Fiji’s cabinet has announced plans to repatriate the remains of Corporal Sefanaia Sukanaivalu VC, the country’s only recipient of the Victoria Cross, with the return set for June 2025.
The decision, made during a cabinet meeting this week, is expected to be a national event, honouring the bravery and sacrifice of one of Fiji’s greatest war heroes.
Sukanaivalu was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross for his courage during World War II. A member of the Fiji Infantry Regiment, he was killed in action in Papua New Guinea in 1945 while attempting to rescue wounded comrades. His actions in the face of enemy fire earned him the most prestigious decoration for valour in the British Armed Forces.
He is buried at the Bitapaka War Cemetery in East New Britain, Papua New Guinea alongside 32 other Fijian soldiers who lost their lives during the war.
To oversee the repatriation, an Inter-Agency Committee will be formed, led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The committee will be responsible for coordinating the necessary preparations culminating in a ceremony in June 2025.
The decision to repatriate Sukanaivalu’s remains was one of seven key resolutions made during the cabinet meeting yesterday. Other decisions included measures for infrastructure development, approval of Fiji’s National Carbon Market Strategy Roadmap, funding for the Ministry of Women, Children, and Social Protection, and an amendment to the Passport Act 2002 to allow the issuance of official passports to eligible senior officials for the duration of their appointments.
