Short timeframe a concern | Review of Fiji’s election laws

It has now emerged the Electoral Commission has raised its concern about the short timeframe under which the review of Fiji’s election laws is taking place.

The commission wrote a letter to the Minister for Justice Siromi Turaga stating that the compressed timeline might compromise the quality of the draft legislation and that it was important to ensure that public consultations are comprehensive and inclusive, not rushed or limited to select stakeholders only.

On February 19, 2025, the Cabinet gave the approval to the Fiji Law Reform Commission take charge and responsibility for the review and reform process of the Electoral Act 2014, the Electoral (Registration of Voters) Act 2012, and the Political Parties (Registration, Conduct, Funding, and Disclosures) Act 2013.

On February 20, 2025, the Electoral Commission met and decided to write a letter to the Minister for Justice, Siromi Turaga, expressing its concern at the short time given for the review of the electoral laws.

On February 21, 2025, the Attorney-General Graham Leung and the Minister for Justice, Siromi Turaga issued a joint term of reference for the review works to commence. On March 20, 2025, the commission to undertake the review was announced with former chief justice Daniel Fatiaki as chairman and Professor Wadan Narsey, former National Federation Party secretary-general Seni Nabou and legal expert Deidre Brookes as members.

Electoral Commission

The Electoral Commission (EC) is an independent, non-partisan authority that has the responsibility for the registration of voters and the conduct of free and fair elections in Fiji.

The newly appointed chairperson is Justice Usaia Ratuvili and the five Electoral Commission members are Nemani Mati, Nalini Singh, Inoke Loganimoce, Reginald Jokhan and Dr Atu Emberson-Bain. The EC met on February 20, 2025, and took a decision on the proposed review of the election-related laws that it is responsible for.

“The Electoral Commission has written to its line minister (Minister of Justice) copied the Hon PM, DPM and Minister of Finance, and the Attorney-General raising serious concerns regarding the timeline of the Electoral Laws review,” stated the EC in a decision that was posted on its website.

“The commission is of the view that the compressed timeline might compromise the quality of the draft legislation, and it was important to ensure that public consultations are comprehensive and inclusive, not rushed or limited to select stakeholders only,” said the EC.

Terms of reference

Despite this concern raised by the EC, a term of reference (TOR) was issued to the Fiji Law Reform Commission to commence the review work.

The TOR stated they are to assess and review the existing electoral laws together with relevant sections of the Constitution and recommend necessary changes and reforms, including but not limited to simplifying and strengthening the democratic principles underlying the electoral legislation.

It said the TOR required the commission to review the restrictions placed on civil society actors including political parties and the media.

It also stated the reviewing of the powers of the Supervisor of Elections, electoral offences and penalties.

The TOR further outlined the commission must also address the following issues:

promoting the representation of women and improving gender equality in the electoral system by the inclusion of special measures and/or temporary special measures;
maintaining electoral management body neutrality and streamlining the electoral management architecture for greater cohesion and efficiency;
reviewing electoral timelines;
strengthening the accountability of elected representatives to voters;
separating the roles of the Supervisor of Elections and Registrar of Political Parties (ROPP) to ensure the independence of the office of the ROPP; and
eliminating any disability-based discriminatory provisions and enhancing participation of persons with disabilities in the electoral system.

The term of reference also required the commission to present Draft Bills and regulations to the Government that must be aligned to international good practice and standards and they comply with domestic obligations under international law, including international Conventions ratified by Fiji such as the UN Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).

“Recommend reforms that uphold the principles of democracy and good governance, equality, inclusion, and fairness, undertake a comparative analysis of relevant laws in other jurisdictions with similar socio-geopolitical contexts and that have incorporated international good practices in order to identify and propose suitable options for electoral reform in Fiji,” states the TOR.

The commission is to carry out community-wide consultations with targeted stakeholders including government agencies, political parties, civil society organisations, the media, electoral experts and members of the public.

“The consultations will enable the review team to gather stakeholder perspectives on perceived limitations and challenges in the existing law and to elicit suggestions for improving the electoral framework.”

The review work

The review work Daniel Fatiaki and his team has commenced with the community and Fijians are also urged to make written submissions.

Appearing on The Fiji Times online platform program Lens@177, chairman Mr Fatiaki said his target was to receive 10,000 submissions.

“Our work is dictated by what the people want and what recommendations we can make using the skill, knowledge and aptitudes that we have.

“None of that can possibly be wasted because if the constitution is changed and if the electoral system is removed you have to think of an alternative. I’d like to think that would happen sooner rather than later, before dust does gather on our report. If dust does gather on our report, then I hope it won’t be more than four years of dust,” Mr Fatiaki had stated on Lens@177.

He said what the commission was going to recommend would transform “our electoral system into a true democracy, into something homegrown, made by us for us, and more so for our children’s children”.