Statement

Crimes against women and children perpetrated by family members continues to be of great concern.

While the Fiji Police Force is stepping up on its operations on property offences such as aggravated robberies, theft and burglaries, crimes against women and children committed within domestic settings remains a major worry.

While the overall crime rate for the month of June had recorded a 11?crease, as well as the reduction in crimes against women and children, we are still very concerned with the fact the two crimes are being committed by persons in positions of trust within a family setting.

Of the 94 child victims, 68 were girls and 26 boys.

Out of the 94 cases, 76% were perpetrated by male family members in domestic settings.

Also of particular concern is the fact that there were 24 incidents involving multiple counts of sexual-related crimes, including rape, indecent assault and sexual assault.

All of the victims in these cases were under the age of 18.

Of the 177 women victims, the most prevalent age group of the victims were from 18 to 38 years, with 43 cases domestic related.

Furthermore, 74% of offences are assault-related with assault causing actual bodily harm, being the most common form of victim abuse.

The Fiji Police Force is at the receiving end of these reports, which is why we are prioritizing community policing efforts and continuously reaching out to stakeholders through the vanua, religion and civil society groups to assist us in addressing these heinous crimes which are occuring within domestic settings.