Sri Lankan judges and magistrates who are expected to arrive in Fiji today were denied transit visas through Australia, Fiji Times reported.

At a press conference in his judicial chambers in Suva yesterday, Fiji Chief Justice Anthony Gates said the Sri Lankan judges were not allowed to transit Australia and had to come through Korea. He said the judges applied to the Australian High Commission in Colombo for transit visas and until the date of departure nothing was received from the commission. "Later each one of the judicial officers was telephoned by a visa officer from the Australian High Commission counselling them against taking up the appointments in Fiji," Justice Gates said. He said they were each warned that if they took up the appointments they would not be allowed to travel to Australia during their time in Fiji and they would not be allowed into Australia for medical treatment, Fiji Times reported. "The judges nonetheless resolved to carry on with their decision and to travel by a different route," Justice Gates said. "They have been commendably brave and steadfast in doing so." Justice Gates said some of the judges would arrive today and others would arrive in a few weeks time. "The Sri Lankan Judicial Services Commission has permitted its judges leave of absence in order that they might serve here for two to three years," he said. Justice Gates said if the judiciaries of Australia and New Zealand could see this interference to be clearly wrong, "I would urge such judges to speak with their parliamentary colleagues on the need for its rejection", Fiji Times reported. Meanwhile Radio Australia qouted the Australian Foreign Ministry as saying that completely contrary to Chief Justice Gates, a decision had been made to issue transit visas to the judges, but this did not happen as they withdrew their applications having decided instead to travel to Fiji via Korea. The Australian High Commission in Colombo advised the judges that once they took up their positions in Fiji, they would be subject to Australia's travel bans. Contrary to the claim of Chief Justice Gates, this did not amount to a warning to the judges. It's also completely incorrect to claim the judges were not told they would not be allowed into Australia for medical treatment for themselves or their families either. Sanctions have been relaxed on a case-by-case basis on compassionate grounds, the Australian Foreign Ministry said.