As the Forum Ministerial Contact Group wrapped its meetings to prepare a report for the Pacific Islands Leaders Forum in Niue next month, the contact group today refused to reveal to the local and international media on whether Commodore Bainimarama has told them that elections will be held in March 2009.
Despite repeated questions on whether Bainimarama said to the group that the elections will be held under the current constitution and electoral system in March 2009, Tongan Foreign Minister, Sonatane Taumoepeau-Tupou said he will not reveal that information.
Australian Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith also refused to divulge any information on whether Bainimarama has told them that Fiji will definitely go to the polls.
However, Smith said the fact that dialogue is underway, the interim government needs to have the political will to have elections in the first quarter of 2009 as promised.
"We are not proposing to deter the conversations we had with any of the participants in our consultations we had in the past couple of days," Smith said.
"We are not proposing to go through the details of our discussions we had. The fact that we are here, the fact that we’ve had these dialogues and these conversations is itself umambiguously a good thing.
"Just think of the things that have occurred of significance over the last couple of days. Will there be an election by the end of March 2009, time will tell.
"There’s nothing that we’ve seen or heard that could stand in the occurring that will provide that there is a political will. The political will in the first instance is primarily is not exclusively from the interim government.
"But also th political dialogue which can choose between the political players in Fiji which we encourage."
NZ Foreign Minister, Winston Peters also refused to reveal the details of the meeting with the members of the interim government.
Fijivillage News also questioned Peters on how the Ministerial Contact Group is saying that it is possible to have a timeframe of March 2009 to have elections when the Electoral Commission made it clear yesterday that they do not have a set timeframe as yet on when elections will be held.
Peters said the Electoral Commission's report to them was disappointing as his assessment is that elections can definitely be held in the first quarter of next year.
"First of all it is disappointing. Second thing is there is no logistical, obstruction impediment for them not to be able to do the job in complete time for a March Election based on my own assessment," he said.
"Based on the fact that I was there in 2006 at the same Electoral Office examining the books and the processes.
"They’ve got a census now which is a more accurate base to build it on. There is no impediment if you provide the resources and the support and the commitment to complete the plan."
Peters said although the Forum agrees that elections is not the only issue that Fiji needs to address, he said any constitutional and electoral reform is the responsibility of an elected government and parliament.
"Our colleagues - the forum supports the view that an election does not mean a complete answer to Fiji or any other country, that there is a need for electoral reform, that there may well be a serious need for constitutional reform," Peters said.
"All those things though should not be an impediment to holding an election. The only way those things can happen – in a durable way - is if they receive a xxc of a mandated parliament and passed into law.
"Otherwise we cannot see how it can possibly happen in any circumstances that would look democratic."
However the Interim Prime Minister revealed today that the Ministerial Contact Group has accepted the fact that electoral reform has to take place before elections in March 2009.
Bainimarama made the statement with regards to the meeting with the Ministerial Contact Group yesterday.
"They accepted that reforms need to be carried out before an election. They understand that and that’s why they’re here," Bainimarama said.
"There are some people who do not understand what’s happening. There are a lot of people who do not want to understand what’s happening. But it’s good that they’re here – we can talk - so we can get them to understand what’s happening here."
