The Acting Prime Minister and Attorney-General Aiyaz-Sayed Khaiyum issued the following statement in response to calls for policy change by the NFP and Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr’s offer of exemption from sanctions:
“That anyone finds "positive progress" in Fiji is because it is real and because the Bainimarama Government has been working diligently to provide a better future for all Fijians. If our neighbors support the steps we are taking to strengthen our economy, draft a new constitution, and hold our country's first truly democratic elections, we acknowledge that. However, Fiji will continue on its path to a new future just as it has--on its own accord--regardless of the carrots offered or sticks brandished by those listening only to the voices of a select few individuals and organizations that are interested first with themselves and not wholly with Fijians.”