Give honour where it’s due

I agree with Yudah Wakolo’s letter on the above topic (FS 25/8) that Ben Ryan ‘deserves to be knighted by the Queen of England’ maybe for masterminding the fall of the Great Britain Team. He has done so many mighty things for Fiji 7s and definitely he is a very popular gentleman amongst our midst. Someone said that rugby was invented in Britain. There could not be a stronger evidence than the 7s final in Rio including the medal ceremony. Even South Africa the Bronze medallist has some British touch. I agree with him that we owe it to the British for our civilisation, including health, education and even religion that justifies the pointing up gesture. Make no mistake, the British will be always be our friends as the PM said, but it must not be painted that we have shunned the British crown in our recent relations.

In fact it has gotten better with more of our boys recruited into the British Army. During the World War II the British Naval industry named mid-size frigates ‘Fiji Class’ and one even named HMS Fiji, but was sunk by German Focke-Wulf fighters during the Battle for Crete. But we are also an independent sovereign nation and we have every right to do our own thing within international laws in an hegemonistic manner without apologising for our acts. We must move away from this type of postcolonial submission and dependence at any cost. Such attitudes will only resurrect old class system and enslavement