A Korean businessman alleged two men entered his home in Lautoka, assaulted him, and stole items worth more than $6000. Paul Kim, 64, who lives at Savala Street, operates a scrap metal business in Lautoka. Surveillance camera footage showed the men continuously punched and kicked Mr Kim, in the early hours of last Friday. The men then ransacked the home, took his wallet, credit cards, electronic items, bottles of wine, a diabetes tester, and other valuables. “I was awoken by my dogs barking; as I came out of my room, someone switched on one of the lights,” Mr Kim said. Source: Fiji Sun, 12 September 2023
Sharma The Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission has received a complaint from members of the Grace Road Church in relation to the manner in which some of their members were taken into custody by state officials, use of alleged force during detainment, alleged denial of access to a lawyer while detained at the Suva Remand Centre; and the Church being labelled as a cult.
Commission Chair, Pravesh Sharma says one member was also allegedly denied a visa to re-enter Fiji.
He says persons awaiting deportation should be kept in immigration safehouses rather than at remand centres since they have not been charged with offences.
The Commission Chair says detained persons should have access to their lawyers and to other human rights defenders.
Sharma says the Grace Road Church members facing deportation must be given the right to challenge their detention and deportation. He says they have a legitimate expectation that their rights will be complied with. Source: Fijivillage News.
Commission Chair, Pravesh Sharma says one member was also allegedly denied a visa to re-enter Fiji.
He says persons awaiting deportation should be kept in immigration safehouses rather than at remand centres since they have not been charged with offences.
The Commission Chair says detained persons should have access to their lawyers and to other human rights defenders.
Sharma says the Grace Road Church members facing deportation must be given the right to challenge their detention and deportation. He says they have a legitimate expectation that their rights will be complied with. Source: Fijivillage News.
 |  |
After the presentation of the petition, Grace Road Fiji has released another statement saying the current event clearly encompasses the entire Grace Road, not just a few of their members.
They say the underlying context represents a clear case of religious oppression, as indicated by the labeling of the group as a cult.
One of their senior executives, who was returning from an overseas business trip to Fiji, received a visa rejection notification while on the flight back.
Ana Sungdo, a senior administrator of Grace Road Group said she was denied entry into Fiji on Friday 8th September 2023, while having her investor visa all along.
She says she handles significant administrative tasks for the group, and she finds it extremely unfair that her visa was rejected, and she was even denied entry on a visitor visa. She further says she had no choice but to stay in Australia, but the Australian Immigration at the airport, who were notified by the Fijian Immigration, insulted her as a ‘cult’ and refused her entry.
The group also says in a separate incident this week, two of their senior managers, who are not on the list of the Immigration Department, were chased by unmarked cars during the day.
They say these vehicles dangerously stopped their vehicle by blocking the front and the rear in the middle of Suva.
They say they were then told that they were immigration officers, and held the members without any explanation and harassed them while not allowing them to leave for a while.
The group says during last week’s detainment of their members, the immigration authorities forcibly detained 62-year-old female member Nam Suk Choi in a heavy-handed manner.
They say the officials did not present any official letter, orders, or warrants.
The group claims just to detain one 62-year-old woman, over 15 police and immigration officers were involved.
They say the officials acted rudely and used physical force, causing fear among other staff, customers, and onlookers. Source: Fijivillage News
They say the underlying context represents a clear case of religious oppression, as indicated by the labeling of the group as a cult.
One of their senior executives, who was returning from an overseas business trip to Fiji, received a visa rejection notification while on the flight back.
Ana Sungdo, a senior administrator of Grace Road Group said she was denied entry into Fiji on Friday 8th September 2023, while having her investor visa all along.
She says she handles significant administrative tasks for the group, and she finds it extremely unfair that her visa was rejected, and she was even denied entry on a visitor visa. She further says she had no choice but to stay in Australia, but the Australian Immigration at the airport, who were notified by the Fijian Immigration, insulted her as a ‘cult’ and refused her entry.
The group also says in a separate incident this week, two of their senior managers, who are not on the list of the Immigration Department, were chased by unmarked cars during the day.
They say these vehicles dangerously stopped their vehicle by blocking the front and the rear in the middle of Suva.
They say they were then told that they were immigration officers, and held the members without any explanation and harassed them while not allowing them to leave for a while.
The group says during last week’s detainment of their members, the immigration authorities forcibly detained 62-year-old female member Nam Suk Choi in a heavy-handed manner.
They say the officials did not present any official letter, orders, or warrants.
The group claims just to detain one 62-year-old woman, over 15 police and immigration officers were involved.
They say the officials acted rudely and used physical force, causing fear among other staff, customers, and onlookers. Source: Fijivillage News
While the FFP government had granted 50 year lease to pastor Ok Joo Shin, now serving prison sentence in South Korea, the then Opposition leader Ro Kepa and her clan were also in organic rice farming partnership with the Grace Road Church.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol News outlet Newstapa and broadcaster Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company (JTBC) have been raided by South Korean authorities after reporting in 2022 on an allegedly fake interview claimed to discredit then-Presidentical candidate Yoon Suk Yeol. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate, the Journalists Association of Korea (JAK), condemn the intimidation and legal harassment of media workers and news outlets and urge the authorities to cease all investigations immediately.
On September 14, investigators and prosecutors with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office were dispatched to the offices of online news outlets Newstapa and broadcaster Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company (JTBC), seizing materials related to a 2021 interview between trade union leader and former journalist Shin Hak-lim and Kim Man-bae, a key figure in a land development scandal.
At the offices of Newstapa, company representatives reportedly refused to cooperate with the prosecutors without the presence of a lawyer, however eventually allowed the prosecutors entrance. The homes of a Newstapa reporter and a former JTBC journalist were also raided.
