10 Dec 2011

Fiji pensioners call for courts to challenge superannuation fund decree

10:10 am on 10 December 2011

A group of Fiji pensioners has written an open letter to a Fiji High Court judge asking that he reject any application to cancel their suit over the Fiji National Provident Fund.

The pensioners are seeking redress over the interim government's plans for drastic reforms to the fund.

But the government has since issued a decree giving it the power to terminate any legal action.

The pensioners' group says Justice Pradeep Hettiarachchi should not accept this, saying the decree removes a fundamental human right.

They also point out that Fiji's interim Prime Minister recently confirmed Fiji's commitment to the UN Charter, which includes protection for all human rights.

The group says the right to be heard is a fundamental element of common law, which they understand as no one being deprived of their rights and possessions without a hearing in a court of law.