Fiji

Mahendra Chaudhry

Politics

b. 1942

"Christ’s message is universal: To do good, to care for the poor, to love one’s neighbour, to serve honestly and with integrity."

Koila Nailatikau

Politics

b. 1953

"For all I know this has come very late in the day and it's a bit too late … Had my father been here, I believe he would have respected and upheld the rule of law."

"We should not allow ourselves, individually or our ethnic communities to become easy tools for politics of race that will continue to segregate us mentally and emotionally."

"I believe … that this Government practises a Pacific form of revised apartheid against the Indian community and should be ashamed of calling itself Christian."

"Indigenous rights are those, which relate to indigenous people, their way of life, their land and their resources. They are connected in nature and the birthrights of indigenous people."

Kamisese Mara

Politics

1920–2004

"The reconciliation that has been undertaken today will be worthless if investigations into the coup do not reveal the truth behind the staging."

Josefa Iloilo

Politics

1920–2011

"God created this world with a moral design. Grief, tragedy and hatred are only for a time. Goodness, remembrance, and love have no end."

Laisenia Qarase

Politics

1941–2020

"It is now time for us to bring a greater degree of closure to a tragic period of our history. We must not forget what happened in 2000, but we must turn our eyes more to the future."

Frank Bainimarama

Politics

b. 1954

"We are not interfering with any political agenda or plan. We are only doing our job and that is on the grounds of security."

"nothing less than a fraud on the Fijian people."

"the people of the land no longer have the power to select and install their leaders, the chiefs lose their mana or power."

"I like to look for hard entries. If the entry level is easy then everybody comes in and competes with you and the country has no shortage of copycats."

"The hurt is still with us, something we do not openly discuss but this government has not attempted to include us in any of their reconciliation process."

"If anything, we Generals and minorities continue to contribute constructively to every facet of life in this country."

"I publicly appeal to our President, our Prime Minister and the members of our Government to withdraw the Bill until such time as proper consultations can be held and appropriate amendments made."

Timoci Bavadra

Politics

1934–1989

"We are united in our commitment to strive for the advancement of our people - especially the women, the poor, the weak, the powerless, the youth, and the unemployed."

Naiqama Lalabalavu

Politics

b. 1953

"I feel there is honour and dignity in being sent to prison because the law says, even though I know I did what I had to do then."

"I feel that no amount of women's participation can be said to be enough."

Teimumu Kepa

Politics

b. 1945

"We must examine the traditional demands of our race and social structure in light of the resources we have at hand and strike a workable balance."

Jona Senilagakali

Politics

1929–2011

"Democracy may be alright for certain people in the world, but I don't think the type of democracy Fiji needs is the type Australia and New Zealand enjoy."

"It goes without saying that the most valuable asset of any profession is its collective reputation."