Attar Singh (born ) is an

Indo-Fijian Indo-Fijians () are Fijians of South Asian descent whose ancestors were Girmitiyas, indentured labourers. Indo-Fijians trace their ancestry to various regions of the Indian subcontinent. Although Indo-Fijians constituted a majority of Fiji's ...

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

ist. From 2002 to 2018 he was General Secretary of the

Fiji Islands Council of Trade Unions The Fiji Islands Council of Trade Unions (FICTU) was established in August, 2002 as a breakaway from and rival to the Fiji Trades Union Congress, FTUC. Fifteen unions, which were formerly affiliated to the FTUC, initially joined the new umbrella ...

(FICTU), one of two major umbrella bodies for trade unions in Fiji. Singh was educated at Labasa Sangam College. He became head of the

in 2002. Unlike many unionists in the rival

Fiji Trades Union Congress The Fiji Trades Union Congress (FTUC) is a trade union organisation in Fiji that was founded in 1952 under the leadership of Pandit Ami Chandra as the Fiji Industrial Workers Congress (FIWC). As the FIWC the organisation was the third federation ...

(FTUC), Singh has been a harsh critic of the

Republic of Fiji Military Forces The Republic of Fiji Military Forces (RFMF, formerly the Royal Fiji Military Forces until 1987 when the Dominion of Fiji was overthrown) is the military force of the Pacific Ocean, Pacific island nation of Fiji. With a total manpower of about ...

, which seized power on 5 December 2006. He has attacked

Commodore Commodore may refer to: Ranks * Commodore (rank), a naval rank ** Commodore (Royal Navy), in the United Kingdom ** Commodore (India), in India ** Commodore (United States) ** Commodore (Canada) ** Commodore (Finland) ** Commodore (Germany) or ' ...

Frank Bainimarama Josaia Voreqe "Frank" Bainimarama (; born 27 April 1954) is a Fijian former politician and naval officer who served as the prime minister of Fiji from 2007 until 2022. A member of the FijiFirst party, which he founded in 2014, he began his c ...

, the coup leader who has since been sworn in as interim

Prime Minister of Fiji The prime minister of Fiji is the head of government of the Republic of Fiji. The prime minister is appointed under the terms of the 2013 Constitution. The prime minister is the head of the Cabinet and appoints and dismisses ministers. Des ...

. On 14 January 2007, Singh was quoted by

Fiji Television Fiji Television Limited is one of Fiji's main television networks. It was founded on 15 June 1994 as the first permanent commercial television broadcasting network in the country, although television had previously been introduced temporarily ...

as insisting that Military personnel and politicians should not participate in the Interim Government (

Mahendra Chaudhry Mahendra Pal Chaudhry (; born 9 February 1942) is a Fijian politician and the leader of the Fiji Labour Party. Following a historic election in which he defeated the long-time former leader, Sitiveni Rabuka, the former trade union leader beca ...

, whose

Fiji Labour Party The Fiji Labour Party (FLP; ),() also known as Fiji Labour, is a political party in Fiji. Most of its support is from the Indo-Fijian community, although it is officially multiracial and its first leader was an indigenous Fijian, Dr. Timoc ...

has links to the rival union group, was Minister of Finance in the Interim Government during 2007), and that the sole purpose of the interim government should be to prepare for elections, not to legislate new laws. He also condemned as "unconstitutional" the appointment of Bernadette Ganilau as Minister for Labour, according to a Fiji Television report (9 January 2007). Singh's criticism of the Military-backed interim government provoked a hostile reaction from Commodore Bainimarama on 14 January 2007. That night, Singh was taken up to

Suva Suva (, ) is the Capital city, capital and the most populous city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rew ...

's Queen Elizabeth Barracks for interrogation. Fiji Television further claimed that Singh had been taken from his Samabula home, locked in a cell, and assaulted.

Politics

A member of the executive of the

National Federation Party The National Federation Party ( Fiji Hindi: नेशनल फेडरेशन पार्टी; Fijian: ''Mataisoqosoqo ni National Federation'') is a Fijian political party founded by A. D. Patel in November 1968, as a merger of the Fe ...

(once a major

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

, but without parliamentary representation from 1999 to 2014), Singh has contested several elections on his party's ticket. In the 1999 election (in which his party lost all of its seats in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

), Singh was a candidate in the

Laucala Laucala (pronounced ) is one of a triplet of small islands that lie to the east of Thurston Point on the island of Taveuni in Fiji. The privately owned islands are the site of the Laucala Resort. The total land area of the main island is . It is ...

Indian Communal Constituency. He polled 2,510 votes, some 22.2 percent of the total. In the

parliamentary election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. General elections ...

of 2001, Singh contested the Suva City Indian Communal Constituency. His 1976 votes amounted to just under 21.8 percent of the total - less than half of what Wadan Narsey had achieved in the previous election. He contested the 2006 parliamentary election as his party's candidate for the Suva City Open Constituency. He polled 745 votes, or 6.2 percent of the total. He contested the 2018 election as a candidate for the

, again stepping down from his FICTU position to do so.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Attar Fijian people of Indian descent National Federation Party politicians Fijian trade unionists Living people Year of birth missing (living people)