Fiji

Local media report Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama advised President Jioji Konrote to dissolve parliament today.

Bainimarama visited Government House in Suva this morning and he met with President Konrote for about 30 minutes.

Bainimarama returned from New York earlier today.

President Konrote will issue the Writ of Elections on Monday.

Photo file. Caption: A voter casts her vote in the 2014 General Elections in Fiji 

The tremor struck at 3.49am at a depth of 608 kilometres.

It was centred 101 kilometres east-southeast of the capital Suva.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre says the earthquake was so deep it is unlikely to make a dangerous tsunami.

There have been no reports of damage.

However, residents in parts of the main island of Viti Levu commented on social media that they were awoken to shaking. 

The Barramundis made their dominance show from the very first game when Tony Ura smashed a century of just 47 balls, to guide PNG past 200 against Samoa.

Samoa barely put up a challenge and could only manage 129 in their 20 overs, with Chad Soper picking up 4 wickets - 3 of them coming in one over - for only 10 runs.

Hosts Fiji were next as the Hebou PNG Barramundis played back-to-back matches on the first day, this time falling shy of the 200 run mark by 12 runs.

The Grace Road Church has extensive business networks in Fiji, but the government said these would not be affected by Shin Ok-joo's arrest.

The police in South Korea said Ms Shin, who was arrested last week, has been charged with slavery and foreign exchange violation.

Her church believes an armageddon is coming, and Fiji is the only place in the world that will escape it.

Up to 400 Korean followers are reported to have worked in Fiji, but South Korean authorities said their passports were confiscated and they're not being allowed to leave.

Forty kilogrammes of cocaine were found earlier this month on the same island.

The defence force said more than 12 kilogrammes of the drug was found on the island in the Lau group last week.

A New Zealand navy ship is helping Fiji patrol its waters and it moved in after a request from Fiji's customs agency.

An earlier 40 kilogramme cocaine haul is estimated to be worth about $US15 million.

An Australian couple have also appeared in court for smuggling 15 kilograms of cocaine and $US10 to 15 million worth of ecstasy into Fiji.

Sitiveni Rabuka was charged in June by the anti-corruption body, FICAC, for providing a false declaration of assets, income and liabilities.

The former prime minister and coup leader has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Mr Rabuka's party, SODELPA, says the unforeseen request from FICAC for a further round of interviews has meant he had to call short his week of meetings in Macuata.

It gave no details about what it is FICAC wanted to talk about.

The operation was initiated when the Fiji Revenue and Customs Service (FRCS) was tipped off that there were bars found on an island in Lau believed to contain illicit drugs.

The information led to a joint operation between FRCS, Police and the Fiji Navy in seizing the bars from the island.

According to a statement from FRCS, the bars weighing 40 kilograms were retrieved and secured and after testing were confirmed to be cocaine.

Customs said a search of the boat led to the seizure of a large quantity of a mix of ammunition.

Revenue and Custom chief executive Visvanath Das said the agency's intelligence and profiling processes were determining high-risk vessels and collaborative efforts with Fiji police and the navy led to the seizure.

He said customs last weekend discovered a massive drug find on an Australian-based yacht and now officers had exposed another smuggling attempt.

The NDMO Director Anare Leweniqila says 804 houses have been damaged, 201 of which were fully destroyed.

Mr Leweniqila said 104 evacuation centers remain active with 803 evacuees.

He said the relief and recovery phase continued in Kadavu with assessment teams to work through the 75 villages in the area by the end of the week.

FBC news reported the collective cost of damage for the Western and Northern Divisions was expected to be finalised by Friday.

Prime minister Frank Bainimarama has announced a new package for people hard hit by recent back to back cyclones and flooding.

He announced the Cyclone Assistance Relief Effort for Fiji package or CARE for Fiji before flying out last night for London.

Mr Bainimarama is on his way to attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting.

Prime Minister Bainimarama said people earning less than FJ$50,000 dollars a year and whose homes were totally destroyed or suffering severe damage qualify for the funds.