News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

Politics is a dirty word in Fiji and used as a sledgehammer to beat up any group of people that are refusing to toe the line.

The Fiji Methodist Church is now “Confined to Barracks” and not allowed to practice “Politics”.

The Fiji Military Forces is monitoring the movement of all Methodist Church of Fiji executives.

According to Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama the aim is to stop the church from being involved in “politics”.

He said the Government aimed to remove all “politics” from among church leaders and chiefs.

“We are trying our best to remove politics from the Methodist Church, so that the Government can be free to put in place any changes it wants.”

 “That is why we are monitoring all their movement … to ensure they do not break any laws,” he said. Under PER no church minister is allowed to discuss anything except religion. They are not allowed any meetings, not allowed to fundraise and those charged under PER are not allowed to preach.

“They have breached the Public Emergency Regulations and we do not want any of that to be repeated.”

 He said it was everyone’s responsibility to implement the reforms and practice good governance.

He said politicians had used the church and the chiefs and had greatly affected the work of the Government.

Early this week, another 15 members of the Methodist Church standing committee meeting were charged with breaching the Public Emergency Regulations.

Commodore Bainimarama said church leaders should keep in mind they would be under the watchful eyes of the military

Dairy Farm Fiji  says it is seeking urgent assistance from the Government after taking a severe battering from the effects of Cyclone Mick.

I have concerns that any of our tax money is used to support a company whose New Zealand shareholders (The HEB Group, Marphona Farms Ltd and Hiways Stabilizers Ltd) had a combined turnover of over NZ$800 million last year.

Any prudent company of this scale should have insurance to cover this and not depend on government handouts.

I would rather my tax money was used to help those who genuinely need assistance in their daily lives.

Peter Firkin

Fiji Dairy farm hurting

Wednesday, February 03, 2010

One of the country’s biggest suppliers of dairy milk says it is seeking urgent assistance from the government after taking a severe battering from the effects of Cyclone Mick.

The Navua based company Dairy Farms Fiji, which took over from Viti Corp says they will not close down, but the company is struggling to survive.

Dairy Farms Fiji general manager David Wilson says the damage is so extensive that it has had to cut its milk supply to the Rewa Dairy Company by half.

Dairy Farms Fiji supplies over 10 per cent of the Rewa Dairy Company’s milk supply.

Wilson says the total cost of damage to the farms is over $1 million dollars.

The company is seeking assistance from government to help it rebuild.

“…assistance to help with capital costs to re-build all the fencing, the buildings and probably with assistance for the feed for the cattle to re-build just to help us move forward, to recover.”
As a remedy to the flooding problem in the area, Wilson is urging Government to dredge the Navua River every two years

 Fiji Broadcasting Corporation

There has been a major outbreak of serious diarrhoea in Fiji in the recent days.

Over 200 people, the majority being children, have been seen at Colonial War Memorial Hospital in the last few days, and about 70 per cent were admitted.

Ministry of Health spokesman Iliesa Tora said they were still trying to determine the cause of the problem.

He said parents should carefully monitor their children, what they eat and how they live.

“The worry is that children who are not supervised do get into a lot of problems,” he said.

“We need people to live clean. Cleanliness will help in ensuring that people do not get sick”

Mr Tora said parents of sick children should seek medical help early.

News Content © Radio New Zealand International

 Human Trafficking in Fiji : Blindly Fighting a Shapeless Monster

by Amanda Kloer 

The U.S. State Department ranks Fiji on Tier 3, meaning they wouldn’t know a trafficker if he sailed up to their shores on a massive luxury yacht having public sex with children he bought for prostitution (which, incidentally, actually happened when I was working with an NGO based there). Fiji isn’t working to prevent trafficking, protect victims, or prosecute traffickers, and they aren’t making an effort to change their ways. In fact, Fiji wasn’t even ranked for the first several years the State Department was producing their report because of the complete absence of any information coming out of the country. Because of the general lackadaisical attitude of the government, Fiji is a source and destination country for trafficking victims, both internationally and internally.

 So does Fiji have the political and economic stability to truly tackle trafficking? Saying Fiji is a small country with limited resources is like saying Gilbert Arenas waving his gun around in the locker room wasn’t his best career move. But similarly resourced countries have found ways to at least indicate their desire to work on the issue. Lots of places, including the U.S. government, give capacity-building grants. But first Fiji has to prove it wants to end trafficking, despite what may be a tiny economic dip.

