Fiji Latter-day Saint woman Sulu Kama addressed over 200 delegates at the 12th Triennial Conference of Pacific Women held in the Cook Islands recently.
Mrs Kama is married to Jese Kama and the mother of two boys. She is a teacher and trainer by profession.
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She is also a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and participates in her local Mormon congregation’s Relief Society (women’s) organization.
The theme of the Cook Islands conference was “Celebrating our Progress, Shaping our World.”
The four day conference is held every three years to track and report on the achievements and challenges faced by women and girls in the 25 member countries and territories in the Pacific region.
Mrs Kama, a member of the conference’s Drafting Committee, helped to prepare the final outcomes document which was presented to government leaders attending a parallel event, the Fifth Pacific Ministers for Women Meeting.
Mrs Kama said “the conference acknowledged diverse forms of discrimination and struggles that women experience. Hence the recommendations in the outcomes document target the advancement of all women, including young women and girls, women living with disability and those living in remote areas.”
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints supports the advancement of all Pacific Islanders — including women and girls — through various humanitarian, self-reliance and education initiatives.
Latter-day Saint Apostle, Elder D. Todd Christofferson, spoke on the positive influence of women at the Church’s October 2013 General Conference.
“From age immemorial, societies have relied on the moral force of women. While certainly not the only positive influence at work in society, the moral foundation provided by women has proved uniquely beneficial to the common good. Perhaps, because it is pervasive, this contribution of women is often underappreciated.”
He added: “My plea to women and girls today is to protect and cultivate the moral force that is within you. Preserve that innate virtue and the unique gifts you bring with you into the world. Your intuition is to do good and to be good, and as you follow the Holy Spirit, your moral authority and influence will grow.”
Former president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gordon B. Hinckley (1910-2008), said this of women and girls in 2004: “How thankful I am, how thankful we all must be, for the women in our lives. God bless them. May His great love distill upon them and crown them with luster and beauty, grace and faith. And may His Spirit distill upon us as men and lead us ever to hold them in respect, in gratitude, giving encouragement, strength, nurture, and love, which is the very essence of the gospel of our Redeemer and Lord.”