Electoral law reform consultations

The High Court will rule whether the amendments in the Electoral Registration of Voters Amendment Act and the Interpretation Act in 2021 that required women to change their name on the birth certificate to their married name was constitutional or not on the 14th of April next year.

The matter was heard before High Court Judge, Justice Dane Tuiqereqere where 7 women had challenged the amendments and had filed the matter against the Attorney General, the Supervisor of Elections and the State.

The lawyer of the 7 women, Jon Apted says they seek the declaration that the amendment from when it was passed to when it was repealed had breached their Bill of Rights under the Constitution.

He says although the amendments have been repealed, the challenge before the court is not moot.

He says the Attorney General, the State and the Supervisor of Elections do not concede that it was not constitutional and therefore it is a possibility that they may reintroduce it.

The lawyer says the fact that it has been repealed does not prevent the court from declaring that it was inconsistent with the Constitution.

He also says that the birth certificate does not prove eligibility to vote as it shows that a person was born on a particular date in Fiji and it also does not show citizenship.

Apted further says there is a public need to define and remind the legislature about the Bill of Rights.

He says the defendants do not acknowledge any form of accountability so the court needs to make a declaration that the legislature is subject to the court.

The lawyer also says that no evidence was provided that there was a problem with the previous law and that anyone was registered multiple times in the voter list.

Lawyer for the State and the Attorney General, Cynthia Mangru is calling for the dismissal of the claim as moot as provisions have been repealed.

She says since it is repealed, it is no longer a live controversy.

Mangru says that without Parliament as a party to these proceedings, the declaration sought lacks a proper nexus to the body that is constitutionally responsible for the amendment.

She says it is not a role the court to pass a judgment on a law the Parliament, as appropriate authority, has already recognized as requiring the amended and to do so, approaches upon the legislative domain.

The lawyer further says the law did not breach the rights of the women as they had a choice, ample time was given and there is no evidence that they were restrained from voting.

She adds it is also wrong to say that it only applied to women because it does not say so in the Act.

The lawyer for the Supervisor of Elections, Nilesh Prasad says the Parliament has done what the court is being asked.

He says the matter has now become academic in nature and is hypothetical and they do not venture court make declaration that waste time.

Lal adds the documents and Parliament Hansard speak for itself.

The 7 women supported by the Fiji Women’s Rights Movement and the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre had filed the constitutional challenge on the grounds of sex, gender and marital status discrimination and also on the basis that it violates the privacy and social and cultural identity of 100,000 Fijian women.

The 7 women are Lavinia Rose Bernadette Rounds Ganilau, Shiromani Priscilla Singh, Adi Davila Toganivalu, Elizabeth Reade Fong, Leba Seni Nabou, Yasmin Nisha Khan and Salote Raikolo Qalo.

As the review process of the three electoral laws begin today, Supervisor of Elections Ana Mataiciwa says they have made submissions to remove powers of the Supervisor that are not needed.

Mataiciwa highlighted this while responding to questions on fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan on the excessive powers of the Supervisor of Elections, including the search and seizure of documents it deems necessary.

She says they have also considered the excessive powers of the Supervisor of Elections because it was not only brought up by the stakeholders but also in the Multinational Observer Group report of the 2022 General Election.

There are also concerns regarding the amendments made under Parliamentary Standing Order 51 in 2021 where people have to pay to only see, not take photos or print the declarations of assets and liabilities of the candidates.

Mataiciwa assures the people that she has also made submissions for it to revert to the previous law which is for anyone to view the declarations when it is published in the dailies.

You can watch the full Straight Talk interview on our website fijivillage or catch it on Spotify and Apple podcast, fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan.

The Electoral Law Reform Commission will be looking at the requirement of five percent threshold to get into the Parliament.

Chair and former Chief Justice, Daniel Fatiaki and Commissioner and economist, Professor Wadan Narsey highlighted this during fijivillage Straight Talk with Vijay Narayan when asked about their views on the current voting system.

The five percent threshold means political parties and independent candidates must win at least five percent of the total vote to be eligible for a seat in the Parliament.

Professor Narsey asks how can an independent candidate get 23,000 votes.

He says some very popular leaders like Savenaca Narube and Mahendra Chaudhry got thousands of votes but could not make the five percent threshold.

