Amnesty International is extremely concerned that the military regime in Fiji has now formally enacted into law draconian measures that will restrict media work in Fiji and perpetuate violations of people's right to freedom of expression.

Now that the decree has been enacted, widespread censorship, already in place under the April 2009 Public Emergency Regulations (PER) will be extended and deepened. Despite the Government's amendments to a previous draft decree to regulate media in the country, journalists can still be imprisoned for being critical of the Government.

The law allows the Government to exert greater control over media content and ownership through a powerful new body. The Fiji Media Industry Development Authority is tasked with ensuring that local media do not publish material that threatens public interest or order, is against the national interest or creates communal discord. It will have wide powers of investigation over journalists and media outlets, including powers of search and seizure.

"There is a clear risk that the law's vaguely worded provisions will be used to punish peaceful critics of the government," said Claire Mallinson, National Director of Amnesty International Australia. "It is another example of the lengths the Fiji regime will go to restrict freedom of speech in the country."

The law also restricts foreign ownership with a requirement that 90 per cent of shareholders be Fijian citizens permanently residing in Fiji. Media outlets that do not comply are expected to be shut down within three months. This provision is likely to result in the closure of the Rupert Murdoch's News Limited paper, The Fiji Times, an independent newspaper that has been critical of the military and Government.

A Media Tribunal will decide on complaints referred by the Authority and will be able to impose jail terms and fines of up to US $500 for journalists, US $12,500 for publishers and editors, and US $50,000 for media organisations. Despite these highly punitive powers, the Tribunal will not be bound by formal rules of evidence.

Background

In April 2010, the Government carried out a brief consultation with media representatives on a draft media bill. Participants were given only two and a half hours to read the 50-page document before they were asked to make comments and submissions. They were not permitted to take away copies for circulation. Following widespread concerns regarding the contents of the bill, public consultations were extended.

Past actions of the Fiji regime has shown that it does not have any real commitment to upholding media freedom. Since the military takeover in December 2006, intimidation and threats against journalists and editors of local and overseas media outlets have been the norm. Several overseas journalists and expatriate editors have been deported.

The abrogation of the country's Constitution in April 2009 saw a renewed crackdown on freedom of expression and increased censorship under the Public Emergency Regulations. These emergency laws have been regularly renewed since then.

Human rights violations have been rife in Fiji since Public Emergency Regulations were imposed and then President Ratu Josefa Iloilo reappointed Commodore Frank Bainimarama as prime minister. Under the PER, Fiji's military and security forces retain absolute control over the country's population. Soldiers and police enjoy complete immunity from prosecution for their actions, including serious violations of human rights.