"text":"Fiji became independent in 1970 after nearly a century as a British colony. Democratic rule was interrupted by two military coups in 1987 caused by concern over a government perceived as dominated by the Indian community (descendants of contract laborers brought to the islands by the British in the 19th century). The coups and a 1990 constitution that cemented native Melanesian control of Fiji led to heavy Indian emigration; the population loss resulted in economic difficulties, but ensured that Melanesians became the majority. A new constitution enacted in 1997 was more equitable. Free and peaceful elections in 1999 resulted in a government led by an Indo-Fijian, but a civilian-led coup in 2000 ushered in a prolonged period of political turmoil. Parliamentary elections held in 2001 provided Fiji with a democratically elected government led by Prime Minister Laisenia QARASE. Reelected in May 2006, QARASE was ousted in a December 2006 military coup led by Commodore Voreqe BAINIMARAMA, who initially appointed himself acting president but in January 2007 became interim prime minister. Following years of political turmoil, long-delayed legislative elections were held in September 2014 that were deemed \"credible\" by international observers and that resulted in BAINIMARAMA being reelected."
"text":"iTaukei 56.8% (predominantly Melanesian with a Polynesian admixture), Indian 37.5%, Rotuman 1.2%, other 4.5% (European, part European, other Pacific Islanders, Chinese)",
"note":{
"text":"a 2010 law replaces 'Fijian' with 'iTuakei' when referring to the original and native settlers of Fiji (2007 est.)"
"text":"Protestant 45% (Methodist 34.6%, Assembly of God 5.7%, Seventh Day Adventist 3.9%, and Anglican 0.8%), Hindu 27.9%, other Christian 10.4%, Roman Catholic 9.1%, Muslim 6.3%, Sikh 0.3%, other 0.3%, none 0.8% (2007 est.)"
"text":"active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus (2016)"
"text":"the Fijians called their home Viti, but the neighboring Tongans called it Fisi, and in the Anglicized spelling of the Tongan pronunciation - promulgated by explorer Captain James COOK - the designation became Fiji"
"text":"under the constitution, president elected by the Parliament for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); prime minister appointed by the president"
"text":"unicameral Parliament (50 seats; members directly elected in a nationwide, multi-seat constituency by open-list proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms; the new constitution of 2013 restructured Parliament from bicameral to unicameral"
"text":"last held on 17 September 2014 (next to be held in 2019)"
},
"election results":{
"text":"percent of vote by party - Fiji First 59.2%, SDL 28.2%, National Federation Party 5.5%, other 7.1%; seats by party - Fiji First 32, SDL 15, National Federation Party 3"
"text":"Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice, all justices of the Court of Appeal, and judges appointed specifically as Supreme Court judges); Court of Appeal (consists of the court president, all puisne judges of the High Court, and judges specifically appointed to the Court of Appeal); High Court (chaired by the chief justice and includes a minimum of 10 puisne judges; High Court organized into civil, criminal, family, employment, and tax divisions)"
"text":"chief justice appointed by the president of Fiji on the advice of the prime minister following consultation with the parliamentary leader of the opposition; judges of the Supreme Court, the president of the Court of Appeal, the justices of the Court of Appeal, and puisne judges of the High Court appointed by the president of Fiji upon the nomination of the Judicial Service Commission after consulting with the cabinet minister and the committee of the House of Representatives responsible for the administration of justice; the chief justice, Supreme Court judges and justices of Appeal generally required to retire at age 70 but may be waived for one or more sessions of the court; puisne judges appointed for not less than 4 years nor more than 7 years with mandatory retirement at age 65"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"Magistrates' Court (organized into civil, criminal, juvenile, and small claims divisions)"
}
},
"Political parties and leaders":{
