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Felicia is, uh, Cook Island Samoan, and she's a professional Polynesian cultural entertainer, is descended from a line of master weavers and has used and extended this knowledge to produce costumes in the Miss South Pacific beauty pageants. From 1995 to 2000, she has won major awards in several categories. At these events, Felicia works for the New Zealand AIDS Foundation. On their HIV [00:00:30] prevention response for Pacifica, she uses an evidence based model that builds healthy and strong social environments and develops strong and supportive communities. She also focuses on peer leadership and developing skills in community members to deliver services and programmes within their own communities. Felicia, Welcome. [00:01:00] Thank you very much, Mary, for the introduction. Firstly, I'd like to acknowledge a and to the many New Zealanders here today, thank you for hosting such an outstanding event. I would like to also thank management the cooks, the cleaners who have feared us and cleaned up after us and made us feel so welcome for [00:01:30] us to my Pacific sisters and brothers. Although soon it will be farewell, I can honestly say it is wonderful to see the Pacific finally being represented and saying this I give sincere thanks to the Kingdom of the Netherlands for getting us here to Barry Taylor and Jack Burn for your [00:02:00] assistance to our Asian and international delegates. I need not say welcome, but I wish you safe travels home, Maori and a as you know, my name is Felicia Barton and I'm currently the programme coordinator [00:02:30] for international development at the New Zealand AIDS Foundation. But it's also important to note that I'm not here with my NZAF cap on today. I'm here actually, as a Pacific delegate. I'm of Cook Island American and a, uh, American and Australian descent raised by a Tongan stepfather but founded upon a upbringing. I identify as and also [00:03:00] I'm not here today to speak to make you laugh. I am not here today to make you cry nor disrespect anyone or group. I'm here today to make a serious statement about how we feel in the Pacific based on my observations of my work thus far. And after speaking to the many of you in this room during the last three days, I was initially going to emphasise what is going on in the Pacific. What work is happening [00:03:30] currently, what has been achieved and the challenges going forward. But since being here, I think that a movement amongst US Pacific people is ready to burst. Perhaps it's a combination of a few journeys that have been woven together. Perhaps it is the people who have been and are now involved. Perhaps it is the wonderful setting of the capital city of Aotearoa, which not too long ago had its first [00:04:00] Taku mayoral candidate in this and later on the world's first Taku member of parliament, Mr Georgina Baer. Although the topic today is movement building for change raising the Pacific Rainbow, I want to touch on some very important topics raised by the two previous Pacific keynote speakers who captured the history of the term so eloquently and made reference to the umbrella term LGBTI as a term [00:04:30] that has no reference to US specific peoples but rather a reference term akin to something more medical, which refers to sickness or to fit groups within groups within groups which goes against the very fabric of of traditional Pacific terminology for us as a group and miss from the association who captivated us with an in depth overview of the place that culture, respect and guardianship of spirits has in place of the in Samoan. [00:05:00] Amongst many other discussions this week, there were key points which I need to raise with you all today. My failure to do so would be an injustice to this amazing vibe and sense of pride. Um, I am feeling right now. So here is my hit list one, the use of the abbreviated term LGBTI and why it doesn't fit in with US Pacific peoples. Two. [00:05:30] The inclusion of our culturally appropriate identity terms three nonrepresentational Pacific peoples at Asia Pacific and Global Forums. The global use of the LGBTI abbreviation is overwhelming. It is a term we know so many ethnicities and people use with pride around the world. It is a term we in the Pacific understand and have been bundled into bundled into for no apparent reason other than that of application [00:06:00] and the absence of any other term. All Pacific peoples with a different sexual orientation to straighten heterosexuals shall shall be henceforth collectively called LGBTI. Granted, it has history, and it has a place in Western civilization. But in the Pacific it shows passive ignorance, ignorance on the part of the agencies and the governments that use this label this term to label us. I've said it before. LGBT S name and meanings do not belong to us in the Pacific. [00:06:30] It is not how we identify ourselves. It is not relevant to our place in society. It saddens and hurts me because I've heard a few whispers around the town hall during the conference around. Well, if their patron is the prime minister, then why haven't they signed the joint statement? I am assuming they are referring to the joint statement on ending acts of violence and related human rights violations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. What they don't see is the lobbying work [00:07:00] of the FAI Association at the United Nations level, and given that Samoa has just had its elections with a crossover period of caretaker government in which no treaties can be ratified or major decisions made until a new government is sworn in, perhaps that is the real reason why we agree and see the relevance of pressuring our governments to endorse this joint statement, and we see the benefits of its universality. Make no mistake about that, [00:07:30] but before we even get to ink on paper in order to achieve an endorsement of this kind or any kind, we want to make sure that reference to the culturally appropriate terms for us are used so that there is no more relevance to do so that