Indo-Fijian: A Melting Pot of Cultural Confusion

Coolie. A slur that has thankfully lost prominence this century, and is unlikely to make a comeback unless someone decides to use it as a band name - which has happened more than once. This word kept popping up like a pimple when I did research on Indian labourers in Fiji. It refers to people, often South or East Asians, who were brought to other countries to work in mines or on plantations. The difference was that, unlike slaves, indentured labourers were on contracts and were technically hired to do work. But by the time these contracts ended, these labourers ended up with hybrid cultures that were a mix of their own cultural, colonial influences and the influence of the indigenous population. 

This topic came to mind when I called Healthline for my vaccination appointment. The woman who handled my call said that I was also classified as Pasifika. I thought I would be under ‘Asian’. Well, that’s what I chose when I had to fill out those forms in school with my pen under the ethnicity section before a math test. I’d shade it in by drawing circles until the spot turned into a gaping black hole. My parents are Fiji-Indians whose families had been in Fiji for generations, but I am a first-gen Kiwi. How did this cultural combo happen? How did I become culturally confused? It comes down to the C-word that rules them all: colonialism. 

In 1879, when Fiji was being bothered by pale men in breeches, the Leonidas was the first boat to bring indentured Indian labourers to Fiji. They were ‘hired’ and contracted to work in places like sugar cane farms. I guess it was easier to import people from a country that’s already been colonised than start again from scratch, eh? These work contracts were called Girmit - a corruption of the English word ‘agreement’. ‘Agreement’ is misleading since exploitation and deception were rife. These ‘agreements’ would last for five years, and these labourers came to be known as ‘Girmityas’ or 'coolies', if you wanted to be rude. After that, labourers were free to do what they wanted. I use the term ‘free’ very loosely. That was because it wasn’t a straightforward coloniser-colonised relationship, and when it came to their identities as Fijians, they existed stateless and rootless. Often, labourers-to-be were lulled to Fiji with the promise of a better future and ending up with a yearning to go back home. 

After the British left, there were disputes over land and the status of Indo-Fijians who were not originally from Fiji but couldn’t go back to India. The reasons for not going back to India ranged from lack of money or because there was nothing in India left for them anymore. It had become too much of a distant country both physically and culturally. So, when the land was reclaimed, many Indo-Fijians either had to make do with what housing was available or moved out of the country - if they were able to, or lucky enough. 

I found out that this year in May, the Fiji-Indian community in Auckland wanted to be recognised as Pasifika instead of Asian. Over the years, Indo-Fijian culture has changed, so it has become distinct from Indians from India. There are a few differing opinions about how people want to categorise themselves, which creates even more confusion. Growing up, I had a cousin who was half Indian and half Samoan, but she never really acknowledged her Indo-Fijian side. Well, until she got married because Indian weddings do not hold back on extravagance. I mean, people don’t talk about it, but she would cherry-pick the parts of her two cultures that would make her look ‘cool’. There definitely is a lot of self-hatred and cultural cringe that comes with having such a complicated cultural history, and it manifests in bad ways. If you researched Indo-Fijian mental health, you’d probably find mental health problems that go undiagnosed. They are not talked about openly due to family shame, which could lead to worse problems down the tracks and generational trauma (one of the worst things to inherit). 

I was a bit reluctant to do this piece because I don’t like talking about myself (it’s just a party-pooper, y’know?). But after that Healthline call and memories of being asked ‘what are you?’ resurfaced, I decided this could be worth writing about. There has also been the issue of whether Pasifika scholarships should apply to Indo-Fijians, which opens up controversy in itself. But it seems like being Indo-Fijian is controversial in itself. It becomes easier to be forgotten than for others to make room for you. 

It wasn’t an ideal situation. Once, I brought up the issue of indentured labourers in class and wondered how they would fit into the indigenous land debate. They often were misled into coming to a newly colonised land and were also victims of colonisation. But even lecturers with PhDs couldn’t come up with an answer, only sympathy. People in similar boats (bad pun - I’m sorry) included other indentured Indian labourers in the West Indies, like Jamaica and the Caribbean. For example, Chinese labourers worked on sugar plantations in the Caribbean and in silver mines in Peru. I can’t speak for their experiences, but I at least want to mention them because it shows that their stories won’t be forgotten. 

As far as the Fiji context goes, it leaves a whole population of people in an awkward spot. Originally, Fiji has had a rough history. At one point, Indians and Fijians went to separate schools. My father used to be a high school teacher in Fiji, and after losing his shit on some lazy students, he said, "education is the only strength you have". It was the only certainty in a world where political relations can and have changed very quickly. It’s better now, though. Schools are no longer separated; I have relatives who still live in Fiji, where schools teach Fijian, Hindi and English. But history has left its mark. We exist in an awkward space that is not truly recognised and leads to many categorising ourselves as ‘other’.