Sashi Kiran, the Assistant Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection, expressed that the statistics regarding child sexual abuse in Fiji should evoke shame for the nation. Her comments were made during her end-of-week statement in Parliament on Friday.
Kiran shared alarming data collected from the Fiji Police Force, covering incidents of child sexual abuse reported from 2021 to mid-2024. In 2021, there were 729 recorded cases, which rose to 1,034 in 2022 but saw a decrease to 844 in 2023. However, the first half of 2024 has already reported 324 cases.
She highlighted that rape remains the most frequent offense against children in Fiji. A detailed look at this year’s statistics reveals that out of the 324 cases reported, 215 involved children aged 13 to 17, 94 cases involved children aged 6 to 12, and 15 involved infants aged 0 to 5 years. Specifically, there were 104 reported cases of rape, 71 of indecent assault, and 60 of sexual assault. The majority of victims, totaling 297, were female.
Although there appears to be a downward trend in the numbers, Kiran emphasized that these statistics do not fully capture the issue. She described them as a call for reflection and action for the nation. The Assistant Minister urged all Fijians to confront the troubling reality of child sexual abuse and domestic violence, indicating that the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions regularly releases shocking statistics that reveal ongoing failures to protect children.
Kiran mentioned that the average age of the youngest victim of child sexual abuse in the past six years is just two years old, with the youngest victim being only six months old. According to UNICEF data, five out of every six children in Fiji experience abuse or neglect within their families. She called for serious attention to these issues, stressing their critical importance.