Naomi Matanitobua is a former

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

judge A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a panel of judges. A judge hears all the witnesses and any other evidence presented by the barristers or solicitors of the case, assesses the credibility an ...

, who took office as Chief Magistrate of Fiji on 14 December 2005, succeeding David Balram. Her term of appointment was for three years.

Life

Matanitobua's first application for the position, in 2002, was not successful. She was determined to dispel the impression, she said, that women cannot occupy senior judicial offices. Her legal career began as a temporary relieving court clerk in 1980. By 1999, she had become a resident

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

. In 2020 she was still authorised to practise.

2006 coup d'état

In the wake of the

military coup A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare War is an intense armed conflict between states, governments, societies, or paramilitary groups such ...

which deposed the Qarase government on 5 December 2006, Matanitobua was sent on paid leave until further notice, along with Chief Justice

Daniel Fatiaki Taniela (Daniel) Vafo'ou Fatiaki CF (born 1954 in Upu, Motusa District, Rotuma) was the Chief Justice of Fiji from 1 August 2002, when he succeeded Sir Timoci Tuivaga, till 5 December 2008. As Chief Justice, he presided over both the High Co ...

, on 3 January 2007. The military administration said it wanted to conduct an investigation into the judiciary. The investigation would cover allegations that members of the judiciary had been implicated in

2000 Fijian coup d'état The Fiji coup d'état of 2000 was a civilian coup d'état by hardline i-Taukei (ethnic Fijian) nationalists against the elected government of an Indo-Fijian Prime Minister, Mahendra Chaudhry on 19 May 2000. This was followed by an attempt on ...

. Matanitobua returned to work as chief magistrate in March 2007. She was removed from office following the abrogation of the

1997 Constitution of Fiji The 1997 Constitution of Fiji was the supreme law of Fiji from its adoption in 1997 until 2009 when President Josefa Iloilo purported to abrogate it. It was also suspended for a period following the 2000 ''coup d'état'' led by George Speight. ...

by the military regime in 2009. She was replaced as Chief Magistrate by Ajmal Khan. Following her sacking she returned to legal work, defending

Teimumu Kepa Ro Teimumu Vuikaba Kepa (born 18 December 1945) is a Fijian chief, former Member of the Parliament of Fiji, and former leader of the Social Democratic Liberal Party. She was the first Fijian woman to serve as Leader of the Opposition. She p ...

when she was charged with conspiracy by the military regime over plans to hold the annual Methodist Church conference.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matanitobua, Naomi Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Chief Magistrates of Fiji Women judges I-Taukei Fijian people 20th-century Fijian politicians 20th-century Fijian women 21st-century Fijian politicians 21st-century Fijian women politicians