Human rights defen
AS Fijians celebrated International Human Rights Day on Tuesday, participants of the Women Defend Commons symposium on Kadavu celebrated the day to clean up along the Vunisea foreshore.
Diverse Voices and Action for Equality or ‘DIVA for Equality’s’ executive director Noelene Nabulivou said International Human Rights was about social-economic ecological climate justice.
Ms Nabulivou said one of the things that people in cities focused more on were civil and political rights when other things like having access to clean water, food, environment mattered also.
“If you do not have full access to that then it is difficult for you to say that you have full access to your human rights because these are the fundamentals,” she said.
“Our economic and social rights are fundamental to human rights.
“Government talks a lot about these rights but we have to do a lot more about it on the ground.
“The distribution of services and social security is important in every maritime area too.”
Over 60 women attending the eight-day symposium took to the Vunisea foreshore to clean up the beachfront which is the gateway to the maritime islands off the main island of Kadavu.
Symposium participant Senimili Vakasigaleka said the clean-up was timely considering that climate change was an issue faced by people in the maritime areas.
Ms Vakasigaleka said Pacific Islander’s human rights were being affected by the increasing sea levels as they were forced to move to new locations as their present homes became inundated with seawater.