Fiji says ‘Bula’ to renaissance

At the risk of sounding like a cheerleader for the commodore, I think Fiji finally looks like gaining economic traction as well as diplomatic credibility.

It is not unusual for military regimes to adopt policies of economic liberalism that are hated by the Left but deliver prosperity that is the envy of politically grid-locked democracies.

Taiwan, (South) Korea and Chile come to mind. Before and after its first military coup, Fiji was being strangled by corrupt tribal politics and racial discrimination against its Indian community.

That, it is hoped, will change under the new constitution that is now going through its consultation process. Since sizing power, the Bainimarama government has run a tight ship that has promoted the benefits of investment and an open economy.

This has meant while the regime has faced opposition from Australia and New Zealand – driven by old-school diplomats – the local and foreign business community have remained confident.

A few big deals with overseas investors are likely to follow this week’s announcement of the rebranding of Air Pacific to Fiji Airways, the government’s main technocrat, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum told me this week.

He also pointed to supply-side policies in the 2012 budget, which from January 1 cut corporate tax from 28% to 20% – much lower than Australia or New Zealand – and took further measures to reduce monopolies and open the economy to more competition.

Technocrat as a cult figure
If Fiji has a cult figure, it is not the military ruler but the studious, suit-wearing Mr Sayed-Khaiyum. He is seldom far from the daily headlines, be it announcing airline moves as minister of civil aviation and tourism, posing with Bollywood stars making a film because of generous tax incentives < http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=201238 >, giving advice on household financial management to seminars on poverty, or outlining consumer protection laws as attorney general.

He was briefly upstaged by the Fiji’s win in the London Sevens rugby tournament and by the foreign minister’s announcement of a new embassy in Abu Dhabi.

Fiji is seeking to extend its direct diplomatic relations with other countries, many of them also in the 120-nation member Non-Aligned Movement, which has just held a summit in Egypt. These ties run from major powers such as China and India through to Brazil and South Africa, while spurned by Australia and New Zealand.

(Note: My comments about Fiji should not be taken as gospel, given I was there for only a few days. But I did get to Suva and also saw the residual flood damage around Nadi. But this hasn’t affected the holiday business or the resorts at Denarau and in the islands. You can dispel any fears you might have about the state of Fiji tourism – a case of no news is good news.)

The dilemmas of consumption
Chandran Nair didn’t claim any credentials as an economist or even as a writer but he was certainly a top attraction at the Auckland Writers and Readers Festival.

Despite this, I am not sure his speech on Consumptionomics was fully comprehended. The audience, I surmised, was mainly left-leaning, as the theme was sustainability and the need for Asian countries to face up to the impact of their future consumption habits on the planet’s resources.

Dr Nair was fearless in putting his case to curb consumer choice and limit the ownership of cars, iPads and just about everything a middle-class would aspire to own or use. He suggested smartphones and other electronic gadgets should reflect their true cost – several thousands of dollars and not just hundreds.

While his audience approved his attack on the consumer capitalist economy, they also didn’t demur from the implications this might have for personal and economic freedom. They even politely applauded when he said democracy was incompatible with the draconian solutions he proposed.

Asked which country had the best model, he pointed to Singapore, where car ownership is prohibitive but reduces congestion. New Zealanders, of course, are well insulated from any prospect of Dr Nair’s prescriptions being applied here.

Only a small minority would allow politicians here to urge let alone implement moves to end hopes of middle-class prosperity, car ownership or air travel for the masses to help save the planet.

One explanation to this ideological dichotomy is contained a new book I am reading, The Righteous Mind, by American psychologist Jonathan Haidt, who argues that conservatives have a greater depth of values than their political opponents.

While both groups are driven by three “moral tastebuds” of compassion, the desire to fight oppression and achieve fairness, conservatives have an extra three – those of loyalty, authority and sanctity. These are also values found in religion, patriotism and traditional institutions, all of which are detested on the Left.

As Guardian reviewer Ian Birrell puts it:

Haidt readily admits that he set out to use moral psychology to help political partisans understand and respect each other. It is a welcome attempt to combat polarisation at a time when politics is descending into dysfunctional tribalism, a process speeded up by technology and changing residential patterns.

That wouldn’t please one member of the Nair lecture’s audience, who heckled me, in my introductory comments, as being both a “neo-fascist” and a “neo-liberal.” I had dared to suggest the most momentous economic event of the past 30 years was the World Bank’s claim that more than a billion people were lifted out of poverty between 1990 and 2005.

Dr Nair had no argument that this had happened because these countries had rejected socialism and adopted forms of capitalism – only that it was not sustainable.

See for yourself
Film reviewer Francesca Rudkin attended the lecture and it prompted her to write in her Rialto Channel blog:

...as he [Nair] talked about the challenges facing Asia over the coming decades, there is something sobering about watching Last Train Home (Thursday, May,17, 8.30pm). Directed by Chinese-Canadian filmmaker Lixin Fan, this insightful and moving film documents the migration of 130 million Chinese workers who every Chinese New Year throw the Chinese rail system into chaos as they head home to celebrate with their families.

The film follows a Chinese family who typify poor rural families in which the grandparents are left to raise the children while their parents head to city based factories to earn a living. It’s a situation that requires sacrifice, builds resentments and fractures families, and this documentary shows the collateral damage caused by China’s economic boom and rise to economic superpower.

I might add a recommendation for Rialto’s sister SoHo Channel, which is screening Pu-239, an HBO film about a Russian nuclear scientist trying to sell plutonium on the blackmarket. It is just one of many excellent films you can watch virtually every day.