By JYOTI PRATIBHA If you do not want to engage in racial or religious vilification or create public disorder, then you should not feel threatened by the amendment to the

By JYOTI PRATIBHA

If you do not want to engage in racial or religious vilification or create public disorder, then you should not feel threatened by the amendment to the Public Order Act, says Attorney-General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum made the comments following a statement from the Fiji Labour Party demanding the removal of the Public Order (Amendment) Decree 2012.

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said the amendment was an enabling statute-one that created a safe place for open discussions across Fijian society for the formation of a liberal democratic State.

“The Labour Party should be the first to appreciate this considering the events of 2000 and 1987, when demagoguery and religious vilification were used openly to harass and intimidate, and hold Fiji to ransom.

“Fiji has a history of politicians and religious leaders using race and religion, not just to vilify others but as a political tool of ascendency.

“In the process, they created public disorder, inhibiting true democracy to flourish.

“No government can run a modern State when a common and equal citizenry does not exist, so historical and societal context must be considered to understand the amendment, which only serves to enable Fijians to discuss their future equally without being threatened in the lead-up to the 2014 elections,” Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said.

In a statement, the Fiji Labour Party said the Public Order (Amendment) Decree 2012 was draconian and that the decree was a negative development hardly likely to provide the open and free environment for political dialogue.

“It clearly is designed to protect not the people of Fiji from terrorists but to protect and further entrench the authority of those who have and who continue to commit excesses on the people,” the statement read.