Fiji officials call in the military after close election

The First Fiji party, led by Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama, refused to concede a close election last week. Bainimarama has been in power for 16 years. His party originally won the most seats in Parliament. But the second-place party aligned with two others to form a majority coalition that outnumbers First Fiji. Police have called in the military to keep order amid political unrest.

Why is this significant? Fiji has a history of conflict between native islanders and ethnic Indians. Until about 10 years ago, it had a race-based voting system that reportedly favored indigenous Fijians. Officials say the current political uncertainty is contributing to violence and threats against minority groups on the island.

Dig deeper: From the WORLD archives, listen to Anna Johansen Brown’s report on The World and Everything in It podcast about Fiji’s COVID-19 policies.