Fiji's Fuse Burns Faster

Longstanding tensions between the Fijian government and military approached breaking point Dec. 3, as Commander Voreqe (Frank) Bainimarama sent armed troops to surround the police barracks in Suva. For several days beforehand, his soldiers had been patrolling the streets of the capital, Suva, as the Commander repeated his "non-negotiable" demands that Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase resign and that his government abandon moves to exonerate perpetrators of the attempted coup in 2000.

Bainimarama had grown increasingly bellicose in recent weeks. As troops fired mortars into Suva's harbor during a 3 a.m. training exercise Nov. 30, he told a press...