Britain’s Labour Party and the Anti-Colonial Labour Movement in Fiji (1945–1970)

The Labour Party in Britain achieved its first ever absolute parliamentary majority in the 1945 general election, at the tail end of the Second World War. Historically a socialist and internationalist party founded with the aim of providing parliamentary representation to trade unionists and the working class, Labour formed its first ever majority government in 1945 with a promise to accompany Britain’s colonies toward higher living standards, social fairness, economic development, and political empowerment. As part of a multifaceted set of policies towards eventual colonial self-rule, the Labour government and Britain’s Trades Union Congress aimed to foster the development of trade unions, on the British model, in all the colonies.