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The 1970 Constitution went into effect 9 October 1970, [3] signaling Fiji's independence from Britain (though it remained a member of the Commonwealth). [4]The Constitution set up a House of Representatives requiring 22 seats to represent voters registered as Fijian, 22 to those registered as Indian, and 8 to voters registered as neither.
Fiji's fourth constitution, the 2013 Constitution of Fiji, was signed into law by President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau on 6 September 2013, coming into effect immediately. [1] [2] It is the first to eliminate race-based electoral rolls, race-based seat quotas, district-based representation, the unelected upper chamber, and the role of the hereditary Council of Chiefs.
Section 1 states that "The Republic of the Fiji Islands is a sovereign, democratic state." This underscoring of Fiji's commitment to democracy comes against the backdrop of political instability that has sometimes plagued Fiji, resulting in two coups d'état prior to the adoption of the constitution, and a third and fourth since.
The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 coup d'état led by George Speight .
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The Fijian Constitution formalizes this ban on the royal veto. Prior to 1987, Fiji's Head of State was, in fact, the British Monarch. When Fiji became a republic and replaced the Monarch with a President, no drastic changes were made to the institutions of the state, or to their functions.
In 1987, following the coup, Rotuman secessionists had tried to organize a bid for independence from Fiji. This clause in the Compact may be seen as an attempt to placate them. All Fiji citizens, of whatever ethnic background, are guaranteed equality before the law. Their right to make their permanent homes in the Fiji Islands is also protected.
Clause 6 of this section goes so far as to declare, "To the extent that it is capable of doing so, this Chapter extends to things done or actions taken outside Fiji." This implies the stand that Fiji will take on behalf of human rights in international forums such as the United Nations .