The Militant(logo) 
    Vol.62/No.33           September 21, 1998 
 
 
Fiji Cane Farmers Fight For Better Conditions  

BY BRENDAN GLEESON
AUCKLAND, New Zealand - In mid-July, sugar cane farmers in Fiji led by the National Farmers Union (NFU) began supplying cane to mills for processing, six weeks after the NFU's annual convention had announced a boycott of the harvest. The NFU called off the boycott after the Fijian Parliament agreed to provide financial assistance to farmers affected by a severe and long-running drought.

The NFU initiated the boycott at its annual convention in late May, after the government offered cash-strapped farmers a F$40 million loan (F$1 = US$0.50) and food handouts. Demanding direct assistance, the NFU General Secretary Mahendra Chaudhry described the loan proposal as a "slap in the face for farmers."

Amid reports that this year's sugar harvest will be the worst in 30 years, Chaudhry said that of the 20,000 small landholders growing cane, 8,500 had lost their crops and would have no income this year. Sugar is the main export of the country of 800,000 people, and accounts for 10 percent of its Gross Domestic Product. The drought multiplied the effects. The economy is heading for a second year of negative growth.

Hundreds of tons of cane were burned in the fields as the boycott was enforced. The owners' attempts to restart mills failed, as only a trickle of cane was presented for crushing. As the boycott took hold, the government mobilized police into the cane fields. In a reflection of the militancy among farmers and laborers in the cane-growing areas, a by-election held in the Labasa constituency just after the boycott resulted in a defeat for the sitting National Federation Party (NFP) and a victory for Labour.

In opposing the government's original proposal to provide loans instead of grants, farmers pointed to the high level of debt they already carry. Their debts to commercial banks total more than F$106 million.

Farmer Pritam Sing told the Fiji Times that a loan brings with it the "dilemma of paying it off." Even worse off, he said, are the laborers, who have "nothing. We do try and help these people but even the shops have stopped giving out loans."

Adding to the reluctance of farmers to incur more debt is the nature of their land tenure. Three-quarters of sugar farmers in the country are descendants of indentured laborers brought out to Fiji during British colonial rule, often called Indo-Fijians, who occupy native land under various lease agreements. Some 2,000 leases will expire in the next 12 months. Renewal of long-term leases is opposed by those who pose as protectors of indigenous Fijian rights.

Just over half of the country's population are classified as native Fijian. The percentage of Indo-Fijians has declined from 50 percent to around 43 percent since 1987. That was the year of two military coups organized by the then-Brigadier Sitiveni Rabuka. These overthrew the Labour Party-led government of Timoci Bavandra.

In 1992 Rabuka was elected prime minister under the post- coup "apartheid" constitution, which, among other measures discriminating against Indo-Fijians, stipulated that the prime minister must be native Fijian. Such explicitly racist clauses are gone in a new constitution that has just been adopted. The new document does enshrine the powerful position of the traditional tribal chiefs. Defense of chiefly privilege is often the motivation behind rhetoric in support of "indigenous rights." It was also the motivation behind the 1987 military coups.

The sugar farmers' boycott followed a one-day general strike on April 23, involving more than 50,000 workers. The Fiji Trade Union Congress (FTUC) called the strike over layoffs, a government-imposed 3 percent general wage increase, and the withdrawal of "checkoff" - the employer deduction of union fees in the hotel and sugar industries. Workers throughout the islands participated in the strike and associated pickets and protests, which included rallies in the capital city of Suva reportedly involving 10,000 people.

Buoyed by the success of the general strike, the Fiji Trade Union Congress resolved to call a further strike for June 2. The call was canceled May 20, after Prime Minister Rabuka offered to hold "tripartite" talks involving government, employers, and unions. Having already called off the controversial wage order, Rabuka has advised government representatives on the board of the Fiji Sugar Corporation to consider reinstating the checkoff system for unionists.

Brendan Gleeson is a member of the Engineers Union in Auckland.  
 
 
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