HE PRESIDENT RT. WILIAME KATONIVERE'S 2024 FIJI DAY MESSAGE

It is indeed an honour to address the nation as we commemorate the celebration of Fiji Day 2024.

I take this opportunity to warmly greet all Fiji citizens living in Fiji and abroad, our Pacific Island brothers and sisters, as well as our international guests, who may be visiting our shores for recreation or work engagements. Ni bula vinaka.
 
Fellow citizens, Year 2024 is a significant period in our nation’s fifty-four years since gaining independence. Foremost, we acknowledge the God Almighty, who created and gave us this land. To Him we give glory and thanks.
 
We remember with admiration the far-sightedness of our forefathers and earlier leaders, who summoned great wisdom and courage, to cede Fiji to Queen Victoria of Great Britain.  

In the intervening 86 years, they adapted and learned the lessons of modern government and statehood, and subsequently secured Fiji’s independence. They set the foundation and course for the modern Fiji, determined that we assume our place among sovereign nations in the world, driven by our faith in God Almighty, for the unity and wellbeing of all our peoples.
 
As we celebrate Fiji Day each year, we also take time to reflect on the journey that brought us to this point in our history. How have we faired? What can we do better for the nation and its peoples?

We have achieved much, but we must not tarry as there is much more to be done. This is our time; this is our calling. The decisions we take today, our actions and inactions, shape the future that we hand over to those following us.
 
This special occasion provides the opportunity for us all to come together as one, determined to heal wounds, build bridges within and between our communities, and celebrate what makes us strong.
 
Our first principle should always be that we must not grow weary in doing good. For at the proper time, we will reap a harvest of goodness, mercy and love, as a people, as a nation and family. Having said these, it starts with the journey inwards, though usually the longest, yet necessary. For when we heal inwardly, outward expression of peace and renewal usually finds its way to its intended destination. 
 
The theme of this year’s Fiji Day – ‘To Heal and Hope’, is indeed appropriate and timely. As we commemorate our National Day, we celebrate what is good, decent and all that binds us together. We take pride in our progress yet remain mindful of the many that carry the scars and pain of what we have endured as a nation during the past 54 years since independence. We will endure with you in your journey.
 
I urge us all to embrace healing, from within love, faith and truth. For in these, we are set free, free also to forgive, to find closure and re-embrace progress with all its noble intentions. The words of the late Bishop Desmund Tutu ring true: “there is no future without forgiveness”.
 
By no means do I underplay the impacts that the events of the recent past 34 years have when our beloved nation was plunged into turmoil, affecting our personal and family lives, and national credibility.
 
I urge us all to immerse ourselves with the spirit of compassion with the view to moving our nation forward together. As Fijians, we resonate well with the ideals of compassion, in fact we embody compassion. We believe in divine intervention daily, and we strongly believe that our compassion is embedded in our holy teachings, our beliefs and our values. It is in our nature.
 
Globally, in fact, amidst all the destruction and suffering, the world looks to us, and to the Pacific Island region, to radiate peace and stability. Like our blue Pacific, we are at the forefront in steering our canoe towards a brighter future for the region.
 
As Head of State, I can assure you that there is power in healing. There is power in forgiveness.
 
We have dwelt long enough in this space. We need to clean the wounds and allow it to heal properly. I urge each one of us to embrace goodwill and commit ourselves to this national goal.
 
Reconciliation becomes necessary when negative conflict has occurred, and relationships have been damaged. It is especially important in situations of high interdependence where a complete physical or emotional barrier between parties in a ‘conflict’ cannot be maintained. Reconciliation therefore refers to the restoration of relationships to a level where cooperation and trust become possible again.
 
While many in key positions of leadership today are not responsible for the state of play that the country finds itself, together, we will be held responsible for our failure to understand the issues and dealing with its centrifugal forces and impacts. It is therefore a matter of necessity to come together and cooperate as one in our hope for a better today and future for our generations to come.
 
Our resilience as a nation usually come alive in the face of natural disasters, global pandemics and personal challenges. We have rebounded each time. Our unyielding hope in a future that is bright and inclusive persist. Our combined strength as a people to rebuild our nation, to repair severed bonds, to pick up the pieces and get on with life has been proven many times. We are now called once again to dig deeper and put our shoulder to the yoke, one that is for our own good.  
 
Over the recent past months, the Government has been leading the charge with the establishment of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, creating a real sense of a forward-looking nation that is committed to moving forward.
 
Fellow citizens, we are the one that can change our national narrative. While we cannot change the past, we can control the way we perceive ourselves in relation to others, and how we respond to and manage challenges.

Let us agree to move forward together. For this is about our future, those of our children and those after them.
 
Let us listen to each other more, listen to what each community brings to the table. For each contribution is a building block. Therein lies our strength: diversity, in our rich traditional and cultural differences.

It is therefore in our national interest that ethnic communities are alive and well for this is the basis of our multi-ethnicity. It is a blessing, our blessing. Let us celebrate it.
 
Fellow citizens, I urge us all to embrace the spirit of veilomani and togetherness. For where there is healing, there is forgiveness, where there is forgiveness there is future, where there is a future there is hope.
 
May the God of Hope, bless you and bless Fiji, our home.
 
Thank you, Vinaka vakalevu, and Dhanyavaad.