Five charged with sedition in Fiji
Another two people were still to appear in court and police said others could also be charged
SUVA (AFP) - Five men have been charged in Fiji with sedition and "inciting communal antagonism", police said Wednesday, adding that more arrests were possible.
Three of the group appeared in court after Police Commissioner Ben Groenewald said training of a "seditious nature" had been detected in Ra province in the north of Fiji s main island Viti Levu.
Another two people were still to appear in court and police said others could also be charged.
Local media reports said a former soldier in the British army had been secretly conducting military-style training for 20 villages over the past three months.
The Sun website said it was "allegedly linked to the setting up of the so-called Christian Sovereign State of Ra by a breakaway group in the province".
Groenewald said police had received information that firearms were involved but this had not been substantiated "nor have we located weapons to that effect".
Private ownership of firearms is illegal in the South Pacific nation, which has experienced four coups in the past 28 years.
