Most people both outside and inside Fiji are unfamiliar with the background of Fiji Melanesians. The reason for this has perhaps more to do with imperial expethency than accidental oversight. This article draws attention to the plight of this neglected and historically deprived ethnic minority group and examines events that led to its underprivileged status. It reports the well-intentioned but misguided past role of the Anglican Church in assisting the Melanesians. It also investigates recent attempts to improve their dire circumstances through the work of the self-organising Fiji Melanesian Community Development Association.
Introduction
When considering the topic of indentured, or contract, labour in colonial Fiji, Indians immediately come to mind. However, little is known about immigrant Melanesian labourers who preceded the Indians' arrival. The Melanesians, known as 'Polynesians' by the colonials, were the most significant source of plantation labour from their introduction in 1864 until the 1880s when they were gradually outnumbered by Indians in the sugarcane industry. The Melanesians continued to arrive until 1911, working mainly on coconut plantations and in urban development. Their descendants are today known as Fiji Melanesians2 and they number around 12,000 (Seke interview of Jo Sanegar, 2009) in a total Fiji population of over 800,000 (2007 Fiji Islands Bureau of Statistics).
Much has been written about the labour trade in the Pacific and the milieu in which it operated. While most historians agree that the early years of recruitment for the plantation industry were marked by unscrupulous methods, there is much debate about the extent of voluntarism as opposed to force or deception throughout the period. While the term 'blackbirding'3 implies the latter, 'revisionist' historians4 argue that kidnapping was the exception rather than the rule and that Pacific Islanders were willing participants in the labour trade. Regardless of the differing views, the system itself was based on 'structural violence',5 if not overt or physical violence. The Fiji Melanesians themselves use the term 'blackbirding.' Many insist their forefathers had been kidnapped. For them it signifies more than a method of recruitment; it symbolizes a legacy of pain, a sense of loss and deep shame.
Background
As occurred in colonial Queensland and other settler societies in the Pacific region, the plantation system was crucial to the economic development of Fiji. Its success, however, depended on an ample supply of cheap labour. Since the availability of indigenous Fijians was not sufficient to meet the demand, planters turned to adjacent islands in Melanesia - predominantly the New Hebrides, Solomon Islands and, to a lesser extent, outlying islands of New Guinea, and Kiribati in Micronesia.6 From 1864 until Pacific Island indenture ceased in Fiji in 1911, approximately 27,027 contracts were entered into, either voluntarily or involuntarily (Siegel 1985, 47).7
A depot in Levuka - Fiji's then commercial centre on Ovalau island - was the official destination for new recruits during the early phase of the trade. They were then allotted to the planters, who paid for their passage, and were put to work on plantations scattered mostly around the coastal areas of Ovalau, Viti Levu, Taveuni and Rabi. According to an oral source, some recruiting ships made stops at plantations to 'sell' their human cargo directly to the planters rather than go through the official channels. In some instances family members were separated and names changed so that they could not be traced.8 Since there was little regulation of the trade before cession to the British in 1874 the system was subject to abuse (Shlomowitz 1986, 1178). Contracts were mostly for a period of three years at a minimum annual wage of £3 (Parnaby 1956, 57; Shlomowitz 1986, Hl). At the end of the contract period some labourers stayed on for additional terms, while most were supposedly returned to their home island at the employer's expense. …
No comments:
Post a Comment