He says one can imagine an independent local community leader from Sigatoka, Labasa or Tavuni, could have no hope on earth of them ever getting into Parliament.

The Commissioner says there are people telling Fatikia the need to make this easier for small parties to get in.

Fatiaki and Professor Narsey are part of the Commission to review the electoral system of Fiji.

Nationwide consultations for the electoral law reform starts today at the Suva Civic Centre from 10am-2pm and then 3-6pm.

People are urged to give their opinion so that their perspective can be reflected through the electoral system.

Fiji national, jurist and lawyer Imrana Jalal has called on the Fiji Law Reform Commission to consider electoral law consultations in the evenings or weekends.

Jalal says the decision to hold consultations during the working hours was "ill-advised".

This follows after the Commission’s Chair, Daniel Fatiaki expressed disappointment over the lack of attendance at a consultation session at the Korovou Police Station Bure.

Jalal further says the consultations are coinciding with the visit from the UN CEDAW committee this week, which is an essential time for women’s groups in Fiji as the country presents its report.

She adds the Commission or the relevant Ministry should reconsider the timing for better participation.

While responding to fijivillage News, the Chair says it is difficult to change what has already been said, and they will consider that in the upcoming consultations which will be held in the Western and Northern Divisions.

Fatiaki says they'll definitely take Jalal’s suggestions on board.

When asked about today’s session, Fatiaki says they had an incredibly good turnout with almost 30 people coming to express their opinion.

He adds that they are also considering the possibility of organising meetings with the NGOs to get their thoughts which will also be open to the public.

The consultation will be held today at the FNU Nasinu Campus from 10am-2pm and at Bhawani Dayal Memorial Primary School in Nakasi from 4-6pm.

Calls for more women participation have been made during the consultation on the Electoral Act but there were different views shared on women having reserved seats in Parliament.

While speaking at the consultation held at the Suva Civic Centre, President of Counterstroke Fiji and Electoral Disability Awareness Working Group member, Elizabeth Reid Fong says there should be more women in Parliament but questions the Fiji Law Reform Commission on why they should be ineligible.

She says quotas should be used to increase women's number in Parliament such as in Samoa where its first female Prime Minister introduced quotas.

Fong believes that using quotas will overcome the patriarchy that exists in the country.

She adds that there should be reserved seats for women in Parliament and men should be able to vote for women in those seats.

While supporting the recommendation to have reserved seats for women in Parliament, NFP member Priscilla Singh says reserved seats would be a way to start.

She says she has been working in the area of women in politics for almost three decades and it is a hard ask for women to get in.

FNU Medical Student Nitish Sharma says he is a bit sad that there aren’t a lot of women in Parliament right now.

He says the quota system for women can be looked into in the short term, but not a long-term solution.

Sharma believes the change should be a cultural one and the population should be the one voting for women.

Retired Teacher, Ecelini Weleilakeba showed her support for more women's representation in Parliament and said that women giving birth to politicians should qualify them to have a place in Parliament.

She says women are managers in their homes, looking after the affairs of the house, which men and boys take for granted.

Weleilakeba says these valuable skills should not be ignored.

She is recommending that the Commission hold a consultation with women NGOs, and find out what they think.

SODELPA General Secretary Viliame Takayawa says they support greater female participation in national leadership, but reject the idea of reserve seats, which may promote tokenism rather than genuine inclusion.

He says they are suggesting to empower women through political party policies, leadership training and civic education, but not legislative quotas.

Takayawa says we should create enabling environments that support women's candidacy in leadership development.

Calls are being made to lower the 5 percent threshold for independent candidates in the general elections, as it is too high and unfairly equal to that of political parties.

According to current electoral laws, an independent candidate needs to get 5 percent of the votes to get a seat in Parliament.

An independent candidate also requires 1,000 signatures to get endorsement from the Fijian Elections Office to contest the election.

While making submissions to the Fiji Electoral Law Reform Commission, Ilisoni Tuinayau says the threshold should be halved.

He says this is a big drop but in reality, it could work.

Commission member Doctor Deidre Brooks says that's a similar figure to what a lot of other people are suggesting and other countries with similar systems often have lower threshold as well.

Meanwhile, Farm Road, Nausori resident, Samula Savu says restrictions on the names of political parties being only English should be removed.

He further says there should not be any restrictions on board members of government owned companies from being political party members.

