An old baka tree

picture from Fiji Times.The girls in purple! Dudley High School students walking near the hundred-year-old baka tree yesterday. Picture: ATU RASEA

from w
I had a laugh about this story in today's Fiji Village about the very old baka tree in the Dudley High School compound. There have been many an intimate conversation under that tree I am sure over the years. I taught there many years ago and remember Dudley very well. When Peceli came visiting, the missionaries frowned and wondered why is this laughing young man having dinner with us!
Baka trees to be cut down
Publish date/time: 09/08/2010 [07:35]

Members of the Indian Division of the Methodist Church of Fiji are saddened with the news that the Baka tree at Dudley High School in Suva will soon be chopped down. The tree holds sentimental values for the members because work on the first mission of the Indian Division of the church began under the Baka tree.

Divisional Superintendent of the Indian Division, Reverend William Lucas said the Baka tree is 100 years old and it has to be removed because the roots of the tree has damaged the school sewer lines. He said it has also forced the closure of six out of eight senior girls restroom facilities.

Rev Lucas said the old Baka tree brings back a lot of memories.

President of the Dudley High school parents and teachers association, Inia Vuakilau said there will be a Baka Tree fundraising drive on the 14th of this month. The money will go to the construction of a multi-purpose court for Dudley High school and a need for proper landscaping.

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Wednesday 11 August - how the Fiji Times ran the story.

Baka tree to come down
By Geraldine Panapasa
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
THE landmark baka tree towering over Dudley High School in Toorak, Suva will be removed during the second school term holidays because the century-old roots have damaged the school's sewer line and building foundation. To cover the cost of cutting down the tree, the school's Parents, Teachers and Friends Association (PTFA) is organising a Baka Tree Day on Saturday to raise funds for this project.

PTFA president Inia Vukialau said the target was to raise $1000 per form. "Phase one is the removal of the baka tree due to the damage the roots have caused to the school sewer line and foundations," he said. "The costs will cover the cutting down, carting of the debris and proper landscaping. We have 26 streams (forms) altogether. The baka tree is very sentimental to many. It was the place where the pioneer missionary Hannah Dudley began her missionary work." Ms Dudley was a Methodist missionary who ministered mainly to the Indian community.

"For those who attended Dudley, the baka tree is synonym with the school," Mr Vukialau said. "Therefore, the decision to cut down the tree was very difficult to make. We will try to find ways of continuing the legacy of the trees, perhaps nurture some cuttings and sell it off to old scholars to plant in their own yards."

Mr Vukialau said phase two was planning, approval and building of a multi-purpose court to accommodate assemblies, sports and other extra-curricular activities. He said the PTFA committee was told that old scholars were planning a reunion next year and the Baka Tree Day would kick-start the hype and build-up to the reunion.

Would you like to be an attachee?

from w
This sounds like an interesting scheme to give young people a chance to have a go in an occupation - six months of training on the job for a small remuneration. But, how much is that remuneration as it would need to cover out of pocket expenses like suitable clothes for the job, perhaps lunch, and fares? Do they sign a bond not to break the commitment if they are unhappy or find work? Already, students at TAFE colleges do an attachment but I don't think there is a commitment on the part of the company to give them a job at the end of it. Do they get a certificate at the end of the six months?

Would you like to be an Attachee?

From Fiji Village Sunday 8th August
Employers need to take on attachees Publish date/time: 08/08/2010 [17:08]

All employers in the country and Government Ministries included will start to take on a certain percentage of attachees as part of the National Employment Center Decree.

Following talks which ended on Thursday this week, the Fiji Employers Federation has revealed that the Decree covers all industries and companies in the country adding that the compulsory attachment scheme is for those companies or employers that have more than 50 workers.

Federation General Secretary, Nesbitt Hazellman said that Government as the biggest employer in the country will also have to abide by the Decree.

Also under the Decree is a subsection which said that the company will have to cover 50 percent of a weekly allowance with Hazellman revealing that a set weekly allowance has been determined following these talks.

Under Section 44 of the National Employment Centre Decree 2009, which came into effect on the 1st of January 2010, it stated that an employer who employed more than 50 workers must engage suitably qualified unemployed persons as attachees or volunteers on a ratio of at least 5 percent of the total number of workers employed by the employer.

Director of NEC, Viliame Baledrokadroka said these people who come in for attachment will only act as attachees and once their 6 months is up then it is up to the company to take them in as full time workers, or to take them on as part-time workers, trainees or to be placed as a reserve in the company’s data base for any future employment.

So far 5,300 people above the age of 15 years have signed up with NEC and training is expected to start next week.
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added on Tuesday 10th August:
from Fiji Times

$4m to train 5000 jobless
Theresa Ralogaivau
Tuesday, August 10, 2010

THE National Employment Centre will spend about $4 million to train more than 5000 unemployed people. The $4m comprises a $3m grant from the Training and Productivity Authority of Fiji and $800,000 which is announced in the 2010 revised budget.

CEO Vilimone Baledrokadroka said clients were paid a transportation allowance and while on work attachment paid a $60 weekly allowance, half of which is borne by the employer. The NEC has calculated $1750 as cost of preparing each participant for the job market. "When the client secures some employment we expect 50 per cent of the $1750 to be paid back to NEC to keep the program rolling," he said. "There are a lot of costs involved in upskilling a client so we are urging for a level of commitment from individuals that participate."

About 8.4 per cent of the working population or 28,000 persons are unemployed and NEC aims to reduce unemployment to 4.2 per cent by 2012.

Kia Island and land

From Peceli,
This sounds like a good idea because the income can be used for development as the people here are gone dau and they rely upon selling fish for their income. Most of the Kia people are already living away from the island, such as in Labasa and in Suva. We are closely related to the people as they are kin to Mali Island families. My hope would be to find a suitable development for them, whether it is eco-tourism like Vorovoro or something different. I hope this isn't just words, but that it does happen. The photo is of members of Tribewanted from Vorovoro Island when they visited Kia Island, not far away from Vorovoro. Villagers offer land for hotel project
Maneesha Karan
Friday, August 06, 2010

BOOSTING tourism is first on the State's agenda after a landowning unit in Vanua Levu offered its land for commercial purposes in response to the promulgation of the Land Use Decree 2010. The mataqali Burewaqa of Macuata has given government consent to administrate the subdivision and leasing of land on Kia Island.

Land and Mineral Resources permanent secretary Lt-Col Neumi Leweni, in a statement, said the offer could see a tourism market in an exclusive island for overseas retirees, something that has been on the agenda of some tourism investors in Fiji. "We've identified that it is a very good island for hotels and that's specifically what the owners have mentioned to our officers.

"It's quite a big island and would be a good prospect for tourism," he said.

Lt-Col Leweni said his team would document and finalise all the processes before the project gets off the ground.

Land Reform Unit director Laisa Raratabu said they had completed all the "necessaries", which includes the proposal to subdivide land on the island and to seek the endorsement of the Prime Minister's Office.

Geelong Rotary and Macuata

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And a thank you from Dreketi.
A letter to the Editor of the Fiji Times published Thursday.
Vinaka Rotary

A VERY sincere vote of thanks to Rotary Australia. I was pleasantly surprised (10/08) when the Caucasian lady waiting to be seen by the doctor, slowly walked into the room, shook my hand and introduced herself as being a representative of Rotary Australia.

We, the staff of Dreketi Health Centre were overjoyed in receiving the large supply of dressing materials, medical textbooks and healthcare books, surgical instruments, automated blood pressure machines and many more items. The sheer variety of items donated was very impressive.

Thank you Rotary Australia from all the people of Dreketi.

Dr Monish Nandan
Medical officer in-charge
Dreketi Health Centre
Macuata

Labasa Rotary

from Peceli,
It's good to see news of the Labasa Rotary Club and their changeover. I go to their meetings when I am in Labasa and our Geelong Donation in Kind have been sending containers to Macuata in the past few years. One should be arriving there this week with gifts for hospitals. Also, one of our Geelong Rotary women, Joy, works very hard to help the people in the Dreketi region.

from Fiji Sun
Fiji ‘needs good leaders’
8/3/2010
Leaders are agents of change and Fiji needs good leaders, says Commissioner Northern Lieutenant-Colonel Inia Seruiratu. Speaking as a guest at the Labasa Rotary Club annual presidential changeover at the Takia Hotel conference room, in Labasa on Saturday, the Commissioner said Government cannot do everything".

