Indians Fiji

Military coup leader Sitivene Rabuka vowed Saturday to prevent Indians from ever assuming political power again in Fiji, and Indians shuttered their shops and gathered in crowds to protest the takeover. Lt. Col. Rabuka said earlier that he led the bloodless seizure on Thursday to stop fighting between ethnic Fijians and Indians after the April 11 election, which led for the first time to an Indian-dominated government.

The first night wasn't so bad. The young men came, shouted a few insults, threw some rocks, broke a couple of windows. And then, just as quickly as they had emerged from the darkness, they slipped away. It was the second night that Shiri and Veena Devi Ram will never forget. The troublemakers began congregating in front of their house in the late afternoon. There were about 30 of them, young indigenous Fijians from a nearby village, drinking beer and bent on trouble. "Get out!"

The first night wasn't so bad. The young men came, shouted a few insults, threw some rocks, broke a couple of windows. And then, just as quickly as they had emerged from the darkness, they slipped away. It was the second night that Shiri and Veena Devi Ram will never forget. The troublemakers began congregating in front of their house in the late afternoon. There were about 30 of them, young indigenous Fijians from a nearby village, drinking beer and bent on trouble. "Get out!"

Military coup leader Sitivene Rabuka vowed Saturday to prevent Indians from ever assuming political power again in Fiji, and Indians shuttered their shops and gathered in crowds to protest the takeover. Lt. Col. Rabuka said earlier that he led the bloodless seizure on Thursday to stop fighting between ethnic Fijians and Indians after the April 11 election, which led for the first time to an Indian-dominated government.

Fiji marked the 17th anniversary of its independence from Britain as the South Pacific island nation ended a second week under the control of military strongman Col. Sitiveni Rabuka. India, meanwhile, saying it does not recognize the republic proclaimed by Rabuka, suspended trade and technical cooperation with Fiji. Australia already has suspended aid, and New Zealand says it may suspend its support. Rabuka staged two coups in five months, the latest on Sept.

Showing community solidarity, two ethnically diverse groups will join to protest the ongoing ethnic strife in Fiji between majority indigenous Fijians and minority ethnic Indians. The Fiji Assn. of Southern California, a social and cultural group based in Van Nuys, and the Fiji-Indian Assn., a newly formed group in Santa Monica, plan to march at 2 p.m. today through downtown Culver City to draw attention to the democratically elected leaders being held hostage by rebel forces.

Army troops patrolled nearly deserted streets early today to prevent looting after ethnic clashes, while Fiji's governor general and the island nation's Great Council of Chiefs sought a way to end the governmental crisis in the wake of last week's military coup. More than 50 people were reported injured Wednesday when young Fijians attacked ethnic Indians at an outdoor prayer meeting in the first racial violence since the coup.

Col. Sitiveni Rabuka, a native Fijian and head of the armed forces, said Friday he staged his second military coup in this South Pacific island nation to block a political comeback by the elected Indian majority he toppled in the first coup May 14. In a radio announcement, Rabuka said he had seized power again because the new government did not meet the goal that motivated his first coup: ensuring that Melanesians would control Fiji's government.

Showing community solidarity, two ethnically diverse groups will join to protest the ongoing ethnic strife in Fiji between majority indigenous Fijians and minority ethnic Indians. The Fiji Assn. of Southern California, a social and cultural group based in Van Nuys, and the Fiji-Indian Assn., a newly formed group from Santa Monica, plan to march Saturday afternoon through downtown Culver City to draw attention to the plight of the democratically elected leaders being held hostage by rebel forces.

Several years ago, the Hawaiian language seemed headed for oblivion. Native speakers were dying of old age, and few children grew up speaking the sonorous ancient language. "It was desperate and fading away fast," Hawaiian specialist Kauanoe Kamana said. "It was just on the edge of existence as a viable language." Hawaiian was officially suppressed when the United States annexed the islands in 1898 and fell out of use as Hawaii became Americanized.

Here in the heart of the South Pacific, on an island of gentle breezes and eternal innocence, a noble experiment in democracy and multiracial harmony has met its severest challenge--and has failed. For 17 years, ever since gaining its independence from Britain, this nation of 322 islands and 715,000 people was, as Pope John Paul II put it last November, "a symbol of hope in the world."