PARLIAMENT OF FIJI

PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES

THE SENATE

DAILY HANSARD

FRIDAY, 13TH OCTOBER, 2006

The House resumed at 10.05 a.m. pursuant to adjournment.

MR. PRESIDENT took the Chair and read the Prayer.

PRESENT

All honourable Members were present, except the honourable Senator C. Singh, the honourable Senator S. Osonamoli, the honourable Senator M. Rasigatale, the honourable Senator Ratu A. Katonivere, the honourable Senator H.D. Khan and the honourable Senator K. Tavola.

MINUTES

HON. LEADER OF THE HOUSE.- Mr. President, Sir, I beg to move:

That the Minutes of the sitting of the Senate held on Wednesday, 11th October, 2006, as previously circulated, be taken as read and be confirmed.

HON. SENATOR RATU J.L.S. BOUWALU.- Mr. President, Sir, I beg to second the motion.

HON. SENATOR V. NAIR.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to correct the Minutes of the sitting on Wednesday, 11th October, 2006 (page 3, Item 7) on the contribution to the debate on the Fiji Institute of Technology Bill, 2006. The names of the two honourable Senators who spoke on the Bill, the honourable Senator Padarath and myself are omitted from the list of speakers, and I request that they be included.

COMMUNICATION FROM THE CHAIR

MR. PRESIDENT.- Honourable Members, the Bible reflection for the day is taken from the Book of Galatians, Chapter 6, verse 10 and I quote: "As we have the opportunity, let us do good to all."

Suspension of Standing Orders

Honourable Senators, before we continue, I have decided to waive the provisions of Standing Order 32(3) and (5) today, and allowed questions in the Order Paper for the following reasons:

(a) The Secretariat had received a lot of questions filed by honourable Senators, but were not placed on the Order Paper for various reasons.

(b) I do wish to see a backlog of questions carried forward to the Budget session, so this has been done in consultation with honourable Senators answering the questions.

(c) For future meetings, I remind you all to observe and comply with provisions of relevant Standing Orders with regard to questions.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and External Trade inform the House on the following:

(a) How often are the reserved and restricted activities of the Foreign Investment Act reviewed?

MR. PRESIDENT.- Honourable Members, the honourable Senator Tavola, Minister for Foreign Affairs and External Trade is not in the House today. He is still away overseas and the Secretariat has not received the response to this question, therefore it will now be deferred to the next meeting.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Commerce and Industry update the House on the status of development of the E-Commerce Bill?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question posed by the honourable Senator on the progress of work that the Ministry of Commerce and Industry is making on the E-Commerce Bill.

Sir, firstly, I would like to point out that it is not an Electronic Commerce Bill, but an Electronic Transactions Bill that is being prepared. I wish to point out this minor correction there.

As a background, Sir, on 25th October, 2005, Cabinet endorsed a set of drafting instructions from the then Minister for Commerce, Business Development and Investment, the honourable Tomasi Vuetilovoni with the following recommendations:

a. Endorse the drafting instructions of the proposed Electronic Transactions Electronic Bill as outlined in Annex 1 (A and B).

b. Endorse that the Asian Development Bank (ADB) be approached to provide technical assistance funding for a consultant to draft a proposed Electronic Transactions Bill in line with the drafting instructions, and in consultation with the Solicitor-General's Office.

c. Government then requested ADB for assistance in reviewing the 2003 Cabinet endorsed E-Commerce Policy Framework and drafting an Electronic Transactions Act.

Sir, it was successful in securing technical assistance, which comprises an Electronic Commerce Policy Specialist and a Legal Draftsperson for approximately two persons a month each.

Furthermore, Sir, the ADB was able to secure the technical assistance of two Australian professionals, Mr. Brent Fisse and Mr. Dennis Murphy for this project.

Mr. Brent Fisse is an E-Commerce Law Specialist and has extensive experience in the provision of legal advice in relation to E-Commerce, whilst Mr. Dennis Murphy is a lawyer by profession and is currently engaged as Counsel to the Parliamentary Counsel's Office, carrying out legislative drafting work for enactment by the Parliament of New South Wales.

Mr. Murphy has also been engaged in consultancy work for the Government of Fiji, carrying out legislative drafting work as drafter of the Financial Management Bill, 2004 and the Mineral (Exploration and Exploitation) Bill, 2006.

Furthermore, Sir, Mr. Murphy has also acquired considerable knowledge of local constitutional law, local statute law, and local legislative drafting practices and has a good working relationship with the local Parliamentary Counsel.

The consultation for the drafting of this legislation has started with the arrival in Fiji of Mr. Brent Fisse on Wednesday, 13th September, 2006.

His four days here were spent on meeting with the First Parliamentary Counsel of the Solicitor-General's Office, the Director of Communications, Legal Officer at the Fiji Inland Revenue and Customs Authority (FIRCA), Deputy Secretary at the Ministry of Finance and National Planning, Director at the Ministry of Tourism, Chief Executive Officer at the Capital Markets Development Authority (CMDA), Director of Public Prosecutions, Deputy Solicitor-General, Information and Technology Centre (ITC) Staff, Chief Manager of Westpac Banking Corporation, Management Team of Colonial Bank and Chief Operations Manager at the ANZ Bank.

