Resistance within the Camp

Our blog is attracting attention based on the comments left on certain articles. Today, we will look the involvement of the Australian military and its actions with the SDL govt.

It is no big secret that the Australian Navy was sent with a full load of soldiers and ammunition before the coup. For an Australian platoon to assume that they could simply walk into Fiji and takeover key positions in order to subdue the military is laughable.

Before the coup, the commander had given several press statements and also made submissions to the CC (Council of Chiefs) about the need to remove the controversial Qoliqoli and RTU bills. The SDL govt. had responded to these statements by going to the President while the Commander was away from the country and asking that the Commander be removed from his position. The President agreed as he was acting on the advice from Qarase. The position was then offered to another key figure in the military, Meli Saubulinaiyau, who declined the position by stating that "he did not command the full respect of the military." It is important to note this point because Saubulinaiyau stated that he did not command the respect of all military officers. What he did not know was that the Commander had already begun his own internal investigation to seek out those who were opposing him and his plans to take the country in a new and improved direction.

Saubulinaiyau made the greatest mistake by saying the words he uttered on that fateful day. The fact that he was even chosen by the President indicated to the Commander that Saubulinaiyau was not follwing his plans and in addition to this, the words he uttered only served to reinforce the claims. In fact, it is known that during their discussion, the Commander had told Saubulinaiyau that "your claim that you did not have the full support of the military has only served to prove the point that you are not a loyal soldier. From your comments, it can be seen that had you had the full support of the military, you would have accepted the position and had me removed." Even a fool can see that those words ring true. Had Saubulinaiyau had the support of the military, he would have definitely moved into the shoes of the Commander and ensured that the military aligned itself with the govt. and also supported the controversial bills.

In the midst of all the ruckus appeared Baledrokadroka. Unaware that he was also being monitored, Baledrokadro was using his position to amass a group of soldiers who would arrest the Commander and neutralize him then a new Commander would be appointed. To test his loyalty to the military, the Commander gave Baledrokadroka an instruction which Baledrokadroka says "An order posted on Sunday was hard for me to understand but eventually I deciphered it as being treasonous and I refused to obey it," This was a clear cut case of mutiny and refusal to obey a direct order which the Commander quickly controlled and had Baledrokadroka removed from the camp altogether. In the days leading up to the whole saga, the Commander said that Baledrokadroka had been dismissed for insubordination and for failing the loyalty test of the Military. The command which Baledrokadroka had refused to obey had only been a test, which he had failed miserably, the Commander claimed. He had been willing to give Baledrokadroka another chance, he said, but Baledrokadroka had made matters worse by talking to the media. He accused Baledrokadroka of trying to elicit support from soldiers. Accordingly, the Military had "isolated" Baledrokadroka in his office and the Military's legal team had reasoned with him to persuade him not to attempt a mutiny. Baledrokadroka claimed to have confronted the Commander and told him that his intentions were treasonous, and asked for his resignation. "I asked the commander for his resignation on the grounds that it was perfectly clear that he was going to commit treason ... I told him it was either he resign or I resign." Both Baledroka and Saubulinayau were acting not in the interest of the nation or their Commander, but for personal gains and we now know that both individuals were working closely with the SDL party and had also had subsequent meetings with party officials.

So, we can now see that mutiny, treachery and deception were the order of the day - something considered appropriate by the SDL govt. If this does not open the eyes of the RFN and SV bloggers, we are truly surprised at how much more a blind eye they choose to turn to the reality of the situation. They are supporting a group of despots and individuals who became extremely desperate to retain their power because of the corruption and greed that had taken over them. It is acknowledged that the SV and RFN bloggers choose to champion their cause over the Malasebe death. There is sufficient evidence to show that Malasebe attempted to assault the arresting officers and in addition to this, he was a hardened criminal who chose to use desperate meaures at time where he could easily have gone with the officers for questioning.

Those who had witnessed the affair later agreed that the individual had attempted to use force on the officers and when attempts were made to subdue him, he turned violent and as such, the officers were required to use extra-ordinary force. His death should not be seen as one of a martyr and the RFN and SV bloggers need to realize that his death is of no consequence to the govt. The death of a prisoner who has robbed and lied his way through life by depriving the rights of his victims is not fit for this world. Over the days that went by after his death, many callers to popular radio stations all agreed that Malasebe died because of his actions. Malasebe was a criminal and his death was seen as a tragedy when in fact it was a blessing. Supporters of Malasebe perhaps forgot about the emotional scars he had left on his victims and how many of them would have to rebuild their lives again?

Perhaps the SV and RFN bloggers were not victims of Malasebe - we wonder what their stand would have been had they been in the shoes of the victims?