T-shirt ban on women on Nabukadogo Village

by Serafina Silaitoga

Fiji Times - Friday, October 15, 2010

Nabukadogo Village headman Peni Vusoni (second row from the front, third from right) with the village youths at their soli last week. Picture: SERAFINA QALO

A VILLAGE by-law in the Northern Division has banned women from wearing T-shirts in the village but has allowed men to drink yaqona until 11pm.

The women of Nabukadogo in Macuata have also been instructed to wear sulu-i-ra at all times ùwhether inside the home or outside ù while the children have been placed on a 6pm curfew.

Headman Peni Vusoni said the by-law was discussed at a meeting two weeks ago where the villagers agreed to the changes. To ensure the by-law is upheld, the village has appointed 10 wardens who will work day and night.

Mr Vusoni said respect for the village must be reinforced and that the by-laws had brought about good changes in the past two weeks, especially with the men waking up early to attend to their farms and other duties.

He said yaqona sessions in the village would now end by 11pm, after which all villagers must remain indoors. This rule, he said, would not be relaxed for funerals or traditional functions.

At 6pm, all children are to be seated in their homes doing their homework and village wardens will visit each and every home to check on them.

Mr Vusoni said the 6pm curfew would help the students live a disciplined life and improve their academic performance.

He said children were not allowed to leave their houses unless in case of an emergency or to attend church. For trips taken outside the village, Mr Vusoni said the villagers were asked to inform the wardens, especially if they expcted to return after 11pm.

For women who go out fishing, he said they could take off their sulu-i-ra but they must put them back on again when they returned to the village.

Youths of Nabukadogo take charge

Serafina Silaitoga
Tuesday, October 12, 2010

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Nabukadogo youths present their soli at the shed (top) yesterday as they attempt to take on more responsibility, fundraising and the work around the village

REALISING the importance of their role towards village development, the Nabukadogo youth club yesterday opened their new fund pool to help finance village projects.

The Macuata youngsters organised a youth soli in the village where their parents, village elders, traditional leaders and friends were invited to help fundraise for their first project.

Youth group adviser Ilisoni Dovibau said the youth group started again a month ago after a two-year lapse.

"We have a village youth group but it became defunct," he said.

"About a month ago, we met and agreed that our youth group should be formed so we can contribute towards village development. Youths play a major role in any village so we want to start training our youths to become responsible adults making wise decisions for themselves."

Mr Dovibau said the first project already discussed was a village shop run and managed by the youth group.

"This first soli will go towards our pool of money which will be only used to finance village projects like the shop, which is our first project.

"There is a house in the village which has not been used so we will turn that into a shop and we have already informed our village elders and parents about it," Mr Dovibau said.

At the soli, youths asked for their parents' and the vanua support as they set their eyes on a better future for the people of Nabukadogo.

Mr Dovibau said other plans have been lined up for next year, all aimed at encouraging youths to take the lead role in village developments.

"Our elders can only do much so we have to train our youths to play the lead role as they will become leaders."

