No planners, no bombs, no Rambos: The intellectual legacy of Amelia Rokotuivuna in Fiji and Oceania

Two years ago, my supervisor Professor Katerina Teaiwa brought me along to a dinner of Pacific feminists visiting Canberra for their annual regional meeting.Before a table of women adorned in statement earrings, bold lipsticks and avant-garde fashion with bright patterns and exaggerated silhouettes, I spoke of my intention to write this small biography of the Fijian activist Amelia Rokotuivuna.The response I received more than affirmed that her life story was worth telling.Some breathed a collective sigh, while others looked sentimental, as if remembering the warmth of a dear friend.Whether they had been told stories by those within the movement or had themselves worked alongside Rokotuivuna, it was clear she had mothered a generation of women leaders, especially those of us who hailed from Fiji.'Will the real Amelia Rokotuivuna please stand up?' a recent Fiji Times article asked, testifying to the somewhat controversial reputation that preceded her. 1 She was the definition of a yalewa kaukauwa, a strong woman, remembered by many for her brave commitment to peace and human rights, a woman who was, fundamentally, a 'funloving, warm human being'. 2Internationally and among grassroots communities, she was cherished as a Fijian feminist foremother with a 'boisterous argumentative political wit' that birthed many transnational movements across the Pacific. 3 To her critics, however, she was disparagingly viewed as the far-too-radical Fijian feminist, socialist and commoner who broke ways with tradition.She was the thorn in the side of the Fijian establishment, especially when she heckled them from the back of the room at their meetings. 4 Love her or hate her, she was a 'fiercely proud Fijian' who 'interacted with all with uncompromising honesty, regardless of their wealth, power, status or qualification'. 5She is today recalled as a 'visionary' who held views that were ahead of her time. 6 1 Meli Laddpeter, 'The Woman They Call Amelia Rokotuivuna', Fiji Times, 22 January 2023, 16. 2