THE Great Council of Chiefs (GCC) has condemned the recent attack on the Samabula Shiv Mandir in Suva, calling it a senseless act that undermines Fiji’s values of unity, respect and freedom of worship.
In a statement issued by chairman Ratu Viliame Seruvakula, the council did not mince words.
“The GCC strongly condemns the attack on the Samabula Shiv Mandir,” Ratu Viliame said.
“While one of the primary roles of the GCC is to champion the improvement of the lives of the indigenous population, the chiefs are also very mindful of their responsibility in ensuring the interests of other members of the community who have come to call Fiji home are protected.”
The Samabula temple was vandalised in broad daylight last week, sparking widespread outrage across religious and political lines.
A man arrested in connection with the attack has since been referred for psychiatric evaluation.
Ratu Viliame said the council’s vision is grounded in the principle that all Fijians should have equal voice and protection.
“One of the strategic goals of the GCC is that the traditional leadership system serves equally and in a balanced way as both a guardian of indigenous rights and an enabler of development discourse where all people have equal voice and freedom to worship,” he said.
He said the temple’s destruction runs counter to that vision.
“The senseless destruction of the Shiv Mandir certainly goes against the grain in as far as the GCC vision of a unified Fiji.
“We certainly hope the perpetrators will be found and explain themselves before the courts.”
Since the attack, religious leaders and senior Government figures have called for calm and respect.
