"Shinem yaar"

Every morning, a familiar sight in front of Dolphin Plaza are sturdy young men with black grease marking their hands, alongwith cheese cloth calling out "shine". Where, once I used to be irate as they would haggle and hassle me for a "shine", I have since changed how I see them. They are earning a decent living and doing the best that they can of their respective situations. A dollar for a shine. Imagine if Suva City Council "SCC" were to give out licences at affordable prices and that booths (professional booths) were set up to allow them to polish shoes to their hearts content. A chap, I met at an Embassy function last year once suggested that cycling should be encouraged in Suva and that it would help reduce parking space, apart from producing a fitter and healthier community, well at least to cyclists. How do we help the majority of our young people who have taken to the streets, what kind of systems do we need to design to cater for them and to ensure that we get the best out of them and for them? I am not even sure, if I am asking the right question. What are the right questions?

1. Why are these young men on the streets [What are the causes?] ?
2. How do we curb this problem?
3. How do we make the best out of the situation?
   

Man on the Street

The other night, not too long ago, I stepped out of my home, I live in the heart of Suva and I saw this Fijian man sweeping the streets in the silence of the night and I thought to myself how the nation is filled with hundreds of men and women who silently contribute to building the nation, many of whom will never be seen, who will never receive standing ovations but whose invaluable contribution to society weaves a tapestry so tight that in it the dreams and destinies of a nation rests.

This man, probably has a family and takes home his meagre earnings, puts his children through school, trains and builds his family. He probably has a dog called "Rambo" or not. He swept the streets, so diligently, that my heart swelled when I saw the robust effort that he put into his work.