Clement’s Story

Tuesday, 17 June 2008

As a Pacific islander, if there is one thing you grow up having respect for, it has got to be the ocean.

Right through to my teen years in Fiji, the Pacific Ocean was an endless source of thrills and adventures, fishing trips and life lessons. It’s also a place of deep religious and cultural significance for Fijians and Indo-Fijians.

Today, no matter where I am, if I hear the sound of waves and taste the sea, these are the things I often think about. How could I not ? My father came from a fishing community. I nearly always lived near the sea. And I spent my primary school years staring out at the ocean from my classrooms. Dreaming.

When it came time for holidays, my folks got serious. It’s when my folks bundled us off to Fijian villages or family communes in rural areas. For us, holidays in Fiji were about life lessons and immersion in Indian and Fijian culture. All of this had a huge impact on me.

This was why my brothers and I relished performing mekes (traditional Fijian dances) instead of Indian dances at school. It is probably why my family still make lovo (earth oven) in Melbourne. And it’s also why, compared to my urbane cousins, I really dig eating curries off banana leaves at a wedding feast.

But it is also why I get extremely annoyed when the Pacific rumbles occasionally. Because that’s when even close friends and acquaintances begin asking me to explain why people don’t get on in the Pacific. Especially Indians and Fijians.

Well many do.
 When I made it my mission to set the record straight about Fiji almost 10 years ago, I hadn’t realised that I would end up on a long, intense and hugely exciting Pacific odyssey.

I made my first visit to Fiji in 17 years in 1999 and soon afterwards began reporting on the region. These were years of intense instability in the Pacific. But it was during my reacquaintance with the Pacific during these years, that I became infused once again by real beat of the Pacific. The vibe of its people.

Just as I had once turned Fiji river pebbles to discover the beauty of streams teeming with life, I began rediscovering aspects of the Pacific that charmed and excited me. It simply made sense to tell the rest of the world about my people.

And when the chance came to work on a new radio program connecting the peoples of Oceania, I was simply chuffed. It made me feel like an impoverished artist being handed a massive canvas with top grade paint and paintbrushes. What’s more, we’d hand over the brushes to Pacific islanders themselves to paint their own giant mural weaving life, history and the aspirations of Oceania.

The Pacific today isn’t only about beautiful smiles, friendly people and colourful crafts to take away. These aspects of the Pacific no doubt are real. I definitely thrive on the warmth of embrace I encounter when I call or visit Tonga, Samoa , Fiji and other places. When I am there I am once again with people who know how to celebrate life. Together.

But my Pacific is also one with an ambitious and aspiring spirit. Pacific islanders are now emerging as a real force in sport, art, entertainment and the environmental movement.

Just check out some of the fastest and deadliest in rugby and football in Australia and New Zealand. Did you realise a Samoan composed the score for a Lord of the Rings film ? What about the play about a Fijian matriarch that wowed audiences on stage at the Sydney Opera House then, as a film adaptation went to score a major award at the Sundance film festival. Google “Pasifika” to check out some of the latest inspirations from the region in fashion, style and music.

And no, these achievements aren’t just big-splash items happening abroad. From Papua New Guinea to New Caledonia, Samoa to Vanutau, you’ll find scores of local musicians, artists, athletes and environmentalists enjoying iconic status in their villages, towns and cities.

Many are inspired by their heroes, the stars and family members who have found success abroad. But these overseas ones also return home, often to recharge, receive blessings and nourish their creative energies.

It’s all very simple. You hang out at family celebrations, visit the laidback bars and play rugby on the village green. And you just make the most of the smoky roasts, taro and fish in coconut sauce served up at the feasts.

I liken these visits home to reigniting a flame each one of us from the Pacific carries deep within, from the moment of birth. It might blow out occasionally across the seas. But we always know where to turn to bring it back to life.

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