“Peace first within Fiji than we take it to the Pacific.”
This was the statement of the Opposition Leader Inia Seruiratu while responding to the ministerial statement delivered in Parliament by Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka on the recently launched Foreign Policy White Paper.
Reminding Parliament and Fiji on the impacts Fiji had on trade after the coups, he issued a word of caution to the Prime Minister saying that our traditional trading partners had issues with Fiji in 1987 and 2000 and Fiji had to trade with the north.
“I know that you know very well sir, what I am talking about how we were treated when we had our own issues internally,” he said.
“Ocean of Peace has prominence but of course we can not give something that we do not have, and that is why sorting out issues in Fiji is so important. There are governance issues, and I hope the Prime Minister will take responsibility for the issues that are arising in the papers because this is what contributes to the Ocean of Peace and particularly for the long term security for the region without any interference.”
He added that the paper says that there should be no distinctive difference between bilateral and multilateral diplomacy, but geography, history and values inevitably shape the structure and priorities of our bilateral relationships.
“Our relationship with fellow members of PIF are of different order than that of the countries that are outside of the Pacific region.”