EasyTel has made a difference in our lives - Turaga ni Koro, Nabukadogo

16 February, Suva, Fiji Islands – Telecom Fiji’s Easytel system has recently been introduced to the Northern Division, making telecommunication services more accessible to rural dwellers. The EasyTel base station has been set-up in Delaikoro in Labasa – with a reach covering the following areas in the North: Labasa Town, Wailevu, Doguru, Vunimoli, Tuatua, Korowiri, Nabekavu, Vunika, Nabalebale (Savusavu), Seaqaqa Town, Batiri, Savusavu Town, Wainikoro area and Namalata, Bua. Turaga ni Koro, Manoa Valeniyasana    To date Telecom Fiji has installed twenty-eight (28) villages in the Northern division with the EasyTel service, including Nabukadogo outside Labasa. Installed in November 2003, the EasyTel service has been very well received by the people of Nabukadogo, which has greatly enhanced daily life in the village.  Nabukadogo EasyTel House Turaga-ni-Koro Nabukadogo, Manoa Valeniyasana says, “We are very happy to finally have telephone service in the village, and since the service was provided it has made a great difference to our lives; it is very helpful and convenient and enables us to be in contact with family and friends from nearby towns and in other parts of Fiji.” Nabukadogo EasyTel House   The telephone has also assisted some of the villagers with their fishing business. “We save a great deal of time and money now. Organising collection of our fish to sell in Seaqaqa or Labasa is now only a phone call away, where previously we would have to send a message or arrange for transport ourselves, which was time consuming and would sometimes cost more money,” said Mr. Valeniyasana. “There’s now a lot of potential for our people to improve or start up business because of the accessibility and convenience of having telephone service. Mr. Valeniyasana’s comments were fully supported by the Liuliu ni Yavusa Namoli, Vilimone Dovibua, who said that he was very thankful to Telecom Fiji for providing their village with telephone service. “It is a great relief to us to have telephone service which makes life so much easier for us now. For instance, when someone is sick we used to have to send children to fetch transport to go to Labasa or Seaqaqa. Now with a telephone, we simply make a phone call for transport or an ambulance to take the sickly to the hospital or nearby health centre”, Mr. Dovibua said. The expansion of the EasyTel service to the North reaffirms Telecom Fiji’s commitment to continually develop and enhance its network, especially in the rural areas. EasyTel is Telecom Fiji’s wireless telephone service that is delivered by the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) technology and is a system that will assist Telecom Fiji achieve its goal of greater telephone penetration into rural areas. This wireless technology allows customers to get connected to the Telecom Fiji network even if they are in areas without telephone cables or where cables are exhausted. The only requirement for customers is a regular power supply. “The essence of CDMA technology is that customers can have access to telecom services without having to connect through a telephone cable,” explained Salote Uluinaceva, Telecom Fiji’s Manager Corporate Communications. “The service will stimulate the flow of information into and from rural communities,” she added. The northern EasyTel system cost around $700,000 and in addition Telecom Fiji is planning to install three CDMA repeaters in the northern region to improve signals to low signal areas. TFL has also made a commitment to provide telephone services in all villages in the Bua province this year. This will include the modernisation of the Dreketi, Rabi and Tukavesi exchanges. The rural telephone penetration programme in the north also include settlement and villages in Macuata and Cakaudrove who have not been given any services or are still using the old manual system. All rural telecommunication services will be on prepaid facilities. Click on links to discover: From Village to City                VodaHost  Affiliate           HOLIDAY IN FIJI For further information, please contact: Salote Uluinaceva Manager Corporate Communications Tel: 321 0486 Fax: 330 5595 Email: salote.uluinaceva@tfl.com.fj

Newly-Installed Vunivalu of Natewa says Forgive and Forget

Forgive and forget: Chief

Serafina Silaitoga

Fiji Times - Saturday, October 09, 2010

THE newly-installed Vunivalu of Natewa, Ratu Amenatape Belo, yesterday urged his people to reconcile, put the past behind and work together towards a successful future.

The district of Natewa began a new chapter yesterday as they installed a Vunivalu after 35 years.

Ratu Amenatape's father, Ratu Ropate Rakuita, was the last Vunivalu traditionally installed by the people of Natewa in 1974.

According to family members, the chiefs who led Natewa after the death of Ratu Ropate were not traditionally installed.

The villagers packed Natewa Village grounds to witness the installation.

Ratu Amenatape told his people he would work with them to ensure a good future for the younger generation.

He said forgiveness needed to happen to help pave the way forward for the district.

In their presentation to their chief, the people asked him to always seek God's guidance, saying that without God, nothing was possible.

The 11 villages in the district spent months preparing for the traditional ceremony.

Traditional warriors surrounded the village boundary, ensuring that no one moved around during the ceremony.

Ratu Amenatape Belo is married with five children.

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Will Fiji's land reform force an NLTB re-invention?

ISLAND BUSINESS - SEPTEMBER ISSUES 2010

Dionisia Tabureguci 

The Native Land Trust Board (NLTB) may be forced to re-invent itself if it wants to remain relevant to the needs of i-taukei landowners in these modern times. This opinion has been expressed following the end of NLTB’s monopoly over the administration of native land with the coming into force now of the new Land Use Decree 2010.

The new decree establishes a new Land Use Unit within the Ministry of Lands and Mineral Resources that will run the Land Use Bank, a registry in which landowners—whether government or i-taukei—can voluntarily “bank” their land for government to administer. Not only has this ended the sole rein over native land held by NLTB since the 1940s, it has also given native Fijian landowners an alternative to the administration of their land, and what is in principle promising to a be more attractive land rental deal and general leasing conditions than that offered by NLTB.

“In my view, this decree has come at a timely point in terms of the way land is commercially used,” said Tevita Bukarau, a former NLTB manager legal, and now principal solicitor in MUSKITS & Company.

