Confront intergenerational trauma and end cycle of blame - Kiran

Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection, Sashi Kiran has issued a powerful national call for healing, unity, and peace, urging all Fijians to confront intergenerational trauma and end cycles of blame and division that have shaped the country’s history.

While speaking at the closing of the Trauma Journey and Peacebuilding workshop held at Pasifika Communities University, Kiran described the 12-day event as a critical turning point in the country’s efforts towards reconciliation and social cohesion.

The workshop, supported by the United Nations and the Peacebuilding Fund, brought together a diverse group of youth advocates, community leaders, peace practitioners, non-government organisations including the Foundation for Rural Integrated Enterprises & Development (FRIENd), Caritas Fiji, and faith representatives including reverends from across the country.

Over two weeks, they engaged in deep dialogue on trauma, conflict, reconciliation, and the tools needed to rebuild trust and unity across Fiji’s diverse communities.

The Minister spoke about the legacy of coups, colonialism, slavery, and systemic injustice that have left deep wounds in the national psyche, impacting both personal and collective identities.

She emphasised that peace is too precious to leave to chance and it is time to choose it, deliberately, courageously, and together.

She says we carry the trauma of our history in our genes, and that pain must stop with us.

She adds that we cannot keep passing our hurt onto our children and their children; the cycle must break now.

Kiran explained that every community in Fiji has at some point seen itself as a victim, but if we continue to live from that space, we will never move forward.

She says we stereotype, scapegoat, and blame, but healing begins when we see each other’s pain, pause and choose compassion over conflict.

The Minister praised participants for their courage in sharing deeply personal stories of loss, trauma, and resilience, encouraging them to take the knowledge and tools they gained back to their own communities.

She says this wasn’t just a workshop; it was a movement, and they are now the carriers of that movement.

She emphasised that peace is not something we wait for; it is something we create, one conversation, one act of kindness, one choice at a time.

The Minister reminded participants of Fiji’s often-overlooked legacy of compassion and coexistence, saying that our history is not only one of trauma, but also one of resilience and solidarity.