Biology:Rotuma Day

From HandWiki
Rotuma Day
Official nameRotuma Day
Observed byRotumans
Celebrationswelcoming ceremony and feast called 'mamasa'
DateMay 13
Next timeMay 13, 2025 (2025-05-13)
Frequencyannual

Rotuma Day is an annual celebration on the island of Rotuma, a Fijian dependency. It falls on May 13, the anniversary of the island's cession to the United Kingdom in 1881.[1]

As there are more people of Rotuman descent outside Rotuma than on the island, celebrations are held in other centres besides Rotuma, with big events in Suva and Lautoka.[2][3]

Celebrations

The 2005 events marked the 124th anniversary of the annexation of the island to the United Kingdom.

Speaking at the Suva celebration, Fiji's High Commissioner to Australia , Major Jioje Konrote, himself a Rotuman Islander, commended Rotumans living outside Rotuma for maintaining their links to their homelands. There are some two thousand people on Rotuma, with a further ten thousand Rotumans in metropolitan Fiji.

Joji Kotobalavu, Chief Executive of the Prime Minister's office, told Rotumans that their island would always be a special part of Fiji, recognized alongside the fourteen provinces. He commended them for their disproportionate achievements and contributions towards the development of Fiji as a country, while Labour Minister Kenneth Zinck paid tribute to the many Rotumans to have distinguished themselves in the fields of education, medicine, business, and society.

References

External links