SUVA – Fiji finally took another step toward democracy this week with the launch of the new Elections Office website – designed to inform Fijians on all things to do with the 2014 general elections.
The website was launched in Suva yesterday by the Attorney-General and Minister Responsible for Elections, Aiyaz Saiyed-Khaiyum, before heads of missions and government representatives.
“Anyone with a computer and smart phone can now access the election website to get all the latest information they need, including their Electronic Voter Registration (EVR) details. “This is unprecedented in Fiji and a clear sign of the Bainimarama government’s commitment to a free, fair, transparent and credible election next year”, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum said.
He said people would also be able to download voter registration forms and Fijians overseas would be able to receive updates on government efforts to register them for the 2014 elections.
The website also provides registration forms for political parties and provides the full tect of the political parties decree.
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum explained the website had a number of features that not only allowed Fijians to stay informed on the elections but also login and alter their voter registration details if they were incorrect.
“If you believe that the information captured there is not correct and you want that updated, if you may have changed your address and moved to Labasa or Suva, changed streets in Suva, you can download the amendment form and get your information changed,” he explained.
rod�[ gn��P��es that affect current trade policies of Pacific island countries.
“This workshop is a classic example of how experts come to the Pacific and say that we need awareness in this and there is deficiencies within our domestic processes but they fail to realise maybe that we have other partners who we need to discuss these issues with and we are not just setting trading policies ourselves but this is a process where we negotiate with other partners under some international framework. It’s not as easy as taking a health stance in a trade forum and say that we will now take a measure to stop all products that link to NCDs from coming into Fiji,” Mr Ali said.
“That might be good for Fiji but other trade partners might not agree to that. So this are the constraints that our regional organisations need to realise that island countries are dealing with bigger trading partners, more organised trading partners that can have a substantial amount of political pressure apart from economic pressure, so within those constraints trade officials are doing a good job in terms of protecting their interest in terms of trade.
The import of mutton and lamb flaps from New Zealand — the end piece of an animal’s rib cut off in processing to get to the high-quality ribs and spare ribs — was banned in 2000.
Consumption of the product was linked to rising obesity. Although the quantity of mutton and lamb flaps has decreased dramatically since the introduction of the ban, a study has revealed a slight increase of the product in the country.
