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Fiji's move to re-impose martial law could lead to the Pacific country losing millions of dollars in aid, after the European Union warned it was meeting to discuss the issue.
The European Union, a major aid donor to Fiji, today warned the move to re-introduce a state of
emergency may contravene commitments made by Fiji's military government in April.
"The European Union is concerned about the re-invocation of the Public Emergency Regulations in Fiji on September 6, 2007," the organisation said in a statement today.
"In the European Union's assessment, it is not apparent which threats to national security, public order and safety exist to justify such a drastic measure as bringing back the Public Emergency Regulations.
"The Council of the European Union meets in Brussels today, Friday, September 7. The political situation in Fiji will be on the agenda," it said.
In April, the interim government agreed that in return for securing about $F400 million ($357 million) in European aid it would lift its emergency regulations by the end of May.
But Fiji's military rulers, who seized power in a coup last December, re-imposed martial law yesterday.
The Fiji interim government said it needed to re-introduce emergency regulations because of comments from ousted prime minister Laisenia Qarase, who this week arrived in Suva for the first time since being forced from office.
Qarase has annoyed Fiji's rulers and self-imposed prime minister, Frank Bainimarama, by claiming he received a death threat from someone identifying themselves as being from the military.
Since arriving in Suva, Qarase has also said he is being followed by the military. There were also reports his driver was roughed up by soldiers.
"Assessment by the security agencies indicate that the comments/rhetoric and intention of Mr Qarase and his colleagues are likely to cause instability," said a statement from Fiji's interim justice minister, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.
"We cannot, given these assessments, take any risk to naturalise the positive inroads made in recent times nor can we have such parochial interests sabotage a stable social and economical path to the next elections," he said.
- AAP