"This is where clubs and organisations are needed the most,” Lieutenant-Colonel Seruiratu said.

2009 Labasa Rotary Club president Dr Liaquat Niazi on Saturday, handed over the presidentship band to his successor Jagat Prasad. Mr Prasad, a Rotarian of more than nine years, is the Telecom Fiji Limited Northern customer care team leader.

"Two major challenging projects I carried out with the club members was reaching out to assist victims of Cyclone Tomas and renovating the Squash Court beside the Holy Family Primary School in Labasa," Dr Niazi said. "The Rotary Club is about community service and I have learnt that there is great blessings." He said that being a doctor and at the same time a Rotarian, his life changed in a way that he never thought it would.

Mr Prasad, as the new president said, he was prepared to work with all his strength.

The father of two aims to focus on health outreach programmes in rural communities.

Fiji in Shanghai

from w
This week there's a special promo for Fiji at the World Expo in Shanghai and over a million people have walked through the Fiji pod in the Pacific pavilion. Fiji water, jewelry, masi, noni juice, kava, what else? Mekes and ceremonies on August 6th.Notes from a website (with bits deleted)
Fiji’s one month at the world’s biggest trade and investment show has proven to be very successful with visitors completely captivated with our distinctive booth décor, products, traditional and contemporary artifacts on display, and our friendly Pavilion Attendants ready to share their knowledge on our unique culture and traditions, our popularity as a fantastic holiday destination and the many exciting trade and investment opportunities on offer.

Just outside the Fiji Pod is a drua – the double hulled canoe which is a pride and joy of Fiji, still revered today for its long and sacred history. At the entry to the Pod, visitors are welcomed by two magnificently carved balabala, placed on either side of the entrance, and the smiling, welcoming faces of our Pavilion Attendants.

Upon entering, visitors go on a journey which promotes Fiji’s heritage, culture, people, places and products. The panels backing the Pod represent the 14 provinces of Fiji with an assortment of artifacts complementing the designs which range from magimagi weaves of diverse patterns, to traditional artifacts unique to a particular province, and images and symbols that are both traditional and contemporary.

(On display are) commodities from the Agricultural Marketing Authority, Bio Pasifika Ltd, Fiji Fashion Week, Fiji Niu, Fiji Sugar Corporation, Flour Mills of Fiji, Frezco Beverages, Foods Pacific, Foods Processors, Foster’s Group Pacific Ltd, Golden Ocean Ltd, Mokosoi, Naturally Fiji, Niu Living, Organic Earth Fiji, Origins Pacific Ltd, Portion Pak, Radini Farm Produce & Services, Sino Pacific Trading & Development, Spices of Fiji, University of the South Pacific, Viti Foods Ltd and Walt Smith International Ltd. Also on display are beauty products from the renowned Pure Fiji.

Mandarin-speakers Yolinda Chan and Catherine Zhang have been instrumental in effectively communicating with the large number of visitors to the Pod, the majority of whom have been local Chinese. Fiji’s third Pavilion Attendant Sikeli Nailesu, has also proven to be a big draw card to the Pod, with his big friendly smile which attracts a lot of photo sessions.

Trade and Investment Opportunities
While interest generated in the Fiji Pod has been geared mostly towards tourism, there have been visitors to the Pod who are interested in finding out more about Fiji’s business climate and investment opportunities. During the month, our Pavilion Attendants have also had discussions with potential Chinese investors who identified certain areas in which they were interested in doing business.

According to Fiji’s Commissioner General for the Shanghai Expo, Annie Rogers, who represented Fiji at the May 1st Opening Ceremony and had the opportunity to interact with visitors at the Fiji Pod, “Fiji is very keen to increase the current level of trade and investment with China and this is exactly why we are going all out by participating in the Shanghai World Expo.

While the Expo is a six-month long event, the Fiji Week is scheduled to be from August 2nd -7th, with August 6th being Fiji Day when the spotlight will shine solely on Fiji. Proceedings on National Day will commence with an official opening ceremony coordinated by the Shanghai Expo Organising Committee followed by the traditional Fijian welcome ceremony the Veiqaraqaravi Vakaturaga. There will also be meke performances by the Republic of Fiji Military Forces and Kabu ni Vanua which include the Meke Wesi, Meke I-Wau, and the Vakamalolo, during the day.

Be careful what you say on Facebook

from w
Although Facebook is an excellent tool for getting in touch with relatives and friends and even finding very old friends, we do need to be cautious. The article by Jeffrey Rosen in the New York Times a week ago, and yesterday in Melbourne's Age newspaper under the heading 'The Persistent Memory' is timely reading. The illustration based on a picture by Salvatore Dali was in the Age. Credits - Judy Green. I've noticed people even put their telephone numbers on Facebook, and often silly remarks or pictures of themselves. These might haunt them later on when looking for a job or relationships. In a country like Fiji where there is a strong oversight of print media, things written in blogs and on Facebook type of websites require care. Count to ten before publishing it!

Here's the last two paragraphs as in the New York Times (it's all on-line). It's here referring to a young woman who posted a silly photo of herself.

But a humane society values privacy, because it allows people to cultivate different aspects of their personalities in different contexts; and at the moment, the enforced merging of identities that used to be separate is leaving many casualties in its wake. Stacy Snyder couldn’t reconcile her “aspiring-teacher self” with her “having-a-few-drinks self”: even the impression, correct or not, that she had a drink in a pirate hat at an off-campus party was enough to derail her teaching career.

That doesn’t mean, however, that it had to derail her life. After taking down her MySpace profile, Snyder is understandably trying to maintain her privacy: her lawyer told me in a recent interview that she is now working in human resources; she did not respond to a request for comment. But her success as a human being who can change and evolve, learning from her mistakes and growing in wisdom, has nothing to do with the digital file she can never entirely escape. Our character, ultimately, can’t be judged by strangers on the basis of our Facebook or Google profiles; it can be judged by only those who know us and have time to evaluate our strengths and weaknesses, face to face and in context, with insight and understanding. In the meantime, as all of us stumble over the challenges of living in a world without forgetting, we need to learn new forms of empathy, new ways of defining ourselves without reference to what others say about us and new ways of forgiving one another for the digital trails that will follow us forever.

School for some, fishing for others

from w
The small island west of Mali Island, Kia, is home to many traditional fishermen, the gone dau. Here's a story of one lad from Kia who couldn't cope with being away from his island so dropped out of school to become a fisherman. The photo shoes him cleaning beche-de-mer. At the same time, it's a pity that kids like Peni drop out of school because literacy etc. is valuable whether you are a farmer, a fishermen as well as a white collar worker. Does the education system in Fiji prepare young people for a variety of jobs, or just raise their hopes to go to places like Suva to find work?
From Fiji Times this week:

Pita clings to the sea
Theresa Fox
Friday, July 30, 2010


WHILE away from Kia Island, Peni Vaiva feels like a fish out of water - strange and not in sync with life. He said that was probably the reason he suffered academic failure as a Form Three student at Nabala Junior Secondary School on Vanua Levu. He was always homesick, wondering about the next trip home - an island encircled by the contrasting beauty of stark black cliffs with patches of sandy white beaches in between.

Kia is a two-hour boat ride from Labasa, an island renowned for its fishing culture and the bounty from the sea.

"I missed the sea so bad that I was always thinking about it; going out and diving, swimming," he said. Nabala Secondary is situated inland which goes to explain the teenager's pangs of loneliness and loss at not seeing something familiar.

"I went back home for a break and never returned to school," he said. Instead, Peni, who is now 20 years old, joined the fishing ranks just like his five brothers who all make a living from the vast sea that surrounds Kia.

He was deftly cleaning beche-de-mer on the beach in front of Yaro Village on the island when Fiji Times caught up with him at three in the afternoon. He'd been out with a group of fishermen diving for fish and beche-de-mer since 8am.

"I've been out fishing with my father ever since I was just a little boy of five," he said. Navitalai Tuirabe taught him everything he needed to know - from gutting a fish, using the right bait, timing the throw of his spear, to surviving out at sea.

