A Chinese national, known as the Mafia Queen of Fiji, has been allowed to appeal a decision by the home affairs minister to refuse her application for citizenship.
The Daily Post reports that the Citizenship Appeals Tribunal has allowed Yan Xiu Hua, also known as Annie Wong, to appeal because she was not given the chance to rebut allegations against her that her business operations were a threat to national security.
The tribunal also found that Ms Wong had been jailed for 12 months in Hong Kong in 1987 for forging documents, but did not disclose this in her residency application.
The previous home affairs minister, Ratu Talemo Ratakele, ordered her deportation but authorities were unable to enforce the order.
The tribunal expressed amazement that she has been living in Fiji for the last three years without any kind of immigration permit when she should have been deported.
