The 1990 Constitution: Institutionalising Exclusion

After the 1987 coups, Fiji’s new rulers drafted a constitution that cemented indigenous supremacy. The 1990 Constitution guaranteed a majority of seats in Parliament for indigenous Fijians, regardless of population balance. Key offices—Prime Minister, President, and military commander—were reserved exclusively for indigenous Fijians. Indo-Fijians, despite comprising nearly half the population, were locked out of meaningful power.

Many Indo-Fijians saw it as the final confirmation that they were unwanted in their own country. Protests erupted, and international condemnation was swift. Australia, New Zealand, and the Commonwealth expressed outrage. The United Nations raised concerns. Yet the regime pressed on.

The consequences were severe: tens of thousands of Indo-Fijians emigrated, draining Fiji of doctors, teachers, engineers, and entrepreneurs. The “brain drain” scarred the community and the economy. Those who stayed felt trapped in a system designed to silence them.

Indo-Fijian Response

Despite despair, Indo-Fijians resisted. The NFP under Jai Ram Reddy chose engagement over boycott, contesting elections and keeping Indo-Fijian voices alive in Parliament. Unions, churches, and NGOs lobbied internationally. And ordinary Indo-Fijians, though disheartened, continued to build schools, run cane farms, and maintain communities in the face of exclusion.

Towards Reform: An Unlikely Partnership

By the mid-1990s, it was clear the 1990 Constitution was unsustainable. International isolation, economic decline, and growing domestic frustration pushed Fiji’s leaders toward reform. Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, the very man who had led the 1987 coups, began to shift. He reached out to Jai Ram Reddy, leader of the Indo-Fijian community, to chart a path to reconciliation.

What followed was extraordinary. Rabuka and Reddy, once bitter adversaries, built a working relationship based on trust. Reddy persuaded Indo-Fijians to engage constructively, while Rabuka convinced indigenous chiefs that inclusion was necessary for Fiji’s survival was long and difficult, but it culminated in the adoption of the 1997 Constitution, approved unanimously in Parliament—a rare moment of unity in Fiji’s divided history.

The 1997 Constitution: A New Settlement

The 1997 Constitution transformed Fiji’s political landscape. It enshrined human rights, guaranteed equality before the law, and created a multi-ethnic Cabinet system. It allowed any citizen to become Prime Minister or President, regardless of ethnicity. The hated racial reservations of 1990 were dismantled. Fiji was hailed internationally as a model of reconciliation.

For Indo-Fijians, it was vindication. After a decade of exclusion, they were once again recognised as equal citizens. Reddy’s speech to the Great Council of Chiefs in 1997, where he appealed for a common destiny and mutual respect, is remembered as one of the greatest moments of statesmanship in Fiji’s history.

Legacy of 1990–1997

The journey from the exclusion of 1990 to the settlement of 1997 is both tragic and inspiring. It showed how far Fiji could fall into division, and how leadership could pull it back towards unity. For Indo-Fijians, it was proof that patience, resilience, and dialogue could achieve what violence could not.

Yet the settlement was fragile. Just three years later, in 2000, a coup would again topple an Indo-Fijian Prime Minister. Still, the 1997 Constitution remains a high point: a reminder of what Fiji could be when it embraces justice and equality.