SUVA, Fiji, Jan. 12 (UPI) -- A Fijian soldier who reportedly urinated on a Japanese woman during an international flight last spring is being blamed for a fall in tourist traffic to Fiji.
Newspapers in Tokyo were littered with outraged headlines after the Fijian man exposed himself and then relieved himself on a young Japanese passenger during a flight in March 2007, The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday.
The soldier's actions were said to have done "untold damage" to Fiji's tourism reputation and allegedly generated "widespread, negative publicity at a time when we need it the least," The Fiji Times reported.
The Times also mentioned the country's poor taxi service, the angry disposition of its officials and ongoing military regulation, after reports from Air Pacific showed a 2006 decline in people flying between Fiji and Japan.
"The soldier involved was a young chap showing signs of post traumatic stress after a year's tour of duty," Lt. Col. Sitiveni Qiliho said of the 2007 incident.
