Racist thugs terrorise village

By TONY WALL

VUNIKASI - Just 70kms from the international spotlight on the hostage crisis in Suva, a small village in the highlands of Viti Levu has endured a nightly reign of racial terror.

Fiji Indians in the isolated farming community of Vunikasi have had their homes pillaged and torched by gangs of masked youths armed with sticks, stones and axes. Their plight has gone unreported until now.

Each night since George Speight and his rebel soldiers stormed Parliament last Friday, Vunikasi residents have fled their homes, sleeping in the jungle or taro fields with their children and babies.

This is a province where native Fijians are fiercely loyal to Speight and his anti-Indian cause. Youths from two nearby villages have pulled on balaclavas at night and set about helping themselves to the Indians' belongings, robbing people at knifepoint and threatening to rape the women.

The Herald was alerted to the situation by an Auckland relative of Vunikasi man Rup Narayan, whose jungle home was looted and burned on Monday.

His brother Dip, who owns a Mt Albert superette, said his mother cried on the phone as she said: "I grew up with these people. He never thought his family would be targeted by villagers including a man who had been a close friend."

We set out for the village yesterday afternoon, stopping first at a police station in Nausori.

Inspector Josefa Delailomaloma said the area was dangerous, with Indian homes being "bombarded" and worse trouble expected if the Great Council of Chiefs did not vote to support Speight.

He could not spare a police escort and could not guarantee our safety. Our Fijian driver, George Reege, said he would look after us.

Driving along rocky roads, we came to the village of Gusuisavu, whose native Fijians have declared themselves protectors of local Indians they say have been good to them for many years.

A community hall in the village has been set aside for the Indians and dozens of them are using it as a sanctuary, setting up cooking and sleeping areas.

Five sturdy Gusuisavu youths got into our van for added protection and we drove on towards Vunikasi.

As we arrived at the small community (population 172), it was plain these people are living in fear. It was daylight but they emerged from their homes tentatively.

Sixteen homes have been looted or burned, and the Indian school attacked. Old women have had forks and knives held to their throats and there is an unconfirmed report of at least one woman being raped.

Farmer Rudra Deo and his family told of seven masked youths arriving at their home on Sunday night. One held an axe to the throat of his wife, Sunita Wati, as she cradled their baby, Ajay. Another waved what looked like a gun.

The thugs punched Mr Deo about the head and body, demanding money. He had just $15. They threatened to take his wife inside and rape her.

The youths then loaded flour sacks with as many of the family's belongings as they could carry - a television, video, radio, shoes, clothes, children's schoolbooks - and walked off into the night. The family were so frightened the raiders would return that they spent the night in the jungle.

Mr Narayan took us across the large Rewa River in a small boat to view the ruins of his home. The house - which, when he was just a child, he had helped his father to transform from a grass hut - was looted on Friday, Saturday and again on Sunday. The family took what was left and got out. The next day the house was torched.

Mr Narayan broke down as he remembered the home where his five brothers were born, the spot where he had set up a shrine, where he stored his children's schoolbooks. He said he would not rebuild here - the house would just be burned again.

Surrounded by our Fijian protectors, we felt guilty that we had to leave these people to another night of uncertainty and fear. Carloads of police were cruising the area but they have been ineffective so far, arresting only 17 of the hooligans.

On the way back to Suva we passed a youth on horseback with a large rock in his hand and a mean look on his face - it would be another sleepless night for the Indians of Vunikasi.

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