A Vanuatu real estate developer, Levi Tarosa, has been assaulted and threatened with having have his house burned down over what appears to be a land dispute on Efate.
Police are investigating the incident while Mr Tarosa has increased security around his home
Mr Tarosa, who is a former government land valuer, recently negotiated a major agreement between some landowners at Forari and the government to build a new township.
The new development is to include a wharf to accommodate international cargo carriers and fishing boats linked to a planned Chinese-built fish processing plant.
Some customary claimants to the Forari land filed a case which is pending in court and are angry that Mr Tarosa has gone ahead with the project without waiting for their case to be heard.
