The Anti-Pornography Taskforce, established by the Cabinet in February, will meet early next month to discuss the possibility of blocking access to pornography websites across the nation. This initiative follows concerning statistics from the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP), which reported a significant increase in sexual assaults against minors.
Lynda Tabuya, co-chairperson of the taskforce and Minister for Women, Children, and Social Protection, voiced deep worries about the rising prevalence of sexual offenses, especially those committed against minors by family members. She emphasized the critical need to tackle this issue given the wider accessibility to the internet through modern technology.
“With internet access reaching even the most secluded areas, it is crucial that we utilize it responsibly to shield Fiji’s children from its detrimental effects,” she stated. Recent statistics from the ODPP revealed that out of 16 individuals charged in the last month with 63 counts of sexual offenses, 12 were minors. The troubling figures included incidents where victims were assaulted by their relatives, such as a 15-year-old accused of raping a 12-year-old cousin and a 65-year-old man charged with sexually assaulting his six-year-old granddaughter.
Ms. Tabuya highlighted that 90 percent of the offenders were family members, indicating an urgent need for government intervention to address these matters. She criticized the easy access to pornography and its role in family dysfunction and abuse. “It is the government’s duty to formulate laws and policies to combat this issue and safeguard our children,” she asserted.
The upcoming taskforce will include representatives from various government ministries, the Cybercrime Unit, the Fiji Police Force, the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Online Safety Commission, and specialists in human sexuality and mental health. Opposition members and community leaders are also expected to be involved in this initiative.
Corporal Unaisi Mateiwai from the Fiji Police Force’s Sexual Offense and Child Abuse Unit noted that some child sexual assault cases were linked to unsupervised access to explicit content on mobile phones. She mentioned a case where a five-year-old boy assaulted his three-year-old sibling after being allowed to view explicit videos on a grandmother’s phone. This crisis underlines the necessity for increased parental vigilance and responsible internet usage.
The taskforce’s mission is to address these pressing concerns and devise effective strategies to protect the children of Fiji.