FIJI : CHURCH RULES NO PANTS ON SUNDAY

THE strict observance of Sunday worship has resulted in men on a Bua island not being allowed to wear pants on Sunday.
The Sunday ban also forbids travel and the hanging of clothes on lines.
Galoa Village headman Josefa Baleinasiga said the ban was enforced so that the islanders could learn to respect the significance of Sunday as a holy day.
Mr Baleinasiga said the Methodist Church and the vanua also decided to impose the ban as a means of bringing good fortune to the people.
"The ban is meant to bring good luck to the island as we respect the day of the Lord," he said.
"You can see that often misfortune befalls us because we don't respect His commandments that there be no work performed on Sunday except worship.
"Before our islanders used to go diving on Sunday, and there was a lot of travelling and it was difficult to separate the days all the days were the same.
"Now on Saturdays the clothes line in the village is full as the villagers know they can't hang anything out on Sunday."
As a mark of respect, men can only wear a sulu or sulu vakataga on the day; travelling by outboard from the island is forbidden.
"But we make exceptions during emergencies for the sick so it's not a ban that hasn't been well thought out."
A villager who requested anonymity said the ban was too restrictive because it limited movement.
"We can't understand how wearing a sulu vakataga on Sunday will help us forge closer relations with the divine," he said. "At times too for the school children who come home for the weekend, the best time to return to their hostel in Labasa or Savusavu is on Sunday - so that is getting in the way."
Mr Baleinasiga said anybody who breached the ban would be chastised by the vanua.

FIJI POLICE HOLD 7 METHODIST CHURCH LEADERS FOR QUESTIONING

The Methodist Church in Fiji has said that seven of its senior members are being held by police for questioning.
All those being held have been involved in discussions about the church's planned annual conference.
Fiji's military government has already banned the meeting once, accusing the church of being too political and setting conditions for future talks.
The Methodist Church is the largest in Fiji and hopes to hold its annual meeting next month regardless.
The church had hoped its leaders would have been released after a few hours, Radio New Zealand reported.
Instead, police, many of whom are themselves Methodists, were treating the churchmen well in detention, Radio Australia reported, with afternoon tea and a prayer.
But the interim military-led regime has banned the gathering unless the church hierarchy agrees to exclude two former presidents and remove any political discussion from the agenda.

Continuing crackdown
Among those arrested was former president of the Fiji Methodist Church, Reverend Manasa Lasaro; General Secretary, Reverend Tuikilakila Waqairatu, the Secretary for Pastoral Ministry, Tomasi Kanailagi and the Church's Finance Secretary Viliame Gonelevu. The general secretary was taken in on Tuesday night and others were detained the next morning.
The Chief of Rewa, Rotemumu Kepa, who was to host the conference, has also been arrested and detained.
The interim government authorities have not explained the detentions, but Reverend Waqairatu had earlier said that it was in relation to conference.
The church said it was planning to go ahead with the conference regardless of the interim government's stand.
Separately, Fijian police are reported to be holding on to the wands, compasses and a skull confiscated from a Freemasons' meeting in Denarau last week.
The police said all the 14 masons detained had been released but that investigations into their activities were continuing.
Fiji is currently ruled by Commodore Frank Bainimarama who took power in a coup in 2006.
Since then Fiji has suspended the constitution, detained opponents and suppressed freedom of speech.