Society for Orphaned Armenian Relief (SOAR) Fiji Chapter

Fiji joined the SOAR family in April 2024. The first inhabitants of Fiji came from Melanesia, who arrived 3,500 years ago and established a hierarchal society based on clans. At that time, most of the population lived in the southeast of the main island, Viti Levu. Although Europeans first passed by the Fijian Islands in 1643, it was not until 1792 that English Captain William Blough set foot in the region. Other European states quickly sought commercial interest in the islands, attracted by the fertile space that was primed for cotton plantations. In 1966, the British introduced a new constitution that protected Fijian land rights, gave Fijian chiefs a veto in political matters, and introduced an electoral system in which voters were classified according to their ethnicity. A few years later, in 1970, Fiji became a fully sovereign and independent nation. Diplomatic relations between Armenia and Republic of the Fiji Islands were established on June 7, 2010.