Who Decides the Life or Death of our Constitution?

Mike Field has brilliantly put forward what we already feel.

The life or death of the supreme law of this land, the 1997 Constitution of the Republic of the Fiji Islands, is not subject to what Iloilo or Bainimarama dictate. The life or death of our constitution becomes real only if “We the People” deem it so.

The act of Treason executed by Iloilo and it being after all a grossly illegal act, means that anyone who now supports any of the military junta’s ventures will also be hauled up (and we hope soon) to share the guilt of being treasonous .

That’s why our freedoms are being rapidly curtailed in the shoddily put together Public Emergency regulations and Decrees 1-4. Both documents will have freedom-loving lawyers rubbing their hands in glee in anticipation of its day in court.

If you do not understand how your freedom’s and liberties are being held at ransom, please read the Public Emergency regulations NOW. It essentially dictates how the military dictatorship will control and curtail basic freedoms. Of course that will be compounded by the fact that an independent court of law will not be able to ensure you get the justice you deserve. As for the stated assertions that the Public Emergency Regulations will have a life of only 30 day’s, we will believe that when we see it.

Meanwhile the “khaki editors” continue to damage media freedom and unjustly halt our collective rights to know what’s happening. But the blog resistance grows with the internet now also providing an outlet for censored fourth estate-er’s.

For those seriously contemplating joining the blogging community, a valuable starter’s guide is available here.

In terms of making your peaceful opposition known to the military dictators, this article highlighting peaceful protests in China is quite inspirational.

In the event that haul-ups under farcical "inciteful" hunches begin in earnest, listed below are some practical tips if someone you know is called to be taken up for “questioning” or “arrest”:

1. If called or contacted, demand to know why you are singled out (remember also that last time some of the instances were instigated by petty tattle-tales of some). Do not allow them to pick you up but insist that you will find your way there;
2. Contact Media, NGOs, Fiji Law Society, your Chief, your spiritual/church leader and/or Blogs so that between them they can blast to the 4 corners of the globe what the military is up to;
3. Get a group together and escort the person as far as you can to the place they have been summoned to and take pictures (still or moving) of that person going in, as evidence. Evidence must include good shots of the background i.e. the gates of the office and people to visually confirm their being there (if pictures can be date- or time-stamped using camera settings that is valuable also);
4. At the venue ask the officer in charge for a name and contact detail in order for you to keep abreast of your friend’s release and keep Media, NGOs, Fiji Law Society, your Chief, your spiritual/church leader and/or Blogs updated.
5. Upon release get third parties together and record a detailed account of the events that transpired up at the questioning or arrest, using Media, NGOs, Fiji Law Society, your Chief, your church leader and/or Blogs as witnesses and store these records safely.
   

For the immediate here and now however, We the People need to decide whether we want the Constitution dead or alive.

What do you decide—Is the Constitution dead or alive for you and are you prepared to defend it peacefully?