Fiji Women’s Crisis Center Coordinator Shamima Ali [left] and Acting Commissioner of Police Juki Fong Chew

Acting Police Commissioner Juki Fong Chew says the Fiji Police Force strongly refutes claims made by Fiji Women’s Crisis Center Coordinator Shamima Ali over the handling of domestic violence cases, citing a recent incident in Malolo, Nadi.

During a press conference yesterday, Ali made reference to media articles stating that an eyewitness, whose brother-in-law was in custody for domestic violence, claimed he was released by police the day after his arrest.

Ali claimed that despite a Domestic Violence Restraining Order, the police advised the woman to share a house with the man, but to stay in separate bedrooms.

Ali went on to criticize the way Police handled the case, and claimed that such negligence had led to preventable harm in the past.

The Acting Police Commissioner said Ali’s comments were riddled with false information and solely aimed at discrediting the Force.

He said the Force has never shied away from taking responsibility when officers have failed to conduct their duties in accordance with the law, as they strove to ensure professionalism across all facets of their work.

He said Ali’s assertion of inaction or poor handling of the case in Nadi could not go unchallenged as it was malicious in its intent to discredit the organization.

Fong Chew said while the organisation sympathised with the tragic deaths of the two victims, the truth behind what transpired must be released to reassure Fijians that the “No Drop Policy” remained strictly enforced, and any breach by officers would result in disciplinary action.

He laid out in chronological order the handling of the case referred to by Ali.

Fong Chew said on January 8, Nadi Police responded quickly to a call from a victim who reported that her husband had threatened her.
The husband was arrested within five minutes and charged with criminal intimidation under the Crimes Act 2009.

He was kept in custody and appeared in court the following day, where the victim stated that they had reconciled and assured the court that she was safe.

The court granted the suspect bail and imposed a Domestic Violence Restraining Order, allowing him to return home with the victim.

Fong Chew said no breaches of the DVRO were reported until a neighbor alerted the police to the tragic deaths of the victims.

The acting COMPOL said the Force would continue to stand firm on the “No Drop Policy” for all domestic cases, and assured the public that no exceptions were made when a officer was a suspect, as all cases were investigated equally – as they would any other citizen.

He also appealed to NGOs and civil society organisations to refer all domestic violence cases to the police for the law to take its course.

He further appealed for community members to follow proper channels and report against police conduct and services through their Internal Affairs Unit.

Fong Chew added the training on the handling of domestic violence cases was done not only at the Fiji Police Academy, but at the Divisional level and facilitated by various national, regional and international stakeholders as well as the FWCC.

He urged Ali to reach out to any of their senior command or Divisional managers to address issues of non-compliance should they receive complaints so that the matter could be addressed immediately, as these were issues that could not and should not wait for a meeting, press release or press conference to be addressed.