Squatting in Fiji

SQUATTING IN FIJI Jenny Bryant .. Squatters and the Church: an Inquiry into the Church's Awareness of Squatting as a Social Problem in Fiji By A. B. Suguta Columban Fathers, Suva, Fiji, 1983, 104 pp. In Squatters and the Church, Suguta sets out to make Fiji society aware of the situation of squatters and to go some of the way towards highlightin~ justices/injustices in society. The Christian church, at a time where there is pressure for it to deal with relevant, everyday issues in order to retain the respect and support of its members, is viewed by Suguta as a crucial medium in the provision of justice. While Suguta is not the first to look closely at squatting in Fiji (for example, Walsh 1978, 1979) he is one of the first to couch his work in terms of a Christian response to the issue. Suguta obviously has a purpose in writing this book. His stated aims, listed in the prologue, give the intention of providing some useful data for the church and also planners in Fiji: When did this phenomenon start? How did squatting arise? Why were some areas attractive to the squatters? How did the squatters acquire the properties they occupied? What organi sations do they have? What are their needs and how are these needs being taken care of by the State? What are the attitudes of non-squatters to this phenomenon? How has the Church respo ded to the squatters issue? (Prologue) 124 In order to answer these questions, Suguta has organised the book into twelve chapters. Discussion commences with an introduction to urban and squatter studies in Fiji and here Suguta takes the opportunity to outline the book's main themes, notably the problem of squatting from an historical perspective, as a sociological issue, and finally as a moral "problem" (p.4). Ir'\dividual chapters provide dat"a and views on the rise of towns and squatting, the different categories of squatters, their reasons for being where they are and statistics on particular settlements. The sociology of squatting is presented by applying different aspects of inequality, class, status and power to the local situation. Finally, the moral problem of squatting is revealed in a listing of squatter responses to the church and vice versa. After reading this book it is clear that some of the questions which Suguta has set out to answer, have not in fact been answered. The chapters are badly organised (for instance, statistical data on squatters on Fiji may have been more useful earlier in the book) and the introduction is brief and omits some key research (e.g Walsh 1978). Unfortunately also, Suguta appears to forget his stated aim and becomes, perhaps overly, involved in presenting to the reader a synopsis of academic disagreements on squatting. For instance, while he insists on using the term ' communi \;y' instead' of settlement because community implies relationshiRs between people, Suguta' s definition extends only to one section of a class structure, neglecting to mention that squatters i On Fiji (or elsewh~re) are not a homogeneous group. His early premise thal: Squatters belong to a group of people who, in more ways than one, are quite distinct from the rest of society (p.4) overlooks the fact that not all squatters are at the mercy of landowners and governments but some are infact themselves landowners and government officials. However, these are undoubtedly a minority, and if Suguta' s aim is to present the case of the poor and landless then the book has value. It is perhaps a pity that the area of study is nOot more closely defined. Fortunately, Suguta does not allow early premises to limit what he writes in the body of the book and he later leaves the door open for examining " •• the different types of squatters. • • their social structure and institution (sic)" (ibid). It is difficult to know at the end of the intro duction, however, just what the aim of the book is. There is no definition of squatting given (hence the problem over squatters as a single group) and the reader knows little more than the fact that squatting in Fiji will be highlighted as a major social issue. 125 From chapter two a number of unfortunate problems begin. A two-page historical background on Fiji suffers from lack of references and such broad generalisations that it fails to provide an adequate introduction to the succeeding chapter on the rise of towns. For example, Suguta's comment that: • • • the mishandling of finances and international relations by King Cakobau led to the reluctant intervention of Great BrHain and the Deed of Cession in 1874 (p.6) .may have been better omitted since the history of Cession is infinitely more complex. The chapter on urbanisation in Fiji provides little of the analysis needed if the book is to' examine the reasons for the growth of squatter settlements. Works by Rajesh Chandra on internal migration are ignored when they could have provided a solid background to what is a very complex movement. Chapter four, which discusses schools of thought on squatting does not demonstrate sufficiently the relevance of the theoretical models presented to the Fiji situation. Where an attempt is made, for instance in the discussion of the 'ecological school', its relevance is written off in the observation that: • • • in Fiji squatting could not be explained as an essentially ecological phenomenon (p.20), and that the ecological school is an "essentially American Goncept" (p.19). One might ask whether the criticism stems from the fact that discussing squatting in terms of human ecology is irrelevant (which it clearly is not) or whether it is simply American. This would seem to be an inadequate reason for rejection. By chapter five the reader is told that squatting is essentially a legal problem. This had not been made clear earlier and should have been stressed in the previous chapter. The discussion of a number of squatter settlements in Suva is tantal isingly brief and could have benefitted from more data. What material is provided (in chapters' 6 and 9) is interspersed with chapters on common views of squatters and SUbsistence strategies. Some reorganisation of the chapters would have added substance to the data presentation which ' could have been one of the strengths of the book. Any writer benefits a great deal from good editing. A major problem 126 when months or even years are spent in the preparation of a book, is the lack of detachment from the content. Suguta would have benefitted from editorial assistance. Chapters should have been rearranged for more consis tency and to allow arguments to be follailed through. Dates and references should have been carefully checked (for example, Walsh's Ph.D. thesis was from Massey University,- not Waikato) and typographical errors (e.g., concerd, missiory, administratie) corrected. The bibliography is particularly poor with few dates, incorrect names, and numerous inconsistencies. Such faults may be regarded as minor in the context of a contribution to the very sparse collection of literature on squatting in Fiji, but they should be taken note of, should a new edition ever be prepared. Sadly, the most unfortunate aspect of Squatters and the Church is to do with the originality of some of the material. Suguta has been so influ enced by what he has read that he either cannot or does not distinguish between his own ideas and those of other writers. Chapter seven on common views of squatters, takes as his own, A.A. Laquian's discussion in Slums are for People (1971: 30-33) on attitudes which perpetuate the lack of concern for squatters, and uses them in the Fiji context. While I initially thought that Suguta had at least tried to apply Laquian's work to squatting in Fiji, by the use of examples, I found that the majority of examples provided were from Walsh (1978: 263-366). Walsh is acknailledged once, where his survey is mentioned, but never again, and Laquian not at all in this chapter. The use of other people's work for one's own is common practice through out the world, but it is not only poor scholarship, it also does nothing to further our store of knowledge. This book on squatting in Fiji is valuable in that it brings the plight of squatters to the attention of a wider group of people than a more academic W(jJrk may have done, and it is particularly useful for people in the church, some of whom may, until now, have tended to overlook squatters as being not worthy of their attention (see for inst ance chapter 11). It is unfortunate that Suguta chose to lean so heavily on the work of other writers, whose style is instantly recognisable to people familiar with works in this field. This is not to condone this practice if the sources had not been recognised, but to make- a plea for good editing before a book is even considered for publication. Leaving technical questions aside however, Aloesi Suguta, a welfare worker in Fiji, should be commended for translating a research interest from his days at the University of the South Pacific, into a'rtive partici pation. Squatters and the Church is potentially of great value to the church 127 and to a government which is currently greatly concerned about what is often termed the 'squatter problem'. The pUblication ~f a book on what is sometimes a touchy subject, particularly when the debate on the nature of squatting, raging in much of the Third World, has scarcely reached Fiji, can only be welcomed.

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