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CHAPTER
2 - COMPACT
Compact
6. The people of the Fiji Islands recognise that, within the framework of
this Constitution and the other laws of the State, the conduct of government is
based on the following principles:
(a) the rights of all individuals, communities and groups are fully respected;
(b) the ownership of Fijian land according to Fijian custom, the ownership of
freehold land, and the rights of landlords and tenants under leases of
agricultural land are preserved;
(c) all persons have the right to practise their religion freely and to retain
their language, culture and traditions;
(d) the rights of the Fijian and Rotuman people include their right to
governance through their separate administrative systems;
(e) as citizens, the members of all communities enjoy equal rights, including
the right to make their permanent homes in the Fiji Islands;
(f) the rights of a citizen include the right to form and join political
parties, to take part in political campaigns, and to vote and to be a
candidate in free and fair elections of members of the House of
Representatives held by secret ballot and ultimately on the basis of equal
suffrage;
(g) the formation of a government that has the support of a majority in the
House of Representatives depends on the electoral support received by the
various political parties or pre-election coalitions, and, if it is necessary
or desirable to form a coalition government from among competing parties,
depends on their willingness to come together to form or support a government;
(h) in the formation of a government, and in that government's conduct of the
affairs of the nation through the promotion of legislation or the
implementation of administrative policies, full account is taken of the
interests of all communities;
(i) to the extent that the interests of different communities are seen to
conflict, all the interested parties negotiate in good faith in an endeavour
to reach agreement;
(j) in those negotiations, the paramountcy of Fijian interests as a protective
principle continues to apply, so as to ensure that the interests of the Fiji
an community are not subordinated to the interests of other communities;
(k) affirmative action and social justice programs to secure effective
equality of access to opportunities, amenities or services for the Fijian and
Rotuman people, as well as for other communities, for women as well as men,
and for all disadvantaged citizens or groups, are based on an allocation of
resources broadly acceptable to all communities;
(l) the equitable sharing of political power amongst all communities in Fiji
is matched by an equitable sharing of economic and commercial power to ensure
that all communities fully benefit from the nation's economic progress.
Application of Compact
7.-(1) The principles referred to in section 6 are
non-justifiable,
except to the extent that they are made the subject of other provisions
of this Constitution or of a law made under this Constitution.
(2) In the interpretation of this Constitution or a law made under this
constitution consideration must be given to those principles, when relevant.
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