On the picture HE Ambassador Deo Saran.
By Baron Henri Estramant.
Monday, 10 October 2016, Brussels, ACP House: HE Ambassador Deo Saran hosted a reception to mark the independence of Fiji from British colonial rule that took place on 10 October 1970.
In Fiji and places wherein there is a sizable Fijian minority, the fête is preceded by a “Fiji Week”.
For additional pictures, please open the following link: https://www.flickr.com/photos/121611753@N07/albums/72157676116164275
Fiji achieved two historical firsts this year that were duly mentioned during the allocation of Ambassador Deo Saran; significantly for the country and for the South Pacific region as a whole is the fact that Fiji takes over the presidency of the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly as well as having had won their first gold medal in the Olympics for Rugby Sevens.
Fiji’s UN Presidency of the 71st session of the UN General Assembly runs from September 2016 to September 2017 after the Fijian Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Peter Thomson was elected on 13 June 2016.
A traditional kava-kava based drink called grog was served to the guests. It is made by pounding sun-dried kava-kava roots into a fine powder, straining and mixing it with cold water. Traditionally, grog is drunk from the shorn half-shell of a coconut, called a bilo.
For further information:
Mission of Fiji in Europe: http://www.fijiembassy.be
Accreditations of the Fijian Mission in Brussels: http://www.fijiembassy.be/index.php?page_in=accreditations
Fiji leading the UN General Assembly: http://www.un.org/press/en/2016/ga11791.doc.htm
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Photography by Alec Singh/ACP House