"text":"FijiFirst [Aiyaz SAYED-KHAIYUM] ++ Fiji Labor Party or FLP [Mahendra CHAUDHRY] ++ Fiji United Freedon Party or FUFP [Jagath KARUNARATNE] ++ National Federation Party or NFP [Dalip KUMAR] (primarily Indian) ++ Peoples Democratic Party or PDP [Adi Sivia QORO] ++ Social Democratic Liberal Party or SODELPA [Pio TABAIWALU]"
},
"Political pressure groups and leaders":{
"text":"Group Against Racial Discrimination or GARD [Dr. Anirudk SINGH] (suports restoration of a democratic government) ++ Viti Landowners Association"
"text":"2000 M Street NW, Suite 710, Washington, DC 20036"
},
"telephone":{
"text":"[1] (202) 466-8320"
},
"FAX":{
"text":"[1] (202) 466-8325"
}
},
"Diplomatic representation from the US":{
"chief of mission":{
"text":"Ambassador Judith CEFKIN (since 3 February 2015); note - also accredited to Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga, and Tuvalu"
},
"embassy":{
"text":"158 Princes Rd, Tamavua"
},
"mailing address":{
"text":"P. O. Box 218, Suva"
},
"telephone":{
"text":"[679] 331-4466"
},
"FAX":{
"text":"[679] 330-8685"
}
},
"Flag description":{
"text":"light blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Fijian shield centered on the outer half of the flag; the blue symbolizes the Pacific ocean and the Union Jack reflects the links with Great Britain; the shield - taken from Fiji's coat of arms - depicts a yellow lion above a white field quartered by the cross of Saint George; the four quarters depict stalks of sugarcane, a palm tree, bananas, and a white dove"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"Fijian canoe; national color: light blue"
},
"National anthem":{
"name":{
"text":"\"God Bless Fiji\""
},
"lyrics/music":{
"text":"Michael Francis Alexander PRESCOTT/C. Austin MILES (adapted by Michael Francis Alexander PRESCOTT)"
},
"note":{
"text":"adopted 1970; known in Fijian as \"Meda Dau Doka\" (Let Us Show Pride); adapted from the hymn, \"Dwelling in Beulah Land,\" the anthem's English lyrics are generally sung, although they differ in meaning from the official Fijian lyrics"
"text":"Fiji, endowed with forest, mineral, and fish resources, is one of the most developed and connected of the Pacific island economies. Earnings from the tourism industry, with an estimated 755,000 tourists visiting in 2015, and remittances from Fijian’s working abroad are the country’s largest foreign exchange earners. ++ ++ Fiji's sugar remains a significant industry and a major export. The sugar industry reforms since 2010 have improved productivity and returns, but the industry faces the complete withdrawal of European Union preferential prices by 2017. Fiji’s trade imbalance continues to widen with increased imports and sluggish performance of domestic exports. ++ ++ The return to parliamentary democracy and successful elections in September 2014 have boosted investor confidence. Private sector investment in 2015 exceeded 20% of GDP, compared to 13% in 2013."
"text":"modern local, interisland, and international (wire/radio integrated) public and special-purpose telephone, telegraph, and teleprinter facilities; regional radio communications center; subject to occasional devastating cyclones"
"text":"telephone or radio telephone links to almost all inhabited islands; most towns and large villages have automatic telephone exchanges and direct dialing; combined fixed-line and mobile-cellular teledensity roughly 115 per 100 persons"
"text":"country code - 679; access to important cable links between US and Canada, as well as between NZ and Australia; satellite earth stations - 2 Inmarsat (Pacific Ocean) (2015)"
"text":"Fiji TV, a publicly traded company, operates a free-to-air channel, as well as Sky Fiji and Sky Pacific multi-channel pay-TV services; state-owned commercial company, Fiji Broadcasting Corporation, Ltd, operates 6 radio stations - 2 public broadcasters and 4 commercial broadcasters with multiple repeaters; 5 radio stations with repeaters operated by Communications Fiji, Ltd; transmissions of multiple international broadcasters are available (2009)"
"text":"belongs to the government-owned Fiji Sugar Corporation; used to haul sugarcane during the harvest season, which runs from May to December (2008)"
}
},
"Roadways":{
"total":{
"text":"3,440 km"
},
"paved":{
"text":"1,686 km"
},
"unpaved":{
"text":"1,754 km (2011)"
}
},
"Waterways":{
"text":"203 km (122 km are navigable by motorized craft and 200-metric-ton barges) (2012)"
},
"Merchant marine":{
"total":{
"text":"11"
},
"by type":{
"text":"passenger 4, passenger/cargo 4, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 2"
