Jonathan Fraenkel of Australia probably doesn't even speak Fijian - and would be lost in an itaukei setting.

its funny how these guys like Fraenkel try to analyse these things without even immersion in the culture.

Fiji is an interesting situation (a) because of the cross cultural context; (b) because of the influence of religion (c) because of the traditional structures which are NOT strictly Polynesian in the sense that in itaukei society there has always been that flexibility within the structures allowing for shifting power bases and alliegances and even chages in leadership withing a vanua - thats not the case in Tonga which is strictly hierarchical and which is structly set up so that the nobles are basically a seperate tier above the rest - eg in Fiji chiefs can intermarry with commoners and vice versa - this has allowed for the emergence of ethnonationalism the streets permeatig into mainstream politics and even into the GCC.

i am and itaukei but i don't feel discriminated in the commercial world - so what discrimination are you talking about ?

99.9% of the people i engage with are non itaukei businesses - and i haven't been able to see any form of discrimination against me for being itaukei.

my only experiences of discimination and unfairness have been with government - over the years - and especially with the Court system which sometimes has not been fair and transparent in its handeling of cases and issues - the patronage network has been part of parcel of that system for a long time - when i first started out, the first Christmas of that year 1999 i received a phone call from the High Court Registry - from the Senior Court Officer to notify me that they were having a Christmas party and that the obligatory contribution from every solicitor was one bottle of whiskey - i later learnt that firms sent not only a bottle - some sent cases of whiskey - if you wanted to be on good terms you had to send a whiskey - that was the practice. i found out that those guys who didn't send anything usually ended up having difficulties with their relationship with the Court Registry on one thing or another - it went to the extent that one year i had an international clients boat seized in Suva harbor by the Sherrif and i arranged for its release by Court Order - the release was supposed to happen on a Friday afternoon so that they could sail that evening - i notified the Court officer in charge about the release before midday on the Friday, but by 3pm that evening i got calls from the ships captain very upset that the Port authorities were refusing to authorise his departure - when i contacted the Registry i was told that the Court officer had gone to watch the soccer at the Battle of the Giants tournament and i had to call back on Tuesday - i had to literally go down to the wharf and wave the Court Order around to the Ports guys before it was released.

i lodged a formal complaint on that issue with the Chief Registrar of the Court - and got a response to the effect that the Court "was sorry" for "all the inconvinience caused" - and this was a bloody incovinience - we had just paid Isireli Fa $50k for the outstanding oil bill which led to that arrest - and the guys at the Registry were busy at the soccer game to be bothered about administering their duties as Sherrifs of the Admiralty Court.

another one i had with a Judge who has now left - an English Judge. my case was to be called at 9 am in his chambers - but on the morning of the case the other solicitor called his office direct to say they would be "inconvinienced" - this Judge made me wait outside his Chambers for two hours saying that the case had to wait for the arrival of the other lawyer before he would hear it - and when we started that case the other lawyer asked for ammendments to the pleadings verbally and he gave it to him on the spot - when i asked for ammendments he ordered me to file an application with an affidavit seeking leave to ammend - lol. this Judge later went on ABC after the coup d'etat to complain about the FB regimes "dilution of the law" - when i complained about his conduct to the Registrar of the High Court - which i did by letter copied to all the counsels in that case, he cited me for contempt - i was forced to apologise and withdraw my letter.

i have many more personal experiences gdev - which i can write a book about - even of lawyers calling Judicial officers directly regarding cases.

thankfully those practices have come to an end.

today if you go to the High Court Registry Civil section you will see clearly on the wall a prominent notice for the public to refrain from paying "lunch money" or giving "gifts" or any other kind of thing to members of teh Registry or Judicial officers - and to report it to the Chief registrar ifthey are requested these and other favors by clerks or Judicial officers.