 As with many poor countries with large tourism sectors, children are Fiji’s largest population of victim. Fijian children are trafficked into the commercial sex industry, sometimes by family members. Hotel staff, taxi drivers, and nightclub staff have all been known to procure children for prostitution. In Fiji, poor families will often informally adopt their children to wealthier families living near good schools. This tradition leaves those children vulnerable to both forced domestic servitude and sexual abuse. Adult women are also forced into the commercial sex industry in Fiji. To a lesser extent, men and women may be trafficked into Fiji for factory work. Continue reading Fiji children suffer in Tourism sex trade….

 15 Methodist Church Ministers have been arrested and charged under the Public Emergency Regulation.

 Inspector Atunaisa Sokomuri says the 15 were  questioned, charged and released on bail yesterday.

According to Police, the 15 are alleged to have breached the condition of the permit that was granted for a  church  meeting last year by discussing politics.

Hong Kong Police have warned their Fijian counterparts that the criminal underworld in China has Fiji in its sights.

Since Fiji has allowed China the same automatic visa entry status as Australia or New Zealand it is now seen as a soft entry point into the Pacific area.

A Chinese citizen has only to arrive at a point of entry in Fiji to be issued a 90 day visitors visa.

This avoids the rigorous checks in place previously that identified those with a criminal record.

HK police have warned Fiji to expect an increase in drug and human trafficking incidents involving Chinese criminal elements.

It is warning Australia and NZ that the precursor drugs for creating  ”P” may now be coming via Fiji and advising an increase in surveillance.

ASD 4-1-10

By Amy Coopes (AFP) – 8 hours ago

 SYDNEY — Australia and New Zealand held rare talks with Fiji’s military regime Wednesday in a bid to strengthen dialogue and press for a return to democracy, officials said.

 Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said he and his visiting New Zealand counterpart Murray McCully agreed to meet Fiji’s interim Foreign Minister, Ratu Inoke Kubuabola, on the margins of their own talks in the Australian capital.

 ”I’ve always made the point clear that despite our very strong disagreement with Fiji over its return to democracy, its freedom of expression of thought in Fiji, and its freedom of lawful activity, we do want to continue to have a dialogue with Fiji,” Smith told reporters.

 ”We see our joint meeting with interim Foreign Minister Kubuabola as being part of that process.”

 Among the military regime’s most strident critics, both New Zealand and Australia’s chief diplomats were expelled from the capital Suva last November, which Smith said left both nations “bereft” of the ability to initiate or have meaningful talks.

 ”We don’t want Fiji to be isolationist, and we’ve always held ourselves out as willing to have a dialogue,” he said.

 ”I’m not expecting that all of those issues or problems will be solved in one meeting, but we do want to start that process.”

 Both Smith and McCully stressed the meeting did not signal a change to their “very strong” views about Fiji’s need to return to democracy, nor did it mean sanctions, including travel bans, would be lifted.

 McCully said the talks would focus on ways the two countries could “get to a point with Fiji where we can maintain missions, regardless of serious disagreements.”

 Smith added that “a fair amount of water will need to go under the bridge” before Suva agreed to reinstate Canberra and Wellington’s top envoys.

 ”But what is the significance or importance of the day’s meeting is the actual having of the dialogue,” he said.

 ”It may well be that all we agree as a result of the day’s meeting is to speak again in the future. Frankly, I’d regard that myself as progress.”

 It is the first meeting of Australian and Fijian foreign ministers since military leader Voreqe Bainimarama tore up the constitution in April in response to a court ruling that his regime was illegal, said Pacific expert Brij Lal. Bainimarama overthrew Fiji’s elected government in a 2006 coup.

 ”Certainly this is the first time in a long, long time that a minister from the Fiji government has been allowed to come to Australia to meet with a minister here,” said Lal, professor of Pacific politics at the Australian National University.

“I think all talks thus far have been outside Australia.”

 Fiji was suspended from the 16-nation Pacific Islands Forum in May last year and from the Commonwealth in September over Bainimarama’s broken promises to hold elections by March 2009.