Bukarau’s legal firm is currently representing a group of landowners in Nawailevu village in Bua. On their land sits a number of potential bauxite mine sites ready to be mined by China’s largest independent alumina refinery, Chiping Xinfa Huayu Alumina Co. Ltd. The landowners’ attempt to secure a joint venture partnership with the company could not be facilitated by the NLTB, and they have decided to explore the options presented by the Land Use Decree 2010.

“The NLTB has, for a long time, monopolised the use of land,” Bukarau told FIJI BUSINESS. “And if you are a landowner and you liked the way NLTB thinks or not, it doesn’t matter because you can’t go to anybody else to have your land legally used for a certain development. So, there is no alternative.

“In that sense, this legislation [Land Use Decree 2010] has come as a breath of fresh air for those who have been frustrated by NLTB for quite some time. And it gives them an option; if for instance I have a piece of land and I wish to develop it in a certain way and I, because I have been schooled to a certain extent and I know one or two things about development, and I know I can clinch a better deal than NLTB, then this legislation has come as a breath of fresh air. Because even if the NLTB does not see the same view as you do in relation to your development, then maybe government will through this legislation,” Bukarau said.

The new land decree has been the result of a swiftly delivered land reform programme by government, and although the perceived lack of exhaustive and thorough consultation to formulate it has been criticised in some quarters—especially in relation to native land—it has been seen as a necessary step towards optimising the country’s economic performance.

In an interview with FIJI BUSINESS on the reform, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry for Lands and Mineral Resources, Lt. Col. Neumi Leweni said the exercise “must take place” if Fiji wanted to achieve economic success.

It is ‘key,’ he stressed, to the opening up of the economy, because without proper administration and management, “there will be chaos in society in the same way that people will be, to a large extent, subjected to a life of poverty with a mere handful benefitting from the land resource.”

“Importantly, land is not only a scarce resource, it is also a very sensitive issue. Our recent socio-political history reveals that land, like race, has been used by politicians with their different ideologies and philosophies, as a catalyst to spread unnecessary fear among our people. The consequences are now well known. Government’s land reform initiative is meant to address all these critical issues and more.

Quick Facts about the Land Use Decree 2010

Only native land and crown land may be administered under this decree, as provided for under section 3. Crown land, according to the Ministry of Lands and Mineral Resources, “amounts to just four percent of Fiji’s entire land mass of around 18,000 square kilometres”

Part 2 requires that all land designated under the decree be free from all encumbrances and that all land designated for utilisation shall be referred to the Prime Minister. “The Prime Minister shall then use his discretion to designate land for utilisation under this Decree.” By the time this magazine edition went to press, some 20 land parcels – ranging from 80 acres to 6000 acres – were awaiting designation by the Prime Minister, while over 100 investors, some from overseas, have registered their interest, according to Land Use Unit director Laisa Raratabu.

The Land Use Unit will be responsible for the valuation of land, issuance and renewal of lease, collection of rental and “any other matter that may arise from time to time for land designated under this Decree by the Prime Minister”

All leases under this Decree shall be for a period of not more than 99 years;

Certain decisions cannot be challenged in “court, tribunal, commission or any other adjudicating body” as outlined under Part 7. These include: “the validity, legality or propriety of this Decree; any decisions of any Minister or any State official or body made under this Decree; the terms and condition of lease issued by the Director of Land under this Decree; or the validity of the cancellation of any leases, licenses or other instruments.”

“From a socio-economic perspective, the land reform will help identify and put to better use as much

idle and unproductive land as humanly possible. This should provide the platform for the nation to progress economically and socially,” Leweni said.

The two stated objectives therefore, as mentioned under section three of the decree, are: one: “to utilise designated native land in a manner that is in the best interest of native land owners”

and two: “to utilise designated crown land with a view to achieving optimal return to the state.”

Leweni maintained that this is not a deliberate design to put NLTB out of context as an organisation, although some are curious as to how NLTB would figure in the new scheme of things, being an entity created purely to administer native land.

“The role performed by NLTB should not be taken lightly,” he said. “For the past decades, the NLTB has been the custodian of native land and has managed native land in a way that is very different from land management practices in other countries.

“You will recall that NLTB and its enabling legislations have been hailed by many in the Pacific to be among the best in managing land on behalf of landowners.

