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Mahendra Chaudhry, the deposed prime minister of Fiji, has called on the people to accept the results of the forthcoming August elections, warning that any more acts of destabilisation would have catastrophic consequences for the country.
Chaudhry's comments were echoed by the Commonwealth secretary general's special envoy to Fiji, Justice Pius Langa, who urged politicians and parties to accept the election results gracefully to ensure that democracy prevails.
The call was made in response to a newspaper article, which claimed that the Fijian military forces would not back Chaudhry if his party won the elections.
The article was based on an affidavit sworn by military commander Commodore Frank Bainimarama that the military would not let Fiji "revert to the pre-May 19, 2000 status".
The affidavit was submitted to support President Ratu Josefa Iloilo's dismissal of the Chaudhry government following last year's coup by failed businessman George Speight.
The Fijian military forces and Iloilo have since said the verdict of the elections would be upheld whatever the outcome. The president said the country, which saw the economy decline to negative eight per cent and is facing massive unemployment and other social problems, had to move ahead.
The elections, which start on August 17, are just around the corner. There are fears that extremist indigenous Fijians may react violently if Chaudhry, the country's first Indo-Fijian prime minister, makes another grab for the position.
Indo-Asian News Service
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