New Zealand - Fiji’s interim government has banned all Methodist Church meetings, though services don’t appear to be affected.
The military council has written to the church banning monthly, quarterly, standing committee, financial and divisional meetings.
The military spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Mosese Tikoitoga says the ban follows the refusal of the Church’s president and general secretary to step down before this week’s scheduled annual conference.
The government called off that meeting on Monday.
Colonel Tikoitoga says the Church needs to stop mixing religion and politics.
“Government is working hard to separate the church from politics and let politics run its own procedures and let the church do its own procedures which is to evangelise Fiji. If they continue to go down that path then the government has no problem with them but if they try and mix politics with the church then there is a problem.”
Col Tikoitoga says it is up to the church to decide how to resolve the problems the ban creates for them.