“Government has no intention of changing this. If anything, the options that government is now pursuing through the land reform initiative will only serve to complement the work of NLTB and help the nation grow economically from the best use of our scarce land resources.

“The initiative will help the NLTB to re-look at how it is assisting the native landowners to progress socially and economically in real terms, aside from overseeing and managing native land,” said Leweni.

While indeed any land that may be deposited into the Land Use Bank must be unencumbered and “shall not be the subject of any dispute in any court, tribunal, commission or before any other person or body exercising a judicial function”––and this rules out all native lands currently under NLTB leasing arrangements––landowners are free to consider depositing their land into the Land Use Bank, once the NLTB leases on their land expire.

Competition

Given this scenario, the Land Use Bank essentially competes against NLTB for the attention of landowners.

Landowners who take their land to the Land Use Bank are promised higher rental – 10 percent of Unimproved Capital Value (UCV) compared to six percent charged to tenants by NLTB; a timely payment of rent; plus the icing on the cake: full rentals to be paid to them, a much better deal compared to NLTB’s distribution formula.

For the tenants, there is a promise of more secure tenancy––all leases under the Land Use Bank are issued for 99 years, even agricultural leases, the subject of hot political debates in the past due, in part, to the shorter lease terms offered under NLTB legislations.

Bukarau believes this “competition” is healthy and would not necessarily force NLTB into irrelevance.

“One of the better things about the new legislation is that the pro-ceeds that come out of the development on the land have only two recipients ––the government and the landowner. Only they decide how the proceeds are to be distributed, whereas on the NLTB side, once you get the lease money from investors, that particular package of money gets subjected to statutory deductions – 15 percent goes to NLTB, and then different level of chiefs get their own percentages and by the time it gets to the mataqali, about 50 percent is what they get to share. And that can be quite taxing for the landowners’ coffers.

"At the end of the day, he ends up watching a commercial activity on his piece of land, and he’s growing up watching that, but what he gets out of that, as a landowner, is usually very little,” Bukarau said.

“So in a sense, the decree cures straight away some of the ills which exists on the NLTB side. NLTB is an old horse, it’s been here since the 1940s, and I think it still has a place in the governance of this country. But because of this new legislation and the positives it offers for the landowner who wants to be creative about the use of his land, and wants to gain more––which he is entitled to––that will put pressure on NLTB to become very creative.

“They will have to size up their legislation, to see whether it’s relevant to the times that we are in. If not, then they may need to suggest some amendments to allow them to be more liberal in the way that they can offer incentives to landowners on how their land can be utilised for better returns,” Bukarau added. He made these observations in light of the bauxite mine case he is handling. What he could not understand, he said, is why NLTB could not facilitate a joint venture partnership that the landowners wanted when clearly such a partnership would benefit them.

Under the new decree, a partnership like a joint venture may be facilitated, first, by depositing the land in the land bank and then land-owners themselves apply to lease the same land, explained an associate of Bukarau. The landowners then use this lease to negotiate their partnership with the developer. Such creativity is allowed in the new legislation and which NLTB may have to compete with if it wants to keep itself attractive.

“I think there is room within the Native Land Trust Act for them to be creative,” said Bukarau.

“It depends on them, as individuals who are part of the institution. If they want to be creative, they can. If they choose to be on a traditional mode of operation and not maximse the benefits for the landowners, then their relevance will be outrun by this new legislative regime created by the Land Use Decree.

“The good thing is that there is now an alternative; firstly, there is no monopoly now by NLTB; secondly, there are two regimes in place, which means the landowner now has a choice. Either he takes his development and puts it into the land bank or he goes to the NLTB and uses their system. So straight away from an aerial view of the two households, the Land Use Decree has an edge.

"But if NLTB can be creative within its own legislative framework, then maybe we will have healthy competition between these two entities. And there is enough land and space for these two to compete healthily because only the landowner will benefit,” Bukarau added.

Concerns

NLTB general manager Alipate Qetaki, when contacted by Fiji Business, said he could not comment on the debate, but directed all questions to the lands ministry. However, some concerns still linger, such as the details of how the new decree would be administered. The regulations to the decree, said director

of the Land Use Unit Laisa Raratabu, were still being drafted and should be out by the end of the month. They would explain, for example, how the land would be valued, how the lease will be issued or renewed and how the rental would be collected, among a host of other things.

Concerns have also been raised on the control that this Decree now has over native land.

“The control and the decision on how to use that land rests with the state and not in the owner of the land or tribe,” resource owner representative Ratu Osea Gavidi told Radio New Zealand.

