A collective effort is needed to eliminate all forms of sexual and gender-based violence against women and girls, both in the public and private sphere, and including intimate partner violence, says Fiji Women’s Rights Movement (FWRM) chief executive officer Nalini Singh.
She made the statement while responding to an article in The Fiji Times which said a high number of children were being sexually abused by spouses and partners of women who were battling cancer.
The article also noted the increase in the number of men who left their homes and families while their wives or partners battled cancer.
Ms Singh said FWRM was not surprised by these alleged cases as sexual violence was a pandemic of its own, where the majority of victim survivors were women and girls, and the perpetrators were men and boys.
“The high rate of violence against women and girls still continues.
“In the alleged cases reported by Fiji Cancer Society, it starts with recognising all forms of sexual and gender-based violence as a violation of human rights and a barrier to gender equality and women and girls’ participation in society, the economy and decision-making spaces.
“It is important to address the underlying root causes of sexual gender-based violence, which includes discriminatory gender norms, and historical and structural inequalities in power relationships, multidimensional poverty, marginalisation and social exclusion.”
She said FWRM conducted annual rape case analysis every year since 2016, which showed the reality of what happened to rape cases (highest sexual offence in Fiji) in Fijian courts.
“The analysis provides ongoing insight into what challenges and gaps there might be in the execution of administering justice to women, especially victims and survivors of sexual violence of which women and girls make up the majority in Fiji.
Ms Nalini added there was a need for more professional development of service providers with sexual and reproductive health awareness, to change the perceptions of women as just baby factories but to also recognise them as human beings.
