The Fiji Human Rights Commission says the right to clean and affordable water is a fundamental human right because without it the right to life is threatened.
The Daily Post reports that the statement from the commission director, Dr Shaista Shameem, follows daily complaints from tens of thousands of people in and around Suva and the rest of the country that they do not receive water from their taps.
Dr Shameem says the right to clean water is provided for in several United Nations conventions and it should be treated as a social and cultural good rather than a purely economic commodity.
She says privatising the water supply is a controversial issue and before any government makes the decision to corporatise or privatize it, international law requires that it must consult with all consumers, NGOs and the Fiji Human Rights Commission.
The commission's intervention comes as the new minister for public utilities, Robin Irwin, blames the Labour Party for the country's water problems and says he plans to privatize the supply.
The Labour Party leader, Mahendra, Chaudhry has blamed neglect and failure to invest in water supply infrastructure by the previous SDL government for the water woes.