He fears this may pave the way for the alienation of land in the future. As well, this decree and all processes taking place within it may not be challenged in a court of law – and any attempt to do so, to be immediately terminated––has also raised some questions on how grievances relating to it would be addressed.

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Ruci's Labour of Love

by IFEREIMI NADORE

Fiji times - Thursday, October 07, 2010

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Karolina Ruci shows off her catch of freshwater mussles

Sources of income for rural women living along the Rewa River are minimal compared to those who live near the sea.

Like those who live in the interior of Viti Levu, they have to be smart, tough and possess multi skills if they are to survive.

These are some of the challenges they face on a daily basis compared to those who have all the luxuries in the urban centres.

For Karolina Ruci,54, of Natoaika in Naitasiri such challenges has been part of her life for the past 30 years. She is single and supports her extended family by fetching kai or fresh water mussels from the Rewa River as her main source of income.

Ruci would accompany other women to the Suva Market to sell kai for one whole week before returning home every Saturday.

However, the women are not allowed to sell kai every week.

Restriction imposed by her chief the Qaranivalu Ratu Inoke Takiveikata only allows Ruci and women from her village to fetch kai from the Rewa River fortnightly.

Ratu Inoke had reasoned that allowing women to fetch mussels and sell them very week would only deplete the source.

At the market, Ruci sells her mussels for $3 to $4 a heap depending on the demand from customers.

Having to endure such hardships, Ruci made a choice to remain single for the rest of her life. She wants to live on her own and do things on her own ways.

"I have to live this way to survive.

Even though the risk is always there, we have to do this for a living.

Apart from earning money, we have to keep some for our daily consumption," Ruci said, adding that she earns $50 on busy days and was content with the income.

"Like other women we have to earn as much as we can because we have obligations. We have to pay fees for our students, bus fares and pay for other expenses," she said.

Ruci said fetching mussels from the river was not easy. She has to brave the cold for many hours before finally collecting more than enough to sell.

For those 30 years Ruci had come to know the season of the mussels and where to find them in abundance.

"We have been doing this work for years and it has helped us tremendously in many ways," she said.

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Young at Heart

by Frederica Elbourne

Fiji Times - Sunday, October 03, 2010

Ilisoni Naivalurua with his children Bill and Liana at home. Picture by: FREDERICA ELBOURNE.

THE older you grow, the more love you get, says 49-year-old Kadavu man Ilisoni Naivalurua.

"But it's a tragedy because the young keep away, the Tavuki gentleman said.

The beauty of old age is in the benevolence they feel for everyone, he said.

The tragedy is that there is no celebration about it.

There isn't a token of appreciation for the older aging generation or recognition for the effort they put in raising a generation, he said.

As such, a scheme resembling the dole system in Australia should be introduced by the State in Fiji to cater purely for the elderly, Mr Naivalurua said.

The State, he said, should initiate programs where the young and old can work together.

"Like farming - retirees can be foremen of certain farming communities and the younger generation - the young blood - can provide the force, the labour. The elders in this case can be the overseers," the farmer and fisherman said.

With the philosophy to never envy anyone above him, or abuse those beneath him, Mr Naivalurua - an athlete in his time, contemplates the prospects of being a senior citizen as he approaches the big five-o.

"I want to live forever. There are many doors to live long. Music is my chance," the former Rootstrata and Exodus guitarist and vocalist said.

His search for longevity rests in the Bible, he said.

"I fight temptation, push it away from the mind by following biblical precepts," Mr Naivalurua said.

Both young and old don't live forever, however together they can search and attain it, he said.

Of his past, and the fact that he served time behind bars, Mr Naivaluarua said nothing will or should be hidden.

He attributes his music career to the peers and pals he found in his young days at Nadera. He credits the Nadera parishioners for his musical attributes saying through them he learnt the cords.

His dream of being an international volleyball player fell through following an ankle injury. However, he maintains he is still fit. Just this week, he went for a run up a steep slope in one of Wailoku's many winding roads.

Mr Naivalurua is a lyricist and has written and sung 20 originals.

"I write songs about saving the world. There is no better time than now to do so.

"Today's culture is disparaged. We're at line zero ready to step on the red line, but we have a chance to reverse it. If this were a story about the individualist approach, then you might have to put a full stop there - because that's not what I stand for. How can you move forward if you're only looking after yourself?," he said.

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