Bill Ralston: Plenty to keep Key busy

Prime Minister John Key seems to have had a moderately successful visit to China. It's always hard to tell with official visits there.

There are guards of honour to inspect, two men sit in big stuffed armchairs for photo opportunities, the visiting dignitary wanders around some local industrial marvel, and then it's off to a series of endless state banquets spiced with frequent pungently powerful toasts of local liquor.

The last one I accompanied to China left me with a three-day hangover and a life-long aversion to soy sauce but not a lot of real news.

I guess Key's trip was worthwhile. For us, China is a huge and fast-growing trading partner and we need to know if the world recession will put the squeeze on that trade.

Then there was that ugly incident with the Fonterra joint venture and the poisonous baby products. Plus there is the fact that China has considerable diplomatic leverage in the Pacific, thanks to its loans to some Islands.

However important China may be, Key will probably be grateful to be heading home. Things here require his urgent attention.

Internal Affairs Minister Richard Worth has fired yet another shot into his own foot, with his uninvited visit to the Indian cab driver who was the victim of an assault, allegedly involving the son of an acquaintance of Worth.

On the evidence presently available it was not a heinous mistake and, as long as no other embarrassing information emerges, it was not in itself a firing offence. Yet Key must be tearing his hair out over the bumbling Worth and the target he presents to a gleeful opposition.

Working on the "Three Strikes and You're Out" theory, Worth is now on Strike 2.9, a magnificently disastrous performance considering he has only been in the job for six months. Somewhere in the back of Key's mind must be the word "Ottawa" - perhaps Worth might be encouraged to stand down and take a diplomatic posting somewhere harmless, such as High Commissioner to Ottawa.

Let's face it. Nothing ever happens in Canada except lots of snow and the occasional moose getting loose. Surely Worth could not cock that one up, yet somehow I see the future headline "NZ/Canada relations strained after Worth in cocktail party saveloy row".

A more immediate and serious problem is growing on the diplomatic front with Fiji's descent into full-blown dictatorship.

Commodore Frank Bainimarama seems to have studied political science under Robert Mugabe as he's imposed what is effectively martial law, with troops and police surrounding government buildings, military censorship imposed, journalists arrested, foreign media deported, the judiciary sacked, the governor of the Reserve Bank deposed, the Human Rights Organisation closed down and protests suppressed.

Strangely enough Bainimarama seized power, saying he wanted to institute a fair democratic constitution, hold elections, stamp out corruption and ensure the year 2000 coupsters behind George Speight faced justice.

It is obvious he is no nearer to finding a suitable constitution. Elections are even further off than ever. He has simply replaced the previous government's sycophants on the government payroll with his own loyalists. The one thing he has done is use the force of the state to nail those who oppose him.

As the Fijian economy goes into freefall, there is now every chance that disillusioned people in the military will stage their own coup to oust him.

Over the past decade or so, Fiji has devolved into warring privileged cliques and tribal-based groupings and there is every sign it will eventually collapse into "failed nation" status.

Although many New Zealanders might say, "Who cares?" and argue what the Fijians do is their business, the New Zealand Government has to ask itself if it really wants a destabilised basket case of a country on its doorstep. The sensible answer is, no.

The challenge for our Government is to find a way to apply enough pressure on Bainimarama to make him quit without causing bloodshed or civil war in Fiji.

While figuring out the answer to that one on his return, Key might also apply himself to the question of how to prevent civil war in Auckland.

The squabbling, bickering and personal insults hurled by its many mayors seems ample evidence that a less parochial, more unified regional structure is definitely overdue.

However, as Rockin' Rodney Hide rams through his Supercity proposal in super quick time he seems to be willing to listen to some of their warnings.

After Hide met the mayors on Thursday it seems the mayors, deputy mayors and council CEOs have been given until next Wednesday to come up with a ward structure that returns more power to the local community.

Woe betide them if they lose focus and start spatting again because Hide will do a Bainimarama and simply impose his will on them.