George Speight, the leader of the 2000 coup, has received a Presidential Pardon from the Mercy Commission. The Commission convened yesterday to review mercy petitions submitted by Speight and six other inmates, including Shane Stevens, the leader of the Counter Revolutionary Warfare (CRW), who is also serving a life sentence but for mutiny.
The other inmates involved in the mercy petitions are Sekina Vosavakatini, Nioni Tagici, James Sanjesh Goundar, Adi Livini Radininausori, and John Miller. After careful consideration, the Commission made recommendations for mercy, and the President of Fiji, under Section 119(5) of the Constitution, granted pardons to all those who petitioned.
The pardons were formally issued yesterday, leading to the official discharge of these individuals from custody today. Unfortunately, in the case of James Sanjesh Goundar, who died on September 6 at the Minimum Corrections Center, the pardon arrived too late.