"I just didn't have it in me to live an academic life," he said.

"Schooling is for some, just not for me even though my parents could afford to send me to school. This is what I want to do with the rest of my life. I cannot understand Maths' as much as I do the behaviour of fish, where they can be found, the types and all that. I asked my parents not to force me to go to school because my heart was no longer in it. I'm just happy they understood."

On a great day, Peni makes as much as $100, his average income from a catch is about $60. Life is simple, he said, just fish, make some money and be part of the village life. "I like it that way; go onto the mainland now and then but there is no place that beats the island," he said.

Fiji media organisations registered

from w
The list of media organisations in Fiji that have registered on time have been listed tonight by Fiji radio. The internet site Fijilive is not listed but Fijivillage is there (under Communications Fiji Ltd.) Fiji Times is still hangin' in there. I notice that Subramani is replacing Satendra Nandan as chairman of the committee that has oversight over the Fiji media.

List of registered Fiji media announced
Friday, July 30, 2010

The names of companies that have registered as media organizations to operate under the new Media Decree have been announced by the Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum.

The list includes Fiji TV, Communications Fiji Ltd, Fiji Times, Fiji Sun, ALSA Ltd as Mai Life Magazine, Mai TV, Active Media, Sporting Pulse, Islands Business, Fiji Broadcasting Corporation, Half Time publications, and Bula Namaste.

Respected online media agency Fiji Live seems to have not registered by the deadline as their name was not announced by the AG.

Sayed-Khaiyum also announced that prominent academic Professor Subramani is now the chairman of the Media Industry Development Authority, replacing Satendra Nandan who withdrew due to health issues.

Pacific Islands News Association (PINA) manager Matai Akauola is also a member of the authority, as well as the Solicitor General Christopher Pryde. The other three members are Aselika Uluilakeba representing the interests of the children, Peni Moore representing womens interests, and Jimaima Schultz representing consumer interests.

Sayed-Khaiyum also confirmed that government will not be giving an expression of interest to buy the Fiji Times. He also relayed that there will be no extensions to any deadline set out in the media decree.
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and from ABC Radio Australia - the not so surprising news:
Fiji Times up for sale
Last Updated: 6 hours 5 minutes ago
Fiji's main daily newspaper, the Fiji Times, has been put up for sale, following the military regime's decree earlier this year that required all media outlets to be 90 per cent domestically owned.

An expression of interest has been put out by accounting firm Price Waterhouse Coopers for parties interested in buying the Times, which is wholly owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Limited.

Pacnews reports that anyone submitting an EOI must be able to meet the requirements of the Media Industry Development Decree. The closing date for submissions is August 9.
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and from Fiji Times:
Expressions of interest for Fiji Times
Sophie Foster
Friday, July 30, 2010

ACCOUNTING firm PricewaterhouseCoopers has called for expressions of interest from parties wanting to acquire News Limited's interest in the Fiji Times.

The EOI statement issued by PWC said "interested parties must be able to provide evidence of their ability to meet the requirements of the Media Industry Development Decree 2010 and demonstrate financial capacity to make this acquisition".

All EOI must provide name and full contact details of the interested party or consortium, their brief corporate profile including details of directors and shareholders as well as their compliance with the media decree, latest audited financial statements, and acceptable bankers references.

It said after evaluation, shortlisted parties would be selected and required to enter into a Confidentiality Agreement, following which they would be issued with an Information Memorandum.

"Shortlisted parties will then be required to lodge indicative non-binding offers and following an assessment of the indicative offers, a limited number of prospective purchasers will be shortlisted and allowed time to conduct their due diligence."

It said PWC and News Ltd reserved the right to accept, reject or negotiate with any party that made a submission.

PWC partner Jenny Seeto is handling the EOI, which closes on Monday August 9.

From Fiji to Australia

from w
I read this in the Fiji Business news on-line but it mainly comes from a radio australia program. Are people from Fiji really doing this, or is this a beat-up story? As more boatloads of asylum seekers enter Australian waters from the west, I wonder how many Pacific Islanders are thinking of building a bilibili (bamboo raft) to try and sail into the sunset! Of course probably 95% of asylum seekers come by plane. There's still a fuss about what to do about Afghan and Sri Lankan boat people. With an election being hyped up, the candidates don't want to rock the boat. Ha ha. Playing on people's ignorance and fear of 'strangers'. There's talk of a detention centre in East Timor, or even Nauru (once again, and good for the economy of that scarred island) and even a small Oz country town, Edenhope, has put its hand up, hoping for a boost of a billion dollars into the waning community of farmers.

Claims Fijian tourists are applying for Australian protection visas

Sources in Australia's Fijian and Indo-Fijian communities claim more and more people from Fiji are arriving in Australia as tourists and then applying for protection visas. The department of immigration says actual figures on this are unavailable, but all cases are decided on a case by case basis, and there's no blanket policy covering Fiji citizens.

Tue, 27 Jul 2010
SYDNEY, Australia (RADIO AUSTRALIA) ----- Sources in Australia's Fijian and Indo-Fijian communities claim more and more people from Fiji are arriving in Australia as tourists and then applying for protection visas. The department of immigration says actual figures on this are unavailable, but all cases are decided on a case by case basis, and there's no blanket policy covering Fiji citizens. But leaders in both communities spoken to by Pacific Beat says there is anecdotal evidence that it is occurring. Sanjay Ramesh, political editor of the Fiji Times, an Indo-Fijian community newspaper in Sydney, says the traditional kind of migration from Fiji involving mainly Indo-Fijians seems to be changing as Fiji's economy and political climate deteriorate.

Radio Australia’s Presenter Bruce Hill speaks with Sanjay Ramesh, political editor of the Fiji Times, an Indo-Fijian community newspaper in Sydney.
RAMESH: There has been some shift in the way which ethnic group is coming to Australia. There has been in recent times a more indigenous Fijians are coming to Australia and I believe the Indo-Fijian migration has stayed very much the same. HILL: It's difficult to get actual numbers from the Department of Immigration. Do you have any idea of what size this kind of immigration is from? Are people coming in on tourist visas, and then asking for protection visas, not wanting to go back to Fiji?
RAMESH: Yes, that is pretty much my feeling of what's happening. I believe let's say if indigenous Fijian migration was pretty much steady as well previously and it was pretty low, so you may think there would be a spike of about 20 per cent of that group coming into Australia and probably seeking protection visa because they are not very pleased with what the events that have transpired in Fiji.
HILL: What's happening to people who come to Fiji on tourist visas and then apply for protection visas, are they getting them?
RAMESH: Hmm, I believe there is no general trend that has been established and it has been case by case basis, but there have not been a bulk processing of visas for people seeking protection visa that come from Fiji at this stage, so it is very much a case by case basis at the moment.
HILL: Why are people leaving Fiji, is it because of the politics, is it because of the coup-installed government or is it because the economy is in a bad state in Fiji?
RAMESH; I think Bruce it's a combination of all the factors. I think there are indigenous Fijians that are pretty much concerned about the direction Fiji has taken. There is land reform that is happening at this stage and that has caused quite a number of nervousness among indigenous Fijians. The economy has not been doing very well since the coup and that is another one of the reasons and there is additional reasons like the indigenous Fijians largely had preferential access to public services and various access to loan facilities and these seem to have been curbed under the current regime. So there is a reason as to, there is a very significant concern amongst certain segment of the indigenous Fijian population about this.
HILL: What affect is all this increased immigration having on the Fijian and Indo-Fijian communities here in Australia? Are the two getting much larger and do they cooperate?
RAMESH: There is some cooperation Bruce, but there has not been very much cooperation in this respect, because I mean there is still large segments of the Indo-Fijian population in Australia that still believes that Bainimarama should be given the opportunity to complete his reforms before making any judgement and I think that is still the prevalent mood even until this day, but definitely I do not think the indigenous Fijian community has quite the same outlook.
HILL: Do you have any idea what the numbers involved are? I mean this must be swelling the ranks of the Fijian communities here in Australia?
RAMESH: Yes, I think the numbers would be around hundreds. There would be a large proportion of the community who has decided to move out of Fiji and seek protection in Australia.