Further consultations are planned when Mr. Brent Fisse and Mr. Dennis Murphy make subsequent visits to Fiji until this project is completed. The Electronic Transactions Bill's objectives are:

(a) to eliminate legal barriers to the effective use of electronic communications in transactions;

(b) to promote the harmonisation of legal rules on electronic transactions across national boundaries;

(d) to promote business and community confidence in electronic transactions; and

(e) To enable the business and the community to use electronic communications in their transactions with the Government.

The timeframe for this project is for the legislation to be drafted and to go through the Parliamentary process within six to eight months.

HON. SENATOR E.L. MALANI.- Sir, are there any temporary measures to monitor electronic transactions before the Bill is tabled before the House? We know of the eight months, as you have alluded to, as the timeframe that would be brought to the House.

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, in answer to the supplementary question, I do not have that information on hand, though I would believe that some work would be done in that respect. I can come back to the House with a more definitive answer at the next session.

HON. SENATOR E. RANACOU.- In view of the fact that the stated objectives mainly allude to encouraging business, are there also plans to add objectives to stop fraud and such illegal activities, as well as other activities that are against the interest of Fiji being conducted through electronic media?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- I do not have the details of the Bill or the proposed Bill that is being drafted. I believe that that would be part of the work that is being addressed. If possible, I could come back again with a definite answer on that, once we look at the provisions in the draft.

HON. SENATOR E. RANACOU.- Mr. President, Sir, a few honourable Senators have asked me questions and I beg your indulgence to clarify where I am coming from regarding this question. The landowners' view is that NLTB is coming to the negotiating table on the issue raised on the side of the other party. However, their legislated role is to look after the interests of landowners.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Fijian Affairs, Lands and Provincial Development explain the stand taken by NLTB in the negotiations between the two yavusa of Burenigadro and Maraki in the tikina of Nuku, Tailevu with Airports Fiji Limited regarding the land acquisition for the upgrading of the Nausori Airports where the landowning units have had to resort to costly legal representations?

HON. SENATOR ADI S.T. CAKOBAU (Minister Without Portfolio, Prime Minister's Office).- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question posed by the honourable Senator. The following is the answer received.

It is a sequence of events that has transpired with regard to the consultation process undertaken with the respective landowners from the two yavusa, as mentioned by the honourable Senator.

The first consultation meeting was held at Naselai Village on 12th August, 2004. At this meeting, a proposed airport extension was introduced to the landowners. The landowners' support was requested for the initial feasibility study to be conducted by Ambidji Consultants on behalf of the Government of Fiji.

The second consultation meeting conducted with each of the landowning units in the yavusa Burenigadro and Maraki from 4th to 8th April last year. Issues concerning landowners aspirations were agreed to be documented in a Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) which was to be the basis of the landowners' consent for the proposed airport extension. The NLTB Board had prepared a draft MOU, which was circulated to the landowners and stakeholders for their comments, then the landowners in their collective agreement decided to obtain an independent opinion on the draft MOU, hence the hiring of a legal adviser.

As it currently stands, negotiation on the MOU is still being pursued along with other issues raised by the landowners' legal adviser. It is anticipated that all issues relating to the landowners' aspirations will be adequately covered before formal consents are endorsed. In view of the above undertaking, the Board believes that it has acted with good intentions, and under no circumstances have they come to the negotiating table with the agenda to marginalise the landowners' interests.

Mr. President, Sir, I hope that this has adequately covered the question asked by the honourable Senator.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Women, Social Welfare and Housing inform the House if the next disbursements of welfare allowance will be made through the ANZ Rural Banking system?

HON. SENATOR ADI L. VUIYASAWA.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question raised by the honourable Senator. At the outset, may I take this opportunity on behalf of the Ministry of Women, Social Welfare and Housing to congratulate the return of our women Parliamentarians and Secretariat on the completion of a successful meeting by the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Seminar on Gender Equality, the foundation of democracy and development in Wellington, New Zealand. Government is committed to its policy initiative, implementation in the area of gender and development for the women of Fiji.

Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question raised by the honourable Senator.

Mr. President, Sir, the disbursement of welfare and assistance allowance will continue to be disbursed through the postal agencies located throughout the country. The use of ANZ Rural Banking system will be effected once Cabinet has endorsed this mode of payment.

The Ministry of Women, Social Welfare and Housing is still working on the Project Concept Paper that needs further consultation prior to seeking Cabinet's approval. I hope that answers the question raised by the honourable Senator.

HON. SENATOR E.L. MALANI.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. When will the Cabinet Paper be submitted? I do not think it should take more than two weeks. Cabinet meets once a week so why is it taking too long?. Is it not a priority?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to help the honourable Senator Adi Lagamu Vuiyasawa to answer the supplementary question.

