• The former President of the Republic of Fiji, Your Excellency Ratu Epeli Nailatikau
• The Prime Minister, Honourable Voreqe Bainimarama
• The Speaker of Parliament, Honourable Dr. Jiko Luveni
• The United Nations Resident Coordinator, Ms. Osnat Lubrani
• The Minister for Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation, Honourable Mereseini Vuniwaqa
• The host of today’s symposium, Honourable Ratu Inoke Kubuabola, Minister for Defence and National security
• The Commander of the Republic of Fiji Military Forces, Rear Admiral Viliame Naupoto
• Your Excellencies the High Commissioners and Ambassadors
• Distinguished Guests, including especially the former Peacekeepers
• Ladies and gentlemen

Ni sa bula vinaka, namaste, assalamu alaykum, ni hao, noa’ia e mauri, and a very good morning to you all.

It is such an honour for me to join you this morning to open this special symposium that is being organised as part of the commemoration of 40 years of Fiji’s contribution to peacekeeping under the United Nations banner. I also appreciate the fact that we will get to hear from a panel of eminent speakers who either have first-hand experience in peacekeeping, in the mechanisms of the United Nations, or as a spouse and dependent of a Peacekeeper.

Forty years is a long time for a Nation to be committed to the cause of global peace. In the cycle of life, they say life begins at 40. I believe that the thinking behind this adage is that people gain significant wisdom around 40 years. And so we could say the same for our service to global peace.

We owe our thanks to the many individuals and parties who made these peacekeeping operations possible, and who continued to cultivate this mission over the past four decades. We thank our then national leaders in the 1970s who initiated the idea for Fiji to be involved in peacekeeping operations – they include our first Prime Minister, Ratu Sir Kamisese Mara and his Government; and Fiji’s first local Commander of the Military Forces Colonel Paul Manueli. We thank the United Nations for affording us the opportunity to participate in peacekeeping. We thank the host countries where our troops stayed at and continue to be based in. We thank the families of the 56 servicemen who made the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of global peace. We thank all the servicemen and women and the respective commanding officers for flying our national flag with pride. We thank the former and current Peacekeepers and their families who are helping our nation grow at the socio-economic front and in their respective communities in the four-corners of our nation. And we thank all the successive governments since 1970 for continuing to support our involvement in peacekeeping.

The current Government in particular has also seen to the significant increases in peacekeeping allowances that have now made employment in the RFMF an institution of choice, all done in recognition of the incredibly important work that our Peacekeepers are conducting around the world.

Importantly, we thank God Almighty for his blessings on our Nation.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, it is important that we put Fiji’s involvement in peacekeeping into proper perspective for the benefit of our younger generation, especially to create greater awareness of, and to help engender a heightened appreciation for, Fiji’s contributions to world peace.

Fiji’s first peacekeeping deployment under the United Nations banner was to the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon in 1978 – led by then Lietenant-Colonel Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, who later became the Commander of the Fiji Military and, among many other achievements, became our President and Head of State. Your Excellency, thank you for accepting the Organising Committee’s invitation to share your experiences with the Nation through this symposium.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, the United Nations itself was formed in 1945 after the Second World War. Its aim was, among other considerations, to provide an avenue for sovereign nation states to amicably discuss issues of concern to them, through diplomatic means.
This was essentially to avoid the outbreak of any more world wars. The world had endured two major wars up to that time, which resulted in the loss of an estimated 100-Plus million lives. Part of the UN’s mandate was to help maintain peace in various parts of the world where conflicts were still being resolved through the use of arms. Of the 70 years that the UN has been involved in negotiating peaceful resolutions to conflicts, Fiji can stand proud that we have contributed, and remain committed, to upholding the tenets of diplomacy, stability, security and impartiality, for 40 years. From that first mission in Lebanon, Fiji has deployed soldiers to about 20 other missions around the world up to the present day.

In the process of peacekeeping, however, we have lost about 56 servicemen including several civilians. These are Fiji’s sons who have paid the ultimate sacrifice in the name of peace. We salute each one of them, and pray that their souls continue to rest in peace. We also pray for their respective next of kin and families. Many more soldiers suffered injury and hardship while deployed in the name of the nation and we should also remember their service and sacrifice. Their is a noble vision, to protect the innocent from violence. They prevent the escalation of violence that destroys families and communities and destabilises countries. Their exemplary service has directly contributed to the reputation of Fijian forces as effective soldiers and excellent Peacekeepers. We should be proud of their sacrifice and service.

As a Nation, Fiji has also gained much from our contribution to peacekeeping. Internationally, our reputation as one of the best and effective peacekeeping troop contributing countries is well known throughout the world. And here at home in Fiji, the jobs and stability from these missions have allowed tens of thousands of Fijians to provide for themselves and their families. It is, to a large extent, on the backdrop of the international reputation our Peacekeepers have earned for Fiji that we are able to secure the support of many UN-member countries in our ongoing efforts to develop and modernise our Nation. In the recent decade especially, we have also witnessed the international community’s increasing support in our bid to play a leading role in world affairs.

Fiji has chaired the UN’s largest voting bloc – the Group of 77 Plus China which comprises almost 140 countries. We have presided over the UN’s 71st Session of the General Assembly – the most universally representative body in the world with 193 member countries. We have co-chaired the UN’s first ever Oceans Conference. And among other things, we currently preside over the UN’s 23rd session of climate change negotiations or COP23, led by our Honourable Prime Minister. These achievements are helping us to address issues of concern not only to our people, but also to the broader international community.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, it is vitally important for all of us to learn and understand how conflicts arise in society, and to collectively make every effort to seek amicable solutions without having to resort to arms. At the same time, as long as there is a need for peacekeeping services around the world, Fiji stands ready to assist wherever possible. Fiji’s military personnel must continue to train as professional soldiers to be effective and successful Peacekeepers, and to maintain our enviable reputation.

Distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, as we commemorate 40 years since our first group of soldiers departed our shores, I call on all Fijians to remember the fallen and their families, and to develop a heightened appreciation of our Nation’s efforts to contribute to world peace. We now have this unique opportunity to use the wisdom we have gained in the past 40 years of peacekeeping services to lay a foundation of peace and prosperity for our Nation and future generations.

May God Almighty continue to bless us all, and our beloved Nation – Fiji.

Vinaka vakalevu, dhanyavaad, sukria, xie xie, fai’eksia and thank you all.