Bernadette Ganilau

Rose Lavenia Bernadette Rounds Ganilau, born July 5, 1951, as Lavenia Bernadette Rounds, is a Fijian writer, broadcaster,^[1] and politician, who served as Minister for Labour, Minister for Tourism, Industrial Relations, Productivity and Environment in the interim Cabinet of Commodore Frank Bainimarama, having been appointed on 9 January 2007.^[2] In previous political roles, she served in 2000 and 2001 in the Interim Government of Prime Minister Laisenia Qarase as Assistant Minister for Social Welfare, and from June to December 2006, she was Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Chairperson of the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives, until the military coup of 5 December.

Long a political activist, Ganilau's causes included women's rights and human rights in general,^[1] and has served as President of Women Entrepreneurs Fiji.^[3] She spent much of mid-to-late 2005 campaigning against the government's controversial Reconciliation, Tolerance, and Unity Bill,^[4] which proposes to establish a Commission with the power to compensate victims and pardon perpetrators of the Fiji coup of 2000. On 13 July 2005, she described the bill as one that would encourage hatred and violence rather than tolerance and accommodation.^[4]