R. D. Patel
Raojibhai Dahyabhai Patel was an Indo-Fijian lawyer and politician, who was better known as the younger brother of A. D. Patel. To distinguish between the two, he was generally referred to as R.D. A member of parliament from 1966 until 1976, he was Speaker of the House of Representatives between 1972 and 1976. Early life R.D. Patel was born in the Kheda district of Gujarat in India. He arrived in Fiji after his brother had established his law practice in Nadi. Like his brother, he was a lawyer and worked together with him before establishing his own law practice in Ba. Political career In the elections for the expanded Legislative Council in 1966, he was nominated for the Ba Indian Constituency. This was the most marginal seat in the 1963 election, in which Sidiq Koya had managed to defeat James Shankar Singh by only 518 votes. With the redrawing of the constituency's boundaries, the seat had become even harder for the Federation Party (NFP) to win, but after a hard cam ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Legislative Council Of Fiji
The Legislative Council of Fiji was the colonial precursor to the present-day Parliament, which came into existence when Fiji became independent on 10 October 1970. The first Legislative Council Immediately after Fiji was ceded to the United Kingdom, on 10 October 1874, the first Governor, Sir Hercules Robinson, established an Executive Council with himself as President and comprising six other Europeans. This was a temporary measure to make policy decisions necessary to found and legitimise the new Colonial Government and to carry out the day-to-day affairs of the Government. With the arrival of Sir Arthur Gordon, on 1 September 1875, a permanent machinery for governing the new colony was established. In addition to the Executive Council, Gordon established a Legislative Council composed entirely of nominated members, of whom six were official (public officers, usually heads of Government departments), including the Governor of Fiji, the Colonial Secretary (the day-to-da ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sidiq Koya
Siddiq Moidin Koya (29 February 1924 – 25 April 1993) was a Fijian Indian politician, Statesman and Opposition leader. He succeeded to the leadership of the mostly Indo-Fijian National Federation Party (NFP) on the death of the party's founder, A. D. Patel, in October 1969, remaining in this post until 1977. He later served a second term as leader of the NFP, from 1984 to 1987. Koya is credited with his role in paving the way for Fijian independence from Britain in 1970. The National Federation Party had been opposing plans for independence without significant changes to the constitution. The NFP, in particular, wanted a legislature to be elected by universal suffrage from a common electoral roll of all voters – a demand rejected by the main ethnic Fijian politicians, who wanted a communal franchise with parliamentary seats allocated among the different ethnic groups, elected from ethnic electoral rolls. Sidiq Koya was more willing to compromise than his predecessor, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fijian Hindus
Hinduism in Fiji has a following primarily among Indo-Fijians, the descendants of indentured workers brought to Fiji by the British as cheap labor for colonial sugarcane plantations. Hindus started arriving in Fiji starting in 1879 and continuing through 1920, when Britain abolished the slavery-like indenture system. Fiji identifies people as "Indo-Fijians" if they can trace their ancestry to the Indian subcontinent, Hindus form about 27.9% the population of Fiji. History Fiji became part of the British colonial empire in 1874.John Kelly (1992), A Politics of Virtue: Hinduism, Sexuality, and Countercolonial Discourse in Fiji, University of Chicago Press, , pp. 1-39 A few years later, in 1879, the British government brought the first Indians on coolie ships, as indentured laborers to work in the sugarcane plantations of Fiji owned by British colonial officials.James Lochtefeld, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism: A-M, , pp. 228 By 1919, about 60,000 Indians had been brough ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gujarati People
The Gujarati people or Gujaratis, are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who reside in or can trace their ancestry or heritage to the present-day western Indian state of Gujarat. They primarily speak Gujarati, an Indo-Aryan language. While Gujaratis mainly inhabit Gujarat, they have a diaspora worldwide. Gujaratis in India and the diaspora are prominent entrepreneurs and industrialists and maintain high levels of social capital. Many notable independence activists were Gujarati, including Gandhi, Patel, and Jinnah, as well as the current Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi. Geographical locations Despite significant migration primarily for economic reasons, most Gujaratis in India live in the state of Gujarat in Western India. Gujaratis also form a significant part of the populations in the neighboring metropolis of Mumbai and union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, which was a former Portuguese colony. There are very large Gujarati immigrant com ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Speakers Of The House Of Representatives (Fiji)
Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In poetry, the literary character uttering the lyrics of a poem or song, as opposed to the author writing the words of that character; see Character (arts) Electronics * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers, speakers sold for use with computers ** Speaker driver, the essential electromechanical element of the loudspeaker Arts, entertainment and media * Los Speakers (or "The Speakers"), a Colombian rock band from the 1960s * ''The Speaker'' (periodical), a weekly review published in London from 1890 to 1907 * ''The Speaker'' (TV series), a 2009 BBC television series * "Speaker" (song), by David Banner * "Speakers" (Sam Hunt song), 2014 * ''The Speaker'', the second book in Traci Chee's Sea of Ink and Gold trilog ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Indian Members Of The Legislative Council Of Fiji
