Office of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Fiji

05/14/2022 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 05/15/2022 16:24

PM BAINIMARAMA PAYS TRIBUTE TO THE DESCENDANTS OF GIRMITYA-(14-05-2022)

If we're going to have a country and an economy that works for the people, we must be led by people who make decisions based on reality. Truth must matter. People's lives, memory, and dignity must matter. This history must matter.

These sentimental remarks were conveyed by the Prime Minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimaramara at Suva's Civic Centre today on the occasion of the 143rd anniversary of the arrival of the Leonidas ship in Fiji.

Prime Minister Bainimarama said that we have come a long way since the Girmit era; a long way since 1987; and a long way since 2000.

"At the heart of this change, sits the 2013 Fijian Constitution which enshrines my government's unwavering commitment to protect the rights and freedoms of every Fijian, equally, " he said.

"It finally delivered recognition that was decades overdue by declaring every citizen of this country to be a Fijian. Period. Fijians with equal votes of equal value. Fijians with equal protection under the law. Fijians united by a common purpose of building a better Fiji, shedding our past, and focusing on the future, a hopeful future.

"That future will not be written in India or any other foreign land, it will be written in Fiji, where the descendants of the girmitya belong, now and forever.

"The history that began on this day, 143 years ago, Prime Minister added may be a history of injustice and brutality, but its totality over nearly a century and a half is a story of great hope.

"It is a story of resilience. It is a story of the great capacity of human beings to overcome hardship and do great things. The truth is, there is no aspect of Fijian society today that the girmitya and their descendants have not made better in some fashion," he further added.

In paying tribute to the descendants of girmitya, Prime Minister Bainimarama called on every Fijian to value and appreciate the legacy of the girmitya.

"The girmitya endured years of backbreaking labour under brutal conditions that meet the definition of slavery that we hold today. They performed the hardest work of building the colonial economy; working cane fields, farming copra, laying brick, and carving out roads. They worked under the whip. They lived under constant threat of abuse and sexual assault. The injustice is almost impossible for us to comprehend in today's Fiji.

"Everyone should know this story. It should have been taught in our schools from the day we gained our independence. It is a part of our history, and we must know our history-not just the triumphs and the glories, but the injustices and the blemishes.

"May they never be forgotten."

The celebration featured special performances and also paid tribute to some of the senior girmitya descendants present.

Prime Minister Frank Bainimarama

#FijiNews #FijianGovernment #TeamFiji