The incumbent People’s Power Party (PPP) took issue with the report’s alleged framing of the current President (then-candidate) Yoon Suk Yeol as having participated in an illegal loan scheme in 2011. The interview, recorded in September 2021, was released by Newstapa on March 6, 2022, three days before the national elections, with JTBC reporting a similar story in February the same year. The digital publication was one of several outlets to cover or republish the interview and allegations.
Prosecutors raided Kim’s home and office on September 6, with Shin summoned for questioning at Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ office on September 7. Authorities announced on September 11 their intention to open investigations into several other outlets, including the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), treated the recording. The Office of the President described the interview as an ‘extraordinary political scheme’ a day before the initial raid, claiming the interview unfairly influenced the 2022 election.
Kim is also suspected of paying Shin KRW 165,000,000 (approx. USD 140,000) in September 2021 for books authored by Shin, with prosecutors alleging this inflated rate influenced Shin’s judgement. Kim has denied requesting an interview, instead alleging the conversation was strictly personal. He further claimed the inflated price paid for the publications was due to their exceptional value.
Announced on September 7, the decision by authorities to prosecute media professionals and outlets marks the first actioned prosecution related to press coverage since 2008. However, since his election in 2022, President Yoon has been at the centre of several attacks on press freedom. In October 2022, the MBC was targeted through legal action and protests led by PPP lawmakers, after the broadcaster allegedly misrepresented comments made by the President in a hot mic incident. President Yoon later excluded journalists and media workers with the outlet from a presidential envoy to the G20 in November.
JAK President Kim Dong-hoon said: “We express concern about the increasing intensity of the government's media suppression as we approach next year's general elections. The ruling party in South Korea, the People Power Party (PPP), has not only taken legal actions against media outlets and journalists who reported on the dialogue records of our fellow journalists, Shin Hak-lim and Kim Man-bae, both of whom have a journalism background but also against journalists who quoted and covered these records. Moreover, they have even targeted political commentators who wrote articles about the related content. Furthermore, they have filed defamation complaints against radio hosts who reported on the incident. […] The JAK, along with other major media organizations, is committed to staunchly opposing the ruling party's endeavours to manipulate the media and will dedicate their collective efforts to safeguarding press freedom.”
The IFJ said: “These raids and investigations against media outlets are the latest in a concerning trend of media rights violations led by the incumbent government in the Republic of Korea. The IFJ urges the prosecutors’ offices to withdraw all investigations against Newstapa, JTBC, and the outlets’ journalists, and calls on the People’s Power Party to ensure that press freedom is upheld and protected.”
On September 14, investigators and prosecutors with the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office were dispatched to the offices of online news outlets Newstapa and broadcaster Joongang Tongyang Broadcasting Company (JTBC), seizing materials related to a 2021 interview between trade union leader and former journalist Shin Hak-lim and Kim Man-bae, a key figure in a land development scandal.
At the offices of Newstapa, company representatives reportedly refused to cooperate with the prosecutors without the presence of a lawyer, however eventually allowed the prosecutors entrance. The homes of a Newstapa reporter and a former JTBC journalist were also raided.
The incumbent People’s Power Party (PPP) took issue with the report’s alleged framing of the current President (then-candidate) Yoon Suk Yeol as having participated in an illegal loan scheme in 2011. The interview, recorded in September 2021, was released by Newstapa on March 6, 2022, three days before the national elections, with JTBC reporting a similar story in February the same year. The digital publication was one of several outlets to cover or republish the interview and allegations.
Prosecutors raided Kim’s home and office on September 6, with Shin summoned for questioning at Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ office on September 7. Authorities announced on September 11 their intention to open investigations into several other outlets, including the Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation (MBC), treated the recording. The Office of the President described the interview as an ‘extraordinary political scheme’ a day before the initial raid, claiming the interview unfairly influenced the 2022 election.
Kim is also suspected of paying Shin KRW 165,000,000 (approx. USD 140,000) in September 2021 for books authored by Shin, with prosecutors alleging this inflated rate influenced Shin’s judgement. Kim has denied requesting an interview, instead alleging the conversation was strictly personal. He further claimed the inflated price paid for the publications was due to their exceptional value.
Announced on September 7, the decision by authorities to prosecute media professionals and outlets marks the first actioned prosecution related to press coverage since 2008. However, since his election in 2022, President Yoon has been at the centre of several attacks on press freedom. In October 2022, the MBC was targeted through legal action and protests led by PPP lawmakers, after the broadcaster allegedly misrepresented comments made by the President in a hot mic incident. President Yoon later excluded journalists and media workers with the outlet from a presidential envoy to the G20 in November.
JAK President Kim Dong-hoon said: “We express concern about the increasing intensity of the government's media suppression as we approach next year's general elections. The ruling party in South Korea, the People Power Party (PPP), has not only taken legal actions against media outlets and journalists who reported on the dialogue records of our fellow journalists, Shin Hak-lim and Kim Man-bae, both of whom have a journalism background but also against journalists who quoted and covered these records. Moreover, they have even targeted political commentators who wrote articles about the related content. Furthermore, they have filed defamation complaints against radio hosts who reported on the incident. […] The JAK, along with other major media organizations, is committed to staunchly opposing the ruling party's endeavours to manipulate the media and will dedicate their collective efforts to safeguarding press freedom.”
The IFJ said: “These raids and investigations against media outlets are the latest in a concerning trend of media rights violations led by the incumbent government in the Republic of Korea. The IFJ urges the prosecutors’ offices to withdraw all investigations against Newstapa, JTBC, and the outlets’ journalists, and calls on the People’s Power Party to ensure that press freedom is upheld and protected.”
