20/05/2026
To the Government of Australia and the leaders involved with the Nakamal Agreement,
The people of Vanuatu are watching carefully, and many of us are deeply frustrated and angry.
We are angry because every time foreign powers speak about agreements, infrastructure, influence, and political interests, it feels like the voice of the indigenous people of Vanuatu becomes smaller and smaller.
The nakamal is not just a building.
The nakamal is not just politics.
The nakamal is not just a cultural symbol.
The nakamal is the heartbeat of our identity.
It is where wisdom is shared.
It is where chiefs guide the people.
It is where decisions are made according to kastom, unity, and respect.
So when we hear that “critical infrastructure” is being used as a reason behind delays connected to the Nakamal Agreement, many citizens feel offended and disrespected.
We ask:
Why should foreign interests have influence over the traditional values of our nation?
Why should another country have power over matters connected to our kastom and our identity?
Why are Pacific nations always expected to wait for permission from bigger countries?
Vanuatu is an independent nation.
We are not a colony.
We are not a puppet.
We are not a nation that should bow down because bigger countries hold money or political influence.
Our ancestors protected this land before modern governments existed.
Our chiefs carried wisdom before foreign systems arrived.
Our people survived colonization, cyclones, hardship, and struggle.
And we will continue to stand.
This message is also for the leaders of Vanuatu.
The people elected you to protect the dignity of this nation.
Not to weaken it.
Not to allow foreign pressure to overpower the spirit of our kastom.
Leadership is about courage.
Leadership is about standing firm.
Leadership is about protecting the soul of Vanuatu.
The people deserve transparency.
The people deserve truth.
The people deserve respect.
Do not forget:
The land belongs to the indigenous people.
The culture belongs to the indigenous people.
The future belongs to the next generation.
No foreign agreement should ever become more important than the identity of our nation.
We are Melanesian people.
We are proud people.
We are strong people.
And we refuse to become strangers in our own country.
To every foreign government that thinks Pacific nations are weak:
Never mistake our kindness for weakness.
Never mistake our respect for surrender.
Never mistake our silence for agreement.
The Pacific is waking up.
For too long, island nations have been treated like strategic locations instead of human beings with culture, dignity, and sovereignty.
Vanuatu does not need to lose its soul to gain development.
Vanuatu does not need to abandon its traditions to gain partnerships.
Vanuatu does not need foreign control disguised as friendship.
Real friendship respects sovereignty.
Real friendship respects culture.
Real friendship listens.
If Australia truly respects Vanuatu, then it must respect the voice of the people and the sacred importance of kastom.
We say clearly:
Do not interfere with our identity.
Do not disrespect our chiefs.
Do not undermine our traditional systems.
Do not treat Vanuatu as if our future can be shaped without the will of the people.
The fire inside the youth of Vanuatu is growing.
Not a fire of violence.
But a fire of awakening, unity, dignity, and respect.
This generation will speak.
This generation will rise.
This generation will defend the spirit of Vanuatu peacefully but boldly.
We stand for sovereignty.
We stand for kastom.
We stand for truth.
We stand for the future of Vanuatu.
“Woe to those who make unjust laws, to those who issue oppressive decrees.” — Isaiah 10:1
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves; ensure justice for those being crushed.” — Proverbs 31:8
“Stand firm therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage.” — Galatians 5:1
Vanuatu i stanap strong.
Vanuatu i no fraet.
Vanuatu bae i no foldaon long eni foreign pressure.
God bless Vanuatu. 🇻🇺
VIEW Foundation
