DESPITE the criticisms, Government is going ahead with its plan to change the design of the national flag, says Prime Minister Rear Admiral (Ret) Voreqe Bainimarama.
He said he was delighted with the reaction both locally and internationally, and was pleased so many Fijians have their eyes on the future and not the past.
He encouraged the public to send in their ideas on symbols they believed best represented Fiji now “and that will also resonate with future generations of Fijians in the decades and centuries ahead”.
The PM said the plan was to change the designs and replace the British symbols with “others that are indigenous and truly Fijian”.
“A National Panel of Citizens — established by the Government and broadly representative of all Fijians — will then examine those designs and work with the Parliament to make a final selection,” he said.
“At that point, Fijians will be given a say on what designs they prefer.
“All with a view to hoisting our new flag — a genuinely Fijian flag not someone else’s — on the 45th anniversary of our Independence from Britain on October the 10th, 2015.”
Mr Bainimarama stressed while removing the British symbols garnered international attention, it would not change Fiji’s relationship with UK.
“I want to again stress that Britain remains our friend and we will always value our historical link to Britain and the British Crown.
“We also value the infrastructure the British left us — such as the magnificent site of our new Parliament — and all those great British institutions that remain — most notably our Westminster system of Parliament and our independent system of justice.”
