US threatens to cut Fiji's development aid as reports suggest human trafficking links

Fiji & Australia Suva, Jan. 7.– FIJI faces an uncomfortable reckoning as the United States threatens to cut millions of dollars in development aid over allegations of human trafficking tied to a South Korean sect.

Grace Roads is a prominent investor with supermarkets, restaurants, and service stations but arrived in Fiji initially to set up a commune on which its members hope to escape the end of the world.

Its leader, Shin Ok-ju, and three other members of the Grace Road Church were arrested at Seoul’s international airport in 2018 on charges of human trafficking in Fiji and the US.

Shin was later convicted of assault, child abuse, and fraud.

Since it arrived in Fiji in 2014, Grace Road Group has woven itself into the fabric of the nation’s economy. Its investments span supermarkets, restaurants, beauty salons, and ambitious agricultural projects…

The US State Department’s latest Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report highlights ...

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