Rabuka: No other way
The Prime Minister’s statement signals a potential shift in tone as the TRC prepares for public hearings on Fiji’s political past.
Sunday 18 May 2025 | 10:32
Updated 08 August 2025 | 15:43 FJT
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka has responded to calls for accountability over his role in Fiji’s 1987 coups, saying he supports the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and will comply with any summons it issues.
Mr Rabuka acknowledged that there would be no other way, but to follow the process of the TRC.
“I agree with Ro Naulu Mataitini, and I will abide by what the commission summons me to do,” Mr Rabuka said in a brief statement on Friday.
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The comment comes after Ro Naulu, former president of the People’s Alliance party, issued a sharp call for the Prime Minister to demonstrate true leadership by tearing down the immunity provisions protecting him and others involved in the coups.
Speaking on the 38th anniversary of the first coup, Ro Naulu accused Mr Rabuka’s gestures of reconciliation of being “symbolically shallow,” urging him to testify fully before the commission, revoke immunity clauses, and eventually step down to allow for national renewal.
The Prime Minister’s statement signals a potential shift in tone as the TRC prepares for public hearings on Fiji’s political past.
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