ringing Fijians from Feudalism to

An It Be Done?

ringing Fijians from Feudalism to [?]idividualism in One Generation

By R. W. Robson

COMPARED with conditions as J they used to be, and compared ith the rest of the world, Fiji is mquil politically, socially and dally.

I think that that is due to two ings. All classes in Fiji realise w that Fiji is faced with a do-political problem of extra iinary difficulty, due to the racial -up there. And all classes cognise that the present Governor r Ronald Garvey) is using every ource at his command, personal well as administrative, to provide solution. tf he fails, the outlook could be y black. dthough complicated by many tors, the main problem can be iply re-stated.

Tie Indians, who are land-less, number the Fijians, who own st of the land; and they are reasmg faster than the Fijians. 3 Indians are industrious, enter sing and individualistic, and very

eager to make use of all oppor tunities, especially those based on 13 rid.

The Fijians are intelligent dependable and lovable; but thev generally lack ambition and “rw atl 7 6 .they are generally content with their age-old, feudal system of life, under which they live comfortably in village com munities, and let their chiefs do their thinking for them.

Given time, the Fijians, under the impact of Europeanism. would move from feudalism to in dividualism, and could take care of themselves. The British, under the Deed of Cession, are pledged to

protect them and their lands.

There is an excellent relationship between British and Fijians. The Fijians are splendid soldiers.

BUT there is no time. The pressure of the growing Indian community’s demand for land increases every month. Also, at least twice in the past, the Indians have clamoured for a larger voice in government, based on adult suffrage; and they will start yelling again, any time.

There is no doubt that, if the Fijians were at the Indians’ stage of social and political development, the British would accede, in some degree at least, to both demands.

But, under present conditions, the British Government’s first obligation is to the Fijians—the indigenous people, who handed over Fiji, in trust, to Queen Victoria, long before the sugar-plantation labourers came in, under indenture, and established an Indian com munity. (Over)

Until the Fijian can stand up for himself, on equal terms against the enterprising Indian, the present administrative arrangement must continue.

The present arrangement is a benevolent dictatorship. The Governor, subject to the British Colonial Office, has supreme power.

He uses it carefully and wisely, and is guided by his senior officers, and by a Legislative Council where on all communities are represented —partly by nomination, partly by election.

On the whole, the system works admirably. But Fiji’s senior officials know that time is running out.

As the Indian community becomes more and more Fiji-born and Fiji educated, it will become more difficult to keen the Indians out of the administration and the lands.

APART from Britain’s determina tion to protect the Fijians, two or three factors hold the Indians back, in Fiji. One is the hold which old India maintains so jealously over them —in customs, in religion, in traditional thinking.

Another is the sharp racial divisions. We speak of them all as Indians; but there are wide gulfs

between Sikhs and Tamils and Ghujerats, to name three. No other Indian race loves the Ghujerats much, for example, and the largest

and most active section of tit Fiji-Indians are Ghuierats.

Another is their well-remembere' refusal to assist the British

forld War 11, when the South acific was so seriously menaced by apanese. The Fijians volunteered merally. and served most usefully, ut the Indians in Fiji did ractically nothing.

Another is their stubborn iherence to their own languages. they are going to be—as they ipe—the co-bosses of Fiji, the idians all should learn simple iglish. Except for two French eas, all South Pacific lands e English-speaking. That ten ancy will grow, as long as we main under United States pro ction.

If that protection is lost, we shall wiped out by hordes of Chinese d Japanese; and—despite all the arty and hypocritical back ipping in New Delhi—the mgolian sections of Asia do not e Indians any more than they e Europeans. \nd so the Number One question Fiji administrative circles, and long the wise old Fijians (both ite and brown) who advise the ivernor is: How shall we bring the Fijians mickly along the sociological path, 0 that they may hold their own 'gainst the Indians, when Fiji re eives a larger measure of self government?

' is quite easy to instruct the Fijians—Bo per cent, of them are literate, many in English, t it is not easy to change thsir ;ure.

Vhy should they toil and spin 1 argue in the market-place, 3 n they can get all their funda ital needs in and around their ceful villages, without too much ;k? Why, indeed! et to leave the Fijians as they , while giving more admini itive power to the Indians, would m simnly the exploitation of the igenous people by the Asians, his would be followed inevitably the day when the angry and like Fijians would arise and 1 with their enterprising fhbours in the way permitted— honoured—in the pre-European Except that they probably Id use knife or bayonet instead he old-fashioned club, he British brought “Euro

lisation”—especially sugar—to

Sugar made Fiji rich. Britain ight in the Indians to grow the ir. ’ithout sugar and without ans, Fiji would have been like Solomons—an economic pain he-neck. The Europeans and Indians mainly get the benefit ’’iji’s riches—not the Fijians, so h. oman justice therefore demands the British shall now protect Fijians against whatever ;ic9-economic evils may have 3 in the train of the primary istries, and the Indians who : them.

r[E Fijians for the most part are governed through their own native organisation. it starts with local officials in the villages and leads up through the hereditary chiefs of districts: and this authority goes on in turn up into a section of the official Government where there is a Fijian Affairs Board.