That question will be difficult to answer because Cabinet Papers are first prepared and then taken to Cabinet. It is up to Cabinet or the honourable Prime Minister and Minister for Sugar Reform, depending on the programme of Cabinet meetings and the number of papers received from various ministries. The fact that they are completed by the ministries and filed with the Cabinet Office, does not necessarily mean that they will go straight into a Cabinet meeting.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Curative Health Services inform the House on the following:

(a) What is the current doctor/patient ratio and the ideal expected doctor/patient

HON. SENATOR RATU J. YAVALANAVANUA.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the questions as follows:

(a) There is no standard international doctor/patient ratio. However, the Ministry can tabulate the current doctor/population ratio, which is one doctor per 2,500 population.

At present, the Ministry is trying to fill all the vacant positions and when all these positions are filled, the doctor/population ratio will be one doctor per 2,000 population.

(b) (i) Increase intake of MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor Surgery) Fiji students at the Fiji School of Medicine (FSM).

(iii) Create of additional Senior Medical Officers positions at the Consultant and Chief Medical Officers' level and some base grade positions.

(iv) Continuously improve the working and living environment of medical officers through provisions of on-call and consolidated allowances.

HON. SENATOR G. AHMED.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. I think I heard the honourable Senator mention something about vacancies. Would the honourable Senator inform the House as to how many vacancies are yet to be filled in the Government hospitals and how long have they been vacant?

HON. SENATOR RATU J. YAVALANAVANUA.- Mr. President, Sir, I have taken on board the question posed by the honourable Senator and I will present the answer in the next sitting.

HON. SENATOR L.W. PADARATH.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. The honourable Senator mentioned that 32 nursing practitioners have been trained and are standing in for doctors, mostly in rural areas. Can we know if the programme for nursing practitioners training is still going on or has it been stopped?

HON. SENATOR RATU J. YAVALANAVANUA.- Mr. President, Sir, as I had mentioned, all supplementary questions have been noted and will be referred to the Ministry.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Women, Social Welfare and Housing inform the House on the following:

(a) A summary of the 13 Articles raised by the United Nations Convention on the Elimination on all forms of Discrimination Against Women (UN CEDAW) Committee after receiving Fiji's initial country report.

HON. SENATOR ADI. L. VUIYASAWA.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to answer the question as follows:

(a) the concluding reports issued by the CEDAW Committee after Fiji's initial report, highlighted the following concerns:

Article 2 - Absence of effective mechanisms to challenge discriminatory practices and enforce the right to gender property guaranteed by the Constitution in respect of the actions of public officials and non-state actors.

Article 3 - CEDAW is not specified in the mandate of the Fiji Human Rights Commission and that it is not assured funds to continue its work.

Article 4 - Social Justice Act and Blueprint do not integrate a gender perspective.

Article 5 - Women's political participation and access to decision making positions remain limited.

Article 7 - Notes the heavy burden of women, dual responsibility at work and in the family and there has been an increase in the number of family heads of households.

Article 8 - Concerned that the entrenched stereotypical attitude to women in society and the idea of exclusive male-head of household encourages segregation in employment and the denial of economic contribution of women.

Article 9 - Concerned that women do not receive equal wages for work of equal value, denied access to employment and promotion, deal with sexual harassment in the workplace, as well as mandatory maternity protection.

Article 11 - Notes with concern the high incidence of ethnic and gender based violence against women, in periods of civil unrest.

Article 12 - Concerned with the increase of poverty and adverse economic conditions, which are undermining women's education. This has resulted in the high incidence of girls at high school dropouts, marrying early, teenage pregnancies and sexual exploitation of girls.

Articles 13 - Concerned of those women in remote islands are adversely affected by maternal and infant mortality. It also, notes the growing incidences of STIs and HIV/AIDS, cervical cancer and circulatory diseases are major causes of female death.

Article 14 - Notes the out-migration of health professions that has led to a decline in the health services.

Article 15 - Concerned with the growing problem of prostitution due to economic hardship and that a Colonial law from 1944, which penalises the conduct of only women, who engage in prostitution continues to be enforced.

(b) The concluding remarks have been the subject of thorough consultation and dissemination amongst our key stakeholders both within Government and non-Government organisations. It is considered appropriate that these be the basis of our CEDAW Report in the next three months. A CEDAW Ministerial Committee consisting of both Government and non-Government representatives, organisations leaders who have conducted consultation with women's groups and stakeholders in the four Divisions (Western, Northern, Central and Eastern) in the last three months. A national consultation amongst key stakeholders will be scheduled on 12th and 13 December, 2006 to work on the national framework on how the Ministry is to cause the implementation of the Articles on CEDAW in the next five years, as well as deal with reporting processes required under the Convention.

HON. SENATOR E.L. MALANI.- Mr. President, Sir, my supplementary question is two-fold, but first I would like to seek clarification from the honourable and learned Attorney-General.

The first concern that was mentioned under the concluding comments was that the Committee raised the definition of discrimination against women as not being included in the 1997 Constitution. I have looked through the Constitution and have not seen any mention of discrimination against women; it is only discrimination against gender. My understanding is that for definitions to be in, it should be mentioned in the sections. When we looked at this, we were going to seek clarification either from the CEDAW Committee, but since the honourable and learned Attorney-General is here, I would like to seek his advice on this

Secondly, was there separate budgetary provision given to the Ministry to implement the programme resulting from the concluding comments?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, I will respond to the part of the question that was directed at me, and that has to do with why the discrimination against women is not included in the Constitution.

