60 Minutes: Chinese developers ‘destroy reef, rainforest and beach’ to build Fiji-first casino
The surfers thought they’d found the perfect slice of paradise, so were quick to secure a 99-year lease for the beachfront property, with humble plans to build three eco-friendly bures on the land.
But their Fijian dream soon became a nightmare when Chinese developers moved in next door and – without warning – began bulldozing everything in sight, destroying the rainforest, reef and sandy beach to make way for a massive resort which was to include, of all things, Fiji’s only casino.
60 Minutes airs tonight on Channel 9 after The Voice. For more on 60 Minutes, visit the official website.
Tonight on 60 Minutes, reporter Liam Bartlett joins the Aussie surfers in the fight of their life against billion-dollar Chinese development company Freesoul, who illegally tore apart this slice of Fijian paradise.
It’s a David and Goliath battle for Woody and Nav, who are shattered by the environmental damage done to their land.
“We just had a little dream… some land in Fiji would be great, we're in a position to do it,” Nav says.
“And then Goliath steps in next door and just starts throwing his fists around and smashing stuff up and going crazy.”
Freesoul illegally excavated the reef off Malolo island, and then used the dead coral to build a road over Nav and Woody’s beachfront so they could move their heavy equipment onto their site.
“There’s thousands of tonnes of dead reef,” Nav says.
Freesoul also cut down half the trees on the boys’ property, and destroyed a huge section of mangroves along the foreshore.
For Fiji local partner Jonah Joseva, who has a third share in the land with Woody and Nav, it’s also a matter of intense disrespect against the Fijian people.
“They have no respect for us,” he tells Bartlett.
“They just dig and do all the damage down there.”
Freesoul even erected a huge fence to try and keep the trio out of their land.
The situation escalated when earlier this year Nav took a New Zealand film crew with him to document the damage. A Freesoul employee repeatedly tried to eject Nav from the property, becoming physically aggressive.
“The last thing you expect is for someone to come out and start yelling at you and trying to physically remove you from your land,” Nav tells Bartlett.
“It’s devastating.”
© Nine Digital Pty Ltd 2019
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