Fiji tense as attempt to oust army chief fails

SUVA, Oct 31 (Reuters) Fiji leaders failed in an attempt to remove their outspoken military commander today as the South Pacific nation's political crisis deepened, with soldiers staging exercises around the capital and sealing the main army barracks.

''People are scared. Most of them are unsure what will happen next,'' said one Suva resident.

Defiant military chief Frank Bainimarama has threatened to force Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase to resign unless he drops two contentious bills, including one offering amnesty to some of those involved in a 2000 coup.

Qarase met ageing and ailing President Ratu Josefa Iloilo earlier toUNI RAWAT1409day before Iloilo summoned a possible replacement for Bainimarama to Government House, a grand colonial-era building on sweeping grounds overlooking Suva's harbour.

But a military spokesman said Lieutenant-Colonel Ratu Meli Saubulinayau turned down Iloilo's offer to replace Bainimarama, who is visiting Fijian troops in the West Asia and is due to return within a week.

''We have presented to the president a request that decisions regarding the commander of the the Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF) be made in his presence,'' army spokesman Major Neumi Leweni told Reuters.

While Bainimarama and Qarase, both indigenous Fijians, have been at loggerheads most of the year, the attempt to replace the military chief also raises the possibility of a split within the military.

During a 2000 mutiny Bainimarama came close to be killed by renegade troops who were involved in a coup earlier that year. He has since said the govt is being too soft with those involved in those events.

BAINIMARAMA'S RETURN THIS WEEK Saubulinayau could face insubordination charges for turning down the offer by Iloilo, commander in chief of the military, an army source said.

Qarase has said he will deal with Bainimarama when the military chief returns, possibly later this week to coincide with a gathering of some 3,000 army reservists on Thursday.

The military said the exercises in Suva today and elsewhere around Fiji were not threatening.

''The RFMF has confirmed that it is conducting exercises at the Queen Elizabeth Barracks and in the greater Suva area and there is no cause for alarm,'' said Web site fijivillage.com.

Fiji's police commissioner has refused to release a shipment of 7.5 tonnes of ammunition to the military until commanders give a commitment that it will not be used against the government. The ammunition has been acquired from South Korea, local media said.

''I need the military to give its assurance that the ammunition at the wharf will not be used to destablise the government,'' Andrew Hughes told the Fiji Times newspaper.

Hughes, an Australian hired by the government, was due to meet military officers today to discuss releasing the ammunition to the military, a powerful force within the country, whose soldiers are highly regarded by the United Nations.

''I warn Hughes to act sensibly and release the ammunition, because if anything happens he will pack his bag and fly back to Australia leaving the country in a mess,'' Bainimarama, speaking from West Asia, told the Fiji Sun newspaper.

Fiji has suffered three coups and a failed mutiny since 1987.

The coups have been racially fuelled, with indigenous Fijians fearful of losing political control of their island nation to ethnic Indian Fijians, who dominate the sugar- and tourism-based economy.

Nearby Australia issued a new travel advisory for Fiji, warning citizens of rising tensions between the military and government and to avoid street demonstrations and rallies.

Washington has also warned its citizens ''to be aware that civil-military unrest in November is possible''.

REUTERS AB BS1411