there is more relevance to documents and that they are not bypassed because it is made reference to LGBTI. Not only that, but it makes sense that the percentage of ours and our leaders will be much higher, that using [00:08:00] that using what are considered in the Pacific to be culturally insensitive words in terminology. The simple government officer who sits and screens the prime minister's inbox may not relate to LGBTI as having anything to do with. And it's often the reality in our countries, because our Strait Pacific island community don't get LGBTI, [00:08:30] they get our traditional terms and our definitions. We Pacific peoples here today have a responsibility in being a part of the Rainbow family to apply pressure to the government in the Pacific when endorsements like this need to be committed to. But if it has no cultural reference relevance to us, it places unnecessary barriers with our leaders to even see the importance [00:09:00] it has on us, especially when they are, especially when there are very few crimes of hate and Polynesia, but is overwhelming and happening in Melanesian and Micronesian countries. Out of the 130 countries who need to endorse this joint statement, 22 Pacific island countries and territories make up part of this voting number, which is a huge number for one region. Note that India gets one vote but have 1 billion people. [00:09:30] So the importance of our 22 votes must have some cultural reference in order for endorsements to happen. Here is another example. I love the vision and the statement of the out games. It states for all people, whatever their sexual orientation, sex or gender identity, to live in inclusive societies with equal access to the resources and services that will ensure the physical, psychological and [00:10:00] spiritual well-being of themselves and their families, to to fully participate in the economic, social, cultural and political development of their society, and also to enjoy equal protection under the laws from discrimination and violence. I was able to come to this conference because of the cultural and spiritual reference and because that there is a place at the out games here for US specific peoples [00:10:30] 0.2. The inclusion of our culturally appropriate identity identity terms. How hard is it to understand that in each of these countries, there is an official language and a and an official term for each of us? That's 22 ways to say who we are. If you want our vote on an international forum, learn 22 words. Here's a quick demonic I've made up to help you remember. And in the spirit, of course, of the games. And that is MVPFMVP [00:11:00] FA FFM for in Tahiti in Hawaii, V for in Fiji, P for Papa in Papua New Guinea for in Samoa, in American Samoa. A for a in the Cook Islands, the second F for or in the Kingdom of Tonga, third F for in of the 22 Pacific island countries and territories [00:11:30] in the Pacific region. To even incorporate all the abbreviated, abbreviated terms, it would look something like the alphabet. Uh, but how wonderful. Also, as an example, that a Caucasian project officer from some entity, um maybe in Australia Sorry in Australia would be in Fiji, for example, for one month and talk to and address them as such to then pop over to Tahiti and speak to the and address them [00:12:00] as and then the report back to the entity. Make no mention of LGBTI, but to the culturally appropriate term. Imagine what would happen. Their superiors would instantly request a briefing of the cultural significance of this new terminology. And along the way, that entity might learn that the only way to break into the conclave of the MVP thefts of the Pacific and have meaningful dialogue is just to save the word the right [00:12:30] word. Imagine the pride in our faces as they speak to us in a term that we understand we should bend over backwards, pardon the pun, to assist such a person and show them the inner workings of our culture. And our place here is to hope. Where to in the future? [00:13:00] How do we in the Pacific raise our rainbow flag? We need you to incorporate our traditional terms into your LGBTI terminology. Who cares if it reads LGBTI MVP, FA, FF and so on? As Marilyn Waring said in her key note earlier this week, don't be afraid. Use what you have to use and we want you to use our traditional terms. She also stated that the umbrella abbreviation of [00:13:30] LGBTI movement can also jeopardise other movements. It could jeopardise ours. I would also like to reiterate the sentiments of thanks to the Kingdom of the Netherlands for again allowing the Pacific to have a voice here during this conference. It allows for us to seek more advice from key people at these events. It also allows us to be more in tune with the international networks and issues, and it gives us proper representation. [00:14:00] This is the first time in history we have had the presence and heard the voices from our sisters from American Samoa, and I am so humbled by their presence. Thanks to the Kingdom of the Netherlands, it has uplifted us to feel more included in the Asia Pacific region by being at the Out games conference. But my only pet peeve about the out um, the Asia Pacific Out Games conference is I haven't seen or known of any Pacific representative. [00:14:30] So maybe that is something Barry for you to put into your reports, Please, because we'd love to see it or have someone from the Pacific be involved at that at that level. Um, And in saying that this is where I stand strong and make this bold statement if your regional board network or entity use the Asia Pacific name if there is no Pacific representation from Pacific peoples, then take out the Pacific context or be more specific about what part of the Pacific Ocean you represent, [00:15:00] whether it be the Pacific Rim or of Pacific Peoples. Thank you very much. [00:15:30] [00:16:00] [00:16:30] Yeah. Felicia, thank you. [00:17:00] I think there will not be another Asia Pacific out games. That will be the same after that contribution.
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