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Issue No: 1025; 20 August 2001The Fiji Labour Party has increased its support in the cane belt, says a Pacifik Nius article. The article, written by Reggie Dutt and posted on the USP's
Wansolwara Online and the Pacific Islands Development Program website, states: Farmers and laborers would not hear of any other party. And they say why they support the deposed prime minister's crusade to get back into power. In Wainikoro, in the interior of the northern island of Vanua Levu -- where about 100 leases have expired and a similar number are expected to expire -- the evicted and the about-to-be-evicted are quietly rallying their support behind FLP. Shiu Narayan has about eight years to run on his lease and says that once it expires, he has nowhere to go. "That is the reason why I support the Labour party," says Narayan. "The People's Coalition government did more for us in a year than any other government has done in the past," he says in a line that has almost become a cliché. "We have always voted for FLP because they are the ones who have been fighting for us farmers and laborers. They (Peoples Coalition) showed a lot of courage during the political crisis last year and were not afraid to die for us. That is what the people here want in our leaders and that is why we will be supporting Labour (FLP)," he said. Narayan's views are echoed by other farmers in the Wainikoro and other areas around Labasa. Vunicuicui is a half an hour's bus ride out of Labasa town and
is located in a picturesque valley with a winding river. Land is fertile and
cane crops for the farmers have been good. Here too farmers have no "They were weeding out corruption from this
country," says one cane The support for FLP isn't just from Indo-Fijian farmers, but
also the The reason for not going on record is it would be against the norms of the village to voice individual opinions. But they want the same basic things that most Indo-Fijian farmers are asking for. Food prices need to be reduced, value added tax (VAT) removed
from The FLP offered this in the 1999 elections and was able to
achieve it Other parties are also offering what the people in rural
Labasa need |
People's Coalition Government - Fiji Islands |