3 charged in plot to kill Fiji ruler

Authorities said Monday they have arrested 16 people and charged three of them with treason in an alleged conspiracy to assassinate Fiji's military leader, while Australia and New Zealand angrily rejected suggestions they were involved.

The 16 people were arrested over the weekend in what police said was a foiled plot by dissident troops and others against army chief Commodore Frank Bainimarama. The military leader seized power in a bloodless coup in December and declared himself interim prime minister of the Pacific island nation.

Police commissioner Esala Teleni declined to identify the three charged Monday with treason, inciting mutiny and conspiracy to murder. He said a fourth man, New Zealand businessman Ballu Khan, also would be charged in the plot when he is released from a hospital.

Khan was allegedly beaten by police when he was detained Saturday, sparking a protest from New Zealand. Teleni said he suffered "minor injuries" when he resisted arrest.

"We have successfully blocked any threat to the government, the community and the safety and well-being of tourists in this country," he said in a statement. The island chain is a popular tourist destination.

Teleni said Sunday that the alleged plotters included local politicians who wanted to foment an insurgency. He pointed to possible involvement of "foreign governments" — likely meaning Australia and New Zealand — and suggested that money was funneled to plotters through private aid groups.

Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer called the allegations "completely absurd."

New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark rejected Teleni's suggestions as "wild statements" and said the plot allegations were a pretext to round up Bainimarama's opponents.

Western nations have urged Bainimarama to restore Fiji's democracy after he imposed a monthlong state of emergency in September. Fiji has a history of turbulent politics, including two coups in 1987 and another in 2000.

Bainimarama blamed the latest plot, allegedly involving arms and explosives, on "disgruntled groups" affected by the government's anti-corruption program.

"Such people have the potential to go to extremes in undermining the work which the interim government has been mandated to undertake," he said Monday.