The election produced an inconclusive result; Laisenia Qarase's SDL emerged as the largest single party, with 32 of the 71 seats, short of an overall majority in the House of Representatives.
As Labour Minister Zinck threatened to discipline doctors undertaking Work-to-rule action,[8] and accused Asian immigrants of taking jobs from locals in Fiji's garment industry.
[13] In February 2004, faced with a widespread public sector strike over a cost-of-living adjustment, Zinck referred the issue to compulsory arbitration.
[22] Zinck claimed to have been subjected to degrading treatment, including being forced to run around a sports field with the guns of four soldiers trained upon him.
[25] In March 2007, following his successfully representing workers of the Fiji Islands Revenue and Customs Authority in a pay dispute,[26] Zinck was detained by the military for a third time.
[27][28] He continued to speak out against the military regime, questioning its legitimacy and its right to use public money,[29] and criticising its plans to overturn the 1997 Constitution of Fiji.
[30] In the leadup to the 2009 Fijian constitutional crisis, Zinck was targeted in a wave of attacks against critics of the regime, and his home and car were stoned by unidentified men.