Doing it for yourself

from w
It was good to read in one of the Fiji papers on-line about a venture in Savusavu by Mr Irwin. Instead of whinging about what the gove rnment is doing or not doing, the people of Savusavu are doing it for themselves. Way to go!

Irwin opens $m marina
7/27/2010
Savusavu Marina Village at the end of Nakama Creek, Vanua Levu opened a marina dock worth a million dollars. The marina with berthage for yachts and boats of up to 20 meters was officially opened last week. Savusavu Marina Village executive chairman Robin Irwin said, like vehicles parked at the car park so do boats and yachts which also need a marina to dock in.

“People coming to Savusavu in boats or yachts can park it at the marina and comfortably travel on land without worrying since their property would be in safe hands,” Mr Irwin said. He said he spent $1 million to build the marina which took more than a month to complete. “Being a sailor myself, I realised that there’s a need for a marina in Savusavu for yachts to moor at.” He added that he chose to build the marina dock at the end of Nakama Creek because it was well protected.He added that he was opening up a marina workshop in September which was still being constructed. “I am doing this entire development project to help in the growth of the tourism industry in Savusavu,” he said.

While you were sleeping

from w
Sometimes, while you were sleeping, or not paying attention, some small miracles occur, some beautiful thing grows that is not even noticed. The plants in our greenhouse were given no attention for several weeks, as we muddled with life's other possiblities, problems, community needs, family needs. Then Peceli had a look inside the greenhouse, and there were flowers on a rather unimpressive plant. An uncared for orchid. So it's rather a kind of parable, to pay attention, to not ignore someone who may be quietly in the background of our lives.

A thoughtful article on perception and race

from w
Eureka Street magazine from Melbourne, Australia, usually provides excellent reading and a writer, embedded in a French village, has had several pieces published recently. Bronwyn Lay won the third Reader's Feast/Eureka Street Award for her essay entitled "The Mingled Yarn". At the Crime and Justice weekend at the Convent it was said, 'In answer to the posed question - Is Australia a Racist Country? - her essay was thoughtful, intelligently articulated, and heartfelt. Temporarily living overseas, Bronwyn also brought the perspective of the ex-pat to the subject and the view of Australia in an international context.' The full article was published last week and can be read by going to the following link.

My relatives alerted me to the article via Facebook as Bronwyn is my niece, so I downloaded and printed out the article for the family here to read (and a couple of church friends). It is a timely article, without hammering a case. The writer has teased out the way our imagination can confuse and make judgements about people. She starts in a provocative manner with a reference to my father which gave me a jolt, but then she went on to explain that our views of people are not made fairly because we stereotype and generalise about people of a different generation.

The article is well worth a read for those who are concerned about views of 'others' in the Fiji context.

The title of the article itself is interesting. A yarn can be a long-winded story in the Aussie manner, or lengths of wool. The word 'mingled' could be replaced of 'mangled' or even 'tangled' because we usually do not take time to separate the threads of unspoken racism in us.

The article starts as:
The Mingled Yarn.

We make things up. We’re good at it. We could get better.

My granddad was a fourth generation white Australian who worked with sheep, lived in a flat wheat-belt town by the Murray River, and was embedded in the local chapter of the Freemasons. I used to tell the story that he was a small town racist who disliked Blacks, Catholics and Jews. The punch line was that his daughter married a Fijian, his son married a Jew and my dad married a Catholic. I didn’t know him well so, to suit my story, I made him up from bits and bobs. It wasn’t true. My grandfather wasn’t racist. My white lie commits the identical error as racists – imagining knowing someone based on their demographics. I should watch where my imagination takes me. I might hurt someone.

The nation is an imagined community. It requires imagination to presuppose that one citizen has anything in common with another merely because they share passports. Imagination, however, is not untruth, because fictions are powerfully imbedded into our identity at a corporeal level. Simone Weil said, “Imagination and fiction make up more than three quarters of our real life. Imagination is always the fabric of social life and the dynamic of history.” The imagining of belonging is linked to body, language and thought and informs our interactions.

Living overseas a random Australian accent sends a signal through my body – I hear home – speaking to me about memories, love, and familiarity. Meeting fellow Australians, from whatever background, is easy. Our manners relax, our shoulders slouch and we immediately use first names. We become unselfconscious in body and tongue, the powerful fictions of togetherness at play between us. These fictions are fragile because we’re expats – we’ve a reputation for making up stories about home being better or worse than it is.

The fiction of Australia is inherently fragile because it is a nation of thrown togetherness: from the violent throwing together of the first fleet and the indigenous peoples, to those who were thrown out of their lands, or threw themselves here. For whatever reason, it’s an accidental society and it hasn’t been easy, so many horrific mistakes have been made, but Australia has managed to cobble together something others call a mutt, a fusion, but seems to work for the majority. Other times Australia is blindly muddling its way through an unpicked history, faking comfort, relying on thin nationalism and unable to face the genocidal facts done to indigenous peoples, the real differences between us, and the struggles of immigrants come to seek a new life only to find intolerance and isolation. These issues threaten the tenuous fiction of Australia’s togetherness.

Arufura Sea 2007. We suck molluscs gathered from the shoreline and chew kangaroo tail straight from the fire......

(and a memo to Bron if you read this: Re the pesky Freemasons and my Dad, they were not his priority - but the sea, the land, the community progress were his main loves. Anyway I remember at the funeral after the Masons chucked down some leaves or something, my brother Doug said we'd have the last word, as he threw down a sample of very fine wool, a tribute to Dad's many years in the wool industry. Cheers!)

A strange new custom

from w
I have been catching up after five days without a computer, - answering emails, facebook memos, checking comments on this blog, and one writer pointed me in the direction of an interesting Radio Australia interview about ministers and envelopes of money. This apparently applies to Pacific churches in New Zealand, so I don't think it is customary in Fiji, or is it? The word 'minister' of course does not mean a particular 'status' at all, but means 'to serve', so there is a huge misunderstanding of the call to be a minister if it's about huge gifts of money. Anyway, here is the interview from pacbeat, radio australia. I don't know whether Fiji people can access some of the Australian news these days.

Radio Australia reports…

“A Samoan lawyer in New Zealand says a culture of giving money to church ministers in the Samoan community is getting out of hand. Olinda Woodruffe accuses clergy in some Pacific Island churches of emotionally blackmailing parishioners into handing over envelopes full of cash at funerals, buying property with church funds and then transferring ownership to family trusts, and using money loaned to the church for their own purposes. She says when these issues have been raised at church meetings, the mainly Pakeha or European leadership has not wanted to deal with it for fear of being labelled culturally insensitive. But Ms Woodruffe says, the practice is not part of pacific culture, and has to be stopped.

Presenter: Bruce Hill
Speaker: Samoan lawyer in New Zealand Olinda Woodruffe

* Listen:
* Windows Media

WOODRUFFE: The concern that I’ve raised is the lack of accountability of church ministers and the lack of transparency on what they do resulting in the poorness of many people that I see resulting in people losing their home, resulting the children going hungry and having health issues that are not being attended to.

HILL: For a long time though, a lot of people in the Pacific Island Churches have had a tradition of giving money to the church, quite a bit of money to the church. It has been raised as an issue, but it’s been seen as a cultural practice which church authorities are very reluctant to intervene in?

WOODRUFFE: Absolutely, and that’s a problem that I am trying to curb. There is no culture from Samoa. I can’t speak of other islands. I know that Samoa is actually worse than any other island group in here in New Zealand in fleecing the people of money, especially at the time that people are emotionally upset, in a funeral for instance, I was born and raised in Samoa and I have been in New Zealand since the 1960s, going to school here, but I do have connections and I still have a law office in Samoa. I can tell you now that there was no culture that I was aware of that church ministers when somebody dies, they ring up all their mates to come to the funeral service. They control the funeral service, they read, you can get up to ten minutes just reading bits of the bible, making half a prayer. Then they all line up at the wake, after the burial and each receive an envelope full of money.

Now there are two things here, one is an unethical behaviour that is not culture, because our culture of exchange in Samoa is a nice thing, where the minister will come, officiate, come and sit with the family before the burial and at the end of the burial, the family in their free will give some food for the minister or may give a little gift for his petrol and it’s nothing like the sums of money given in New Zealand.

HILL: When you’ve raised this with church leaders in New Zealand, what’s their response been?

