The Catholic Church in Fiji is has joined with the Ministry of Health for a series of faith-based seminars on human sexuality. A release from the church said the Ministry of Health was partnering with them to combat the increasing numbers of teenage pregnancies and related issues. The event is aimed at both Catholic and Read more
Fiji will be a secular state,” says Prime Minister Commodore Frank Bainimarama. This was the Prime Minister’s response to the Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua (SDL) party submission summary handed to the Constitution Committee by the party constituent leaders. The SDL said Fiji should be a Christian State and Christianity is the state religion. “This will Read more
The submission from the SDL – the largely indigenous Fijian party, called for Fiji to be declared an officially Christian state, that Fijian be the official language of the country, for only indigenous i-Taukei to be known as Fijian, and for references to sexual orientation to be removed from human rights laws. Despite denials from Read more
The SDL Party wants Fiji to be declared a Christian State, Christianity to be the state religion and Fijian to be the national language of the state. The SDL (Soqosoqo Duavata ni Lewenivanua) was founded in 2001 by Laisenia Qarase. It is widely seen as the successor to the Alliance, the former ruling party that had dominated Fijian politics Read more
Australia and New Zealand will reappoint High Commissioners to Fiji and relax travel sanctions affecting members of its government. This announcement was made following a meeting in Sydney on Tuesday attended by New Zealand Foreign Minister Mr McCully, Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr and Fijian Foreign Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola. The decision has met with Read more
Two years ago I was asked to write an Assessment of the Fiji situation as I saw it. Now I have been asked once again to reflect on the current situation and make an assessment of Fiji today. Two years ago I wrote: “Unlike the 1987 and 2000 coups which were carried out in the Read more
The death of a man earlier this year is being linked to the practices of a cult. It has been claimed the man was not allowed to visit a hospital even though he had been ill for several days. Ra provincial administrator Sitiveni Tavaga says that cult practices are still alive in some remote settlements Read more
Fiji’s military ruler sat behind an imposing wooden desk, deep in thought. This was the most attention he had given to any of the questions posed to him in the interview thus far, and he seemed to be struggling to find an answer. Finally, after a lengthy pause, he said that he could think of Read more
Fiji’s Electronic Voter Registration process (EVR) began in major centres last Tuesday. The EVR helps to minimise election fraud and at the same time accelerate the voter identification process. However, some religious organisations have told the Fiji government they may not participate in the electronic voter registration. Commissioner Western Commander Joeli Cawaki said the organisations had refused Read more
One Hundred Sands has been granted a licence to operate a second casino, with Suva being hinted at as the likely location. In December 2011 One Hundred Sands Limited, which is a subsidiary of a US company, was given permission by the Fijian Government to operate the country’s first casino. The 290 million Fiji dollars (114.29 Read more