Fiji

There is an active attempt to remove the elections chief from her role, critics say, as the Fijian coalition government gets caught up in another undesired political drama.

A court appeal of the sentencing of Fiji's former leader Frank Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho has been moved to next month.

Fiji's former leader Frank Bainimarama and suspended police commissioner Sitiveni Qiliho are back in court on Wednesday after their sentencing was appealed by the State last week.

Former Fiji PM Bainimarama was granted an absolute discharge in a packed court room in Suva on Thursday.

Fiji's acting public prosecutor has filed an appeal in the High Court against the sentences of former prime minister Frank Bainimarama and suspended police chief Sitiveni Qiliho.

The former Fijian prime minister was spared jail in a case from 2020 where he ordered the suspended police chief to stop an investigation into a complaint filed by the University of the South Pacific.

Acting Police Commissioner Juki Fong Chew is calling for Fijians to maintain order ahead of the sentencing at 11.00am local time.

The Fijian president says the two countries "share mutual links in ethnicity, language, culture" and the Fiji-Indonesia Friendship Association will strengthen their relations.

World Rugby is involved with the Fiji Rugby Union because it wants the Fijians to reach their full potential on the world stage, a spokesperson from the sport's governing body says.

A heavy rain warning remains in force for the whole Fiji group and cloud and rain is expected to continue to affect the country for the next few days.

Schools remain closed across the country except for Rotuma, and non-essential civil servants have been advised to assess the situation on whether it would be safer to work from home.

A string of charges against former Fiji prime minister Frank Bainimarama means the end of the former military strongman's political career is imminent, a Fijian academic says. Audio

The Fiji Meteorological Service says a heavy rain warning remains in force for the whole of the Fiji group and a flash flood warning is in force for all flood prone areas.

New study published by researchers from the University of Vienna and USP says while more than half of the journalistic workforce is made up of women "violence against them is normalised by men".

Sitiveni Rabuka reportedly stopped an official trip for his Cabinet minister - involved in an alleged sex and drug scandal - but didn't disclose the reasons for disapproving the trip.