The Australian Government won't rule out further sanctions against Fiji following the expulsion of the Australian High Commissioner from the country.
The move, which has given High Commissioner James Batley 24 hours to leave Fiji, was regrettable and unreasonable, a spokesman from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said last night.
Self-appointed Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama ordered the Australian and New Zealand envoys out of the country late yesterday.
It was an apparent retaliation to incidents in which both countries had refused visas to Fijian judges.
''This regrettable step will further isolate the Fiji regime and will contribute nothing to a prompt return to democracy or the rule of law,'' the DFAT spokesman said.
''This is a provocative and unreasonable reaction to questions relating to the application of travel sanctions to judicial appointees, particularly given that Australia had formally expressed its willingness ... to discuss this matter.''
It was the people of Fiji who would continue to suffer as a result of Commodore Bainimarama's ''ill-considered and destructive decisions''. ''In response to these developments, Australia will give careful consideration to the question of possible further measures against the Fiji regime.''
Commodore Bainimarama accused Australia and New Zealand of ''a consolidated effort to attack Fiji's independent judiciary'' and of holding Fiji back, adding such incidents were matters of ''great shame''.
''I can accept their ban on me and my senior officers ... but why punish those individuals, both Fijians and non-Fijians, who join the judiciary?''
He pointed to specific examples, such as Australia's refusal to admit Sri Lankan judges to the country because of their appointments in Fiji.
In another example, a High Court judge was ''harassed and humiliated'' by the New Zealand high commission after seeking a visa on medical grounds, Commodore Bainimarama said.
Australia and New Zealand restrict travel by individuals associated with the Fijian military regime. ''This is not only a short-sighted policy, but it constitutes an attempt to sabotage national building, economy strengthening and the modernising efforts,'' he said. AAP