Girmitiyas shaped Fiji’s identity and legacy – Prime Minister

Fiji became an economic powerhouse in the Pacific due to the hard work of the Indian migrants who arrived during the indentured labour system.

While delivering his message on Girmit Day at Subrail Park in Labasa, Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka emphasised the contribution of the indentured labourers to Fiji’s development.

He says Girmit Day is a profound moment in our history, as on 14th May 1879, the first ship carrying indentured labourers from India arrived on our shores.

He stated that between 1879 and 1916, about 60,000 men, women, and children were brought under an oppressive system of bonded labour to work under very uncertain and often inhumane conditions on Fiji’s sugar plantations.

The Prime Minister says that many people would have heard the stories of those times during the three days of the event, and that there are many documentaries available to help us learn more about the Girmityas and their descendants.

He says Girmit can be remembered as one of the most difficult segments of our country’s past.

Rabuka says the Girmitiyas were not passive victims, but proud individuals who resisted oppression, reclaimed their dignity, and were determined to define their own place in a foreign land.

He says they stood firm against injustice and helped shape a new identity for their people and their descendants.

Rabuka emphasised that they defied the British overseers at every opportunity to claim their honour, fought for respect, and set a limit to toleration.

He says that today we can all come together to remember — and rejoice in — what they have left for us, and we get the opportunity to honour not only the Girmityas who have passed on, but also the descendants who are with us today, who continue to enrich our nation with their talents, their values, and their deep sense of community.

Rabuka added that he is also looking forward to the compilation of a database of the descendants of Girmitiyas.

He says the Girmitiyas have added to the richness of our identity as a multicultural society — one where we are united by our diversity.

He says this is what makes Fiji special — where we do not simply tolerate difference, but celebrate it.