Shops close for funeral
RATU Sir George Kadavulevu Cakobau was appointed Governor-General in 1973, becoming the first indigenous Fijian to serve as the representative of the late Queen Elizabeth II.
During his passing, the city of Suva joined Bau Island in the mourning of the Vunivalu.
Only a few shops were open for business, while still shutters graced most others.
An article published by The Fiji Times on December 8, 1989, said under bright sunshine, only a trickle of people moved through the city’s deserted streets like solitary ants moving across the grief of a nation.
Across the bay, rain clouds gathered over the mountains and beyond Lami, casting a gloom across the harbor and dispelling the normally cheerful influence of the sun.
There was an eerie stillness in the air, almost like the calm before a storm with an almost rustic lethargy prevalant in the concrete-and-steel valley of Suva.
The usually packed Suva market was empty where only a handful of vendors sold their produce from a section across the road from the wharf.
Buses and taxis provided a skeleton service to cater for the small number of traveling public.
Even the airwaves were paying tribute with FM 96 playing mellow songs all day as a mark of respect for Radio Fiji’s live broadcasts of a funeral service from the islands.
Nightclubs and restaurants were closed for business as homage, while planned Christmas functions were either cancelled or postponed to a later date.
Flags continued its solemn vigil at half-mast around the city.
Hammers and welding rods were put down in Walu Bay as factory doors remain closed.
Towns in the Northern Division also had a quiet day as the residents and businessmen shared in mourning ther late Vunivalu.
Most shops in Labasa remained closed for business and a check by The Fiji Times team found only four milk bars in the town open.
The hardware kitchen was open for business but closed between 10am and 2pm as a mark of respect.
Only five taxis were at Labasa taxi stand and no buses operated except for the daily service from Savusavu.
A few of the town’s resident strolled through the streets, but most stayed at home and shared bowls of yadona while listening to the funeral service on the radio.
In Savusavu all but two shops were closed and streets were clear of people for most of the day.
Seqaqa and the island of Taveuni were also quite with no taxis running and shops closed.
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