The elected Prime Minister of Fiji defiantly accused its military chief of having "raped our constitution" today after the country's fourth coup in two decades was condemned around the world.

Commodore Frank Baininmarama took charge of the country and assumed emergency presidential powers after a lengthy stand-off with the Government of Laisenia Qarase.

No shots were fired as armed troops locked down the capital, Suva, and surrounded the Prime Minister's official residence.

Cdre Bainimarama then held a televised press conference to announce that he had assumed emergency presidential powers and had dismissed Mr Qarase.

"As of 6 o’clock this evening, the military has taken over the government... and the running of this country," he said.

The coup was immediately condemned by Britain, Fiji's former colonial power, and by its South Pacific neighbours Australia and New Zealand. All three cut aid and warned Fiji that it risked being suspended from the Commonwealth if democracy were not quickly restored.

The army chief said that his takeover of power was only temporary. He named an unknown military doctor, Jona Senilagakali, as interim Prime Minister and said that he would ask Fiji’s Great Council of Chiefs to reappoint the President, Ratu Josefa Iloilo, to his post. Mr Iloilo, who also opposed the coup, would then appoint an interim government to prepare the nation for fresh elections.

But Mr Qarase told journalists at his home, where he was effectively under house arrest, that any government they set up would be "totally illegal". He said: "What the military has done is raped our constitution."

With a population of around 900,000 people, Fiji is among the richest and most developed nations in the South Pacific, attracting up to 400,000 tourists a year to resorts built on idyllic beaches mostly in the country’s west, away from Suva.

But the country has lurched from one political crisis to another since two military coups in 1987 designed to ensure that political control remained in the hands of ethnic Fijians, who make up some 51 per cent of the population. Ethnic Indians, who make up about 44 per cent, wield most of the economic power in Fiji.

The tensions last came to a head in 2000 when gunmen angry that ethnic Fijians risked losing their constitutional advantages under a new Indian-led government seized parliament. In a deal brokered by Cdre Bainimarama, the coup saw the installation of Mr Qarase, a moderate nationalist, as Prime Minister.

The army chief sees himself as the guardian of Fiji’s constitutional guarantees to all Fijians, and opposed as racist legislation proposed by Mr Qarase that would pardon conspirators in the 2000 coup and secure coastal land rights for indigenous Fijians. Even though Mr Qarase acceded to his demands, the military overthrow went ahead.

Cdre Bainimarama said that the caretaker prime minister would dissolve parliament before Mr Iloilo appoints an interim government.

"The takeover will not be permanent," he said. "Tomorrow I will summon the chief executive officers and charge them with the duty of running their own ministries until an interim government is appointed. We trust that the new government will lead us into peace and prosperity and mend the ever-widening racial divide which currently besets our multi-cultural nation."

Although the coup was widely predicted - Cdre Bainimarama had threatened for weeks to grab power - it was quickly condemned in the Pacific region.

Helen Clark, the New Zealand Prime Minister, announced that defence ties with Fiji were being severed and officers and their families from that country would be banned. Cdre Bainimarama is believed to have children studying in New Zealand.

"This is an outrage, what is happening in Fiji today," Ms Clark said.

Australia said that it would impose similar conditions and warned Fiji that it risked suspension from both the Commonwealth and the South Pacific Forum. John Howard, the Prime Minister, said that Mr Qarase had asked him to send troops to try to prevent the coup, but that he had rejected the request

"The possibility of Australian and Fijian troops firing on each other in the streets of Suva was not a prospect that I for a moment thought desirable," he said. Crde Bainimarama previously warned that any foreign intervention would be fiercely opposed.

Tony Blair also condemned the coup. The Prime Minister's official spokesman told reporters: ""We are suspending immediately bilateral and military assistance to Fiji and considering further measures with our international and Commonwealth partners.

"We will urge all parties to recognise the sovereign authority of the elected government."

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