The person who led the first two coups of Fiji, threw out the 1970 constitution, brought in the controversial 1990 constitution, made Fiji a republic and then became a key player in the enacting of the 1997 constitution, said he has suggested that the current government should give power back to the previous elected government to allow constitutional amendments to be made.
While speaking to participants of the CCF Forum on Bringing Fiji Together - Addressing Inclusivity in Constitution-Making, former Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said the amendments should include immunity for the events of 2006 but going forward capital punishment to be reinstated for treason.
He said a Truth Commission concept can also be set up to allow people to talk about what has happened as we move forward.
He said this is necessary.
Based on Rabuka's suggestions in the forum, Fijivillage asked Rabuka whether he believes he should be part of this process as he started off the coup culture.
We also asked him what he has done to the thousands of people who became victims of the 1987 coups and those who went through a lot of pain and suffering.
Rabuka who included immunity for the 87 coups in the 1990 and 1997 constitutions then said that those who told him to carry out the 1987 coup misled him and he realized this later.
He said he decided to continue because he did not like what was happening.
Rabuka also suggested that it may be time to have a different set up to avoid what has happened in the past.
The CCF Forum which was also attended by the Constitutional Commissioners led by Professor Yash Ghai ended this afternoon.
Story by: Vijay Narayan
Feature
Sitiveni Rabuka speaks about Constitutional Reforms
