Interim Fiji Prime Minister Mr Laisenia Qarase and his military-backed administration have resigned after a court declared the post-coup government illegal, Mr Qarase's attorney-general said today.
Mr Qarase met Fiji President Mr Ratu Josefa Iloilo today to discuss a response to last week's Court of Appeal ruling which declared illegal the interim administration put in place after a racial coup in May 2000.
There was no immediate response from Mr Iloilo, who is scheduled to meet the influential Great Council of Chiefs tomorrow.
The council, a traditional enclave of indigenous leaders, appoints the president and vice-president.
Fiji was thrown into crisis in May 2000 when nationalist rebels stormed parliament in the name of indigenous rights.
They held ousted Prime Minister Mr Mahendra Chaudhry hostage for 56 days before a deal was brokered with the military for his release.