WOODRUFFE: Yeah, unfortunately for me when I raised it in my position sitting on councils of churches in New Zealand, especially mixed churches with Pakeha and Pacific Islanders. The Pakeha people don’t want to know about it, because they said it’s culturally insensitive issue, so no one is curbing the problem and I keep saying, look, you can quote me. It is not a culture from the Pacific culture made up in New Zealand and migrant ministers pick to line their pockets and in effect, this is why everybody is running to be on the Theological College, not because they desire and I am sure there are many who go there with the innocent belief of doing good to community, but many are drawn because it is a very good business.

HILL: Is this just Pacific Island ministers doing this or is this cultural practice spread to Pakeha ministers as well?

WOODRUFFE: It’s now spread, this is why I have spoken out this time, because it’s now spread to Pakeha ministers doing it to Pacific Island congregations and I have discovered it and in the most wealthy part of Auckland. The church despite me raising it with church authorities, it appears that it is ignored and I get excuses. Now I am going to end up in the High Court, because I will not stand injustices like this. I will tell effectively what I am saying is Pakeha ministers are doing it to the Pacific Island people. I also try to curb New Zealand born Pacific Islanders who train as ministers and in a particular incident I had a Pacific Island minister, a woman, was given an envelope when her and I represented a Pacific organisation in a funeral and I told her put it back, because we came to represent the organisation and it’s unethical to do that. It’s not your pay. She said oh no, I have checked with Pacific Island ministers older than you and they told me it is my right to hold onto this money as part of my pay for saying half a prayer.”

From http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/pacbeat/stories/201007/s2953690.htm

Water tanks for Mali Island

from w,
Good news for the people in the villages and farm settlements of Mali Island with the gift of water tanks. What about Vorovoro - as they sometimes have trouble with water supply?From the Fiji Sun today:

Island gets timely help
7/23/2010
The people of Mali Island in Vanua Levu were donated five 1100 litre water tanks by Vodafone ATH Fiji Foundation. Mali Island Primary School teacher and a Peace Corps Volunteer, Christian Delich said the islanders were thankful to the donation.

“The people of Mali Island survive on rain water stored in water tanks for drinking and cooking,” Mr Delich said. He said water from a river on the island is not safe to drink.

“The people use river water for bathing and washing. It is difficult for them when there is no rain.” Filomena Koliniwai, 45, collected the tanks for the islanders at Labasa Town. We want to thank the Lions Club of Labasa for helping us to apply for help from the Vodafone ATH Fiji Foundation.

“Thank you Lions Club for attending to our plight,” Mrs Koliniwai said. She added four villages and three settlements will benefit from the donation.

Club president Rosan Lal said the assistance was made possible through Vodafone’s initiative to raise funds through the Vodafone Red Alert programme. “We work in partnership with Vodafone ATH Foundation to deliver efficient services to people in the North,” Mr Lal said. He said that so far 12 applications have been approved.“Our focus is on sanitation and water to the needy and our club works best to accommodate as many as we can under the Vodafone Red Alert programme. This is to provide assistance to people who urgently need help.”

Foundation director Ateen Kumar said Vodafone strives to attend to the needs of people and provide the best service. “I hope that the people of Mali Island will make the best use of the tanks,” Mr Kumar said

Testing upgrade

from w
For three days the computer was at the 'doctor' with viral infection which was fixed but then there was a major crash of hardware, the only solution to upgrade - a reconditioned hard drive so I'm testing out the various parts so here goes for the blog. Peceli's birthday was a mild day with no party planned this year, not like the 70th huge gig in Labasa four years ago. Anyway some friends called with gifts of wine, old and young, and then three of us just had Kentucky Fried Chicken for dinner. Here are a couple of photos, one with little Nanise, daughter of a young friend, Christine. I noticed that the upgrade has me a bit confused as it works a bit differently - put Picasa pictures somewhere else, etc. One thing left to do is about email as it seems it has to be rejigged somehow. Anyway I can read webmail and facebook.

Hoorah, Wendy Junior has her little baby now, a girl, named after her husband Komai's mother. Lovely news from Lautoka.

The spring in the rock at Nukutatava

from w
The first time I saw the water flowing gently from a cleft in the rock and filling a natural basin under a tree, there were marigolds and a coconut placed there by some people who regarded the place as blessed. Nukutatava is a beach west of Labasa. Yes, it is a special gift of fresh water only about four metres from the edge of the sea. A couple of days ago I found a large acrylic painting I had made of this place - (four feet by three feet) so took a photo of it to re-design in several ways. The spring is still there and once upon a time we piped that water up to tanks. That time we lived in three freshly built bamboo bures. Unfortunately the beach isn't so pretty as those days and a fire about three months ago destroyed the house there. Much of the sand has been taken away in trucks and the men reprimanded and told not to take any more. But it will take time for the beach to recover.

Promises, promises

from w
Surely there needs to be vigilence when farmers are promised an outcome and the deal fails. I feel sorry for the Macuata farmers who have been disappointed that their hard work has come to nothing in the case of a project to sell cassava. Meanwhile there are Agrictultural Shows going on! And it looks like Jo doesn't have much advice either! I presume the AMA is a part of government. The journalist could have gone a bit deepr and checked what the AMA actually do do.
From the Fiji Times today:
$0.1m cassava to waste
Serafina Silaitoga
Monday, July 19, 2010

ABOUT $100,000 worth of cassava had to be dumped in three Macuata districts last year as a result of failed marketing arrangements. Twenty villages in the districts of Macuata, Sasa and Dreketi were affected forcing the authorities to monitor export agents.

Seaqaqa district rep Tiko Yacalevu said $100,000 worth of damaged cassava was a waste of effort. "It hurt many villagers seeing such a huge amount of cassava thrown away, simply because one party did not keep its side of the bargain," he said. "Before Hurricane Tomas, all our cassava plantations were ready and we had contacted the Agricultural Marketing Authority after filling in forms they brought to our villages. But we didn't receive any response. When the hurricane hit, only some crops was damaged. The undamaged crops remained in our farms and efforts to get in touch with marketing agents and AMA didn't turn out as expected."

Mr Yacalevu said the disappointing state of affairs had not disheartened the villagers. "We will continue to plant for Fiji's economic purposes - that's why the villagers, although disappointed with the first farming project, have increased their output," he said.

Mr Yacalevu said village committees had started liaising with other export agents to prevent a repeat of their experience.

AMA managers were unavailable for comment but Agriculture Ministry head Joketani Cokanasiga said he wasn't aware of the situation and advised the villagers to always inform the ministry of deals made with exporter agents.

The Dili or Nauru solution

from w,
Hey Julie, don't dilly dally all the way. The revamp of the Pacific Solution isn't a solution at all, me dear. Here are two cartoons from today's Age newspaper, one afer Julie promised to pay school uniforms, and the other related to using Nauru once again. Now wouldn't it be dandy if Fiji put her hand up to help? Billions of dollars would pour in!

Cheerful artists and gloomy prefects

from w
Different photos show different moods of young people from Labasa. The winners of the Kula awards - congratulations, and good on you, prefects, at a seminar learning how to be leaders. But one lot don't look too happy! Next time, Mr/Ms Photographer, please tell them to smile! Both stories were in the Fiji Sun on-line which is very good at picking up stories from Labasa.

Labasa school wins best Films Award
7/12/2010
The hard work and dedication by Labasa Sangam SKM College was rewarded when their film Silent Cry was awarded the best film at the Kula Film Awards at the Tattersall’s Entertainment Centre on Saturday. Teacher in charge, Subhash Chandra dedicated the win to the hardworking students and parents who supported them throughout the production of the film. “Being the only school from the North taking part in this award, this achievement is not only for the school but to the people of North as well,” Mr Chandra said. “Our trip was worth it and we were not going home empty handed”, he said. Despite facing time constraints and natural disaster related problems, he said students put in a lot of effort in the film and he was really impressed with the dedication that was showed by the students. “The requirement of Fiji Audio Visual Commission was that the film has to be student input. Shilpa Lal, a Form Six student wrote the script and the lyrics, Ilai Lomaloma, a Form Four student provided the music and song was sung by Eseta Cokanasiga a sixth former, and Aqela Ratumudu who is in Form Seven was the lead actress.” The highlight of the movie was its original music which won the FM96 Best Music award. Mr Chandra said the movie was about having positive approaches to life. Silent Cry as based on student depression and what they go through in exams and other pressures, but do not give up easily.”