HON. SENATOR E.L. MALANI.- Mr. President, Sir, could I state my question again? The concluding comments on Article 1 of the CEDAW Committee are questioning why the definition of discrimination against women is not in the 1997 Constitution. My question is; why are they asking this because if we need a definition then it should be already in the Constitution? I do not know whether my assumption is correct or not, but what is in the Constitution is discrimination against gender and so forth. Hence, should it be there or not because it does not feature in there? Why are they asking that we should put in the definition?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, unless it is a purely women's thing, my answer to that is, there is no need for a specific definition of discrimination against women. There is already a provision under section 39 of the Constitution regarding equality, which prohibits unfair discrimination based on a number of things, including gender, unless, of course, there is difficulty in telling what gender means. However, to most of us, we can tell whether a person is a woman or a man, but for those who have confusion, we believe that that can be covered under the Constitution.

Sir, gender means that a person is not allowed under the Constitution to take any action or decision that is discriminatory of a person on the ground alone of whether a person is a male or female and that, to our mind, is clear enough in terms of our Constitution.

HON. SENATOR L. PADARATH.- A supplementary question, Sir. I thank the honourable Senator for his reply, however, if I may just first clarify part (a) of the question on the 13 Articles. I did not expect Articles 1 to 13 of the 15 Articles that actually deal with issues, but I was referring to the CEDAW Committee which, after receiving Fiji's initial counter report, made reference to 13 of the Articles, whereby they felt Fiji still needed to address. That is where I was coming from when I asked for the 13 Articles and what were they. However, thank you all the same, honourable Senator.

In terms of sending the report, I did not quite get the date, but I just like to ask; was it stated at the end of the year or next year?

HON. SENATOR ADI L.B. VUIYASAWA.- Mr. President, Sir, in response to part (c) of the question, I did say that the Ministry is still in the process of compiling the report, which will be submitted at the end of 2006. I hope I have answered the honourable Senator's question.

HON. SENATOR L. PADARATH.- On that, Sir, I would just like to comment by saying that I do not believe that all the work that needs to be done, as specified under the CEDAW Committee could possibly be completed by the end of 2006, before the second report is sent.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Agriculture inform the House on the following:

(e) If the answer is in the affirmative, then why does Government import milk, and what countries export milk to Fiji?

(g) Are there any plans by Government to provide incentives for local milk producers as a form of encouragement to raise productivity?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question as follows:

(a) The Rewa Co-operative Dairy Company (RCDCL) has made remarkable achievements, despite some peculiar difficulties during the past few years. There have been some major developments of the Company in the last 12 months, and these are that RCDCL:

(i) has continued to be 100 per cent owned by farmers and suppliers of the Company;

local demand, it has also increased its imports of milk and butter products; and

The turnaround of RCDCL has made during the past 12 months is significant, productive and encouraging. Government will continue to support the facilitation of its consolidation.

(b) Over the past 10 years, more than $16 million in the form of tariff concession

The present tariff rates and concessions given to RCDC, compared to other stakeholders, are as follows:

Apart from that, around $300,000 is given annually to carry out capital projects in the dairy industry all over Fiji.

(c) The total number of local registered dairy farms in Fiji is 225. Of these, 196 supply milk to RCDCL, while the remaining 29 are located outside of the Central Division, operating as town milk suppliers only.

The Animal Health and Production Division is presently carrying out a survey of cattle in the cane belts, to give an indication of milk production in this informal sector. Once this survey is completed, a more definitive figure of dairy production in Fiji will be available. Presently, it is estimated that Fiji is only about 40 per cent to 60 per cent self-sufficient.

(d) The total consumer demand for dairy products is around 80 million litres of milk annually, however RCDCL produces around 10 to 12 million litres annually.

The balance of around 60 to 70 million litres is imported to meet the local demand. From these figures, one can see that the local supply is not sufficient to meet the demand.

(e) The answer is not in the affirmative, hence Government is importing from overseas. It is now encouraging other processors to enter the industry, to try to capture the milk in the cane belts and other areas left untouched by RCDC until now. I believe the House heard earlier that the honourable Senator Tavola had other information on this as well relating to Hiway Stabilizers. Traditionally, our imports now are from Australia and New Zealand.

(f) When one examines the tariff concession Government imposes on other importers (27 per cent) compared to zero for Rewa Dairy, the imported liquid milk is the same price as local milk, if not slightly higher - 62 cents higher at the most.

For powdered milk, the imported powder is 20 cents higher than the RCDCL imported powder. However, if tariff concessions were not given to RCDCL this product would cost $11.07 compared to the $3.89 sold by other importers of the same products into Fiji. Without tariff concession, the local milk and dairy products sold by RCDCL would be expensive, compared to the imports by the other companies. On the reverse side of the coin, the imported milk and dairy products would indeed be cheaper than the local ones sold by RCDCL.

(g) An annual budget of $300,00 is provided for capital development programmes for dairy farmers. The strategy of this programme to improve local production is two pronged, namely:

Farm development through pasture development, establishment of improved pasture species and pasture management is also part of assistance given to farmers. A new feeding system using forage, silage and other technologies are being introduced.

