Girmit Day celebrations should be a time to reflect the struggles of the lives of the descendants of Girmitya in Fiji.
Health Minister Dr Atonio Lalabalavu highlighted this while commissioning the billboards and ecotourism on the island of Nukulau to commemorate the lives of the Girmitya.
“At the young age, we used to come here for picnic, and as we grew older, we gained knowledge and knew that this place was used for quarantine purposes for Girmitiya,” Dr Lalabalavu said.
“To me personally, as a young iTaukei person, I welcome Girmit week celebrations as we look forward to the Girmit holiday on Monday.
“This is the chance to learn our history. History is important as it teaches us plenty of things.
“Going forward, I am thankful that the Government has recognised this day.”
He said it would enable people to improve their relationships with descendants of Girmitiya and to everyone who called Fiji their home.
Assistant Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation and Girmit celebration chairwoman Sashi Kiran said Nukulau Island has a particular significance to the descendants of Girmitiya.
“The first boat Leonidas, when it came into our waters on May 14, 1879, what happened, it was full of disease and the acting governor at that time wanted to turn the boat away,” she said.
“So instead, it was offloaded on May 25 on Yanuca Island near Levuka.
“From the second boat onwards till the end, about 40 voyages came to this island and more than 60,000 of our ancestors landed here first and were quarantined here for four to six weeks before they were allocated to their plantations.”
