1 March 2019

Some villagers on Fiji's Malolo Island want land earmarked for a tourism development surveyed to determine its rightful owner.

...The villagers' lawyer Saimoni Nacolawa said they had sought legal action and a magistrate will hear the case in Nadi....

He said other villagers, who gave Freesoul Real Estate permission to build a resort, do not even own the land.

..."This land has not been surveyed. We have only got traditional boundaries. From that traditional boundaries, we cannot determine the area or the acreage - acreage can only be determined when you have extended boundaries.

"Even though they have this traditional allotment for the dependents, they do not have the registered native land title."

...Freesoul, in a statement, denied it had breached Fiji's environmental laws on Malolo.

It said during a visit to China, Mr Bainimarama invited business houses to invest in Fiji.

Freesoul said it had invested $US500 million in the Malolo resort and had received support from key stakeholders.

However, the government said it would prosecute Freesoul for breaching environmental conditions for its project.

The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has sanctioned charges against Freesoul under the Environment Management Act.