12 Aug 2004

Fiji considers jailing Seniloli with Speight on Nukulau

2:13 pm on 12 August 2004

Prison authorities in Fiji are not ruling out the possibility that jailed vice president Seniloli may serve his four-year sentence on Nukulau Island with the convicted coup front man, George Speight.

Radio Legend reports that the Prisons Department Classification Board is expected to meet tomorrow to decide which prison facility is appropriate for Seniloli and four others who were jailed last Friday for their role in the coup.

The commissioner of prisons, Aisea Taoka, is quoted as saying the board will assess the medical condition of each prisoner, educational qualifications, and work experience before making a decision on where the prisoners will be kept.

Mr Taoka says they could join Speight on Nukulau island where soldiers who were sentenced for their part in the army mutiny are also kept.

But, he says, it will all depend on the outcome of their bail applications before the president of the Appeal Court, Justice Gordon Ward, next Tuesday.