New poll shows Australians want re-engagement with Fiji

That is one of the findings in the latest poll of Australian opinion, by the Sydney based Lowy Institute for International Policy.

The poll asked over one thousand Australian a range of questions on a range of international issues, including foreign ownership. workers, investment, illegal immigrants and climate change.

But it also asked for their opinion on Fiji.

This comes less than a year after the people of Fiji were asked by Lowy for their opinion on their military backed leaders.

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Davis asked, "In reporting in Fiji which version gets told the most? Which is the prevailing orthodoxy on events in Fiji? Bainimarama the torturer or Bainimarama the reformer?"

"On the evidence," he said, "demonising the dictator is the dominant narrative of much of the regional media, and especially a clique of so-called Pacific specialists in Australia and New Zealand."

Davis said that he thought much of what is said about Fiji in the international media is woefully short of integrity or judgment. "Indeed, we live in a truly parallel universe when it comes to media coverage … alleged versions of the truth so polarised that your ordinary reader, viewer or listener can be excused for having no idea what to believe."

"What disturbs me," he said "is that so many of my fellow journalists seem willing to embrace those agendas and portray the country in a way vastly at odds with reality."

Smith-Johns called on the media to act responsibly and to understand "that as a developing nation, we need to take in cultural and socio economic factors against the size of our population. The media must realize that for a developing country like ours, information given needs to take into consideration the socio-economic situation of the country. The media must also realize how influential they can be when citizens speak a variety of languages and messages can be interpreted through poor reporting and a race to get a front page story."

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• Croz Walsh's Blog - Graham Davis
• Croz Walsh's Blog - Sharon Smith-Johns
• Image: Matatauvavale

The poll - commissioned by the independent Australian think tank, the Lowy Institute - reveals that Bainimarama enjoys the support of 66 per cent of Fijians, with 39 per cent of those questioned strongly supporting the premise that he's doing a good job as prime minister.

Click here to see full report

Source

Grubsheet
Image: The Lowy Institute

" Now Fiji has rejected Australia before. It's rejected the (Pacific Islands) Forum but some of the countries it's courting such as Indonesia, Malaysia, South Korea, even Papua New Guinea, could all bring something to the table here and I don't think we have really trialed that. I think Australia needs to reach out to some of the countries that Fiji is indeed reaching out to who have something to offer Fiji in this transition to democracy," said the Lowy Institute's Melanesia Program Director, Jenny Hayward Jones, in an interview on Radio Australia

Source
Radio Australia
Image: FIJI GLOBAL COMMUNITY VOICES