 He also sacked the judiciary and tightened media censorship following the court ruling, prompting widespread international condemnation led by Australia and New Zealand.

 Lal said the latest talks showed “a commitment on the part of Australia and New Zealand to engage with Fiji.

“”But on the other hand all these good gestures might not come to fruition,” he said

Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved.

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

The government has in recent months used unsupported allegations as a weapon against the Methodist Church. This is reminisent of  he actions of Hitler and the Jews.

First they accused Ministers of spying.

Then they have accused members of meeting to form a new political party.

Then they ban all meetings.

They have offered no proof of either of these allegations although you would expect them to trumpet the names if it were true.

Now the Fiji Time has had a report squashed by the censors asking the Government to “Put up or Shut up” and name names.

Largest Church in Fiji banned from discussions other than spiritual.

 The Fiji government has extended the ban on the Methodist Church’s annual conference to its divisional and quarterly meetings.  Only monthly “parish” meetings are allowed with restrictions.
 
Government spokesman and permanent secretary for Information, Lieutenant-Colonel Neumi Leweni said the decision was made following a meeting between a church delegation and Commissioner of Police, Commodore Esala Teleni this week.

 Reverend Tevita Nawadra,  said the extension of the ban was brought about as a result of claims by the Police Commissioner, Commodore Esala Teleni, at their meeting last week, that some Methodist Church Ministers, some members and former SDL Ministers, were intending to set up a new political party.
 
However, Nawadra said no evidence was given to this effect especially the names of the Ministers and members of the Church who are supposedly part of this set up. He has still not been told the names of those previously accused of spying for the government.
 
Lt-Col Leweni said the only meeting that the church is now allowed to hold is its monthly meeting, which he said specifically, focuses on the spiritual development of the church and not be involved in discussions of outside or fundraising.
 
“Meetings to do with issues other than the spiritual development are being suspended as of today,” he said.
 .

We now have two additional “Draft” copies of the Media Decree.  Both seem to be newer versions of the original draft. One we pinched from the USP network.

One was emailed to peterfirkin@gmail.com.

The original one was also emailed and either a deliberate leak to cause misinformation or a wish list by some contributor to the decree.

 We refused to email it on, although we had several requests, as we were suspicious of the gift.

Both of the newer drafts have the treason component removed and a 12 year sentence for blogging under the area of inciting civil unrest.

There is no statute of limitations on the charge.

We had our meeting while having a picnic on the beach at Pacific Harbor. We are getting more and more paranoid about bugs and spies.  

Folks we are back in business.

The authors of this blog have a draft copy of the proposed media decree under which blogging against the Government is considered treason and subject to life inprisonment.

We are holding a meeting later this week to consider our future as some of us have famlies to consider.

As we are operating inside Fiji and we see no prospect of the Government holding  fair elections or changing its stance in the future, we must consider our options to stay and fight on or go.

News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand

An Email from the AGs Office?

We have no way of verifying this email but the source has proven reliable in the past.

———————————————————————————————————–

Bale,

 Can your team put the following into legalese?

“Special Administrator

A Special Administrator may be appointed by a High Court Judge for a period of 90 days to administer any public or private entity that is charged with operating against the best interests of the people of Fiji. This period may be extended at the discretion of the Court.

The Special Administrator will have full authority of the court to continue the operations of the entity including authorizing expenditure and payments as required.

The Special administrator will operate the entity to the best interests of the people of Fiji.

The Special Administrator will have full authority over all assets of the entity both national and international.

The authority of the Special Administrator and/or his appointment may not be challenged in court.”

Need it by Thursday

Avinesh

The Fiji National Provident Fund paid out $292.33 million in benefit payments in 2007, $2.70 million more than what it collected ($289.63 million) in contributions the same year.

The FNPF keeps in trust more than 300,000 workers’ pensions.

The FNPF 2007 annual report reveals that compared to 2006, it collected contributions amounting to $267.66 million and paid out $250.62 million in benefit payments, including both pension and special death benefit (SDB) payments.

The FNPF has not released Annual Reports for 2008 or 2009 and this should ring alarm bells for all those with their life savings invested in this entity.

With the decrease in employment opportunities in Fiji there must have been a corresponding reduction in FNPF income.  The floods, cyclones etc must have increased the drain on the fund.

 The Fiji public has only one question. Is their fund safe?