The Fijian Church has been banned from holding its annual Conference and choir festivals until 2014 after questioning the democratic credentials of the regime, which came to power by overthrowing the democratically elected government in 2006.
The Fijian government recently extended the ban on the Church's meetings to local districts and circuits.
Criticising the regime is a criminal offence in Fiji, as is meeting without the government's permission. Earlier in the month, fifteen Church ministers were arrested and charged with breaking the Public Emergency regulations by attending an unauthorised meeting last April. It brings the total number of Church ministers facing charges to 24.
Those charged include all members of the Fiji Methodist Church Standing Committee, who were arrested last year.
Methodists in Britain and Ireland are being encouraged to fast and pray on February 25, the day dedicated to Fiji in the Methodist Prayer Handbook. They are being invited to donate the money they would have spent on food to the World Mission Fund, which is offering long-term support to the Methodist Church in Fiji.
The Rev Stephen Poxon, ex-president of the British Methodist Conference and Secretary of the Methodist Missionary Society, said it was easy for believers in the UK to take religious freedoms for granted.
"The Methodist Church in Fiji simply desires to worship God and serve the people of Fiji with their ministry, but the government's unreasonable restrictions are making the Church's daily life almost impossible," he said.
"Through fasting and prayer, we want to show our solidarity with our Fijian brothers and sisters."
A prayer for Fiji is available online at: www.methodist.org.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=opentogod.content&cmid=3016