The supply of genetically superior stock from Government stations and artificial insemination on selected farms are also another form of assistance provided to farmers.

Another form of strategic development that is really showing results is the provision of chaff cutters, fodder bank development and allied smallholder assistance emanating from the now concluded FAO Smallholder Forage Dairy Farm. The value of this starter kit is $1,000 per farmer.

This project has contributed immensely in the increased supply of milk from the smallholder dairy farmers to RCDCL, from 20 per cent in the past to around 42 per cent now. It is envisaged that this sector will continue to grow with Government support.

Assistance in roads, drains, water supply, collection centres at strategic locations is also continued to be provided.

Sir, I trust that these answers have answered the numerous questions posed by the honourable Senator.

HON. SENATOR E. RANACOU.- A supplementary question, Sir. This is related to the last point, on the work done by the Ministry to resolve land issues. I wonder whether the honourable Senator would like to enlighten the House on what work the Government has undertaken to-date to resolve the expiring leases for dairy farmers in the dairy districts?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I do not have that information on hand, but I can certainly speak to the Ministry involved and come back to the House with the answers at a later session.

HON. SENATOR E.L. MALANI.- A supplementary question, Sir. Would there be any plans to remove the subsidies? Do you have any back-up plan as how you would prepare the farmers now before the subsidies are removed?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, again, I do not have the answers to that question, but from the information that I have been given, I believe that the Government will continue to support the dairy industry, that is the RCDCL and the local dairy industry, until it is sufficiently strong enough to stand on its own.

HON. SENATOR G. AHMED.- Mr. President, Sir, hearing the honourable Senator speaking about assisting dairy farmers, I believe Government's plan is to only assist those farmers who are supplying milk to RCDCL. What about those farmers in the Western side, who are not supplying milk to RCDCL? Can the Government assist these small farmers in any way - those who have 50 to 60 heads of cows and who still owe the supply of milk to the local towns and cities (Lautoka and Ba)? There are a few dairy farmers, but they do not get any type of assistance from the Government. However, from the answers given by the honourable Senator, it seems that the Government is hell-bent on only assisting dairy farmers who are supplying milk to RCDCL. Can the honourable Minister assure us that the Government will assist them? If he does not have any answer, he can come back in the next sitting of the House.

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- I believe, in my answer, Sir, I have alluded to the fact that Government is carrying out a survey of cattle in the cane belts to give an indication of milk production in this informal sector. The purpose of this survey, Sir, is to try and get these farmers included into the supply of milk and into the RCDCL system, and seeing how this can be best done. I believe this survey is happening now and once this survey is completed, a more definitive figure of dairy production in Fiji will be available and plans will be formulated thereafter.

HON. SENATOR A. KALOUMAIRA.- A supplementary question, Sir. First of all, I would like to thank the honourable Senator, as I had served on the Board and I was very impressed with the service that the Dairy provides to improving the management of smallholding farmers. Since 2000, we have had a number of milking cows that were killed and there has been an increase in slaughter, so with the projection of growth that we have heard (10 per cent annually), would the honourable Senator state if there are plans, first to regulate the slaughter of milking cows, and secondly, what is the Ministry doing to increase the number of milking cows to match up with the projected growth?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I do not have the figures for information relating to the restriction of stock of milking cows. However, Government is supplying genetically superior stock from Government Stations and also assisting with artificial insemination on selected and other assistance provided to farmers to increase and improve the herds of dairy cattle.

HON. SENATOR T. RICKETTS.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. The honourable Senator mentioned there was a fund of $300,000 provided to assist the farmers. I assume that over the last few years, the $300,000 has been spent. Is it possible to have a list of those who received this assistance for the last two years?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I do not have on hand that information but I can certainly have it sought from the Ministry involved and inform the House later.

HON. SENATOR E. RANACOU.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. One of the greatest problems in the cattle farming is cattle theft. It is an extremely serious problem. I have been involved as well in writing to the Commissioner of Police regarding the same. To-date there has not been any response. My question is; what is the Commissioner of Police doing in terms of all reports regarding the high rate of calves and adult cattle theft in the dairy district? What has he done to address the problem?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, I wish to respond briefly to the question raised by the honourable Member.

The Commissioner of Police and his investigating teams throughout the various districts and divisions in Fiji will investigate immediately after a report of a theft of cattle is made. Prior to that, they do not have any plan on how to prevent cattle theft. That is left very much in the hands of cattle owners. It has to be a system operated jointly between the cattle owners, who must look after their own property. It is not a public property but private property. The Police Department will not interfere into private property unless their assistance is required either to prevent the occurrence or prevalence of such incidents of theft or once a report of a theft is made. That is all that the police can do.

HON. SENATOR E. RANACOU.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. There have been incidences of thieves identified, which are in the records of police offices in Korovou and Vunidawa. What has the Commissioner of Police and his staff done about this?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, I will be very surprised if what the honourable Senator is stating is correct factually. All cases that are reported are investigated by the Police and prosecuted if there is sufficient cogent evidence to support a prosecution. Where complainants of such thefts have actually provided the identities of thieves, it will make it a lot easier for the Police. I agree that there should be an expectation from the public that prosecution will be fast.

