Re: Fijians

["Nestor Miguel Gorojovsky" <Gorojovsky@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

En relación a Fijians,
el 29 Jul 00, a las 14:13, Philip Ferguson dijo:

>
> Lou, when you say 'Fijian', you are really not talking about Fijians.
> You are talking about one ethnic group, Melanesian Fijians.  You are
> assuming these are the only 'real' or 'legitimate' Fijians and that
> Indo-Fijians are not really Fijian at all.  Is it any wonder that a
> lot of progressive people in the Pacific, including Pacific Islands
> radical nationalist forces, take exception to this kind of
> exclusivism/exclusionism?

Now, this is a bit different to what I have read from Phil on the
Fiji issue. But the problem still remains that while there does not
exist a "national" Fijian party tht seeks to establish a common,
unified, power for Indo-Fijians and Fijian Melanesians, this party
does not exist on EITHER side of the ethnic divide (which of course,
is loathable and has been a gift from Britain to the island).

Again, I am speaking out of ignorance, but allow me to make a general
point: If I learnt that Indo-Fijians had developed such a party, and
that they had honestly and sincerely tried to mix with the original
populations, if they proposed a "Fijian nationalism" as a bet to the
future, without any regards to their seemingly privileged status, it
would be one thing. This party should be supported.

But if this has not happened, then things are quite more complicated.
Sectarianism, here, would be (I stress the _would_) a cloack for
defense of the gritty privilege of being the only group in Fiji which
has a link with modern economy.

This is a problem, isn't it?


Néstor Miguel Gorojovsky
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