Parliament Of The Republic Of Fiji

The Parliament of the Republic of Fiji is part of a complex of buildings, including the Government Buildings and the old Parliament,  They are in an art deco building, built in the 1930s, which houses the country’s unicameral legislature.  It consists of 51 members elected every 4 years using open list proportional representation in one multi-member nationwide constituency.  The Fijian Parliament dates from 10 October 1970, when Fiji became independent.  The Parliament replaced the former colonial legislative body, the Legislative Council, which had existed in various forms throughout the entire colonial period.  A grandfather clause in the 1970 Constitution, which was adopted on independence, provided for the old Legislative Council to be renamed as the House of Representatives and remain in office, pending the first post-independence elections in 1972.