The impact on women of the two military coups in Fiji is the focus of this paper. Essentially, the coups have simultaneously generated new problems for women while reinforcing the existing economic, ideological, and polit-ical conditions that sustained and reproduced women's unequal position in Fiji society. Undoubtedly, the coups have had profound effects on women-some blatant and obvious, others more subtle. As a direct result of the coups, women's economic position has wors-ened, their political activity has suffered a major setback, and they are confronted by increased violence and additional constraints on their phys-ical and social space. Any gains women had made in the previous decade are fast disappearing, and prospects for future advancement are severely threatened. The heightened political momentum of the women's move-ment immediately prior to the coup has been disrupted and is suffering from an increased workload for the leaders as well as the constraints of operating in a repressive political climate. In this paper I explore some of the obvious and not-so-obvious ramifi-cations of the coups for women in Fiji. To illustrate the various implica-tions, the paper is divided into three sections: the economic impact, the social impact, and the impact on the women's movement. Where appropriate, the different impacts on ethnic Fijian and Indo-Fijian women are highlighted, but in general my comments apply to most women in Fiji. THE ECONOMIC IMPACT ON WOMEN In the postcoup period, Fiji suffered major economic decline as the direct result of the coups. The downturn in the economy has created immens
