A total of 3264 women sought counselling services from the Fiji Women’s Crisis Centre between January and August this year, with 2611 cases involving domestic violence.
Presenting the figures at the Interfaith Search Fiji workshop on enhancing cooperation to tackle social problems, Miliana Tarai, speaking on behalf of centre coordinator Shamima Ali, said domestic violence was the most common issue reported by women seeking assistance.
She warned that violence against women and girls cannot be eliminated without confronting the attitudes and power structures that allow it to continue.
Ms Tarai said the centre’s programs and prevention strategies were based on the understanding that patriarchy was the root cause of violence against women and girls.
“The root cause of violence against women and girls is patriarchy,” she said.
She said tradition, culture and religion could reinforce patriarchal attitudes, particularly when religious scriptures were misinterpreted to justify unequal treatment and male dominance.
“Oftentimes it is reinforced or driven by such as tradition, culture and religion as well, the misinterpretation of certain scriptures to continue perpetuating that patriarchy.”
She stressed that organisations working to prevent violence needed to share a common understanding of its causes rather than operate independently.
“We cannot be working side-by-side, but we have to be on the same page.”
She said addressing violence required more than responding to individual cases, stressing that prevention efforts must also challenge the attitudes and beliefs that allow abuse to persist.
