The Constitutional Commission has welcomed the amendment of section 8 of the Public Order Amendment Decree which allows Fijians full participation in the constitutional process in the new Fiji Constitutional Process (Constitution Commission) Decree 2012.
Constitutional Commission Chairperson, Professor Yash Ghai said at a press conference today that while the Commission will be carrying out its work, people will not have to secure permits to hold meetings.
“We have been urging the government that there should be a relaxation of the rules that require permits from government to hold meetings,” Ghai said.
“Government has responded by partly suspending section 8 of the Public Order Amendment Act which deals with meetings so this should be of interest to all Fijians and we would like everyone to make submissions to the Commission.
“We would like people who make submissions not to unduly attack the views of others and to respect all differences.”
Professor Ghai also added that the Commission and the public now have much clarity on the constitutional process.
“We have been requesting the Fiji Constitutional Process (Constitution Commission) Decree 2012 for sometime now as it is essential to the commencement of our work and we are glad that government has gazetted the decree,” Ghai said.
Furthermore, Professor Ghai said that at the heart of the constitutional process was the participation of people.
Joining the Constitutional Commission Chairperson at today’s press conference were the four commissioners, Peni Moore, Christina Murray, Satendra Nandan and Taufa Vakatale.
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