Foreign Minister’s Statements on Tonga’s Laws Spark Controversy
What amounts to an own goal, previous statements by Foreign Minister Fekita Utoikamanu has caused questions and concern for misrepresenting the country to the world.
Recent remarks by Utoikamanu on 531pi FM in New Zealand, and expanded on by an article on Pacific Media Network, portrays Tonga’s laws are aimed as oppressing women and their rights.
The article states “Tonga’s laws prevent women from owning land, the only Pacific Island nation to have such legislation.”
For authority the article states the Minister’s “extensive career as a diplomat”, and a “global gender champion.”
However, this has caused extreme bewilderment, pity and indignation from local leaders, including former Prime Minister and Life Peer Lord Sevele of Vailahi.
“I would have thought that her extensive career as a civil servant and a diplomat in the Foreign Affairs ministry would have afforded her better understanding of Tongan laws and their proper interpretation,” Sevele stated.
“Tongan women are absolutely free to own land in Tonga by way of leasehold and for up to 99 years, and are absolutely free to do whatever they wish with that land. They can sell that lease as they wish, mortgage it, give it away, will it as they wish, built houses – residential, business, and so on.
By contrast, men in Tonga own their residential land plot (town allotment –‘api kolo) and farmland (tax allotment – ‘api ‘uta) but cannot sell it, nor mortgage it other than for improvement to the property for up to only 30 years, nor will it nor give it away. The male heir has inheritance title to it.”
And it is clear that Tonga’s land tenure system is accepted by the Tongan population at large.
“It’s unfortunate that Fekita harbours such sentiments which are utterly wrong, considering she’s the country’s top diplomat” Sevele continues.
With these inflammatory remarks against our beloved country’s name, and standing in the world, Sevele says that Fekita Utoikamanu should apologise to His Majesty, the Nobles and the people of Tonga.
In concluding this interview with Lord Sevele, he says that
“In the region and beyond, Tonga’s land laws and related historical policies are among the best – visionary, extremely protective of its own citizens and family links, retaining and maintaining the essence of it culture and tradition.
In Tonga’s nearest neighbors, at least 80% of the lands are still communally-held, and the process of liberating for individual freeholding or long term ownership by women is torturously difficult. In fact, their earliest land legislation appears to have been substantially based on Tonga’s land laws.
Why don’t we all tell the world the truth – that in Tongan culture and tradition, we put our women on a pedestal higher than anywhere else in this wide world.”
