| Congressman Faleomavaega announced today that he and
several of his colleagues from the House Committee on International Relations
met with His Excellency Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Prime Minister of India,
and his Minister of External Affairs, Jaswant Singh, to discuss economic,
political and security matters. The Prime Minister was on Capitol
Hill to speak before a joint session of the U.S. Congress.
In his speech before the House and Senate, Prime Minister Vajpayee
alluded to the crises in Fiji. “I told Prime Minister Vajpayee that
the crises in Fiji should not be perceived solely as a racial conflict
between the Indo-Fijian community and the indigenous Fijian people.
In truth, the cause of the crisis is rooted in Fiji’s colonial past, and
I believe the Prime Minister appreciated and sympathized with Fiji’s situation,
as India was once a part of the same colonial empire,” said Faleomavaega.
The Congressman continued, “I am not in agreement with the thinking
of some Members of Congress who urge that the United States place international
economic sanctions on Fiji. Don’t get me wrong, I am not advocating
that the actions of coup leader George Speight and his accomplices are
acceptable. What Speight did has been rightfully condemned throughout
the Pacific region, and I share in that condemnation as his conduct was
unforgivable. The point I made to India’s Prime Minister and Minister
for External Affairs was that while race is a factor in the present crisis,
the real root cause and responsibility for Fiji’s instability lies with
the legacy of the British Empire and the manner in which it operated its
colonies.”
The Congressman concluded, “I also strongly suggested that the Prime
Minister gain a complete international perspective in the Pacific on Fiji’s
current situation. In specific, I urged that it was vital that the
Indian Government seek the counsel of not just Australia and New Zealand,
but all of the Pacific Island nations.” |
![[106th Congress]](/faleomavaega/press/press_2000/images/106.jpg)
