foster, who is on parole after more than two years in jail for money laundering, has published a 60-page document he says reveals the truth behind Fiji's political volatility.

He says Bainimarama, who has been condemned by the Australian and New Zealand Governments and the Commonwealth for refusing to hold elections, is a "humble and decent" man who is Fiji's last hope.

The coup Bainimarama instigated in December 2006 desperately needed to happen to free Fiji from the corruption of the previous government, led by Laisenia Qarase, Foster claims.

He says on his website Fiji Truth that Qarase was corruptly elected and set the tone for corruption that Bainimarama has tried to break.

The claims have been denied by Qarase, who says: "As a convicted fraudster, Peter Foster cannot be trusted to speak the truth."

Others have questioned Foster's words, with one former friend, who did not wish to be named, labelling it "a lot of rubbish".

- AAP