An unnamed veteran journalist appearing before the Fiji Truth and Reconciliation Commission (FTRC) has recalled confronting the same military officers who once arrested and intimidated him — and discovering that many of them now struggle to face him.
An audio of the testimony has been released by FTRC.
The journalist said reconciliation often emerges in unexpected ways.
“One thing I’ve noticed, in terms of reconciliation — all those army colonels who arrested me back then, they can’t even stand up and see me. Why?” he told the commission.
He recounted occasions where he deliberately approached former officers who had taken him from his office or detained him during political unrest — including one encounter with former senior officer Sitiveni Qilihio.
“Sometimes I go up, shake their hands. I said to (Sitiveni) Qilihio, ‘Welcome back,’” he said.
“They couldn’t look me in the eyes because I came there with a clear conscience.”
According to the journalist, many of those men now greet him briefly before moving away.
“They cannot see me. They’ll just say hi — and then they’ll walk away.”
He believes their discomfort lies not in the past arrests themselves, but in the principle he refused to abandon.
“Because of the stance I’ve taken — this is my profession. Whatever I’ve written is the fact. Whatever happens to me is part of the job of the profession I’ve chosen. That is something I can testify this morning,” he said.
Reflecting further, he described what he called a “reverse effect”: instead of feeling intimidated after returning to work, he found those once in power appeared unsettled.
“Sometimes you are arrested, and when you come back you expect to feel intimidated,” he said.
“But if you go up and shake their hands, you can see they change — they’re not the same people who were once pushing you around and showing their muscles.”
The journalist said his experience underscores both the emotional toll borne by media workers during times of crisis and the continuing journey of reconciliation for the nation.
