Fiji must follow England’s lead and implement a total ban on internet pornography to combat a disturbing rise in incest and domestic sexual offences, local police and community members urge.
The call to action was raised during a recent community consultation in Nasoso, Nadi, where residents and law enforcement noted that strict UK-style internet filtering could help protect vulnerable children inside Fijian homes.
“There are a lot of pilots in Nasoso, and one of the pilots suggested that if England blocked watching of pornographic movies, then why can’t we?” said Sergeant Semi Meru of the Namaka Police Station.
“The pilot was sharing that in England, if you go to Google, and if you start to search pornography, it is totally blocked.”
The push for tighter internet controls comes amid alarming new data. Mid-year statistics released by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions revealed 37 rape or sexual assault incidents involving relatives or people in domestic relationships between January and June.
Among these cases were seven involving the sexual abuse of stepchildren.
In another horrific incident in June, a 56-year-old man was charged with raping his 13-year-old biological daughter.
Sgt Meru stated that the increase in father-daughter sexual offences is directly linked to increased exposure to explicit online content.
He warned that easy access to pornography distorts behaviour within the household, leading to opportunistic and devastating abuse against children.
“If a father rapes his own daughter, then we know maybe the father was watching it,” Sgt Meru explained.
He said Fiji may be a small nation but the rise of sexual offences within families was a major crisis that requires immediate, nationwide intervention.
