Turmoil in Paradise

So, the last week has brought about some interesting developments in the Fijian government. I will see if I can summarize what has happened in a nutshell.

About one week ago, our group returned from a 2 week excursion from some of the most beautiful places in Fiji. I came back rather tired, walked into my home and had a rest. Later that day, my host dad was really into the news and a certain announcement. It was announced that the military dictator (basically) and all government was said to be illegal by the constitution. The only person left in power was the 80 something year old president (actually, the oldest president in the world). Many Fijians were excited because nobody likes the dictator man.

The next day, we found out that the president re-instated this man and completely got rid of the constitution. So, we were in a state of anarchy. We wouldn't know this by walking down the street, as everything went about normally. Now, Australia and New Zealand are angry with Fiji and saying that we are officially in a military dictatorship. The newspaper on Sunday had to cancel half of the articles because of government restrictions. The news was canceled on Sunday, and now they are watched with armed men in the studio, because they cannot say anything about the political situation.

A family friend here in Fiji was over the other day. She is a doctor and her dad was the governor of the reserve bank of Fiji, until Saturday. They fired him, and took him into a camp to most likely beat and interrogate him. Of course, we just hear about these things from the BBC and word of mouth, not from any internal source.

So, Fiji is a mess. Our academic director is home sick, so we don't know what is up with us. If things get violent, I guess they send us home on the first plane. Most of our families say we will be fine, but you might get to see me sooner than you thought.

On the bright side, I think I have been accepted into the University of Hawaii... I'll let you know officially in a few weeks.

Don't let all of this scare you- I don't think that Fiji would mess with any Americans. Our government is way too powerful, and would crush Fiji if any of their citizens were hurt. :-) Go America.