Apart from Best Film and Best Music awards, the school was the runner-up in the Hollywood dance competition.

Mr Chandra thanked the administration, teachers, Secretariat of the Pacific Community and the Fiji Audio Visual Commission for making the movie a success. The college has been a regular participant in the competition since 2008 and had previously won Best Actor and Best Movie awards in their first year of participation.

Children’s Fund organises prefects’ seminar
7/12/2010
A prefects’ seminar was organised by Save the Children Fiji for Macuata schools heads at Ro Qomate House in Labasa over the weekend. More than 50 prefects from 20 different primary and secondary schools attended this seminar. There were many facilitators who imparted knowledge on roles and responsibilities of prefects in school, rights of children, human values and how to effectively perform a leadership role.

All Saint Secondary School principal Sumiran Pratap was among the facilitators who disseminated information on prefect’s role and responsibilities. “The four main roles of prefects are maintaining discipline, helping staffs, supporting younger students and organizing activities,” said Mr Pratap. He added that leaders must live by example and work as a team not as an individual.

Retired Divisional Education officer Northern Mohammed Rafiq said that the seminar provided lot of information to participants, especially on the leadership qualities they need to acquire. “Prefects need to understand what they are required to do, how they should do it, the responsibilities and the limits of their authority,” said Mr Rafiq. He added that a similar workshop will be conducted for the prefects in Cakaudrove and Bua in a few weeks.

Dreketi High School head girl, Shradha Mala, 18, said that the seminar was educational and she was thankful to organisers for giving an opportunity to prefects of rural schools to participate. “Being a head of the school and having a responsibility to look after more than 300 students is not easy at all,” said Shradha. She that through the workshop, she was challenged by how to overcome difficulties and acquire some skills in building a good prefect system in school.

Hello, goodbye, Ms Roberts

from w
Fijivillage and others report on the expulsion of the Acting High Commissioner for Australia. Why? Did Sarah send just one too many emails, or make one too many phone calls to Vanuatu?
....
MSG chairmanship unresolved, Roberts told to leave
Publish date/time: 13/07/2010 [11:42]
No date is set for the next Special Melanesian Spearhead Group Plus meeting following issues raised about the Chairmanship of the meeting that was expected to be held in Fiji next week.

Last night the Chair of the MSG and Vanuatu's Prime Minister Edward Natapei announced the deferral of the meeting in Fiji, until further notice. Natapei said this is a collective decision of the leaders of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, the FLNKS in New Caledonia and Vanuatu in light of the current impasse within the grouping over the Chairmanship of the MSG. According to the rotation cycle of hosting of the MSG, Fiji is the next host and Chair of the Leaders Summit.

The deferment came after Prime Minister Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama's chairmanship of the grouping was questioned last week after intervention from Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Sir Michael Somare for MSG Leaders to accept Commodore Bainimarama as chair. Natapei said the potential long term ramifications of allowing Fiji to Chair the MSG this time cannot be ignored. He said there are basic fundamental principles, values of democracy and good governance that the organisation is built on and they must to continue to uphold them. Natapei said he has advised Bainimarama on the latest development and he has also invited Fiji's Prime Minister to attend a Special Meeting of the MSG Leaders in Vanuatu to resolve the matter.

However Fiji's Permanent Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Solo Mara said to their knowledge, only Vanuatu has an issue with Fiji hosting the MSG Summit with both the Prime Ministers of PNG and the Solomon Islands writing to Natapei last week seeking his understanding and support for Fiji to host and Chair the MSG Summit.

Mara said the understanding was based on the Melanesian custom of deferring to your host when entering his or her village or bure.

He said Natapei's suggestion for him to chair the meeting hosted by Fiji sought to dispossess Bainimarama of his role and responsibilities of hosting in his own country.

Fiji is calling for a Special meeting of MSG Leaders as early as next week to resolve the Chairmanship issue.

And as the MSG Chairmanship debate continues, the Acting Australian High Commissioner to Fiji, Sarah Roberts is expected to leave the country within 24 hours after she was declared persona non-grata by Fiji.
Fiji Foreign Affairs Minister Ratu Inoke Kubuabola said her expulsion is regrettable and a direct result of recent reports that Roberts has been interfering with the internal affairs of Fiji and conducting unfriendly acts.

Kubuabola said the Australian government has been engaged in strategies to undermine Fiji's sovereignty and weken the economy, and this has been further highlighted by calling on MSG countries, especially Vanuatu, not to attend the MSG Leaders Summit.

According to Kubuabola, most of the non-MSG member countries had already accepted the invitation to attend. He said Australia has no business in the MSG Leaders Summit but has continued to discourage MSG member states.

Kubuabola said this is evident in the increase in aid from Australia in its 2010 and 2011 budget to the Pacific. He said the special aid from Australia will see the Vanuatu government receive 66.4 million dollars, the highest ever in the country's aid from Australia.

The Australian Foreign Minister, Stephen Smith, said Fiji's decision to expel Sarah Roberts is deeply disappointing. Roberts will be served with a notice this morning, giving her 24 hours to leave the country. The Australian High Commission is expected to comment later today. Smith said the reasons of the expulsion are linked to Vanuatu's postponement of the Melanesian Spearhead Group meeting. He said he suspects it also relates to his criticism of the Fiji government. Smith said he would not respond by removing Fiji's only official in Canberra.

Story by: Vijay Narayan

Everybody hurts...sometmes

from w
The R.E.M. song is sometimes in my head - ever since a time in 2000 at a wedding when we danced to the song, our grief still raw. Anyway, we did have a good day yesterday, remembering, after ten years. The first visitor arrived at 8.30 with a lovely gift of a pink rose to plant in the garden. During the morning many friends called and we shared stories. The men made a lovo and then the kava was flowing. The last visitors left about 10 p.m. after a tiring but rich day in stories. I realize that the song still has relevance as so many people have grief and burdens that are hard to let go, illnesses, quarrels not yet healed, guilt about bad decisions, loneliness, bereavement, and these are only people who have roofs over their head and three meals a day. What about the others - those on leaky boats, those without shelter or clean water!

After ten years: remembering Robin

from Wendy and Peceli,

Robin Iliesa Tupou 11.11.69 – 10.7.2000

Robin was born on 11th November 1969 at the Ba Methodist hospital. The family were living at the time in the sugar-cane area of Rakiraki where Peceli worked as the Methodist padre to the Indian community. The family life revolved around pastoral visits among the cane farms, Robin carried in a basket, George toddling beside.

Then after one year in Dilkusha, the family moved to Labasa on the island of Vanua Levu to live with relatives at Vatuadova cane-farm. It was an idyllic childhood for George, Robin, and Andrew beside the sea, living in newly built bamboo huts at Nukutatava beach.

When the family moved to Australia and Robin started school at Swan Hill Primary and spoke in Fijian to his Australian teacher. Then at Hopetoun, another Mallee wheat town, where Peceli was the Methodist/Uniting Church minister, the three boys drew friends to the house every day, joined tennis, swimming, the Minnies football, cubs and then scouts and went on camps and learnt to cook sausages. Suzie, the kelpie cross dog produced litter after litter and Robin loved the puppies, though he never could abide cats. He followed the Richmond team fanatically and obtained the autographs of all the players because his grandpa George Lay knew one of the players. Robin often wore a Richmond jumper to school. The Ratawa children were able to visit relatives often in nearby Swan Hill and were much loved by Grandma and Grandpa Lay and got to know their Australian cousins in Swan Hill, Ballarat and Sydney. In Sydney, when the family visited Bruce and Sarah, during a performance of Madame Butterfly the Ratawa boys climbed on top of the Opera House.

The Ratawas were invited to Geelong East Parish of the Uniting Church probably because of the three beaut kids. This move coincided with the High School years and the family lived in Shenton Manse near the High School. Robin often brought his friends home at recess or lunch time to eat. Special friends included Tony Malakelos, Ben Reynolds and Christopher Yee. There was more laughter than hard work those days. Tennis was with the Uniting church club and football with Thomson and then Amateurs. Robin was in a Scout group at St Andrews and went on a jamboree to Fiji with Scouter Andy Dickson. Robin was active in the local church, youth group and carpet bowling.