As we all know, some allegations even where specific identification has been provided, very often turn out to be untrue. The Police is mandated to find out whether such allegations are justifiable in terms of prosecutorial work or not. That is how the Police work.

MR. PRESIDENT.- Honourable Senators, we acknowledge the presence in the gallery of Lady Maya Singh, wife of the late Sir Vijay Singh and Mrs Raju.

On behalf of the honourable Senators, I wish to extend to you a very warm welcome and a big bula vinaka for being in Parliament this morning. We also wish you a very big day, although it is a bit cool and drizzling outside.

HON. SENATOR A. KALOUMAIRA.- Mr. President, Sir, a supplementary question. Artificial insemination is not a new technique to the dairy industry. It has been going on for quite sometime and has not produced the result that the Ministry had wanted over the years. It is mooted again as another strategy by the Ministry to improve a number of dairy cows.

Sir, I was wondering whether this strategy will also include supporting the farmers so that they can have a more integrated support services to really enable the Artificial Insemination Programme to proceed as targeted.

HON SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, to answer that question, I would probably go back to the Ministry itself, but there are some information which have been provided to us. The Government is providing Capital Development Programme to assist the farmers. It is also helping with farm development through pasture development and establishment of improved pasture species and new feeding system using forage, silage and other technologies and also training the upskilling of farmers, including Animal Health Programme and Advisory Services.

I guess Government is doing its best to improve the milk stock of this country. It takes a little bit of time to establish the herds. This programme is on-going and there is no doubt that there was a marked decline in the herds after 2000, but I believe the situation has improved and will continue to improve with Government's assistance.

HON. SENATOR E.L.MALANI.- Mr. President, Sir, Government has helped Rewa Dairy from a very long time. Have you developed any exit strategy whereby the company can compete equally in the market and the strategy to be developed with the farmers?

HON. SENATOR D. SEETO.- Mr. President, Sir, I believe it is public knowledge that the Rewa Dairy Company has undergone a lot of difficulties in the past. I alluded to the fact that after nine years of legal wrangling, it has finally managed to convene a full AGM. It has had since then a marked improvement in its performance and has paid off all its debts. I believe that in time to come it will continue to improve and contribute to the national economy.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports inform the House on how regular do the officials from the Ministry of Education visit rural primary schools in Naitasiri, to assess the status of its buildings and check on its facilities?

HON. SENATOR DR. T. BABA.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to answer the question raised by the honourable Senator.

The building and maintenance of school facilities is the responsibility of school managements. The Ministry of Education develops policies, procedures and guidelines to assist school managements in this regard. It also distributes building grants to assist in the construction and maintenance of buildings.

Apart from that, the Ministry plays an advisory role. Workshops have been conducted to assist managements to know the procedures and regulations that they should follow when new buildings are constructed and for the maintenance of existing structures. The Ministry of Education has also issued an OHS Manual and a School Management Handbook that provides relevant information on school buildings and facilities and the role of managements.

There are 52 primary schools in rural Naitasiri, and they are serviced by the officers from the Nausori Education Office. The Curriculum Advisory Officers and officers from other sections of the Ministry also visit the schools.

The Ministry officials do not visit schools specifically to check on buildings and facilities, rather schools have to report annually on the status and conditions of school buildings, structures and facilities, through the School Information System Form called the SIMS2. This is completed in Term III of each year (about this time), and the Ministry uses this information to make decisions on the distribution of building grants and other assistance schools may need. It is incumbent upon managements of each schools to request such assistance.

In conclusion, one of the characteristics of education in Fiji has been the participation of stakeholders and in this regard, the Ministry of Education is indeed thankful to school managements and committees for their role in ensuring that school buildings and facilities are safe and hygienic.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports inform the House on the following:

(a) What is the total amount of European Union Funding (EU) for the development of the Natoaika Village School in Naitasiri?

(b) What has the Ministry done with the deteriorating state of teacher's quarters, dinning hall, toilets and library at the school?

(d) What are the major projects the Ministry intend to develop at the school with the EU funding?

HON. SENATOR DR. T. BABA.- Mr. President, Sir, allow me again to answer the questions raised by the honourable Senator on the Natoaika Village School in Naitasiri. It seems that we are talking a lot about schools in Naitasiri this morning, a particular part in Naitasiri.

(a) In order to ensure the validity of tendering procedures, the European Union funded through the Fiji Education Sector Programme does not indicate specific sums earmarked for the infrastructural development of individual schools. That means the schools per se, the money available for them is not indicated in the project. The prioritised list of needs submitted by Natoaika Village Primary School indicate their preference for the following:

(b) The latest School Management Information Systems Forms (SIMS2) from the school indicated that there are four teachers quarters at the school. One concrete quarters is said to be in a poor condition.

The school was assisted with a teacher's quarters in 2000, worth $12,000. Natoaika is not a boarding school. An old teacher's quarters have been converted for children to have their lunch there. This is their dinning room. The toilet and the school library are in satisfactory condition, as per their submission last year. The school's ablution block has been targeted for improvement by the EU.

(c) It is anticipated that Natoaika Village Primary School will be targeted under Phase IV of the building programme, that is in mid-2007.

