13 Dec 2010

Fiji's interim Prime Minister speaks of asking US Ambassador to leave

11:29 am on 13 December 2010

Fiji's interim Prime Minister has stepped up the rhetoric in the diplomatic row with the United States.

The United States Ambassador to Fiji, Steven McGann, has already been summoned to a meeting with Foreign Affairs officials in Suva .

That followed the cancellation of Fiji's annual Coalition of Human Rights march on Friday.

Fiji's Information Ministry said the cancellation was because of a baseless advisory to American citizens from the embassy claiming that assembled groups may become unruly.

Just two weeks earlier, an interim government minister, Fiji's Chief Justice and a senior official were denied entry into the United States.

Now speaking to the Fiji Sun newspaper, the interim Prime Minister, Commodore Frank Bainimarama , has said he is open to suggestions from the public on what they think should be done with Mr McGann.

He said he has been urged to send the ambassador home because he was not doing his job well and because of the way he has been acting against Fiji.

Refering to a recent announcement that a US development office would reopen in Fiji, Commodore Bainimarama said while Washington had announced it wanted to re-engage with Fiji, they were definitely not committed to it.

He said it was either Hillary Clinton or Mr McGann who was lying.