Kelera Ditaiki 
[Photo: FILE]
The Province of Lau says the question of whether the term ‘Fijian’ should be exclusively reserved for the indigenous iTaukei people must be put back to the public through proper, meaningful, and unhurried consultation.
In its submission to the Constitution Review Commission, the Province raised concerns regarding the unilateral redefinition of ‘Fijian’ imposed by the 2013 Constitution.
It says that the constitution, adopted without consulting the iTaukei people or the Great Council of Chiefs, stripped indigenous Fijians of the name they had held for generations and assigned it as a common civic identity for all citizens.
This was not merely a matter of nomenclature; it was an act of cultural dispossession.
The term ‘Fijian’ carries the history, ancestral identity, and living culture of the iTaukei people.
To strip that term without their knowledge or consent was a profound injustice.
Before 2013, ‘Fiji Islander’ served as a widely accepted, unifying name for all citizens, regardless of ethnicity.
Each community retained its own distinct ethnic identity – iTaukei, Indo-Fijian, Part-European, Chinese, Rotuman, and others – which represents the diversity and beauty of this nation.
The Province states that the GCC must be central to this consultative process, and its endorsement should be a prerequisite to any final determination.
In the interim, the Province of Lau holds that restoring ‘Fiji Islander’ as the common civic name – while preserving ‘Fijian’ for the indigenous people – is a fair, dignified, and workable solution.