The number of Fiji Indians that could be elected to the Legislative Council was fixed over the years as follows: * 1916 - 1929 - one nominated member. * 1929 - 1937 - three elected members. * 1937 - 1963 - three elected and two nominated members. * 1963 - 1966 - four elected and two nominated. * 1966 - 1972 - nine elected from communal constituencies and three from cross-voting constituencies. List of Indian members * Badri Maharaj (1916–1923, 1926–1929) was the first Indian member of the Legislative Council in Fiji. He was nominated by the Governor in 1916 and was not very popular with Fiji Indians who wanted Manilal Doctor to be their representative. Maharaj resigned in 1923 in opposition to a proposed poll tax, but was re-nominated in 1926. He remained a member until 1929 when Indians were elected for the first time. * Vishnu Deo (1929, 1937–1959) was first elected in 1929. He sat in the Council for only 2 weeks before walking out in protest at his proposal for commo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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National Federation Party Politicians
National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, census-designated place * National, Nevada, ghost town * National, Utah, ghost town * National, West Virginia, unincorporated community Commerce * National (brand), a brand name of electronic goods from Panasonic * National Benzole (or simply known as National), former petrol station chain in the UK, merged with BP * National Car Rental, an American rental car company * National Energy Systems, a former name of Eco Marine Power * National Entertainment Commission, a former name of the Media Rating Council * National Motor Vehicle Company, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA 1900-1924 * National Supermarkets, a defunct American grocery store chain * National String Instrument Corporation, a guitar company formed to manufacture the first r ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Indian Emigrants To Fiji
Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asian ethnic groups, referring to people of the Indian subcontinent, as well as the greater South Asia region prior to the 1947 partition of India * Anglo-Indians, people with mixed Indian and British ancestry, or people of British descent born or living in the Indian subcontinent * East Indians, a Christian community in India Europe * British Indians, British people of Indian origin The Americas * Indo-Canadians, Canadian people of Indian origin * Indian Americans, American people of Indian origin * Indigenous peoples of the Americas, the pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Americas and their descendants ** Plains Indians, the common name for the Native Americans who lived on the Great Plains of North America ** Native Americans in ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gujarat Education Society Of Fiji
Gujarat (, ) is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories of India by area, fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the List of states and union territories of India by population, ninth-most populous state, with a population of 60.4 million. It is bordered by Rajasthan to the northeast, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu to the south, Maharashtra to the southeast, Madhya Pradesh to the east, and the Arabian Sea and the Pakistani province of Sindh to the west. Gujarat's capital city is Gandhinagar, while its largest city is Ahmedabad. The Gujarati people, Gujaratis are indigenous to the state and their language, Gujarati language, Gujarati, is the state's official language. The state List of Indus Valley civilisation sites#List of Indus Valley sites discovered, encompas ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gujaratis In Fiji
Unlike the bulk of Fiji's Indian population, who are descendants of Indian indentured labourers brought to Fiji between 1879 and 1916, the Gujaratis came to Fiji as free immigrants beginning in 1904. While the indentured labourers, on becoming free, generally took up farming, the Gujaratis were traders and craftsmen. In the Indo-Fijian population as a whole, the caste system disappeared within a few years of indenture, but the Gujaratis still maintain it and very rarely marry outside their caste. The Gujaratis continue to maintain strong links with India, usually sending their sons and daughters to be married there while the rest of Fiji's Indian population have little contact with their country of origin. Arrival of Gujaratis in Fiji The first Gujaratis in Fiji were two goldsmiths (of the ''Sonar'' caste), who arrived in Fiji in 1904 from Natal, but were originally from Porbandar in the Kathiawar district of Gujarat with the support of Totaram Sanadhya. Four years later, oth ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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September 1977 Fijian General Election
Early general elections were held in Fiji between 17 and 24 September 1977. They followed elections in March which resulted in a hung parliament and no party able to gain a majority. The new election resulted in a landslide win for the Alliance Party (Fiji) led by Prime Minister Kamisese Mara, which won 36 seats out of 52. It was aided by a split in the main opposition, the National Federation Party (NFP) and a decline in support for the Fijian Nationalist Party. Background The March elections had seen the NFP win 26 seats, the Alliance 24, the Fijian Nationalist Party one and an independent one. With divisions apparent in the NFP, Governor-General George Cakobau asked Alliance Party leader and incumbent Prime Minister Kamisese Mara to form a government, claiming that Mara was able to command a majority. However, in June the Alliance Party attempted to pass a motion of confidence in the government but lost as the sole Fijian Nationalist Party MP voted against. At the end of ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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March 1977 Fijian General Election
General elections were held in Fiji between 19 March and 2 April 1977. As a result of a split in the ethnic Fijian vote, the ruling Alliance Party of Prime Minister Kamisese Mara suffered a narrow defeat. Although the Alliance Party received the most votes, it won only 24 seats, two fewer than the Indo-Fijian-dominated National Federation Party (NFP). One seat was won by the Fijian Nationalist Party, with the remaining seat going to an independent candidate, Osea Gavidi. Although the NFP emerged as the largest party, Governor-General George Cakobau asked Mara to form a new government, claiming that he had the support of the majority of the House. The new government remained in office until early elections in September the same year. Results Around 25% of the Fijian vote went to the new Fijian Nationalist Party of Sakeasi Butadroka, [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |