25th October, 2006

Remarks at Closing of Pacific Islands Leaders Forum
Denarau, Nadi

All that remains for me now is to thank each of you for your attendance of this, the 37^th Forum.

I know that what draws us together to this annual gathering is not just that we come to speak for, and to represent, our people.  Our attendance also reflects our collective concern and strong commitment to our region – to make it a region of peace, stability and prosperity – for all our peoples.

Yesterday, at the traditional ceremonies to welcome you, all those who made the presentations wore brown masi or tapa cloth, signifying that they are of chiefly rank.  In welcoming you, and addressing you, as chiefly guests, the common message they were expressing was the hope that in dealing with the issues in our agenda we would do so in the same traditional way that Chiefs in Fiji dealt with their people.  In this, the essence of the relationship between chiefs and their people, is what we in Fiji call veirogorogoci.

It is about listening respectfully and patiently to one another, and being resolutely committed to promoting a common understanding through discussions and consensus.

And that, I am pleased to proudly acknowledge today was precisely how the Leaders approached the issues before them at yesterday’s Retreat.

We all came to this Forum “fired up” by particular issues of profound concern to each one of us.  We were looking at the same picture from different perspectives, conditioned in this by differences in our cultural outlook and national circumstances.

But at the end of it all, and from memory it was the longest ever, and one of the most challenging of Retreats, consensus prevailed.  We succeeded in maintaining the Forum tradition of resolving issues through honest and sincere dialogue and consensus.

The history of the Forum tells us that despite media headlines and stories, the Pacific Way rules.

We have again demonstrated here at the 37^th Forum that, together, we are bigger than the particular issues that separate us. 

As the Forum family of nations, the ties that bind us, and our mutual concerns, have led us to the various decisions that are recorded in the Communiqué of our meeting.  Now that these agreements are in place, we will move forward as a family.

The decisions we have taken are wide-ranging in nature and underlines the reality that we are no longer a region that exists in isolation.  Our future irreversibly depends on how we relate to the wider world and promote our collective interests together as part of a global community. 

In the ultimate, however, the prime cause for which we are here is to focus on the economic and social development and good-governance concerns within our region.  The core concern that brings us together is our determination to create a better life for our peoples through cooperation and sharing. 

We must consolidate and build on relations with our two bigger and more prosperous neighbours, Australia and New Zealand.  There is mutual benefit in this.  Regional cooperation cannot work properly without them.

The development we seek must bring improvements to education, health services, water supplies, housing, roads, electricity, and governance. 

We have to achieve higher economic growth, improved productivity, and lift our exports.  It is trade within the region and beyond that will give us the ability to support ourselves without perpetual dependence on aid.

 There are two other factors of compelling importance to us, and to our very survival.  We must find ways of protecting all that is good in our unique cultures in the face of universal mass consumerism. And we must do everything we can to conserve our Oceanic environment, an environment that, with our cultures, defines us and our place in the world.  The Pacific Plan has measures to help us achieve this.

Colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, yesterday we heard from Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare that this could be his last Forum.  May I, on all our behalf, pay tribute to him as the bridge between those pioneering leaders who established the Forum, and we the Leaders of today.  We respect him as an elder statesperson in our region.  Nobody but the Almighty knows what the future holds for him, but we all wish him well.

Colleagues and Ladies and gentlemen, thank you again for attending this 37^th Summit of Pacific Forum Leaders. It is another step to a new future for the Forum.  Please enjoy the rest of your stay in Fiji. 

We wish you a safe journey on your return home.  And May God Bless you All.

****