DELIBERATIONS from Dialogue Fiji and Citizens’ Constitutional Forum’s Dialogue on Ethnic Relations next month will be fed into the CSO report to the UN’s Committee on Elimination of Racial Discrimination.
This was the word from Dialogue Fiji executive director Nilesh Lal. He said discussions on race relations needed to be held on a more broader scale because many issues responsible for Fiji’s turbulent political past, remained unresolved.
“It is therefore critical that we initiate dialogue on some of these key issues so that greater understanding is developed across ethnic, political, religious and ideological divides,” he said.
Mr Lal added that faith leaders also needed to play their role in fostering good relations between different ethnic groups.
“Religion has also played a major role in Fijian politics and has greatly impacted our development trajectory,” he said.
“Thus, we believe that religious leaders have a role to play in fostering social cohesion in our society and on day two of the dialogue, we will hear from key religious leaders in our country on their commitments to improving race relations and building social cohesion.”
The Dialogue on Ethnic Relations, funded by the European Union, will be held at the Pearl South Pacific Resort in Pacific Harbour from November 9 to 11.