This administration is strongly influenced and in part directed bv a Great Council of Chiefs, which meets every two or three years.

I was much interested to learn from the Governor (Sir Ronald Garvey) that both the Council of Chiefs and the Fijian Affairs Board are strongly in favour of the efforts being made by the Govern ment to shift the mass of Fijians from feudalism to individualism One somehow expected the old

time chiefs, at least, to hang on to their old-time privileges.

Obviously, much thought has been given to ways and means of inducing the Fijian to abandon his age-old ease in his village, where his needs are very simple and very few, and seek a more strenuous life of endeavour. . The planning is directed to increasing the Fijians’ needs. As his needs expand, he may be induced to produce more.

TT H, ere is an example. The great Wills organisation recently began making cigarettes in Fiji—a pack of ten very good cigarettes is now selling like wildfire for Bd. This development has stirred up another famous firm of cigarette-makers— its representative was in Suva in December, and current report was that its Fiji factory would start

terations in mid-1956.

The Fijians are going for these jarettes in a big way. High Eicialdom heartily approves. The jian experiences a new need, to set which he must come out of s village and work or—and this most important—put his lands to tter use. And there also is elihood that those cigarette mufacturers, instead of using all ported leaf, will call for Fiji iwn leaf. lO assist the Governor in inducing the mass of Fijians to engage in labour and corn ice, there seem to be four main trumentalities. rhese include the Fiji Co ;rative Societies, which are a tural successor to the native nmunal system. Through these, ■ Fijians are jointly marketing Ir produce, purchasing their iplies and providing transport h way. ’here is the Fiji Development id, earmarked for use for the lefit of the native communities, is built by deducting about £lO ton from all native copra rketed, and it now is over 3,000. •here are the Fiji Development cers, directly appointed by the pernor : Edward Cakabau, highly cated and an experienced Fijian linistrator (he was for a time onel in charge of the Fiji

Batallion in Malaya), is Develon mental Officer for South and East Vltl Levu. • George Cakobau, his cousin also well educated and prominent in the Administration, is the Officer for North and West Viti Levu. • When the Battalion returns shortly its commander, Lieut- Colonel Ratu Penaia, will become the third Developmental Officer with Vanua Levu as his Territory’

These three outstanding young Fijians will be the Governor’s chief advisers in relation to all matters affecting the Fijians’ transition from feudalism to individualism.

FINALLY —but by no means least —there is the Fiji Credit Union, under which the individual villages, under the personal direction of Father M Ganey, are induced to (a) save their shillings on a systematic basis’ (b) accumulate funds from which a committee of villagers makes care fully-considered loans; (c) manage the loan funds and see that re payments are made regularly.

Not twenty months have elapsed since the Governor brought Father Ganey over from British Honduras to organise this Union; yet in that time no less than 135 unions have been formed, throughout Fiji, and their modest but regular contri butions to September 30 last, totalled no less than £50,085. Total i na< ? e in that time was £92,000—0f which £51,000 had been

repaid, and most of it loaned again.

The operations of the Fiji credit Union were described in January PIM.. I think it has interest and significance for other Territories.

THROUGH these and other channels, the Governor and his chief officers definitely are influencing the Fijians in a

development which represents probably the only possible way of meeting the new politico sociological conditions created in Fiji by the growth of the Indian population.

To the outsider, looking in, it does not seem that much more can be done. But time is running out.

Such sociological changes are slow —usually from generation to generation—and rarely can they be speeded up.

About the only other field in which the Governor might work is that of the Indian community.

He has some good friends among the Indians—intelligent men of some vision—and if they could induce the Piji-Indian leaders generally to see that the Britons’ responsibility towards the Fijians is also the responsibility of the Indians, and that the situation calls for wisdom and patience, Fiji’s Number One problem might be much nearer solution.

That is not a fantastic hope.

Some of the European “old hands” say that there have been closer contacts between Fijians and Indians m recent years, and I myself have noticed some evidence of it.

But whether this is merely another expression of land hunger (the child of a Fiji-Indian union is entitled to native land) or a genuine attempt to find a better way of handling the Number One problem, remains to be seen, A bit of both, probably.