Racial differences are expected to dominate Fiji elections

BBC News:

Fijians are due to go to polls on Saturday in the first general election since the post-coup vote in 2001.

The poll pits Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase's Fijian-dominated SDL party against the predominantly ethnic Indian Labour party of Mahendra Chaudhry.

Relations between native Fijians and ethnic Indians, who make up almost 40% of the population, have been tense.

This week, the army conducted two days of manoeuvres near the capital, Suva, in case of any violence.

Polls are due to open at 0700 local time on Saturday (1900 GMT on Friday) and voting will last until 13 May.

Twelve parties are trying to win seats in the 71-member parliament. The SDL and the Labour party are expected to win the majority of the seats between them.

Fiji has never really recovered from a nationalist uprising six years ago, says the BBC correspondent in Sydney, Phil Mercer.

It highlighted the deep differences between the races that are still apparent. In May 2000, armed gunmen stormed the parliament compound and deposed the country's first ethnic Indian Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry.

He was eventually replaced by Laisenia Qarase, a hardline indigenous leader.

Tensions between the two men are well known and reflect the suspicions that exist between native Fijians and ethnic Indians.

Army chief Voreqe Bainimarama has said the military will back whichever government is elected.

Commodore Bainimarama has been engaged in an angry dispute with Mr Qarase over a controversial amnesty bill that would allow leaders of former coups, such as George Speight who led the 2000 coup, to apply to be released.

Voters cast two ballots - one for an "open" seat and one for a representative of their own community.

Twenty-five seats in the parliament are "open", and the rest are reserved for different ethnic groups. Twenty-three are reserved for indigenous Fijians and 19 for ethnic Indians.

About 51% of Fiji's estimated 906,000 people are indigenous Fijians of Melanesian and Polynesian ancestry.

Ethnic Indians make up about 44%. Their ancestors were brought to the islands as sugar farmers in the 19th century by former colonial power Britain. Other ethnic groups make up 5%.

Race issue looms large over Fiji polls