Shania Shayal Prasad 
Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre highlights a disturbing trend in child sexual abuse cases, revealing that most perpetrators are relatives often patriarchs of the family, and that many cases go unreported.
In 2023 alone, the FWCC has provided counseling to over 150 victims of child rape, child sexual abuse, and various forms of physical, verbal, and emotional abuse.
FWCC Coordinator Shamima Ali stresses the importance of addressing the root causes and societal attitudes that allow such abuses to continue unchecked.
“So then the pressure to report, not to report, becomes greater on anyone who wants to report that kind of thing. So that is the trend, and that trend, even if you look at the ODPP stats every month that they take up, it proves what we have been saying for years, that who are the perpetrators.”
Ali adds these victims include both girls and boys, with some cases involving children as 18 months old.
“The perpetrators are known, they are fathers, they are biological fathers, stepfathers, uncles, and everybody else.”
FWCC Counselor Supervisor Elina Cagilaba is calling for more advocacy on this matter.
“I believe it should be there, out in the public, apart from, you know, these public campaigns or these advertisements that we do about trying to stop violence or advocating against violence.”
FWCC emphasizes the need for prioritizing the safety and wellbeing of children over family secrets and societal taboos.
