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Issue No: 652; 3 April 2001
The Fiji Forest Industries has announced that it is in financial problems because of the terrorist activities of last year. The nation's largest and oldest private timber milling company, owned by Australian interests, stated that it had ceased operations temporarily because of short supply of logs. The company spokesman, Ratu Tomasi Bonaveidogo told the Fiji Sun: "tell me which company is financially sound since the crisis". It is believed that the log suppliers withdrew supplying logs to the mill because of the company's inability to pay for the logs. In a forthright editorial today, the Fiji Sun stated: "The simple point of the matter is, Fiji is shutting down. No one, not the banks, not foreign investors, not local citizens, is willing to risk a penny on the country's future. As the money supply dries up, businesses wither, first the garment factories, now logging, soon retail shops and large stores… Why? Because of uncertainity". Meanwhile it is believed that a competitor to the Fiji Forest
Industries in Vanua Levu has obtained millions of dollars worth of logging
concessions from the landowners through the influence of a former SVT minister.
The owner of the company is reported to be major financier of the Speight
terrorist group. He has also acknowledged that he had provided assistance to the
rebel soldiers who took over the military barracks in Labasa. Sources close to
him state that he was expecting the former SVT minister, who is on his payroll,
to become a minister in the Speight regime, and hoped to benefit from further
logging and tax concessions. |
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People's Coalition Government - Fiji Islands |
