Minister for Women, Children and Social Protection Sashi Kiran has urged members of Parliament to lead by example and uniformly condemn attacks on places of worship, saying selective outrage from some Opposition MPs risks undermining interfaith harmony and social cohesion. Kiran made the remarks during a heated exchange in the House, calling on politicians to avoid politicising or framing such incidents as ethnically or religiously motivated crimes.
“MPs must set an example through the discourse and debate,” Kiran told Parliament. “Desecration of any religious space is not acceptable and must be denounced in the strongest terms.” She warned that inconsistent responses from elected representatives fuel division at a time when communities are already distressed by a string of break-ins and sacrilege across the country.
Kiran specifically singled out Opposition MP Virendra Lal, accusing him of taking a selective approach when commenting on a recent break-in at a temple in Tavua. Lal had earlier raised concerns about sacrilege at places of worship, saying such acts “must be taken seriously and dealt with firmly by authorities to protect social harmony and respect between communities.” Kiran said that rhetoric should be consistent and applied to all incidents affecting faith communities, not used selectively for political gain.
Detailing the scale of the problem, Kiran listed a series of recent incidents affecting temples, mosques and churches nationwide. She pointed to repeated break-ins at temples in Ba and Nausori, reported attacks at the country’s oldest mosque in Navua, and incidents at Masjid Muhammadi Mulomulo, Wanadoi Markas and Maururu Mosque in Ba. She also highlighted Kinoya AOG Church, which has been broken into multiple times this year, and the March 2026 desecration at Mount St Mary’s Church and School in Namaka where sacred items were stolen.
The minister’s intervention is the latest development in a story that has drawn community alarm and calls for calm from religious and civic leaders. While the police have been notified and investigations are understood to be ongoing in several of the cases, Kiran emphasised the political class has a particular responsibility to foster unity rather than inflame tensions.
By raising the issue in Parliament, Kiran framed the break-ins not solely as criminal matters but as threats to social cohesion that require consistent political leadership. She warned that selective condemnation by Opposition MPs would “risk undermining national efforts toward interfaith harmony and social cohesion,” urging all parliamentarians to publicly denounce any attack on religious spaces regardless of community or location.
No new policing or legal measures were announced in Parliament during Kiran’s comments. The minister’s appeal, however, places renewed pressure on MPs to adopt a unified stance as investigations continue into the series of break-ins and desecrations that have unsettled communities across Fiji.