The provision of school furniture is accommodated under a separate budget line to that for infrastructural development. As yet, no furnishing commitments have been made. However, it should be noted that the allocation of school furniture will be guided by the principle of trying to reach as many schools as possible with the available funds. Consequently, the allocation of school furniture will prioritise those schools, which are not receiving infrastructural support.

Mr. President, Sir, I hope the honourable Senator will be happy to hear about the support that is given to his school at Natoaika.

Would the honourable Senator responsible for the Ministry of Fijian Affairs, Lands and Provincial Development inform the House on the following:

(a) Has the Ministry ever sent a survey team to check the damaged walkway bridge that it had initially built, which links Deladamanu and Natoaika Villages in Naitasiri?

(b) Since the walkway bridge is the only route school children go through, when will the Ministry reconstruct the bridge, before it causes a disaster?

Mr. President, Sir, I have just been informed this morning that two school children fell into the river, while crossing the bridge.

HON. SENATOR ADI S.T. CAKOBAU (Minister without Portfolio).- Mr. President, Sir, before I respond to the question, I beg the indulgence of this House to look back to the history of this link. The said walkway bridge was totally funded by the Japanese Government in 1985 and during Cyclone Kina in 1993, the bridge was damaged.

The following year (1994), the Ministry, together with the community, repaired that bridge. The flooding of 2003 affected these areas and the bridge was damaged beyond repair.

(b) The construction of a replacement walkway bridge is the second and third priority programme in the village development plans for Delaidamanu and Natoaika under the self-help scheme of 2007 and 2008, subject to the availability of funds. However, in the meantime, the villagers had been advised to construct a safe temporary walkway to be used by the students, whilst awaiting the construction of a more permanent replacement walkway bridge.

I am sorry to hear from the honourable Senator Nair this morning of the drowning of the two children who fell off the bridge. Perhaps, this can be passed on to the Ministry, to bring the priority levels up. That is the best we can do, and I hope it is an adequate enough answer for the honourable Senator's question.

HON. SENATOR J. KOROI.- Mr. President, Sir, I feel this is rather unfair to the people of the two villages. The walkway bridge disappeared some 10 years ago, and I feel that the Government should have done something about it. They should, at least, try and build their bridge, or if they could sort of have it in their project priorities in the year 2007.

We have heard that two children fell into the river and I feel it is very very important that Government should do something and not just leave it to the villagers, as we have heard. Am I right, or did I not hear you right?

HON. SENATOR ADI S.T. CAKOBAU.- Mr. President, Sir, I apologise for not responding quicker to what was being said by the honourable Senator on the other side of the House.

Sir, all that can be said is, it will be reported to the Ministry to see if their priority can be ushered higher and I am also sure that everyone is aware that sometimes, we do not respond until some disaster happens. Perhaps, this could be the vanguard to get things done quicker. I hope that answers your query, honourable Senator.

(a) What is the Government's plan in resettling squatters in Kilikali, Wailea, Nanuku and Veidogo areas?

(b) How soon will Government improve and install much needed facilities such as improved sanitation, water supply and electricity in these squatter areas?

HON. SENATOR ADI L.B. VUIYASAWA.- Mr. President, Sir, I rise to respond to the question, as follows:

(a) Government has gone into a partnership programme with the NLTB in developing Native land for housing purposes. In this programme, the Government has confirmed 44 acres of land at Veikoba, Nasinu, where the development of 322 housing lots are in progress as Stage 1 of the partnership programme. The squatters of Nanuku and Veidogo, who are currently sitting on a freehold land owned by Bhindi Brothers are earmarked to be relocated to Veikoba.

The NLTB has agreed to provide another 65 acres of land where the balance of the families from Nanuku, Veidogo, Kilikali and Wailea Settlements would be relocated. This Stage 2 is at the planning and design phase.

(b) Most of the squatters in these areas have their own temporary electricity and water supply. However, they are earmarked to be relocated to fully serviced subdivisions. There is no need to upgrade infrastructure in these squatter areas, as the subdivision they will move to will have provisions for water, electricity and sewerage lines.

Sir, I hope the answers I have given are satisfactory to the honourable Senator.

HON. SENATOR L.W. PADARATH.- In terms of improving their much needed facilities, especially in sanitation, I know the Ministry is saying that they are there on a temporary basis. The fact that they have been on these kinds of facilities for so many years, I think the question is: why cannot something be done temporarily? Firstly, they do not all have temporary water supply and electricity and on resettlement, because of the high unemployment for most of these people in squatter settlements, they cannot even afford the piece of land that they have been moved to. So, is the Government doing something about it? They cannot afford those land and some of them are actually saying that they will go and squat somewhere else. Can the Government address that? Those who cannot actually afford those pieces of land should be taken care of.

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Sir, may I rise to help answer that query raised by the honourable Senator. This problem has been with Fiji for many years. It has survived many past administrations and they are still there, and they are probably likely to be there for many years to come. All we are trying to do as a Government, as we assure future governments will try to do, is to address the needs of these people as they come. We all sympathise with the plight of squatters, but first and foremost, they are in illegal occupation of land. The land they occupy belongs to someone else, and these owners are usually very accommodating, and that is why they have been there for many years and have not been moved. However, the time has come when these owners want their land back, they have taken action and the Government has to do something about it, even though these squatters are in unlawful occupation of land. That is why areas like Veikoba is being developed. It is the best option available to the Government of the day.