He followed George to Deakin University but his heart was not in the computer course so he started work at Steggles Chicken factory in the Despatch Department, the daily routine to wake up at 4 a.m. prepare a huge lunch, then drive off in the Cortina. Andrew joined him at Steggles.

Every year Robin visited Fiji, usually with his mate Ben and they developed a network of great friends in Nadi, Suva and Labasa. They sometimes arrived back in Melbourne airport with empty cases and shoeless.

Social life was based on the Amateurs Football Club and Robin learnt bar skills, completed a short hospitality course and found his niche. By this time George was working in IT in Fiji so Robin decided to obtain a job in Fiji, firstly at the Regent hotel and then at the newly opened Lakomai Time-share Resort on Malolo Island. Over five years his hard work and charismatic manner raised this little resort to a popular destination. The same families went there year after year. Sala and Robin worked together, then married and their two children are Jordan and Andrew. At small Andrew’s baptism, Robin and Sala re-affirmed their wedding vows at Navuso, Sala’s village.

When Andrew senior visited Fiji for athletic meets in various South Pacfiic countries he visited Robin in Lakomai every time.

As Duty Manager, Robin worked long hours and in the turmoil in Fiji in 2000 he was disturbed by the damage to tourism and that many of his staff and friends lost their jobs. He loved Lakomai with its beautiful environment and was popular with tourists and staff. ‘The Fijian with the Aussie accent!’ ‘The Tom Cruise of the South Pacific’!

We thought Lakomai was a placed of safety and yet an accident happened there on 10th July 2000. Robin was thirty years of age.

Many people have been touched by Robin’s life, his charm, his extrovert personality, his joy in life and his friendly, respectful approach to all kinds of people. He always looked for the good in people and will be remembered with love by us all. Robin is now in God’s safe-keeping but we are so saddened by his absence from us.

------
Several photos are posted on George Ratawa's facebook. I might post a few here later.

Vinaka Gilbert

from w
One of the best blogs about Fiji is 'Promoting Suva' with updates on what's on in Suva at the present time and to come. There is an amazing variety of events going on that you don't see advertised in the daily papers.

For example, these events are planned for next week:
2010 Fête de la Musique/International Music Festival organised by the Alliance Francaise and its partners - includes daily workshops and nightly performances, from Monday, 12 July, to Saturday, 17 July 2010, at various venues around Suva with the final full day event at Sukuna Park, Suva;

2010 Fête de la Musique/International Music Festival - First Concert (to feature a piano concert by Gulya M Ah Koy, the Davui Ensemble, Fijian Nose flute and Balinese dance), Monday, 12 July, from 6.30pm to 8pm, Alliance Francaise, 92 Ratu Sukuna Road, Nasese, Suva;

2010 Fête de la Musique/International Music Festival - Second Concert (to feature Japanese traditional music (drums and bamboo flutes), Tuesday, 13 July, from 6.30pm to 8pm, Holiday Inn, Suva;

2010 Fête de la Musique/International Music Festival - Third Concert (to feature a Spanish guitar concert), Wednesday, 14 July, from 2pm to 4pm, University of the South Pacific, Laucala Bay, Suva;

2010 Fête de la Musique/International Music Festival - Fourth Concert (to feature a Korean dance performance), Thursday, 15 July, from 6.30pm to 8pm, Suva Civic Centre.

Keep up the good work Gilbert as this website doesn't blab on about politics, just the variety of good experiences, clubs, events, learning opportunities in Suva.

Are you listening?

from w
Register your details if you have a phone in Fiji, your photo too. Cameras will be busy clicking it seems. The main details are already known by the service providers so surely this is a duplication. And what's a face got to do with it? Maybe someone is troubled by crank calls, but this is a bit intrusive. This was in the news last week and again today. Those decrees are keeping someone busy. There are already about 1 and a half million mobile phones in Fiji - that's two to each person, but of course many are broken, lost, given away. Can people register on-line, or by mobile phone with a photo, or wait for someone to door-knock? Who will have access to the complete lists? Will someone be tempted to make some money by selling these lists e.g. to a call centre such as Mindpearl. Will tourists have to register their phones too, or other visitors to Fiji?
From Fiji Village.
All phone users need to fully register
Publish date/time: 06/07/2010 [17:15]
All users of Telecom Fiji phones, Vodafone Fiji, Digicel and INKK mobiles will have to fully register with their service providers within a month to avoid the termination of their phone service.

According to the cabinet decision, the Telephone Services Decree has been approved and the details to be registered are the full name, date of birth, photo identification, home address and parent's signature if the user is below 18 years.

The registration is compulsory under the decree.

Attorney General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum has confirmed that under the new decree, telephone services will be suspended if people are not registered within the deadline.

Vodafone Fiji's Manager Corporate Affairs Shailendra Prasad said all phone users should now make the necessary arrangements to register as the decree is now being printed.

Prasad said Vodafone Fiji is already making a concerted effort in ensuring that all it's customers register. He stressed that everyone has to register and any previous registration will not be valid due to the new requirements. For Vodafone Fiji users, Prasad said customers can visit any of their outlets including the 118 M-Paisa agents around the country to register. He said they also have 250 field agents who are doing free house to house registration for the M-Paisa service. Prasad said customers can also register with these agents.

He stressed that people should not leave the registration to the last minute as you may have your service terminated due to non registration.

Story by: Vijay Narayan

Names

from w, One sentence in a news item caught my attention:

'Meanwhile the Fijian Affairs Act will now be renamed the ‘itaukei’ Affairs Act – and the word ‘Fijian’ will be replaced with ‘itaukei’ in all legislations.'

Does that now mean that all references to the indigenous people of Fiji will no longer be 'Fijian' but 'itaukei'?

It's harder to say, harder to spell, and it means 'landowners' doesn't it, so what about those indigenous folk who don't own land? Up till recently when the term 'Fijian' was used occasionally by non-indigenous people who are Fiji Nationals, most people still used the term to refer to a cultural group and language. So it's going to be a bit of a change which I presume is driven by the aim of giving one name to all Fiji Nationals. So will it now be the itaukei language?

The media decree and MaiLife

from w
MaiLife is a great magazine with informative stories, is on the move with today's Pacific world, is inclusive of stories about a variety of Fiji people. We do want it to survive the decree's subsection about cross media ownership.

From Fijivillage today:
Owners of Mai Life Magazine contemplate future
Publish date/time: 29/06/2010 [17:24]

The owners of Mai Life Magazine are now contemplating the future of their investment as the restrictions on cross media ownership in the new Media Industry Development Decree will have serious implications on the monthly magazine. Under the Media Decree, Cross Media Ownership is where a person of a certain medium is limited in the amount of shares they can hold in other mediums or of the same medium.

This applies to the ownership of Mai Life Magazine which is owned and operated by Richard Boardbridge and his wife Judith Ragg as Broadbridge is also the founder and the director of MaiTv.

Section 39 sub section 4 of the decree states that no person may act as a director in more than one media organisation and they have been given 12 months to comply with the cross ownership requirements in the Media Decree.

Speaking to Fijivillage news, Richard Broadbridge said they have to study the decree before deciding their next step. However he said it would be a shame if MaiLife magazine is forced to close down.

Section 43 of the Media Decree on Cross Media ownership states that any media organisation or person that breaches the provisions will be fined not exceeding $10,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years.

The Decree also stated that any media organisation in breach of this provision may have their registration cancelled and the media organisation cease to operate.

Meanwhile, when asked as to why twelve months has been given to ensure that cross media ownership issues were dealt with and only three months given for media organisations to ensure that were 90 percent locally owned, Attorney General Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said it is sufficient time for those who are affected to comply.

The only exemption in this section of the Media Decree extends to the State and any State owned entity or any media organisation in which the State owns majority shares.

