Urbanisation and the breakdown of traditional community and extended family structures in Fiji appeared to increase children’s vulnerability to commercial sexual exploitation, states the US Department of State Country Reports on Human Rights Practices in 2023 released this week.
The report states child sex trafficking continued in Fiji.
“It was a criminal offence for any person to buy or hire a child younger than age 18 for sex, commercial sex, or other unlawful purposes; these offences were punishable by a maximum of 12 years’ imprisonment,” states the report.
“There were reports of child trafficking for commercial sexual exploitation and prosecutions took place during the year.
“Traffickers exploited some high school-age children and homeless and jobless youth in sex trafficking, and there were reports of child sex tourism in tourist centres, such as Nadi and Savusavu.
“Child sex trafficking was perpetrated by family members, taxi drivers, foreign tourists, businessmen, and crew members on foreign fishing vessels.”
The report states production, but not possession or consumption, of child pornography was illegal.
“Authorities generally enforced the law against production of child pornography.”
