MELANESIAN FIJI MEETS MELANESIAN WEST PAPUA
REPRESENTATIVES OF MELANESIAN FIJI and Melanesian West Papua met in Melbourne this month (August 2015): The president of Fiji's Opposition party, the Social and Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA), Tui Cakau, Ratu Naiqama Lalabalavu, visited Melbourne's Fijian community last week to share and advocate his party's concerns about indigenous Fijian people's loss of culture and identity in the current political context. His party platform also expresses solidarity for the people of West Papua in their struggle for justice and liberation, and it was in this regard that CDN-Pacific leaders were able to facilitate meetings between Tui Cakau and his delegation, and West Papua's Melbourne-based Foreign Minister, Jacob Rumbiak and his staff. On Saturday (1 August), Jacob Rumbiak and friends of CDN-Pacific and West Papua were warmly received at a SODELPA fundraiser held in Glen Waverley; on Tuesday (4 August), the SODELPA team was reciprocally received at the embassy of the Federal Republic of West Papua in Docklands.
SODELPA president, TUI CAKAU, receives a traditional West Papuan crown from West Papuan Foreign Minister, DR JACOB RUMBIAK
SODELPA, West Papua and CDN-Pacific delegates at Tuesday's meeting and lunch
The editor (left), with Tui Cakau, and facilitator, Mr James Fricker at Wednesday's Melbourne farewell for the SODELPA delegation