Story by: Roneel Lal
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And of course, the Fiji Times owners/staff will have to seriously comtemplate their future as well. I do not like monopolies and want diversity of views in the media, but this is an organization of long standing in Fiji and a reputable newspaper. Certainly it runs rings about Fiji Sun with its little stories of watermelons and so on. Of course there is a trade-off when overseas companies do business in Fiji, but the journalists are local and about two hundred people do have jobs! The Australian media (radio, TV, and print) have had a field day criticizing what has happened, or might happen in three months. A more balanced view is that local ownership shared with overseas investors is desirable but how to get the right balance is debatable.

Fijians in Melbourne

from w
Yesterday afteroon four different Fijian church communities joined together at the Coburg Uniting Church for worship, kava, and a delicious meal. There must have been nearly three hundred people there from babies to elderlies, lots of youth, and it was a good time of great singing, including po-lotu with the triangle, articulate passionate preaching, and singing in vanua groups such as Tovata, Burebasaga and Kubuna. Then we had fellowship, crowded, in the adjoining hall and room. The hosts were the Fijian Methodist Church and the rest of us from Dandenong, Chadstone and Altona Meadows/Laverton. The men drank kava in one room and the rest of us in the hall. We had a delicious lovo meal. Here are a few photos.

Kava shirts to dye for

from w,
Only in the 'High Tide' country of Savusavu would someone come up with this idea. Shirts steeped overnight in kava! The enterprising designers are from Windward and are a Canadian couple who love to live in Savusavu. Their Windward Apparel website says more. There certainly should be a song written about these shirts!
from Fiji Times the astute Labasa journo, Teresa.
Kava shirts on show
Theresa Ralogaivau
Saturday, June 26, 2010
KAVA shirts from Savusavu will feature on the world stage at the Shanghai Expo in China soon. The shirt which is steeped in a 40 gallon drum full of the popular traditional brew, yaqona, has been selected to showcase Fijian culture and designs through textiles at the Fiji Pavilion of the Expo. The shirts are manufactured by Windward Apparel in Savusavu.

Owner Sean Cody said kava shirts are popular in the tourist marked because of the traditional significance of kava and indigenous designs printed on it. "We have been selling them to resorts around the country," he said. "The shirt is dyed overnight in yaqona, that's lots of yaqona and taken out the following day, hung out to dry.
"A fixative is added to retain the yaqona dye which basically means you can suck on the shirt sleeve and feel good. And traditional Fijian designs are printed on it to make it a genuine textile representative of Fijian tradition. And to be showcased at the expo is major with 190 countries participating."

Oh sister let's go down

from w,
One of the songs I like starts off with 'Oh brother, let's go down,' but now we have to put our 'sisters' first don't we!

Prime Minister Julia Gillard, well that is something for Australians and Pacific people to think about. I wonder how she will get on at the South Pacific Forum and in meeting up with Pacific leaders eh! Bye-bye Kevin Rudd, who conceded his growing unpopularity in as Labour caucus meeting this morning. Maybe he is a Nice man but he made too many mistakes it seems. Hey Julie, you don't need so much make-up. Keep it simple.

As I went down in the river to pray
Studying about that good old way
And who shall wear the starry crown
Good Lord, show me the way !

O sisters let's go down,
Let's go down, come on down,
O sisters let's go down,
Down in the river to pray.
______
And, later after watching the news:
We belong to a Fijian group that worships at Altona Meadows/Laverton which is right in the heart of Julia Gillard's electorate and her main office is in Werribee. Congratulations to Julia who is from this working class area. She says that she will continue to live n Altona rather than the Lodge in Canberra but wait and see as she will need a place to rest her head in that city. Isa, poor Kevin shed a tear, and he is a basically good man, so politics is rather brutal isn't it!

Crime Free Balloons

from w
I just wonder what is the connection between balloons and Crime Free Labasa? I wonder if the balloons lasted until the little kiddies reached their homes.
From today's Fiji Sun
Free balloons for kids
6/24/2010
Students of the Labasa Jesses Play Centre Kindergarten received colourful balloons from the Labasa crime-free zone one committee yesterday. The kindergarten has a roll of 47 students.

Committee treasure, Charlie Chow, said the committee decided to give away balloons to signify the start of the crime-free campaign. “We used the balloons at the declaration of the Labasa crime-free day,” said Mr Chow. He said that since the kindergarten was in the Labasa crime-free zone one area, the committee wanted to work together and create awareness among young children.

Kindergarten teacher, Jotika Dutt, thanked the committee for its donation. She said their students did not attend the event at Subrail Park last week because of heavy rain.

Five-year-old, Rani Shivran was among students who received balloons.
“I will take the balloon home and explained to my parents what the Labasa crime-free declaration is all about,” Shivran said.

Scaring the kids with a fake prophecy

from w
I get a bit mad at the kind of people who scare the kids and the community by talking about specific times and places for disaster. We do get frightened by talk of tsunamis and earthquakes when we know that people who live in islands on the 'Pacific Rim' may occasionally experience a shift in the plates.

I'm not into the 'End of Times' or the 'Second Coming' or being zapped up into heaven and so on. So when I read about a certain Mr Lion (Laeoni) from some unknown church in Nadi airport putting out an email with something about 2.30 p.m. today, my blood pressure goes up. Not that I'm against some people who may be gifted and have insight into strange phenonema perhaps but... Not that I'm scared myself, but I know that in Fiji lots of the children were, some families going up the hillsides in a panic, some not going to school today.

What was interesting was that the so-called prophet is spending today in the gaol, and Bill Gavoka, the Rugby guy, also had his call-up for twenty-four hours. Well, that's life in Fiji. The Fiji Times did not run the story but it was in some of the other media as follows:

DISMAC will stick to science says Dobui
June 23, 2010 07:46:18 AM
Fiji’s disaster management agency DISMAC will stick to professional advice instead of so-called prophecies when it comes to warnings of natural disasters says the agency’s acting director Pajiliai Dobui.

Commenting on a widely-circulated prophecy about an earthquake and tsunami striking Fiji today, Dobui said there had been nothing detected by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre (PTC) in Hawaii, which issues tsunami alerts for the region.

“We will depend on our machines,” Dobui told FijiLive.

“We’ll wait for instructions from Hawaii,” he said.

“We’ll only take any action from PTC. We’re not going to be moved by anything else on what course of action we’d like to take.”

“It’s much safer to depend on professional advice as against the prophecy which has nothing credible that we can depend upon.”

“The prophecy is more for church people to pray for the nation. We’ll go by technical advice.”

Fiji Rugby Union chairman Bill Gavoka has been arrested and questioned in relation to an email about the prophecy, with other arrests reportedly due over the matter, said to be in breach of Fiji’s Public Emergency Regulations which make it a crime to cause any kind of public disturbance.

The prophesy of disruptions
Wednesday, June 23, 2010

Many are laughing at the ridiculousness of it all, but a substantial number of people remain concerned about the so-called prophesy that an earthquake will hit Suva at 2.30 pm today.

There were many calls to FBC News this morning asking whether schools and other services would remain open, and many business leaders have expressed frustration with the disruption and sense of gloom.

Yesterday, one of the biggest primary schools in the country even conducted a tsunami drill. Tsunami drills are held regularly in schools near the coast, but it was not lost on many of the students that the drill was held a day before the tsunami was pronounced to happen.

Teachers from a boarding school in Tailevu called Nausori Police Station to clarify the issue, as parents were turning up to pick up their children.

The Public Service Commission issued a warning this morning for all civil servants to turn up to work.

Our reporter traveling with a government delegation in Rotuma called to say that reports were coming in from the islands that some people were actually relocating to higher ground.

However, many things will be revealed today.

First on the so-called prophet, who will either prove that God indeed spoke to him, or forever be condemned and ridiculed as a false prophet and a liar.

It will also show if the people of Fiji remain so gullible, that any religious leader who professes to have seen a vision, will be able to cause anxiety throughout the country and cause disruptions.

For those of you who remain anxious, there has been no tsunami warning given by the Fiji Meteorological Office or predicted by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre in Hawaii.

As for earthquakes, no scientist or prophet in history has been able to predict when an earthquake will occur.

In fact, about 50 earthquakes are recorded everyday, but not felt by anyone.

A 5.5 magnitude earthquake was recorded west of Tonga and east of Moala at 10.15 this morning but the Fiji Met Office says it is too small to generate any disruption.

Authorities are warning people against furthering the rumours, and those found doing so will be taken to task.


Fiji Broadcasting Corporation