Public consultations on the review of the Electoral Act 2014, the Electoral (Registration of Voters) Act 2012, and the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013 will continue in Rotuma tomorrow

It is unfair that those enjoying immunity from coup prosecutions freely contest elections. Those immune from prosecutions should be barred from contesting elections for four to eight years, or fully.

Fiji National University’s Department of Ethics and Governance lecturer Dr Mosmi Bhim has made these submissions to the Electoral Law Reform Commission during consultations.

She says former Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama had initially stated that a two-term limit for Prime Ministers would be included in the Constitution, but this provision is missing in the 2013 Constitution.

She recommends reinstating a two-term limit to strengthen leadership accountability.

Dr Bhim says political donations of more than $10,000 should be permitted, but receipts for each ticket sold at fundraising events should not be required and instead parties should only provide the total number of tickets sold, a breakdown of expenses, and a profit report.

Dr Bhim further says criminal convictions should not disqualify individuals for minor misdemeanours and the threshold should be revised from a 12-month sentence to less than that.

She says this would reduce fear and intimidation, encouraging more citizens to run for office.

The lecturer also says the current 48-hour media and advertising blackout before elections is too long, and should either be removed or reduced to 24 hours.

Dr Bhim has also submitted that the current requirement of 5,000 signatures for political party registration should be reduced to 1,000 or 500 and for independent candidates, she proposes reducing the current 1,000-signature requirement to 500 or even 200.

She says these changes would promote political participation and allow more citizens to realise their right to vote and be represented in government.

She has also submitted reducing the $1,000 candidate fee to $500, and in the long term, financial assistance should be made available to potential candidates living below the poverty line.

Dr Bhim also highlighted the importance of removing restrictions on voter education, saying that educational institutions, NGOs, civil society organisations, and grassroots groups should be supported and given the space to engage in voter awareness activities.

She questioned the inconsistency of allowing the government to benefit from foreign donor aid to conduct elections while penalising voter education initiatives funded by those same donors.

She has also called for the removal of Section 115 of the Electoral Act 2014, which restricts foreign-funded voter education activities once the Writ of Elections is issued.

Dr Bhim says any decisions made by the Electoral Commission or Fijian Elections Office should be open to appeal in the court.

Dr Bhim submits that fines of $5,000 to $50,000 and jail terms of 5 to 10 years are excessive and should be reduced to fines between $10 and $500.

She has also submitted changes to laws that currently prevent legal challenges to decisions made by the Electoral Commission, FEO, or Supervisor of Elections, saying such provisions violate fundamental human rights.

Public consultations on the review of the Electoral Act 2014, the Electoral (Registration of Voters) Act 2012, and the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding and Disclosures) Act 2013 are expected to continue this week.

We need to remove the immunity provisions to disqualify all coup perpetrators from participating in politics.

Josaia Tokoni from the Fiji Council of Social Services stated this while making his submission to the Fiji Law Reform Commission on the Electoral Act at the Fiji Teachers Association Hall in Suva.

While responding to the comments, Electoral Law Reform Commission Chair, Daniel Fatiaki says what really interests him is Tokoni’s point of candidate qualification or disqualification.

Fatiaki says he might just be the second person they have heard throughout all their consultations to bring up disqualifying people who were involved in the coups.

He says he would be very interested in how Tokoni would frame the disqualification criterion.

The reform of the electoral system can be done under the current Constitution before the next general elections.

This has been shared by Jon Fraenkel who is a Professor of Comparative Politics at Victoria University of Wellington.

The discussion at Fiji National University Campus in Nasinu, mainly centred around electoral reform within and beyond the 2013 Constitution while also drawing on Fiji’s experiences under the 1970, 1990, and 1997 Constitutions.

Professor Fraenkel talked about the confusing nature of the current Sudoku style ballot paper.

He says it features only numbers, without candidate names or party symbols.

Professor Fraenkel also criticized the use of a single nationwide constituency that elects 55 members of Parliament, arguing that this system fails to provide geographic representation, as the MPs are not tied to specific regions within Fiji.

Professor Fraenkel also highlighted the lack of women representation in Parliament as well.

When questioned by fijivillage News about which body should be responsible for creating electoral boundaries given that no such responsibility is legislated under the current law, Professor Fraenkel noted the relevance of census data and explained that under the 1997 Constitution, a Constituency Boundaries Commission existed, and suggested that similar mechanisms could be considered under the current framework.

