Three days of drama as guns bring Fiji to a halt

By NAOMI LARKIN

SUVA - A bare-chested, muscle-bound man carrying a submachine gun wanders out of Parliament Buildings and swears at the gathered throng of journalists before shouting a bizarre order at one of his men - "walk straight, like a snake."

It's 2 am yesterday, and this is Fiji.

The gunman, with his drunken gait and love of expletives, is a rare glimpse of one of the people who have held Fiji to ransom since George Speight arrived at Parliament in Suva on Friday morning with a minibus full of hooded and armed accomplices.

Speight seized Prime Minister Mahendra Chaudhry and members of his Coalition Government, handcuffing the Premier and humiliating him by making him kneel in the centre of the debating chamber.

Since then, the face of Suva has changed dramatically.

With 20 stores burned out and 167 looted during a rampage after the coup, it is a very different Fiji to the cheerful holiday destination that is a haven for thousands of tourists every year.

By dawn on Saturday, police had set up roadblocks of rolls of rusted barbed wire and strips of steel spikes. About 200 unarmed soldiers were brought in as backups for the police patrols.

A few service stations and a bread shop were the only businesses open in central Suva by mid-morning.

Fiji has not had such an influx of the world's press and TV since the first coup in May 1987. All journalists are required to obtain car curfew permits from the downtown police station to allow them through the roadblocks, set up after the President, Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara, declared a state of emergency on Friday night.

Although the country is engulfed in political upheaval, life for people - apart from the shopowners whose businesses have been trashed, or the families and friends of the captives and the hostages - appears unchanged.

Mary Koto, Mili and Livia Suka and Anna Lutu live in a two-roomed house opposite the entrance to Parliament, where Mr Chaudhry and the other hostages are held.

Sharing tea and the hospitality for which the islands are renowned, they say that they are not frightened.

Mary Koto says that as indigenous Fijians, they supported the coup.

"We want a Fijian leader," she said.

Opposite, the number of armed men has grown from the original seven to around 30. Most are roaming around Parliament's grounds.

Only local journalists are allowed into the area.

The Army and the police have pledged allegiance to Ratu Mara and the 1997 constitution.

The former Prime Minister and leader of the 1987 coups, Major-General Sitiveni Rabuka, has created a key position for himself as the link between Ratu Mara and Speight.

"I am totally behind the President, and I believe we can come out of this constitutionally," he declares.

He admits his relationship with Ratu Mara got off to a "cold start."

"His Excellency was informed I was part of Speight's group, but I assured him that was not the case," he said. "I can't be seen to have any part in dismantling the constitution I helped bring into being."

General Rabuka said the confusion arose because he was seen talking to some of the men involved in the coup at church the previous Sunday.

He confirmed they were members of the Army but did not say if they were fulltime soldiers or reservists.

General Rabuka said that as head of the Great Council of Chiefs he had called a meeting of the council for tomorrow.

On Saturday afternoon, several shops in Rakiraki, about four hours' drive from Suva, were torched. The courthouse and a school were also set alight, and youths stoned the police station.

Also on Saturday, Fiji Trades Union Congress general secretary Felix Anthony called on all affiliates not to go to work as a protest against the Speight coup.

"There will be no compromise of any sort until he releases Mr Chaudhry and his colleagues," Mr Anthony said.

Around 4.30 pm, the New Zealand High Commissioner in Fiji, Tia Barrett, and his military attache arrived at Government House to organise a telephone conference link with New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark. The link failed.

Just before Mr Barrett's arrival, Ratu Mara addressed the nation on television, declaring he would not bow to the rebels' threats.

"The perpetrators should not underestimate my unshakeable determination to maintain the integrity and stability of the state to protect the rights and interests of the people."

Ratu Mara said he would use "all the authority and resources" at his command to bring a "just and peaceful solution to a tragic chapter in our history."

"The Government will go to great lengths to avoid confrontation with the attackers who terrorise our nation and threaten the lives of its Government. We wish to see the impasse broken and the captives set free, but we will not bow down to threats and coercion."

Ratu Mara said that, under the state of emergency, he had assumed executive authority.

Speight has named Bau chief Ratu Jope Naucabalavu as his president.

Ratu Mara assured Fijians that their constitution and the institutions of the state would remain intact.

The "disciplined services" had reaffirmed their loyalty and allegiance, he said. These included Police Commissioner Isikia Savua, acting Fiji Military Forces commander Colonel Alfred Tuatoka and the secretary for Home Affairs, former Army Brigadier George Konrote.

The Chief Justice, Sir Timoci Tuivaga, had also given the full commitment of the Judiciary.

Ratu Mara said the Government had also been given backing by a number of chiefs.

He commended General Rabuka for his efforts.

"Major-General Rabuka has emerged as a trusted and invaluable mediator between the Government and the terrorist group," Ratu Mara said.

"He is working tirelessly to persuade Mr Speight and his band to lay down their arms, free the captives and withdraw from Parliament as an essential first step to entering into further dialogue."

Ratu Mara told indigenous Fijians they had his "personal guarantee as executive head of the republic" that issues they had raised would be dealt with fully.

"Your position as the indigenous community will be protected and enhanced.

"Let us turn our faces against the evil of those who see guns and violence as a means of achieving their ends."

In response to this announcement, Speight allowed foreign journalists to pass the police-manned barbed-wire road blockade at the entrance to Parliament for a press conference.

Staying behind the tall iron gates at the entrance, Speight talked for almost an hour. He appeared to be revelling in the international attention.

He said he was open to dialogue with Ratu Mara, but was disappointed with the President's insistence on remaining in his post despite the takeover.

Early yesterday, a group of hostages was released.

John Ali, one of those freed, told the Herald the situation had been "really, really frightening" and he was relieved to be free.

Mr Ali burst into tears as he described his reunion with his wife and three children.

"There was great emotion. They were all waiting for me. My friends were all around here at my home."

He said his captors had treated him and his colleagues well - they were fed and given water - but the situation was becoming increasingly tense.

"It wasn't a drama or some sort of play - they really meant business and they knew what they were doing. The most frightening thing was the number of guns being carried by these people."

Mr Ali said the hostages were fearful that the Army would storm the building in a bid to free them.

Mr Ali made a plea for Speight to free unharmed his colleagues who remained hostage.

Mr Chaudhry's wife, Birimati, said she had remained strong during the ordeal. She had been unable to contact her husband or her son, a prime ministerial aide.

"If I had wanted to speak to them at all, I would have had to go through George Speight and I didn't want to do that."

She said that when she heard that her husband had collapsed, she contacted her family doctor. "They were told that he was resting."

She said her husband was a "very strong-headed man, and I know that whatever decision he will take he will be making the best decision. But he is not someone who can be lightly tackled."

Last night, Speight denied Ratu Mara's claims that the putsch leaders planned to kill hostages one by one unless the President resigned.

After almost 60 hours, the two men were as far apart as when Speight's group arrived at Parliament's main chamber.