A Fijian soldier in the British Army shocked bystanders yesterday when he sat down on the ground in front of Queen Elizabeth II, only moments after speaking to monarch.
Sgt Rusiate Bolavucu, 32, representing the Burma Company, part of the 1st Battalion Duke of Lancaster Regiment met the Queen during her royal tour of Kendal, Cumbria yesterday, The Telegraph reports.
Footage of the incident shows the sergeant sit down cross-legged after a brief exchange with the British monarch, who appears to look down at him in bewilderment.
The solider then removes his hat and applauds the monarch before putting his hat back on and standing up.
The gesture may have appeared to be a slight against the Queen but the act was a demonstration of the Fijian custom of sitting before members of royalty to "show respect".
"The Queen has been to Fiji so she knows about it and she had asked me where I was from, so she smiled when she saw what I was doing," Sgt Bolavucu said.
The sergeant was one of many soldiers from the 1st Battalion who had recently returned from Afghanistan and had the chance to share a few words with Her Majesty.
http://www.information.myanmaronlinecentre.com/soldier-sits-down-in-front-of-queen/
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