Concerns about Fiji

[Papa_Bear]

Was there when the coupe took place and a number of times since! Americans are truly loved by the Fijian people and have not heard of one incident or problem! I have walked the down town area of Suva and been to the open market near the water front and no problems unless your were looking for one! This is about land, and two different cultures trying to live together, and there are growing pains! There are not a lot of easy answers, but both sides seem willing to talk and maybe get something done some time in the future! People want elections and freedom, but democracies never work if they are mob rule! I stand for a representative republic and think it maybe best for Fiji? The native Fijians are no longer the majority in their own country, thus there are no easy solutions! Go and enjoy the culture that is fast changing and make some Fijian friends, it is as good as the diving See and read more about Fiji at my web site!

 

[Hodge Podge]

We have been to Beqa Island in 2006 and 2007. The 2006 trip was at the time of the of the last coup. Never had any problems and the island life was not affected. The only incident I can remember was our transport van being stopped and the drivers paperwork checked. We are headed back for two weeks in August and already paid for air.

I keep a daily watch on several sites FijiVillage.com - Fiji's home on the world wide web - Fiji Times Online - Fiji News, Sport and Weather from the pages of The Fiji Times and http://sotiacentral.com. Since this coup the media has been squelched. This is a quote from sotiacentral.com.

The new Fiji Interim Government has issued regulations requiring publishers to first submit all content to Government officials for clearance before publishing it. Because you, not we, generate this content, we are unable to comply. Accordingly, sotiacentral.com has been taken down until further notice.

Fiji Times has had police in the building to be sure no negative stories were run.
This leaves us here with questions about what is actually going on.

On a positive note the Fiji dollar was devalued 20% yesterday.

I myself, plan to go despite the politics. The Fiji islanders are the nicest people I know and I feel quite safe there. They have been hit hard this year with major flooding in January and a down turn in the economy. The tourist industry is suffering and I hope to help by going and keep going.

 

[pword]

Not only are police stationed in the local newsrooms but the powers in control also have expelled foreign journalists so it makes it nearly impossible to get an unbiased, accurate picture of what's going on.

 

[marinediva]

I do not believe the trouble in Fiji will just go away. I do see it esculating before a resolution will be put in action. Fiji is undernotice to hold elections. The other Islands are fine during conflict but all airports are usually closed. I was in PNG during the Forum, FIJI had until May to call an election. This is not going to be done by the current regime.

 

[twhi]

Its been my experience that the media has a very strong tendency to exaggerate the situation.
I've been in 'uprising'-type events in other countries and its never as bad as it appears on the news.

And the Fijian people are almost always great - they are super friendly.
I'll be going again later this year....and very much looking forward to it.
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[Diver0001]

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A ScubaBoard Staff Message...

Off topic political discussions should be taken to the Pub. Please keep posts relevant to the effects of divers of what's going on in Fiji.

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[M_Bipartitus]

I think, baring a significant change in travel recommendations of Australia, New Zealand or the US, I'll be going as planned. We don't have any plans to be in the cities, aside from the airport at Nadi, and the consensus is that there isn't much chance of a major disruption of civil order.

I'll admit that re-ordering the courts and removing the constitution is disconcerting, however.

 

[hammerhead man]

We went to Beqa Lagoon Resort in 2007 right after a coup occurred and we also were concerned. Our travel agent told us that because Fiji depends so much on tourism, efforts are taken to ensure that tourists are not affected. We went and did not see anything out of the ordinary. We never felt threatened and in fact, the people were friendly and welcoming. I would not worry about traveling to Fiji.

Regards,

Bill

 

[pkgman]

Still going the last week in July and it sounds like unless the airport closes all should be well.
First time to go there and trust everything will be fine.
And the diving will be most excellent!

 

[MatavaFiji]

I am amazed we are still getting these queries. None of the dive resorts in Fiji have been affected in any safety way by the political situation in Fiji.