Kanya Wati (left) with her husband Deo Dutt.

The events of May 14, 1987, when then Lieutenant Colonel Sitiveni Rabuka stormed Parliament and took over the country, were not only challenging for most communities across Fiji, they also forced many who were affected to rebuild their lives in the aftermath.

The time proved to be a turning point and source of motivation for Deo Dutt and his wife Kanya Wati – a couple from Vuniyalayala, Labasa.

As Fiji reflects on the 38th anniversary of the first military coup, the couple who are in their 70s recall, not only the hardships of that time, but also the solidarity and protection they received from nearby villagers in Vuniyalayala and the progress the nation has made since.

Kanya Wati (left) with her husband Deo Dutt.

Deo Dutt, who was in his late 30s during the 1987 coup, remembers how communities in Labasa and surrounding areas stood together to protect Fijians of Indian descent, a unity that he still cherishes.

“The villagers from the nearby koro were very kind; they didn’t do anything to us or our village. In other villages, there were more problems. At the time, we couldn’t do much. Some iTaukei people started scraping the land and doing other things. We thought maybe it was because our land lease was nearly expired. We didn’t want any coup. We didn’t know what the future hold.”

Dutt says leaving was never an option for him, although many were forced to move due to political influence but he notes that many families have remained in the outskirts of Coqeloa, Daku, and Wainikoro to this day.

His wife, Kanya Wati, remembers the fear that gripped the community during those uncertain times – so much so that even simple daily routines like milking cows and working on Sundays were stopped.

“If we worked, we didn’t know when the army might come. So we stopped. No cooking, no farming, no housework, nothing. We didn’t even wash clothes. We told our children not to play outside, not even with a ball. They were small, but they listened. Because the army could come and take you.”

Today, the couple still maintains close ties with the villagers of Vuniyalayala who stood with them during those difficult days.

Now the couple has settled in the Qeledamu cane farming community and continue their life on the farm and offer a simple message for all: work hard, love one another, and respect every ethnicity in your community.

Stream the best of Fiji on VITI+. Anytime. Anywhere.