A group of five from Fiji — including Commodore Bainimarama, two senior ministers and two officials — have been given one-off transit visas to pass through Auckland next week on the way to Niue for a meeting of Pacific leaders.
Air New Zealand operates the only commercial flights to Niue, from Auckland, making it necessary for New Zealand to waive its ban for the trip to allow Bainimarama to attend.
New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and her Australian counterpart, Kevin Rudd, are expected to be on the same flight as Bainimarama heading to the Pacific Islands Forum, where Fiji will be a major issue.
A spokeswoman for Clark said the exception was to allow Pacific leaders to confront Bainimarama over reneging on an initial commitment to hold elections in Fiji by March next year.
“We note he gave undertakings to the forum last year which were clearly not implemented and forum leaders do need to hold him to account for that,” she said.
She said it was not a softening of New Zealand’s travel ban on the Fijian administration which has been in place since the coup in Dec. 2006, but was the only way to allow other leaders to question Bainimarama.
The Fijian delegation included the commodore, his Foreign Affairs Minister, Ratu Epeli Nailatikau and interim Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum. Two senior officials also traveled with them.
Clark said Fiji’s reneging on its commitment will be a major issue at the forum.
A group of foreign ministers who visited Fiji found nothing blocking the March elections other than “political will.”
Bainimarama has accused New Zealand and Australia of being heavy-handed in their attitude and for insisting thatelections should be held under the current Fijian constitution
He said elections could not be held by March because of the need to make electoral reforms first.
