Fiji : Handicraft vendors claim their lost land
April 26, 2006/Fibre2fashion.com, India
Suva (Viti Levu) was crowded with visitors after the cruise liner arrived at harbour and 800 passengers alighted to see the sights.
But they did not know their arrival would arouse wrath of the handicraft vendors in the capital. They stopped work for two hours to protest against the relocation of Sigatoka handicraft sellers outside the Suva Curio Handicraft Market.
President of Suva Handicraft Market Vendors and Manufacturers Association, Mahen Singh said they were annoyed because Sigatoka vendors who normally sell by the seawall were shifted outside the handicraft centre.
For the last 30 years, the association had an agreement with the Suva City Council that anyone who sells handicraft within the premises must be member of the association for uniformity and safety, Singh said.