Editor,

In his letter of December 18, 2006 Venisi Uata is appearing to be making attempts to distract public attention from the main issue in the "Black Thursday." The main issue is whether or not "Black Thursday" was caused by the Democratic Movement and its leaders. To do this, Uata set out to complicate it by blaming another group of people, the Tongans overseas. I think most Tongans overseas and at home know that the Democratic Movement and its leaders are to be blamed for the "Black Thursday." To blame Tongans overseas is unfair, offensive, defamatory, and misleading to the readers of his letter.



Uata is blaming us overseas for the "Black Thursday" in Tonga. This is ridiculous because we are thousands of miles away from the "Black Thursday" and its causes. Uata should blame the other two Uatas who were in or in the proximity of the " Black Thursday " on November 16. We made our decisions to leave Tonga thirty to fourty years ago. To blame us today for something that we didn't have any control of thirty to fourty years ago is totally absurd. Uata might as well blame the whole world for what has happened in Tonga.



Venisi Uata, to be frank with you; I don't have my primary responsibility in Tonga. My primary responsibility is here in the United States. I have a sacred resposibility to provide and protect my family. I have to do what's in the best interests of my family first. Probably you are doing the same thing today too. I believe that providing and protecting our families are more important to us to remain in the United States. There are many educated and competent people to take care of things in Tonga.

All Tonga needs is for us overseas to send them financial and other forms of aid. We would be selfish to our families to return with them to Tonga where they will face all kinds of hardships. This is not fair and it is gainst the Will of God which delegates to us parents the duties and responsibilities to provide, protect, and nuture His children.



I think Uata should give up his attempts to remove the blame from the Democrats and their leaders because it won't work. I don't think he could be able to appease the people of Tonga today. The people do not have to be educated in an online university to understand what is right or wrong. Double-talking and contradictions in verbal and written expressions are misrepresentations that are frankly dangerous and not helping to improve things. To blame the Tongans verseas for the "Black Thursday" really has no merits and is simply ridiculous. Perhaps this is a good chance for Uata to return to Tonga and help to prevent or facilitate another trashings and torchings of the capital or another village in the near future. In respect to the Freedom of Speech and Expression, Uata shouldn't have written his letter at all; there were so many words expressed, but I didn't learn anything from it. It simply didn't make any sense. The Tongans overseas need an apology from Venisi Uata for putting them in a wrong light.



Yours sincerely,



Siosaia Fatani.

sstuakoi [at] yahoo [dot] com