He also confirmed that the creation of constituencies is possible under the 2013 Constitution, indicating that a meaningful electoral reform can still be pursued within the existing legal structure.

Electoral reform is not about political expediency or institutional convenience, it is about ensuring that the voices of all Fijians are heard, respected, and reflected in the systems that govern us.

Permanent Secretary for Justice Selina Kuruleca highlighted this at the Dialogue Fiji Multi Stakeholder Dialogue on Electoral Reform currently underway at the Holiday Inn, saying this dialogue affirms our collective commitment to that principle.

Kuruleca says we are here because the Fijian government, through cabinet's endorsement in February 2025, has initiated an inclusive process to review our electoral laws.

The Permanent Secretary says this review is not a routine bureaucratic exercise, it is an invitation to all our people to engage in shaping the rules by which we govern ourselves.

She says Dialogue Fiji's initiative is a critical platform in this process, ensuring that the voices shaping electoral reform reflect the diversity of our nation.

The Permanent Secretary adds electoral law can be deceptively technical as minor change can have a sweeping impact.

She says that's why this multi-stakeholder dialogue matters by bringing together political actors, electoral institutions, civil society organisations, academia, media, and international experts.

She says we are investing in a process that is both technically sound and deeply participatory.

Kuruleca says she wants to reflect on the statements recently made about the cart being before the horse.

She says perhaps we need to rephrase that, we know that there is a cart, we also know that there is a horse but let's ensure that each is fit for purpose first, before we put the horse before the cart.

Unity Fiji Leader, Savenaca Narube says the government is running out of time in getting an electoral reform done in a timely manner and the only option is for the government to seek a clear interpretation from the Supreme Court on the 2013 Constitution regarding the electoral system.

While speaking after the Dialogue Fiji organized Multi Stakeholder Dialogue on Electoral Reform, Narube asks why the government has taken so long to deal with this critical issue.

Narube says the Constitution is so detailed about the electoral system.

He says it prevents the government from doing too much too fast.

Narube also highlights the current system is so unfair that even after he was the person with the 6th highest votes in the 2022 general elections, he is not in parliament and this means that 49 Members of Parliament have lower votes than he had.

He stresses that we need to have much better distribution of seats based on the votes that the candidates get.

Questions are also being raised on whether the Supreme Court should interpret Section 53 of the 2013 Constitution which states that the election of Members of Parliament is by a multi-member open list system of proportional representation, under which each voter has one vote, with each vote being of equal value, in a single national electoral roll comprising all the registered voters.

Narube says a single national electoral roll does not mean a single national constituency and there should be an interpretation from the Supreme Court.

Narube says the electoral system including the 5 percent threshold is in the Constitution but with the interpretation of the Supreme Court, there can be some flexibility.

He says the only other option is to change the Constitution first before changing the electoral laws.

The Dialogue Fiji panel discussion of political parties did not have the People’s Alliance Party and the National Federation Party.

Only SODELPA, Unity Fiji and the Fiji Labour Party were part of the panel.

None of the Electoral Law Reform Commissioners or those from the Government side were present in the discussion on electoral reform, and Permanent Secretary for Justice, Selina Kuruleca and the Fiji Law Reform Commission Director, Raijeli Tuivaga left the conference after their speeches.

There is not enough time to make changes to the 2013 Constitution before the next general elections.

Head of USP Journalism Dr. Shailendra Singh highlighted this at the Dialogue Fiji Multi Stakeholder Dialogue on Electoral Reform at the Holiday Inn saying he recalls reading a remark by an expert saying that there might not be enough time to make changes to the 2013 Constitution.

While responding to Dr Singh, Fiji Law Reform Commission Director Raijeli Tuivaga says she remembers reading that in the weekend as well as the warning saying not to rush and do things without careful consideration.

Tuivaga says both have been noted also by the review team, and the Fiji Law Reform Commission team as a whole.

She says at this moment in time, the team is focusing on the timeline that was given, which is the 30th of June.

The Commission Director says when that calculation was made, it was also made in consultation with the Supervisor of Elections and the Fijian Elections Office.

She says the indications that they got in regards to this reform when they did it this year was that it was higher priority, which is why they dropped everything else and focused on that, and they believe that it still is a priority.