Commerce and Industry

Like so many other things in Fiji, commerce and industry is defined along racial lines. Throughout the early part of the 20thcentury, big business such as retail, manufacturing, sugar and copra, wholesaling, importing and exporting, and construction, were controlled by overseas organisations or local Europeans. The smaller retail shops were owned by Indians and many of the corner shops, bakeries and market gardens were in the hands of Chinese, while Fijians were confined to the produce markets. A story attributed to the esteemed Fijian leader Ratu Sir Lala Sukuna says it all: A Fijian, a European, an Indian, and