Fiji military regime to shut down 14 of 17 political parties

SUVA (AFP) - Fourteen of Fiji's 17 political parties are being closed down after failing to apply for registration under restrictions imposed on opposition groups last month, the military regime said on Tuesday.

The move means the Pacific nation will potentially have only three political parties involved in elections scheduled for next year, the country's first move toward democracy since a military coup in 2006.

Fiji's registrar for political parties Mere Vuniwaqa said 14 parties did not meet a deadline for registration last week and they would be wound up, with all their assets being forfeited to the government.

"By law, I am mandated to make an application to the High Court to wind up the rest of the existing parties that did not apply by the deadline," she told the Fiji Broadcasting Corporation.