Over 60 Fijians arrested linked to attempts to form a breakaway state.

SUVA – More than 60 people have been arrested in a Fiji government crackdown on sedition with Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama vowing to crush any attempt at insurrection.

The arrests over the past month follow claims of military-style training in Ra province linked to attempts to establish a breakaway state on the main island of Viti Levu.

Ana Naisoro from Fiji police said last week that investigations have been underway for several weeks.

“We obtained information of a group that were carrying out activities of a seditious manner in the interior of the island,” she said.

“The investigation team is trying to ascertain now what was the intent of the alleged seditious acts that were occurring.”

Authorities believe a former British army officer has been secretly running military-style training camps in several villages as part of a plot to form a breakaway Christian state.

The veteran has not been identified, but is believed to be a Fijian national who previously served in the British army.

The Department of Public Prosecutions lists 40 people charged with seditious acts in the past month, with various media reports saying a further 16-18 were due in court.

Fiji’s Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama said the government will deal with any challenge to the state’s authority.

Bainimarama, who seized power in a 2006 coup, warned he will not tolerate any instability.

“There will be no so-called independent states established in Fiji. Anyone who swears an illegal oath will face the full force of the law. Anyone who encourages political violence will face the full force of the law,” he said.

“We will not and should not tolerate the kind of instability certain people are currently trying to provoke. Put simply, any insurrection will be crushed.”

Police commissioner Ben Groenewald said reports that firearms were involved in the alleged training camps had not been substantiated.

He earlier suggested the so-called militants may have been training with wooden replica guns.

Private ownership of firearms is illegal in Fiji, which has experienced four coups in the past 28 years.

Naisoro said the commissioner had directed Fiji’s intelligence chief to directly oversee the investigation.

She said he had engaged regional police to visit villages and settlements.

“They are just trying to get people not to get involved in these activities,” she said.

“The police commissioner has also given his assurance that there’s no security threat for the nation, nor is there any reason for people to panic.”