1 Jun 2011

Driti case deferred as defence seeks disclosure from Fiji state

1:40 pm on 1 June 2011

A former Fiji Land Force Commander, Brigadier General Pita Driti, has re-appeared in the Magistrate's Court on charges of uttering seditious comments and inciting mutiny.

Fijivillage reports that his lawyer, Filimoni Vosarogo, has called for full disclosures before the case proceeds, saying he wants the evidence that the prosecution proposes to call against the accused.

The magistrate has given the state two weeks to file the full disclosures and adjourned the case until the 22nd of this month.

The prosecution has called for the case to be transferred to the High Court.

The arrest warrant against a co-accused, Lieutenant Colonel Tevita Uluilakeba Mara, has been extended to August the 3rd.

Col Mara, who faces a sedition charge, fled to Tonga while on bail last month, with Fiji seeking his extradition.

He claimed the charge stems from comments made during a visit to South Korea last year.

Col Mara, who is a co-conspirator of the 2006 military coup, has cast aspersions on the judiciary and accused the military of using torture.