Fijians must maintain identity

Mereseini Marau In New Delhi, India
Friday, July 20, 2012

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Swami Agnivesh, left, and Fijian students in New Delhi Peni Totoka, centre, and Savneel Sangeet. Picture: Mereseini Marau

ITAUKEI Fijians must ensure they do not lose their identity, language and culture to globalisation. And their brothers of Indian descent, who have made Fiji their home, must help them.

Those are the words of Swami Agnivesh, president of the World Council of Arya Samaj and a champion of the movement against bonded labour.

Mr Agnivesh, while speaking in an interview at the Arya Samaj head office in New Delhi, said that during his trip to Fiji a few years back, he witnessed how simple the indigenous people were.

"I was amazed at how tall and handsome the Fijians were," he said.

"I said my goodness, their whole breed is something different — I like them very much."

This unusual swami or religious teacher who has been consistently doing battle on behalf of the poor, the weak and the defenceless in India, said he was humbled by the way the indigenous community always shared, especially their meals.

"When a Fijian sits to take his or her meal, they call those passing through to share it with them — whatever little food he or she has, they share it," he said.

Mr Agnivesh, who looks like a sadhu or holy man and talks like a politician voicing the case of the underprivileged millions in India, said this concept was part of the vedic culture or the Vedas.

"They inspire in us a sharing and caring culture and not selfishness," said the social activist who believes that in this civilised world, there is great selfishness.

"The big countries eat just not their own food, they grab the food of the poor too," he added.

He said the world was at the height of selfishness and greed.

"The greed is responsible for the economic meltdown," he said.

Mr Agnivesh, a former chairperson of the United Nations Trust Fund on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, termed greed as another created god.