Pacific Island Forum summit underway in PNG

Last Updated: Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:37:00 +1100

Pacific Island Forum leaders are meeting in Papua New Guinea to consider possible sanctions against Fiji.

Interim Fijian leader Commodore Frank Bainimarama elected to stay at home to help co-ordinate flood relief efforts, and sent interim attorney-general Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum in his stead.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is attending the talks, and met his PNG counterpart, Sir Michael Somare, before the summit began this afternoon.

Fifteen Pacific leaders are in Papua New Guinea for the talks, which are expected to be dominated by discussions on finding measures to pressure Fiji into holding democratic elections.

The summit will be presented with a report from a ministerial contact group which visited Fiji last month.

The report contains a number of findings and recommendations, one of which could see Fiji suspended from the regional group.

While PNG Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare is understood to oppose suspending Fiji's membership of the Forum, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key says suspension is one of a number of actions Forum leaders will consider.

"Some (form of suspension) could include just from ministerial contact groups and from high-level forum meetings; others could be be much more draconian," said Mr Key.

Mr Key also rejected reported remarks made by Commodore Bainimarama in Suva on Monday that it could take up to 10 years to institute the electoral changes regarded as necessary for polls to go ahead.

"It's not acceptable and I'm sorry to hear that view expressed by Frank Bainimarama," Mr Key told reporters in Port Moresby.

"But what I think it does put pressure back on the forum today to show leadership and make it quite clear we need to actually see a solution and a solution in an acceptable timeframe from Fiji."

Mr Key said the Forum has a responsibility to take a leading role in coaxing Fiji back to democracy following the December 2006 coup.

"We are all aware as Pacific Island leaders, the United Nations, the Commonwealth, the EU will all look to this forum for leadership and guidance in this area and take their lead from us in terms of setting the agenda."

"There's got be a credible specific timetable, not a set of objectives and hopes and dreams," he said.

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