Today 91% of all the land in Fiji is iTaukei land, and if the government acquires some land for public purposes, it must give that land back to the particular landowning unit should they no longer require the land for any purpose.
Attorney General and Minister for Economy Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has clarified this in parliament.
Sayed-Khaiyum says when Sitiveni Rabuka carried out the first two coups in 1987, the Head of State, the Queen was removed and therefore there was a decree that was passed in 1989 to amend Crown to State because we no longer could hold the Crown as the Head of State.
He says it was then that the definition was changed from Crown Grant to State Grant.
The State Grant then gives the land to someone who holds the freehold title.
He says when the former SDL government had converted the Momi land from iTaukei land to State Land, and this was then converted to freehold land.
Sayed-Khaiyum says under the 2013 constitution, iTaukei land can never be converted to freehold land or be sold.
SODELPA MP Niko Nawaikula then said that a lot of Itaukei feel the provision is not fair since it only started in 2013.
Niko-Nawaikula
In his answer, the Attorney General had referred to the Deed of Cession on proprietorship of land.
He said there was a case called the Ratu Epeli Kanakana and Others and NLTB.
They had taken the then government and NLC to court for claims that the entire Suva Peninsula be reverted back to iTaukei land.
The Minister says the court held that it cannot be done. He says similarly all subsequent constitutions, including 1970, 1990 and the 1997 Constitutions did not allow the reversion of the lands.
He says many of these lands have been given out as mortgage and they don’t have a right to know about the consistency of the title.
Sayed-Khaiyum says this is why any responsible lawmaker cannot retrospectively allow for changes in the law because people put confidence in the law at the time the transaction was made.
