Is It Really Fale Pili? Tuvaluan Diaspora Dissatisfied with Tuvalu Government’s Consultation on Falepili Union Treaty

Image: Tuvalu Brisbane community foodbank - Provided by author

The Australia-Tuvalu Falepili Union Treaty was signed on 9 November 2023 and entered into force on 28 August 2024. A multi-faceted agreement covering issues such as security and climate change adaptation, one aspect of the treaty is a new migration pathway for 280 Tuvaluans to move to Australia per year.  The treaty has received significant media, policy and research interest around the world for its pioneering approach to providing an international migration pathway for a climate-affected population. Tuvalu faces significant climate change impacts including sea level rise, but is not (contrary to popular belief) seeking to relocate its population. Rather, international migration opportunities are pursued for their contribution to economic development and in turn, climate resilience. Each year, 280 Tuvaluan people now have an additional migration pathway through which to pursue economic and education opportunities abroad, and can move to Australia long-term if they wish.

While the Australian and Tuvalu governments have been highly visible in the negotiation of the Falepili Union Treaty, the lack of consultation with Tuvaluan people in both Australia and Tuvalu before the treaty was signed was widely criticized.

The Australian government has, as part of the ratification and implementation of the treaty, been engaged in consultation with the Tuvaluan diaspora in Australia. It is recognised that key to the success of this migration pathway will be the existing Tuvaluan diaspora in Australia, which numbers only a few hundred. When Tuvaluan people migrate to Australia, New Zealand or elsewhere in the world, on arrival they typically stay with family members who are already there. These family members provide housing, advice, and any other support needed while new arrivals get established. Sometimes this care can take the form of providing housing or other financial support for months or years. New arrivals from Tuvalu to Australia will expect to be looked after in this way. The Tuvaluan community in Australia is highly willing to do what they can to provide housing and other support to new arrivals. However, Tuvaluans in Australia feel there has been insufficient discussion with the Tuvaluan government about these issues, particularly the financial burden on Tuvaluans in Australia who are already feeling the pinch from the rising cost of living, especially food and housing.

So, is this really fale pili?  As all Tuvaluans know, fale pili means your neighbour and, importantly, looking after your neighbour as if they are your own family.  The Falepili Union Treaty in its implementation should reflect the concept of fale pili – of being a good neighbour, of being inclusive especially ensuring that everyone has a fair understanding of the risks and opportunities of migration to Australia.  The Tuvalu diaspora communities in Australia are central to the success of the migration pathway: they are at ground zero.

I write this as a member of the Tuvalu Brisbane community in Australia, who has been present at consultations held with us by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), as well as the one visit to our community by the Tuvaluan Prime Minister, which was more symbolic than substantive in comparison with the depth of discussions with DFAT. 

The Tuvaluan government seems to be leaving DFAT to do the work on implementation of the new migration pathway. But Tuvaluan people already living in Australia, many of whom are dual Tuvaluan and Australian citizens, mostly believe that both governments should be holding detailed consultations with diaspora. Tuvaluans in Australia were not consulted at all by the Tuvaluan or Australian governments before the treaty was signed, and now that it is entering into force, they are still not sure the Tuvaluan government is aware of their concerns or listening to their ideas. The first and only visit by the Tuvaluan Prime Minister had insufficient time for detailed consultation. Most of the event was spent on the important feast to welcome the PM, with insufficient time for substantive discussion. Many Tuvaluan community members who wanted to ask questions missed out. For example, some had questions about the establishment of the Tuvaluan embassy in Australia which were not aired. A follow-up consultation by Tuvaluan government staff was clearly needed and yet has not been scheduled, nor has there been any other line of communication opened for diaspora to communicate with the Tuvaluan government. Diaspora are not being informed of the Tuvalu government’s detailed plans for implementation of the new migration pathway. The Tuvalu Brisbane community, for example, has many issues to discuss with the Tuvalu government, particularly on the contribution that the Tuvalu government is planning to make to the diaspora in Australia to mitigate impacts from potentially large numbers of new arrivals from Tuvalu.

A key concern for the diaspora is the lack of sufficient, affordable housing and the lack of a community falekaupule (meeting hall). Even if the new migrants secure jobs, they must still secure housing, which is extremely difficult for new migrants in the current rental crisis in Australia, with little available that is affordable for people with no rental history and references. So, Tuvaluan families already in Australia are bracing for a large influx of people from Tuvalu who will need to be accommodated for long periods within their own homes. If there was a community meeting hall, this could serve as short-term accommodation for new arrivals. And while either being housed in the meeting hall or with Tuvaluan families in their homes is culturally appropriate and Tuvaluans are willing to support newcomers in this way, there are still barriers to the Tuvaluan diaspora providing these services. First, the existing meeting halls are too small to house people. Second, the majority of the Tuvalu diaspora in Australia live in rental housing, and their rental contracts generally do not allow extra people, so in many cases a desire to house new arrivals will not be possible unless these contract conditions are somehow eased. While these issues were raised with the Tuvalu Prime Minister during his visit, there has been no follow-up. It is possible that the Tuvalu government is planning to negotiate with the Australian government on housing and the meeting hall issue, but there has been no communication with the Tuvaluan diaspora if this is the case.

Another priority issue for the Tuvaluan community in Brisbane is food security. The Tuvalu community has been running a food bank since the pandemic, which offers free and low-cost food items. The food bank is regularly accessed by many Tuvaluan families in the Brisbane area. It is open not just to Tuvaluan people but anyone in need, including migrants from other countries. Given this clear indication of existing food insecurity, solutions such as food vouchers and utilities vouchers, which have been discussed with DFAT, will be imperative in ensuring new arrivals do not place a too-heavy financial burden on existing diaspora families. The Tuvalu Brisbane community would like to discuss food security solutions with the Tuvalu government.

It is especially concerning to the Tuvalu Brisbane community that the new migration pathway may be open as early as mid-2025, which may be an insufficient timeframe for issues like food and housing security to be addressed. If new migrants from Tuvalu cannot afford food and housing, remittances are likely to be low. New migrants may find themselves even more vulnerable than they were in Tuvalu, with some environmental risks possibly reduced but with new environmental risks to be faced, such as bushfires and river floods, and higher socio-economic risks, such as homelessness. The Tuvalu government must not leave these issues entirely up to the Australian government and the Tuvalu diaspora, but must be an equal partner in working through solutions.  

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Tuvalu Prime Minister meets with Tuvalu diaspora to discuss the new Falepili Union Treaty (3-minute read)

Taukiei Kitara is from Tuvalu, and lives in Queensland, Australia. He completed his Masters of Global Development from Griffith University and is an Adjunct Research Fellow at the Griffith Centre for Social and Cultural Research, Griffith University, Australia. He was the President of the Brisbane Tuvalu Community from 2019-2022 and a council member for the Pacific Island Council for Queensland (PICQ).