The future of Vanuatu's government is uncertain after 15 of its MPs were last week convicted of bribery charges.
Large crowds gathered outside the Supreme Court to hear the verdict in the bribery trial. Photo: RNZI / Hilaire Bule
The Supreme Court on Friday found 14 MPs, including the deputy prime minister Moana Carcasses, guilty of giving and receiving corrupt payments.
Another MP, Willie Jimmy, had already pleaded guilty.
Under Vanuatu law, the MPs are likely to automatically lose their seats once sentenced, and if that happens the government will likely become a minority one.
An opposition MP, Ralph Regenvanu, says all sides need to come together to work out how the laws will be applied, so there can be a stable outcome for the governance of Vanuatu.
"That decision can either be that he resigns, or he tries to find a way to bring some of the opposition into his government, or we all sit down together and then decide what's the best government that we can have that is going to take the government through to the next by-elections for all these seats, or whether we need to dissolve parliament and just have fresh elections because the cost of by-elections for 15 seats is probably going to be close to the cost of a general election."
Ralph Regenvanu says if no progress is made, a motion of no confidence could be submitted.
