Former Fiji coup leader pardoned

George Speight, who was found guilty of treason following a failed coup 24 years ago, has been pardoned by Fiji's President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere.

Speight, 67, was released on Thursday after spending more than 20 years in prison.

From left, incumbent prime minister in 2000 Sitiveni Rabuka, current President Ratu Wiliame Katonivere, and 2000 military commander Frank Bainimarama. Photo/supplied

On 19 May 2000, Speight and rebel soldiers from the army's Counter Revolutionary Warfare Unit seized the parliament and held prime minister Mahendra Chaudhry and 35 other MPs hostage for 56 days at the parliamentary complex.

Speight was originally handed the death penalty but his sentence was commuted to life in prison.

Speight and former military mutiny officer Shane Stevens were granted pardons by Ratu Williame after recommendations by the country's Mercy Commission.

Stevens, an army captain in 2000, was also serving life for mutiny after leading a group of soldiers from the military's elite unit in an attempt to oust then-army commander Frank Bainimarama.

Bainimarama went on to overthrow the democratically-elected government of the late prime minister Laisenia Qarase in 2006.

Bainimarama, who served as PM from 2007 until 2022, is now serving a 12-month sentence in prison for abusing his power to shut down a police investigation into alleged corruption at the regional institute in Suva, the University of the South Pacific.

The Fiji Corrections Service said in a statement on Thursday that the pardons were formally granted on Wednesday.

"As a result, the named individuals have been officially discharged from custody today, Thursday, 19 September 2024.

"The Fiji Correction Service and the government remain committed to the principles of justice, rehabilitation, and the rule of law.

Fiji's former prime ministers Mahendra Chaudhry, left, and the late Laisenia Qarase. Both men were overthrown in a military coup. Photo/supplied

"The Mercy Commission plays a vital role in ensuring that petitions for clemency are considered carefully, with due regard to the circumstances of each case."

Also released on Thursday were Sekina Vosavakatini, Nioni Tagici, James Sanjesh Goundar, Adi Livini Radininausori, and John Miller.

The corrections service said one of those to receive a pardon died earlier this month.

Chaudhry's Indian-dominated Labour Party won the general election in May 1999 and it was the first vote held under the revised 1997 Constitution.

The document instituted a new electoral system, which resulted in Chaudhry taking office as Fiji's first Indo-Fijian prime minister.

Labour's landslide win also eliminated the then-incumbent government of Sitiveni Rabuka and his SVT Party (Soqsoqo ni Vakavulewa ni Taukei).

On 9 July, Speight agreed to release the hostages in exchange for an amnesty for himself. However, all his key demands were not met.

Locals and soldiers clash outside parliament. Photo/supplied

On 26 July, Speight and three others were arrested at a military checkpoint. Soldiers stormed his headquarters, killing one person and arresting 369 Speight supporters.

Who is George Speight?

Speight was born in Naivicula, Tailevu - a 90-minute drive from the capital Suva.

He was educated at Suva Grammar School before studying marketing in Australia and business at Andrews University in the United States.

After graduating, he worked in Australia as a bank clerk for Metway Bank and was involved in the Wattle Group pyramid scheme.

After returning to Fiji in 1996, he worked as an insurance broker for Heaths Insurance Group.

In 1998, he was appointed chair of the state-owned Fiji Pine and Fiji Hardwood Corporation by the Rabuka government, in which his father, Sam Speight, was serving as a cabinet minister.

The burnt-out remains of an Indian restaurant following the May 2000 hostage crisis and associated ransacking of Suva's commercial district. Indians were persecuted during the height of the unrest. Photo/Anton Leddin

George Speight was sacked by Heaths in April 1999 following financial irregularities, and from his state appointments by the Labour coalition government in August 1999.

It later emerged that he had been paid consultancy fees by American timber company Trans Resource Management, to advocate for them to be granted the right to harvest Fiji's mahogany.

In early 2000, just days before the coup, he pleaded not guilty to exchange rate charges and extortion.

Speight had applied for a presidential pardon under a mercy clause in June 2023, the Corrections Service said.

The Mercy Commission said the corrections service had provided positive reports on Speight's behaviour and recommended a pardon.

"Psychological and judicial assessments were also reviewed, with the FCS supporting his reintegration into society," the commission said in a statement.

"The commission has recommended that His Excellency the President grant mercy to Speight, postponing the carrying out of his punishment for an indeterminate period, in recognition of his rehabilitation and the length of time he has served in prison."

Naboro Prison where George Speight and Shane Stevens were held. Photo/FCS