Insofar as illegal occupation is concerned, that is also why we can only rely on temporary arrangements made by the squatters themselves. The reason being, in order to get permanent connections to utility services (water and electricity), you need the consent of the owner of the land and the owner is the one who is suffering the illegal occupation. So, it is a very difficult scenario for any Government, that is what we have been facing over the years and that is what we are still facing now. Even if Government comes into help, they cannot force the FEA and the Water Department to connect metres, despite the opposition from the owners of such land. That is the real difficulty we are facing, and all that the Government is asking is that, the squatters, as well as those of us who can understand their problems, bear with the Government of the day to try to find out the best solutions to cope with the problems that the squatters are facing. The best solution at the moment seems to be, to find other areas where they can move to and be relocated.

The other associated problem that comes with that kind of relocation is true as well, that is with relocation comes additional costs. Some of these squatters have been there for 40 years and some of them even have cars parked outside their houses, still in illegal occupation, and they have educated their children from there who now have good jobs. Just to what extent should the Government interfere to that kind of private arrangement, in a family in the confines of a private family home. Now the Government will do what it can possibly do, but the squatters themselves will also have to be prepared to face up to some of these hardships, not because the Government deliberately wants them to face up to that, but because that is the nature of the problem that we are having to address at this time. I just feel, Sir, that those issues should be clearly understood before we start expressing the views that we all share, and that is our sympathy for the plight of the squatters.

HON. SENATOR L.W. PADARATH.- Just to ask the honourable and learned Attorney-General in reference to the relocation of squatters. If I can just give examples, and that is where my question is coming from. Can the Government help subsidise the payment of land for these people? Up in Sakoca, the lowest piece of land that I have come across, I was told and I am going like two years back when I had cases that I handled, the lowest price was $12,000 for a piece of land, and it was as high as $25,000 depending on the site. We know that most squatters generally cannot afford this. Is the Government looking at subsidising people who cannot afford?

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- The Government, of course, will do whatever is necessary and within its means to try to help out, as I have explained. However, at the same time, we are mindful that we should not do or take actions that will encourage squatting - "go and squatter because the Government will try to find you another place". Most of these people who come from rural areas, where they have their own land holdings are always free to go back there, if they feel that they cannot cope with the hardships of urban surroundings. It is a tight rope to walk, both for the Government and the squatters. I do not think that this Government will be able to find the final solution to that.

I do not think any future government will also find final solution. All they can do is, continue to chip at the problem and hope that there will be satisfaction along the way.

HON. SENATOR DR. T.L. BABA.- Mr. President, Sir, in addition to what the honourable Senator Bale had alluded to, the honourable Senator Padarath seems to imply that Government has not subsidised the settlement of squatters. In this particular case, Government in developing that land with the Native Land Trust Board, has put in a lot of money for works, operations, et cetera. Having been campaigned in all these areas - Wailea, Veidogo and Nanuku, they will also be assisted in transportation from wherever they are to Veikoba. That is only stage one and a bigger stage two involves about 68 acres. The Government will also be subsidising, in terms of its development of that land with NLTB.

In addition to that, there will be assistance to transportation. I also sight the example of people in the Pony Club where I was personally involved with, some years ago. We at the University of the South Pacific (USP) in conjunction with the Government, assisted in their transportation from spot "A" to spot "B". Most of them took the opportunity but a lot of others stayed and are still there. The Government is still trying to resettle them and USP has come forward with some incentives to assist them to go. I had a very lively discussion with the people of Veidogo one morning, particularly Fijians and they prefer to stay there. We were able to persuade a lot of women by telling them that it will be good for their children to go to Veikoba and that is still continuing. They have been in Veidogo for nearly 20 years now and have built concrete buildings. They some how able to have facility for electricity, despite Bhindi's refusal to the connection of electricity. So, to assume that Government has not assisted or will not assist, I think, is naive to the extreme.

As for the hygiene, it is the Suva City Council's responsibility to make sure that hygienic aspects are met within the limitation that can be provided by Government.

MR. PRESIDENT.- Honourable Senators, we have an Adjournment Motion by the honourable Senator Ahmed, however, he has decided to withdraw it. In the mean time, the honourable Senator Bale wishes to make a tribute.

HON. SENATOR Q.B. BALE.- Mr. President, Sir, I had intended to make that tribute only as part of my response to the Adjournment Motion, otherwise I would rather not because the House has already honoured the late Mr. Bruce Rounds. With your leave, I wish not to make that tribute because it would feature as another separate item in the Order Paper.

HON. LEADER OF THE HOUSE.- Mr. President, Sir, I beg to move that the House do now adjourn sine die.

MR. PRESIDENT.- Honourable Senators, before we adjourn, I wish to remind you of our Trade Workshop, scheduled for Thursday, 2nd November, 2006 at the Holiday Inn. Furthermore, the representatives of the Ministry of Health are at the Bure to distribute filariasis tablets.