24 May 2010

Fiji's AG says there is acceptance of so-called new legal order

11:00 am on 24 May 2010

Fiji's interim Attorney General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, saye he believes the new legal order brought in after the scrapping of the constitution last year is working well.

At that time, the administration also sacked all judges and began creating new laws through decrees promulgated by the President.

With a large number of decrees and a major overhaul of the penal code, Mr Sayed-Khaiyum says a change in mindset was needed:

"I think generally the test of it is the acceptance and the usage of it. So obviously the society at large needs to accept it and the people who actually implement it are actually using the laws and definitely they are using the laws"

Mr Sayed-Khaiyum says the administration is still working to fill vacancies both in the High Court and the Magistrates courts.